3D Work Instructions: Everything You Need to Know

Manufacturing managers face a constant battle against text-heavy documentation. Managing these documents with a diverse workforce can lead to delays, errors, and outdated instructions. Therefore, in such an ever-evolving industry, implementing 3D work instruction software can be your best bet.

Unlike the step-by-step approach of digital or traditional paper instructions, 3D work instructions are interactive animations that break down complex processes through visual communication. Accessible on any device with an internet connection, these instructions can be updated instantly and viewed by your entire team of field technicians.

Here’s how 3D work instructions can benefit your manufacturing business:

Deliver clear and precise maintenance procedures, allowing your less experienced technicians to perform tasks accurately and efficiently.
Facilitate collaboration with your machine suppliers to address and update parts, ensuring smooth maintenance operations.
Empower your technicians to resolve issues independently with user-friendly 3D guides, reducing support requests for your manufacturers and factories.
Enable asynchronous collaboration with engineers, suppliers, and customers through 3D sessions, boosting overall productivity and efficiency.

In this article, we will explore different aspects of 3D work instructions, things you should consider when you decide to make the shift, and ways this technology can transform your manufacturing processes.

Limitations of Traditional Methods for Work Instructions

Traditional work instructions can be dense and text-heavy, making it hard to reference quickly and easy to misinterpret.

Drawbacks of Paper-Based Work Instructions

Paper-based work instructions often fail to align with the changing needs of the factory floor. This misalignment results in restrictions that can consume your valuable time.

Here are some key drawbacks:

Lack of Traceability: Paper instructions do not support data collection or monitoring. In modern manufacturing, traceability is crucial for continuous improvement. Without the ability to track actions, it can be challenging for you to measure performance or plan necessary improvements.
High Risk of Errors: Managing work instructions, packaging, labeling, and complex diagrams on paper can be overwhelming for your team. This increases the risk of mistakes. For example, an incorrect step in assembling a product can lead to defects and costly rework.
Difficulty in Updates: Updating paper-based instructions is labor-intensive. This is because any change in equipment or regulations requires you to produce new instructions, reprint, and redistribute them. This process can delay training and increase your costs, presenting outdated visuals to the technicians.
Limited Mobility: Paper reliance requires mobile workers to travel back and forth to collect and drop off paperwork. This not only adds significant costs but also wastes time. For instance, a technician may need to visit the office multiple times a day to pick up new instructions or submit completed tasks.

Inefficiencies of Current Manufacturing Processes

Relying heavily on traditional methods can introduce several inefficiencies in your manufacturing operations. Here is a quick run-down of things that might be signaling the need for a shift to 3D work instructions:

Lack of Standardization: Outdated or ineffective documents can cause inconsistent quality control and poor knowledge retention within your team. As a result, your field technicians might rely on outdated information or make educated guesses instead of following approved standards, resulting in variations in product quality.
Costly and Time-Consuming: Changing or updating traditional work instructions is both expensive and time-consuming. In the manufacturing industry, there can be high costs and risks associated with outdated instructions remaining on the factory floor.
Limited Scope: Paper instructions are limiting, especially when you are dealing with a wide range of product variants. In a configure-to-order environment, creating accurate paper instructions for every specific order becomes nearly impossible, leading to inefficiencies and potential errors for your business.

Industries That Benefit from 3D Work Instructions

Manufacturing and Assembly: Manufacturing industries, including giants like Boeing, General Electric, and Lockheed Martin, use 3D work instructions to refine their processes. These instructions are crucial for assembling and maintaining complex components, such as aircraft parts and wind turbines.
Healthcare and Medical Device Manufacturing: In healthcare, 3D work instructions help professionals analyze human anatomy, and develop and manufacture advanced medical solutions. Companies like Sygnature Discovery and Medtronic use augmented reality to visualize molecular structures and make precise adjustments.
Aerospace and Defense: Aerospace and defense companies, including Boeing, utilize 3D work instructions for tasks like installing aircraft wiring. These instructions save time and effort, giving high-quality outcomes.

Importance of Digital Work Instructions in Manufacturing

Digital work instructions offer clear, contextual guidance, reduce errors, and improve overall business productivity.

Let’s explore how they make a difference:

Enhancing Skill Development and Knowledge Sharing: Digital work instructions provide clear, step-by-step guidance, making it easier for employees to perform tasks correctly. For instance, if you employ augmented reality-enabled training, it can help new hires get up to speed quickly, reducing their time to productivity. These tools also minimize cognitive load, allowing your workforce to focus on the task at hand without being overwhelmed by complex procedures.
Improving Quality and Reducing Errors: Up-to-date digital instructions ensure that your team always has the latest information. This reduces the likelihood of mistakes and contributes toward product quality. For example, if a new assembly method is introduced, digital updates can be instantly shared across the team of technicians so that everyone is on the same page. Additionally, digital work instructions also support real-time insights from the production floor that help identify areas for improvement, leading to continuous process optimization.

Benefits of 3D Work Instructions

As equipment becomes more complex and customized, you need better ways to build instructions, train your workforce, and optimize workflows. 3D work instructions offer a powerful solution. Here’s how:

Better Visual Communication

3D work instructions include interactive diagrams, 3D models, augmented reality work instructions, and animated visuals, leading to better visual assistance. Your workers can easily understand and follow procedures for maintenance, quality testing, packaging, and other processes. For example, a technician can view a 3D animation of machine maintenance procedures, clearly seeing how each part needs to be serviced or replaced.

Increasing First-Time Fix (FTF) Rates

3D instructions provide detailed guidance, increasing the chances of getting tasks right on the first try. This reduces the need for repeated attempts, minimizing defects and rework. With clear, visual work instructions, there's no room for doubt or misinterpretation.

For instance, a worker repairing a complex machine can follow a step-by-step 3D guide, significantly reducing the likelihood of errors with a better chance of the machine getting fixed correctly the first time.

Creating Feedback Loops

For automatic user feedback collection, you can utilize 3D work instructions. This feedback helps your design teams continuously improve products. For instance, analytics from 3D work instructions can show where your frontline workers struggle, further highlighting areas for improvement. This real-time feedback loop enhances the impact of training and upskilling.

Reduced Errors

3D work instructions also work to drastically cut down errors in the manufacturing unit. Unlike paper-based instructions, which can be hard to find, digital instructions are always accessible.

For example, your operator can quickly pull up the latest assembly instructions on a tablet, so they follow the correct procedures. Additionally, digital instructions are quickly updated, so your technicians always have the latest information, reducing the risk of mistakes in repair, maintenance, and assembly.

Training at Their Own Pace

New workers can learn at their own pace with the flexibility provided by 3D work instructions. For instance, a new hire can repeatedly watch a 3D animation of the entire spare part replacement process, clearly seeing which specific part needs to be changed and how it fits within the system, until they feel confident in performing the task themselves. This flexibility helps them feel more competent and confident in their skills.

Enhance Maintenance Efficiency with Makula 3D Work Instructions

When selecting 3D work instructions software, make sure to consider all the features it includes that are needed to fine-tune your manufacturing processes.

3D Visualizations

3D visualizations allow you to view machine parts in detail on any device. This feature simplifies issue resolution for frontline workers and improves communication with suppliers, customers, and partners.

For example, maintenance workers can easily identify parts in a 3D environment and link them to inventory for efficient ordering.

3D Live Collaboration

3D live collaboration uses streaming architecture to share 3D models via browser, improving communication across your organization and with partners.

This feature allows:

Multi-user 3D Sessions: You can host collaborative sessions on any device or browser, adding annotations in real time.
Asynchronous Collaboration: Allows you to create 3D sessions to leave comments, ask questions, and work asynchronously with engineers, suppliers, or customers.
Troubleshooting and Diagnostics: You can use 3D visualizations and live collaboration tools to improve problem-solving.

Easy 3D-Guide Creation and Sharing

Creating and sharing 3D guides simplifies complex tasks. This feature facilitates you with the following:

Share Precise Guidelines: You can provide accurate instructions for new or infrequent tasks, reducing training time by almost half.
Speed Up Manual Creation: Craft powerful 3D guides with a few clicks and share them with your teams effortlessly.
Empower Workers: Equip your technicians with user-friendly 3D guides to resolve issues independently, reducing support requests.
Visual Knowledge Storage: You can save maintenance knowledge visually to help new hires or less skilled employees resolve issues on their own, minimizing reliance on senior staff.

Makula offers all these features and more. Our software includes comprehensive 3D visualizations, live collaboration tools, and easy-to-create 3D guides. With Makula, you can fine-tune your processes, improve communication, and empower your workforce.

If you want to learn more, book a demo today to discover how our toolkit of 3D work instructions can benefit your organization.

Implementing 3D Work Instructions

For proper implementation of 3D work instructions, leveraging augmented reality work instructions (AR) can significantly impact training. If your organization already has Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) data, you can use this to accelerate the creation of model-based AR work instructions.

These instructions can be used with smart AR glasses, mobile devices, or projected directly onto workbenches.

AR Wearables: Devices like AR glasses, lenses, and headsets align well with the user's focus and provide information. However, they can be uncomfortable for long shifts and restrict the field of vision, which can cause disruptions for your technicians.
Hand-Held Mobile Devices: Tablets are familiar and easy to use, requiring minimal setup. However, they also need to be charged and can suffer from network issues. Additionally, using a tablet can interrupt the assembly workflow, as operators typically need both hands for tasks.
Projected Augmented Reality: This technology enhances the physical workbench with a digital overlay using 3D cameras and projectors. While the initial setup may be more complex, it offers significant benefits. The system is durable, non-intrusive so that your technician's field of vision is not obstructed.

Overcoming Implementation Challenges

Implementing 3D work instructions involves more than just technology—it requires a comprehensive change management strategy. If you are considering to adopt it for your company and workforce, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Provide Training and Support: Frontline workers need to understand the benefits and usage of visual work instructions. To cater to this challenge, you can conduct hands-on training sessions and offer ongoing support to help them become comfortable with the new system.
Integration: For 3D work instructions to be successfully utilized, they must integrate seamlessly with existing systems, such as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and CRM (Customer Relationship Management). You can work closely with your IT department to integrate 3D work instructions with current systems.
Reliable Infrastructure: Implementing 3D work instructions also involves addressing technological dependencies. To manage this, arrange the necessary hardware, such as AR glasses or projectors. You should also consider planning for backup power sources and network redundancy to minimize downtime.

Makula's 3D collaboration feature simplifies the implementation of 3D work instructions by improving real-time communication and problem-solving across your team. To get a better insight into how this works, book a demo today.

Case Study: Implementing 3D Work Instructions

Boeing has transformed its manufacturing processes by adopting 3D work instructions through augmented reality (AR) systems. Here’s a quick rundown of how they did it and the results they achieved:

Initial Implementation

Initially, Boeing introduced AR systems using Google Glass Enterprise Edition. This technology allowed technicians to:

Accurately Place Wires: Replacing the need for stacks of 2D paper manuals, AR provided a hands-free way for technicians to make sure that the wires were placed in the right places.
Perform Quality Checks: With AR, technicians could conduct thorough quality checks so that each step of the assembly process met Boeing’s high standards.
Utilize Remote Support: Technicians could easily call for remote support and additional resources, which further improved the accuracy and safety of their work.

This approach reduced the cognitive load on technicians, allowing them to focus more on quality and accuracy.

Upgrading to HoloLens 2

Seeing the benefits of AR, Boeing decided to upgrade to Microsoft HoloLens 2, which offers greater positional accuracy and more advanced features. This upgrade allowed Boeing to:

Expand AR-Guided Functions: Beyond wire assembly, AR is now used for equipment-rack installation and inspecting automated drilling procedures. These additions have broadened the scope of AR applications within Boeing's manufacturing processes.
Deploy AR Across More Facilities: AR is now utilized in 15 global facilities, demonstrating Boeing's commitment to leveraging advanced technology for improved efficiency and accuracy.

Results and Impact

The results of implementing 3D work instructions with AR have been significant for Boeing:

88% First-Pass Accuracy: Boeing witnessed that 88% of tasks were completed correctly on the first attempt, reducing the need for rework. This high level of accuracy not only improves operational efficiency but also contributes to higher product quality.
20% Reduction in Task Time: Tasks were completed 20% faster, leading to significant time savings and increased productivity for Boeing.

Key Lesson

A key lesson from Boeing’s experience is the smooth deployment of AR systems.

Boeing Senior Manager Randall MacPherson mentions, “Wearable technology is helping us amplify the power of our workforce.”

AR reduced job strain and made it easier for Boeing's technicians to adopt the new technology. This approach also minimized the typical resistance associated with new technology implementations in enterprise settings.

‍

3D Work Instructions