What is Process Documentation?
Process Documentation refers to the structured description and continuous recording of manufacturing processes, including:
- Work steps and sequence
- Machines, resources, and tools
- Process parameters (e.g., torque, temperature, cycle times)
- Quality characteristics and inspection criteria
- Roles and responsibilities
In digital contexts, this documentation migrates from Word/Visio/Excel into MES-supported models that not only describe processes but actively control and analyze them.
Process Data Analysis: From Documentation to Facts
Traditional process documentation is static. MES-based process data analysis makes it dynamic:
- Machine and process data are automatically captured
- Data is linked to orders, products, variants, and shifts
- KPIs like OEE, First Pass Yield, scrap rate, and throughput time provide a factual process picture
This creates a continuous improvement loop:
- Model the process in the MES (workflow, parameters, inspections)
- Run live data against the model
- Identify deviations, bottlenecks, and loss drivers
- Adjust process design and measure impact on KPIs
Process Documentation becomes the operational foundation for process data analysis.
Process Design & the Process Owner Role
Process design defines how a process should ideally run:
- Step sequence
- Acceptable parameter ranges
- Inspection and approval points
- Escalation paths and rework procedures
The Process Owner:
- Defines and maintains the process model in the MES
- Establishes KPIs and control limits
- Evaluates process performance based on data
- Initiates continuous improvement actions (e.g., setup optimization, quality checks, automation)
Without a clear Process Owner, process documentation becomes just "filing." With clear ownership, it becomes a control foundation.
Benefits of MES-Based Process Documentation
MES-supported process documentation and process data analysis offer:
- Transparency: Every process is technically and economically described—backed by real data
- Comparability: Lines, plants, and variants can be objectively compared (OEE, scrap, cycle times) based on the same process model
- Compliance & Traceability: It's traceable which process with which parameters was valid for which lot/serial number
- Faster Process Design: Changes (new variant, new customer) are implemented in the MES model and immediately effective on the shop floor
Process Documentation with Cloud MES (e.g., SYMESTIC)
A Cloud MES like SYMESTIC connects process documentation directly with:
- Real-time process data (machines, tests, manual feedback)
- KPI layers (OEE, FPY, scrap, throughput times)
- Digital workflows (non-conformance handling, escalations, inspection plans)
This transforms process documentation into an MES-based process analysis tool:
- Process Owners model and modify processes centrally
- The shop floor operates according to these digital specifications
- Data from reality continuously shows where process design and actual execution diverge—and where optimization has the greatest impact