Data Overview: What types of data can be stored in Dispatch?

Dispatch can store a wide variety of data from various departments within your manufacturing site. Below is an overview of the different types of data you may choose to store in Dispatch. Each of these areas represent different modules within the Dispatch product. You choose which modules you use and to what extent you provide data. Dispatch is very flexible to accommodate different company data security guidelines. You have full control over what data resides in Dispatch and which data remains in local systems.

We have customers in a number of heavily regulated industries including US Department of Defense contractors, the Pharmaceutical industry, US Department of Transportation suppliers, and the Nuclear Industry. We can work with you to achieve your specific data security objectives.

Additionally, various levels of security control user access to view, add/edit, or inactivate data within the system. Data access is restricted by user and role, and requires a valid login to access. For more information on Data Security please see the support articles under the IT Info section of our support website.

Customer Responsibility & Data Type Restrictions

Dispatch is an extremely versatile and configurable system. This document outlines what is possible to store in Dispatch. Data Input Fields have strong data validation to restrict the type of data that can be entered. User permissions can further enhance the security of the system by restricting who can enter each type of data including turning off areas of the system not required. The system also has system-wide banner notification capabilities as well as page and field-level specific messages (our support personnel can customize them for you) to remind users of any company data policy restrictions. As with any system, customers are encouraged to train employees to store data appropriate to company policy.

Major Module Areas

Dispatch Screens

This module tracks reactive work orders and planned work defined in the Scheduler and Work Order modules. Dispatches or Events contain information about issues on the plant floor and their resolution. These details include the following general types of information:

• Location of the problem (Area, Line, Machine, Tooling)
• Who is involved in the event (Name, Username)
• A description of the problem
• Various dates and times (Reported, Assigned, Due Date, Completed, Closed)
• Resolution Codes (Action, Component, Why, Reason)
• Any spare parts used to fix the problem (Part Number, Description, Quantity, Cost)
• Documents (Documents from the Document Center Module)
• Attachments (Any user-created file uploaded to the system and attached to the record. Images, Documents, etc.)
• Notes

Document Center

This module provides a revision-controlled document library. Any type of file/URL/Checklist can be uploaded and managed in the system. Document Center also provides a hybrid approach where users can store sensitive or confidential documents locally within their corporate network without compromising security or the benefits of Dispatch. The meta-information related to these documents includes:

• Identifying information (Document Name, Description, Number, External ID, Category)
• Attribute information to specify where a Document is used or is related to. (Areas, Lines, Machines, Technologies, Dispatch Types, Skills)
• Revision Information (Change notes, User responsible for the changes, Dates, Internal/Published)
• Viewing History (User, Document, Date)
• Checklist Definition Information (Name, Number, Tasks, Descriptions)
• Checklist Data (Who filled it out, Answers to Tasks, Corrective Actions/Notes, Dates)

Work Orders

This module allows users to define, plan, approve, schedule, and launch work orders. The meta information related to these work orders includes:

• Location information (Machine)
• User information (Owner, Requested By, Resources Assigned)
• Date information (Requested Completion, Launch Date, Schedule Date, Due Date)
• Work information (Work Order Number, Description, Instructions, Act, Trade, Category, Actual Hours, Notes, Status, Dispatch Number)
• Cost information (Cost Center, Project ID, External Costs, Labor Costs, Spares Costs, Estimated Cost)

Scheduler

The Scheduler module allows users to define, plan, schedule, and launch recurring Dispatch events for proactive or preventative activities. The information collected includes:

• Work information (Name, Comments, Trade, Category, Dispatch Type, Estimated Hours)
• Location information (Machine(s))
• Scheduling details (Active, Type, Interval, Occurrence)
• Work Instructions (Documents from Document Center)
• Various Schedule Dates (Next Launch, Next Scheduled, Next Due)
• Historical tracking of launched events
• User information (User Assigned)

Spares

The Spares module provides an inventory tracking system for spare parts used in fixing machines. The information collected includes:

• Part details (Part Number, Image, Short Part Number, Description, Category, Unit of Measure, Cost, Manufacturer & Part Number)
• Machine Bill of Material information to link parts to Machines
• Inventory Levels (Minimum Stock Level, Optimum Stock Level, Parts On Order)
• Part Locations (Quantity, Warehouse, Bin Location)
• Vendor information (Vendor Part Number, Contact information)
• Part Attributes (Active, Critical, Obsolete, Taxable, Associated Parts)
• Notes
• Part Requests / Issued (Requesting User, Area, Line, Machine, Quantity, Work Order/Dispatch Number, Location, Status)
• Part Orders (Part, Vendor, PO Number, Costs, Quantities, Dates, Notes)
• Part Receipts (Quantity received, Status, Dates)

Production

The Production module allows operations staff to plan, schedule, and track items being manufactured. The information collected includes:

• Pitch Templates/Schedules (Shift, Pitch Start/End, Demand, Production/Non-Production time, Area, Line)
• Production Actuals (Actual Quantity Produced, Scrap, Scrap Categories, Operator Count, Notes, Product, Product Order)
• Product Orders (Name, Status, Product, External ID, Schedule Date, Due Date, Quantity, Built Qty, Scrap Qty, Started Date, Completed Date, Documents from Document Center)
• Product Build Sequences (Name, Number, Assigned Line, Lines that can build the product, Various Scheduling Dates, Takt Time, Labor Duration, Description, External ID, Changeover duration)
• Product information (Name/Code, Description, Produced by Lines, Consumed by Lines, Changeover order & duration, Raw Material, Sub-assembly, Finished Product)
• Line Cycle Time (Line, Product, Cycle Time, Operator Count)

Skills

The Skill module is used to track user training records, trainers, and the training that is required to work on the line. 

• Skill information (Code, Description, External ID, Active, Category, Products training applies to) 
• Skill Revision information (Effective Start/End Dates, Change notes, Documents from Document Center, Revision Number)
• Line Skill Requirements (Line, Skill, Minimum Level Required, User Role it applies to)
• User Training Records (Trainer Name/Username, Training Date, Skill, Level, Last Used Date, User Acknowledgment)
• Trainers (Username, Name)

Reports, Dashboards, Calendars

The Dispatch system also provides a number of reports, dashboards, and calendars to help users visualize their data. These reports derive various metrics to help users understand, identify, and track the work that is being done within the manufacturing facility. Users can schedule these reports for periodic delivery via email.

Setup

The system provides a great deal of user configuration options. All of the above modules depend on master data that is either defined and maintained in the system of synced into the system via an API. Most all of the master data, as well as data in the above modules, have common fields. Those fields are used to identify the item and provide basic user modification tracking. Those fields are as follows:

• Code (Short description, abbreviation, or identifier of the item)
• Description
• Active
• External ID (Used for cross-referencing this item to an external system)
• Background Color
• Font Color
• Created By
• Created Date
• Last Updated By
• Last Updated Date

The setup menu allows users to configure the following master data with additional data worth noting beyond the above fields:

• Shifts (Start Date, Daily Start/End Times, Lines & Users on this shift, Repeat Interval)
• Resource Rates (Hourly rate)
• Trades
• Users (Name, Password, Image, Email Address, Phone Number, SMS Email Address, WeChat User ID, Trade, Preferred Language, External ID, API Key)
• User Devices (Network, Notification ID, SNS ARN, Hardware Description)
• User Groups (Users in this Group)
• User Roles (Users in this Role)
• User Time Records (User, Line/Cost Center, Clock In Time, Clock Out Time)
• Areas (Production Metric Thresholds)
• Lines (Production Metric Thresholds, Downtime Rate per Hour)
• Value Streams
• Technologies
• Machine Groups
• Cost Centers 
• Machines (Model Name, Serial Number, Deployment Date, Cycle Count, Cost Center)
• Tooling (Model Name, Serial Number, Deployment Date, Cycle Count, Cost Center)
• Sounds (Uploaded sound files used for audible notifications on various screens)
• Sites (Address, City, State/Province, Zip/Postal Code, Country, Timezone, Main Phone Number, Dispatcher Phone Number, Dispatcher Email Address, Brief Description of Products Produced, Total Headcount, Latitude, Longitude, Currency Used)
• Dispatch Types
• Dispatch Statuses
• Actions
• Components
• Dispatch Questions (User defined questions used to capture additional information during a dispatch event)

Other IT Configuration Data

In order to integrate with 3rd party systems we also may store the following information:

• ERP Type
• Account Credentials / API Keys (WeChat, Twilio, LDAP, SSO)
• Label Printers (Name, Address, Printer Type, Label Sizes)

L2L Connect Sensor Data

If using the L2L Connect Sensor Bots and Gateway, we also may store limited and specific sensor readings as time series data. This optional data is something the customer defines and configures.

 

Can We Leave Some Fields Blank?

The majority of the fields above can be left blank if you so choose to not use the associated functionality. For example, user email addresses can be left blank if the user doesn't wish to receive email notifications. If you are not planning to use one or more modules, depending on the module, you can choose to not provide that information. Other strategies may include limiting certain details, processes, or parts of your production environment from the system if required by your company or governmental regulations. We have a lot of experience working with customers to achieve a balance between data security and ease of use.

In Conclusion

Dispatch is very flexible and allows all types of companies to benefit from the use of the system without compromising or changing any company or governmental data security policies. We have successful companies using Dispatch in all types of security-conscious industries including the US Department of Defense contractors, the Pharmaceutical industry, US Department of Transportation suppliers, and the Nuclear Industry. Please feel free to contact us if you have additional questions regarding your specific concerns.