Print companies that order a medium-format Rapida sheetfed offset press today, along with all those that placed such an order in the recent past, can look forward to receiving press-specific operating instructions and maintenance information as part of their machine documentation. Koenig & Bauer has created a unique feature in the machine and plant manufacturing sector. Industry experts are unanimous that a project like this is conceptually the highest level of documentation.
A typical user manual whether for a motor vehicle or any other complex product, describes all available configuration variants. And that frequently means several alternatives with different equipment features and automation levels for one and the same subassembly. Many of the details provided are redundant and it can be a time-consuming task for users to filter out the information that applies to their particular machine.
Today, however, the operating instructions and maintenance information for Rapida presses are compiled in an automated process that allows individual customization to a single machine. This gives customers fast access to the specific subset of information that is relevant for them. The benefits are manifold, as the user manuals are much easier to work with. Searches for the information that is really required are faster and more systematic. That boosts operator confidence and avoids mistakes. The same applies to maintenance information. In this case too, users can concentrate on those processes that are actually necessary for their machine.
The basic concept is to create modular operating and maintenance instructions in accordance with the bill of materials for a given machine.
The idea of BOM-driven operating instructions was first floated a number of years ago in conjunction with the introduction of a new content management system. Thanks to a very good upstream process, each machine has been described in precise detail in an XML file. The key was then to import this file into the content management system for use as a filter. 2020 saw the series launch of a BOM-driven maintenance manager, as the first step on the road to BOM-driven user documentation.
Manuals for further machines in the pipeline
Early positive experiences led to the start signal being given for BOM-driven operating instructions for the first sheetfed offset press. The new manuals for the medium-format Rapidas were launched successfully in 2022. Since then, Koenig & Bauer’s documentation specialists have been working step by step on publishing BOM-driven operating instructions for all remaining machines.
