Process Activities (Concurrent Operations)#

Overview#

This feature introduces the concept of Process Activities: multiple operations that can be executed in parallel on the same material, each with its own checklist, BOM, and data collection. These activities are not restricted to a single Step and can span across multiple MES Steps, giving more flexibility in how processes are modeled and executed.

Business Context#

In the assembly of large-scale equipment, it's common to have multiple operations happening in parallel - for example, while one employee mounts the front panels, another may be connecting internal wiring on the opposite side.

Even though these tasks relate to different process steps, they are performed at the same time on the same material unit. The MES must therefore be able to track the individual progress of each activity independently.

Concept#

Using the Process Activities functionality, users gain a clearer, centralized view of the tasks they need to perform, while the system reflects the real-world execution on the shop floor - enabling multiple users to work at the same time, without enforcing a strict sequence, while the MES accurately tracks progress and status.

The Process Activities model includes entities for definition and execution.

Process Activities are now included as part of the Flows, which can include not only standard MES Steps but also a set of Process Activity Definitions. Each Process Activity Definition can specify the range of steps where it can be executed, as well as a Checklist definition, which can, in turn, include integrated Data Collection parameters and BOM Items.

Process Activities can be restricted to only allow users with a specific Role and/or Certification to execute them.

During Execution, a Process Activity instance is automatically created and associated with a specific Material during production when it reaches the Earliest Start Step. The Process Activity holds the context in which the activity was opened (e.g. Flow, Step, Checklist, Employee) and exists only during execution. Its lifecycle ends when the activity is completed.

Process Activities support employee time tracking, allowing the system to record how long each user spends working on an activity.

Setting up Process Activities#

Process Activities Definition (PAD) Management#

To use the Process Activities feature, it is first necessary to configure a Process Activity Definition (PAD). This configuration defines the logic, associations, and behavior of each activity, including the linked checklist, execution steps window, and optional properties such as time tracking or execution access control.

PADs are configured in the Flow page through Process Activities View. From here, a user can:

• View/Search existing PADs within a Flow version,
• Create, Update or Remove PADs, via the Manage Process Activities button

Note: PADs can only be managed in Flow Versions with status Created. Once a Flow is set to Effective, PADs become locked. To introduce changes, it requires creating a new Flow version.

To Create, Update or Remove PADs:

1. Open the Flow in the Created universal state.
2. Go to Process Activities View, select Manage Process Activities.
3. Click Add (+) to Create new PAD, trash bin to Remove PAD, or select an existing item to Update
4. Fill in the Fields according to the intended needs: The following table provides an overview of the available PAD fields:

1. Press the Update button to save the PAD changes on the current Flow version.

Making Changes Effective#

When setting a new Flow version as effective, all flow changes, including PADs, are automatically applied to any Materials in the previous effective version of the Flow.

There are some restrictions if there are Materials with Process Activities In Progress state - the related Process Activity Definitions cannot be removed, nor have its Checklist definition modified. In this case the running Process Activity instances would need to be completed or canceled before setting the new PAD set effective.

Executing Process Activities#

The instantiation of a Process Activity occurs automatically when a Material enters a Step whose FlowPath matches the EarliestStartFlowPath defined in the PAD. At that moment, the system creates a new instance of the Process Activity for that Material, ready to be executed.

To use the Process Activities feature as intended, the following conditions must be met:

• A PAD (Process Activity Definition) must exist.
• The Material needs to be on the Flow where the PAD is defined.
• The Material must be within the PAD execution window configuration (between Earliest and Latest Step, if defined).
• The user must have access to the Process Activities View Feature in the MES Feature-level security.
• If the activity uses execution control via Role or Certification, the corresponding authorizations must be assigned to the user or employee.

The typical execution flow includes:

• Accessing the list of active Process Activities for the Material.
• Starting (or continuing) the activity.
• Performing the Checklist.
• Completing the activity.

Accessing Process Activities#

Employees can view and access Process Activities through the Process Activities View, available in the Material's page on the MES interface.

Note: In addition to accessing Process Activities from the Material page, users can also open them directly from the Step View or Resource View ("Process Activities View" button).

To open the Process Activity view from the Material's page:

1. Open the Material's page.
2. Click on the "Views" button in the top-right menu.
3. Select Process Activities from the dropdown list.
4. The Process Activities View will appear, showing:
5. The Flow tree of the Material (left panel), listing all relevant Flows, Sub-Flows, and Steps, and highlighting the Step where the Material currently is.
6. The list of Process Activity instances (right panel), with key information in the data grid.
7. This process activity instance list can be filtered by:
   • Step: Clicking on a specific step in the flow tree filters the data grid to show only activities executable in that step.
   • Filter by Main Step: When the tick box is selected, it shows only activities where the selected step is marked as the Reference Step in the PAD.
   • Only My Activities: When the tick box is selected, it displays only activities the user is eligible to perform (based on role or employee certification).
   • Search Bar to search activities by name.
   • Other Filters like State, Type and Start/End Dates.
8. Additionally, the top toolbar provides action buttons for standard transactions:
   • Activity-related actions (Begin, Perform, Cancel, etc.).
   • Material-level transactions and actions (Dispatch and Track In, Track Out, Move Next, Merge, Split, Hold, etc.).

Performing a Process Activity#

Once a Process Activity is visible and available in the data grid, employees can begin execution directly from the Process Activities View.

Execution typically follows this flow:

1. Select the desired Process Activity in the data grid.

2. Start the Process Activity:

3. Manually, by clicking the Begin,

4. Or by clicking directly on the Perform Checklist, if the PAD is set to auto-begin.
5. Check-In - If the PAD requires Check-In, the system prompts the user to execute the check-in. This action may be automatic or manual, depending on the PAD's time-tracking configuration.
6. Activities with execution constraints (e.g. role, certification) will only allow Begin/Perform/Check-in to eligible users.

Upon starting, the Process Activity state changes to In Progress state. 3. Execute the Checklist (Perform Activity):

• Inside the Checklist instance view, the employee performs all required Checklist items, including related Data Collection Parameter and BOM Assembly items, if any.

• Pause and Resume Process Activity

• A Process Activity can be Paused and Resumed using the respective buttons.

• These actions are linked to the Checklist's Pause/Resume actions, if the Checklist was configured to Track Execution Times.
  • In these cases, Pausing/Resuming a Process Activity will automatically Pause/Resume the Checklist, stopping/resuming the Checklist execution time counter.
  • Using the Pause/Resume buttons on the Perform Checklist side will also Pause/Resume the parent Process Activity.
• If the last employee checks out (manually or automatically) before completing the Process Activity, and the AutoPause property is enabled in the PAD, the Process Activity is automatically paused. In this setup, the system also automatically resumes the activity when the user checks in again.

• Add or Edit Notes:

• Users can optionally document relevant information about the Process Activity using the Notes functionality.

  • To add a note, select the desired Process Activity in the data grid, and use the "Add Note" button.
  • To edit an existing note, follow the same procedure, but use the "Edit Note" button instead.
• The presence of a note is indicated by a yellow note icon, which can be clicked to view the content.

• Cancel Process Activity

• If needed, the execution of a Process Activity can be canceled:

  • This is done by selecting the Process Activity in the grid and clicking Cancel.
  • Once canceled, the Process Activity is terminated and marked as Canceled in the system.
• Cancelling a Process Activity is an irreversible action and should be used only when the activity will not be executed.

• Skip the Process Activity:

• If needed, the Process Activity can be skipped:

  • This is done by selecting the Process Activity in the grid and clicking Skip.
  • Once skipped, the Process Activity is terminated and marked as Skipped in the system.
• Skipping a Process Activity is an irreversible action and should be used only when the activity will not be executed.

• Complete the Process Activity

• When all Checklist items are fulfilled, the activity can be completed:

  • Manually, by clicking Complete,
  • Or automatically, if the PAD is set to AutoComplete upon the last checklist item completion.

  • Upon completion:

  • Time tracking (if active) performs auto-check-out, unless configured otherwise,

  • The Process Activity is marked as Closed.
  • Once completed, a Process Activity instance cannot be re-opened or edited.

Note: Users can leave a Process Activity in progress and return later to continue execution. The system retains progress, check-in status, and pause state.

Employee's Time Tracking#

Process Activities that make use of time tracking rely on a check-in/check-out mechanism, where employees register their presence in an activity. The feature also supports advanced behaviors such as automatic check-in on begin, automatic check-out on pause or completion, and exclusive execution (only one activity at a time per user).

When the EnableCheckIn property is enabled in a PAD, employees must check in to start their work and allow the system to track the time spent on the Process Activity.

Check-In Process Activity#

Employees can manually check in to a Process Activity by clicking the Check-In button after selecting the desired activity. Alternatively, the PAD may be configured to perform an automatic check-in as soon as the user clicks the Begin or Perform button upon the selected activity (via the AutoCheckInOnBegin property).

Multiple employees can check in to the same Process Activity simultaneously if the PAD is set to AllowMultipleEmployees. Each user's time is tracked individually.

If the Process Activity is marked as Exclusive, the user can only be checked in that particular activity. The Employee would need to check-out from any other Process Activities before checking-in to an Exclusive activity, and check-out from the Exclusive activity before checking-in to any other Process Activity.

Check-Out Process Activity#

Check-out can also be performed manually, through the Check-Out button, or automatically:

• When a Process Activity is completed and the PAD is set to AutoCheckOutOnClose.
• When the user starts an IsExclusive Process Activity and the AutoCheckOutEmployeeOnExclusiveActivities config is enabled.
• When the Process Activity is paused and the PAD is set to AutoCheckOutOnPause.
• When the employee ends the working session, by clocking out his user.

Administration#

Configuration Entries#

The following table describes all the Process Activities related configuration entries.

Property Default Values#

The Process Activity Definition (PAD) contains a large set of flags (Auto-Begin, Enable Check-in, Auto Check-Out On Close, etc) to tune each activity's behavior in the GUI. These flags offer a large degree of flexibility, however, to keep a consistent way-of-working for the end-user, some of these flags should usually have the same value, depending on the modeled solution.

The default values of these properties can be adjusted directly in the Entity Type Properties GUI (Administration > Entity Types > IndEqProcessActivityDefinition > Properties > Manage)

The default value would get reflected when adding a new PAD in the Flow's Manage Process Activities GUI, and when creating a PAD without setting a value (e.g. via Master Data loading)

The Range (Single Step / Multiple Steps) field in the Manage Process Activities GUI doesn't have any property behind it, but its default can still be set in the GUIElementDefaultValue Generic Table, in the SingleStepPAD Element of the IndEqProcessActivityDefinition.Manage Context.

Lookup Tables#

The following lookup tables can be configured to set the desired categorization.

Master Data Import#

Process Activity Definitions (PAD) can be created via Master Data Import, however, there are a few restrictions that need to be followed:

• The Process Activity Definition Name, even though only visible internally, needs to be set in the Master Data file to a unique name, unless the intent is to update a particular Activity Definition in a created Flow version.
• When a new version of the Flow is created, the PADs are cloned to the version, but new names will be generated for those PADs - to update them via Master Data upload, the names in the excel will to be match the PAD names of the intended version.
• Even though the PADs are closely linked to a Flow version, the Master Data import sheet is independent of the Flow sheet, which should have been previously created. The PAD's Flow association can be done via the Flow column in the PAD Master Data file.
• The Master Data's Flow column will only allow association to a Flow revision, not a particular version - the system will link new the PADs to the highest flow version if it's in Created state (and leave it as Created), or otherwise create a new Flow version with the new PADs.
• There's an internal field Activity Correlation that is used when a new version of the Flow is created, to relate the PADs cloned in the new version with the original PADs where they came from - this is important when making a Flow version effective, to check if there are any Materials affected by updates on the same PAD between versions. When creating or updating an existing PAD via Master Data, the Activity Correlation can be blank - the system will generate one automatically or keep the existing value. However, if adding a new Flow version + PADs, with the intent to link them with PADs of the previous Flow version (i.e. updating to a new PAD version), the ActivityCorrelation column should be set in the Master Data with the respective correlation of the original PADs.

Assumptions and Restrictions#

• The Process Activities Definition is directly linked to a specific Flow and Steps, with a pre-defined Checklist, independently of Product/Production Order/Material context.

• If a different set of Process Activities and respective Checklists/Data Collection/BOM needs to be used for a specific Product/Production Order/Material, a different top-level Flow needs to be used.

• Process Activities are aimed for tracking mostly manual operations, which can be performed concurrent way, without the need for Resource tracking.

• If Resource tracking is required, it needs to be done at the Step level (via standard TrackIn/TrackOut), independently from Process Activities' execution.

• For Steps where Resource tracking is not required, it is recommended to model them as "Pass Through" for better user experience, and track the process start/end times at the Process Activity level.

• Process Activities execution time is tracked, but it is independent of the Step Cycle time.

• To use features that depend on Step Cycle Time setup, like scheduling and performance reporting, the Step cycle time should be modelled at an higher level, incorporating the estimated average time of the Process Activities executed in each Step's timeline.