Configurator Accelerates the Designing of Mobile Machines
EPLAN Engineering Configuration at Sennebogen
The electrical and hydraulic design engineers at SENNEBOGEN save time when they create sets of designs for their mobile machines, which are always customised to the customers’ specifications. Since they started using EPLAN Engineering Configuration (EEC) for this task, a configurator makes up the user interface. Electrical and fluid power schematics are created with the click of a mouse – freeing up time for new ideas.
In Europe and around the world, the Sennebogen brand is synonymous with especially robust mobile machines, including cable excavators, industrial excavators, crawler cranes and telescopic cranes. The family-run company is represented in about one hundred countries and the machines are nearly ubiquitous in such places as recycling facilities and ports, at timber handling sites and on construction sites.
“We build everything our customers need”
The product range is correspondingly broad: more than fifty basic models with a wide range of performance and capacity classes are part of the company’s programme, and users can select from numerous options for every machine. These include basic options such as a crawler or mobile chassis, or a height-adjustable cab, but also numerous detail specifications. SENNEBOGEN manufactures according to the basic principle: “We build everything our customers need” – a distinguishing characteristic that sets them apart from the major mass-production manufacturers and one that customers really appreciate.
To simplify selection, SENNEBOGEN developed a configurator for their sales department. It made sense to connect the configuration to the electrical and hydraulic designs, particularly as it was time for something to be done. With the growing product range and the almost even more rapidly increasing number of options, creating the schematics for the machines was becoming more and more complex. EEC Project Director Roman Eichenseer at SENNEBOGEN explains: “We traditionally worked according to the principle of the options system – with standard schematics for every type of machine that described the maximum configuration and were processed accordingly for each order. But this has disadvantages if a single component – even if it’s just the optional radio in the crane – is cancelled or modified. Then all of the approximately one hundred master schematics had to be changed individually and uploaded back into ERP.” In addition, the options system was reaching its limits from the designers’ point of view because the individual options couldn’t be connected logically.
The electrical and hydraulic design engineers at SENNEBOGEN save time when they create sets of designs for their mobile machines, which are always customised to the customers’ specifications. Since they started using EPLAN Engineering Configuration (EEC) for this task, a configurator makes up the user interface. Electrical and fluid power schematics are created with the click of a mouse – freeing up time for new ideas.
In Europe and around the world, the Sennebogen brand is synonymous with especially robust mobile machines, including cable excavators, industrial excavators, crawler cranes and telescopic cranes. The family-run company is represented in about one hundred countries and the machines are nearly ubiquitous in such places as recycling facilities and ports, at timber handling sites and on construction sites.
“We build everything our customers need”
The product range is correspondingly broad: more than fifty basic models with a wide range of performance and capacity classes are part of the company’s programme, and users can select from numerous options for every machine. These include basic options such as a crawler or mobile chassis, or a height-adjustable cab, but also numerous detail specifications. SENNEBOGEN manufactures according to the basic principle: “We build everything our customers need” – a distinguishing characteristic that sets them apart from the major mass-production manufacturers and one that customers really appreciate.
To simplify selection, SENNEBOGEN developed a configurator for their sales department. It made sense to connect the configuration to the electrical and hydraulic designs, particularly as it was time for something to be done. With the growing product range and the almost even more rapidly increasing number of options, creating the schematics for the machines was becoming more and more complex. EEC Project Director Roman Eichenseer at SENNEBOGEN explains: “We traditionally worked according to the principle of the options system – with standard schematics for every type of machine that described the maximum configuration and were processed accordingly for each order. But this has disadvantages if a single component – even if it’s just the optional radio in the crane – is cancelled or modified. Then all of the approximately one hundred master schematics had to be changed individually and uploaded back into ERP.” In addition, the options system was reaching its limits from the designers’ point of view because the individual options couldn’t be connected logically.
SENNEBOGEN mobile machines are valued worldwide for their robustness and performance – and because each machine is precisely adapted to the requirements for its individual application.
Three design engineers planned and implemented the EEC-based configurator. From left to right: Roman Eichenseer, Rainer Mandl and Birgit Singer.
SENNEBOGEN mobile machines are valued worldwide for their robustness and performance – and because each machine is precisely adapted to the requirements for its individual application.
Three design engineers planned and implemented the EEC-based configurator. From left to right: Roman Eichenseer, Rainer Mandl and Birgit Singer.
From the Options System to Automatic Schematic Creation
So there were several reasons to take the next logical step with the introduction of EPLAN Platform in 2011 – which is used for the electrical engineering and the hydraulics. Another reason was the increasing amount of effort required to create the electrical and fluid power schematics as the number of options grew. It was therefore the logical decision to prepare for the introduction of EPLAN Engineering Configuration and also to work with a configurator for the electrical and hydraulic designs. Eichenseer says, “Now we simply just read the order into EEC. The schematic is automatically generated and the options are logically connected.” It works well in practice: “For standard devices, we don’t even have to touch the schematics anymore.” And when a supplier introduces a modified component, the change to the CAE system is a one-off task measured in seconds since the new part only has to be entered into the basic schematic. The same holds true for upgrades to existing Sennebogen machines or when a new machine function is introduced.
Making Work Much Easier
This all makes the work so much easier that the benefits are obvious. All the prerequisites for a leap in efficiency were prepared and EEC was loaded with all the rules and dependencies for the options. What’s more, the structure of the schematics was designed to be “configuration compatible”. Design engineer Birgit Singer describes what the result actually looks like: “We saved all the electrical and hydraulic functions such as lighting, gripper shutoff and engine preheating as schematic fragments and logically interconnected them all. All told, it resulted in about one hundred parameters for every machine, for which some of the options can be set as yes or no. But there are also four or five possible options for some of the parameters, resulting in a total of several hundred variants per machine. It’s all depicted in the schematic.”
The Result: Configuring Instead of Constructing
A lot of preparatory work was required before this new working method could be introduced. Along with the new, function-oriented structuring of the schematics, the macros – which form the basic structure in EEC – had to be defined and designed. Eichenseer says, “You shouldn’t underestimate the effort involved; it required around five to six hundred hours for the first series. But it went a lot faster for the following series machines because firstly, there are common parts in all the different series and, secondly, we now know how best to proceed.”
The Result: Schematics Are More Extensive
Introducing EEC had another effect on the schematics in that they now have much more informative value. As Singer explains, “Ten years ago a typical schematic had maybe 30 pages; today it’s around 140.” This isn’t just because of the increasing complexity of the machines, but is something that is seen as an advantage at SENNEBOGEN. Singer continues, “The main target group for our schematics are the external service technicians around the world. They now benefit from better, more readable, more clearly structured and more functionally designed plans.” For instance: the causes of an error can be found more quickly since the plans are structured according to functionality, such as “swivel” or “drive”.
From the Options System to Automatic Schematic Creation
So there were several reasons to take the next logical step with the introduction of EPLAN Platform in 2011 – which is used for the electrical engineering and the hydraulics. Another reason was the increasing amount of effort required to create the electrical and fluid power schematics as the number of options grew. It was therefore the logical decision to prepare for the introduction of EPLAN Engineering Configuration and also to work with a configurator for the electrical and hydraulic designs. Eichenseer says, “Now we simply just read the order into EEC. The schematic is automatically generated and the options are logically connected.” It works well in practice: “For standard devices, we don’t even have to touch the schematics anymore.” And when a supplier introduces a modified component, the change to the CAE system is a one-off task measured in seconds since the new part only has to be entered into the basic schematic. The same holds true for upgrades to existing Sennebogen machines or when a new machine function is introduced.
Making Work Much Easier
This all makes the work so much easier that the benefits are obvious. All the prerequisites for a leap in efficiency were prepared and EEC was loaded with all the rules and dependencies for the options. What’s more, the structure of the schematics was designed to be “configuration compatible”. Design engineer Birgit Singer describes what the result actually looks like: “We saved all the electrical and hydraulic functions such as lighting, gripper shutoff and engine preheating as schematic fragments and logically interconnected them all. All told, it resulted in about one hundred parameters for every machine, for which some of the options can be set as yes or no. But there are also four or five possible options for some of the parameters, resulting in a total of several hundred variants per machine. It’s all depicted in the schematic.”
The Result: Configuring Instead of Constructing
A lot of preparatory work was required before this new working method could be introduced. Along with the new, function-oriented structuring of the schematics, the macros – which form the basic structure in EEC – had to be defined and designed. Eichenseer says, “You shouldn’t underestimate the effort involved; it required around five to six hundred hours for the first series. But it went a lot faster for the following series machines because firstly, there are common parts in all the different series and, secondly, we now know how best to proceed.”
The Result: Schematics Are More Extensive
Introducing EEC had another effect on the schematics in that they now have much more informative value. As Singer explains, “Ten years ago a typical schematic had maybe 30 pages; today it’s around 140.” This isn’t just because of the increasing complexity of the machines, but is something that is seen as an advantage at SENNEBOGEN. Singer continues, “The main target group for our schematics are the external service technicians around the world. They now benefit from better, more readable, more clearly structured and more functionally designed plans.” For instance: the causes of an error can be found more quickly since the plans are structured according to functionality, such as “swivel” or “drive”.
In Conclusion: The Effort for the Changeover Was Worth It
The end result for the design engineers since the introduction of EEC has been positive all around. Eichenseer says, “The changeover took time and we prepared well for it, to adapt EEC for our requirements in the best possible way. But the effort was worth it. Maintaining the design data is much easier, the schematics are more detailed and contain more information. One other positive ‘side effect’ is that we also now use EPLAN’s functionality more intensively, particularly the linking and logic functions.” And the lead time has been shortened: “As soon as the customer places the order for a machine, the schematics are already available.”
Advantages for the Hydraulic Designs As Well
The electrical design engineers aren’t the only ones benefitting from the changeover to EEC; the four hydraulic design engineers are also happy about it. Singer says, “For both electrical engineering as well as for hydraulics, we’ve replaced a large overall plan with numerous, smaller, functionally structured plans that are then connected to one another in the schematics across the various disciplines.” Using EEC makes particular sense here because the possible options customers can choose when ordering their SENNEBOGEN machines mainly involve both the electrical and hydraulic systems.
Right now, the SENNEBOGEN design engineers have transferred the electrical and fluid power plans for six central machine series into EEC and thus into the configurator. With this, 90 per cent of the conversion work has been completed. The manufacturing department is also benefitting from the improved level of detail in the drawings. For instance, the department receives a pressure table for the hydraulics – also generated automatically – which indicates the target pressure at certain measuring points.
Additional Disciplines Included in the Configurator
How well the EEC-based configurator proves itself is demonstrated by how it handles new options and functions that customers can select. Eichenseer explains: “We have to decide for each of these options whether or not to add it to EEC and thereby make our work easier because it may eventually be repeated. So far, we’ve decided to add it every time – because of the reproducibility and the increased efficiency.” The configurator, and thus EEC as well, is currently being expanded with additional disciplines. The company is planning to use it to automatically generate the software used in the mobile machines. According to those responsible for this project, the time required would be low while the benefits would be high. The testing phase is currently underway.
The Goal: To Create Breathing Space for Designers
SENNEBOGEN goal was to create breathing space for design engineers by relieving them of repetitive tasks such as placing checkmarks in options lists and comparing tables. The conclusion? A resounding success – freeing up time for new ideas. After all, designing mobile machines also requires innovations, such as the use of electric motors, that require the design engineers’ experience and expertise.
In Conclusion: The Effort for the Changeover Was Worth It
The end result for the design engineers since the introduction of EEC has been positive all around. Eichenseer says, “The changeover took time and we prepared well for it, to adapt EEC for our requirements in the best possible way. But the effort was worth it. Maintaining the design data is much easier, the schematics are more detailed and contain more information. One other positive ‘side effect’ is that we also now use EPLAN’s functionality more intensively, particularly the linking and logic functions.” And the lead time has been shortened: “As soon as the customer places the order for a machine, the schematics are already available.”
Advantages for the Hydraulic Designs As Well
The electrical design engineers aren’t the only ones benefitting from the changeover to EEC; the four hydraulic design engineers are also happy about it. Singer says, “For both electrical engineering as well as for hydraulics, we’ve replaced a large overall plan with numerous, smaller, functionally structured plans that are then connected to one another in the schematics across the various disciplines.” Using EEC makes particular sense here because the possible options customers can choose when ordering their SENNEBOGEN machines mainly involve both the electrical and hydraulic systems.
Right now, the SENNEBOGEN design engineers have transferred the electrical and fluid power plans for six central machine series into EEC and thus into the configurator. With this, 90 per cent of the conversion work has been completed. The manufacturing department is also benefitting from the improved level of detail in the drawings. For instance, the department receives a pressure table for the hydraulics – also generated automatically – which indicates the target pressure at certain measuring points.
Additional Disciplines Included in the Configurator
How well the EEC-based configurator proves itself is demonstrated by how it handles new options and functions that customers can select. Eichenseer explains: “We have to decide for each of these options whether or not to add it to EEC and thereby make our work easier because it may eventually be repeated. So far, we’ve decided to add it every time – because of the reproducibility and the increased efficiency.” The configurator, and thus EEC as well, is currently being expanded with additional disciplines. The company is planning to use it to automatically generate the software used in the mobile machines. According to those responsible for this project, the time required would be low while the benefits would be high. The testing phase is currently underway.
The Goal: To Create Breathing Space for Designers
SENNEBOGEN goal was to create breathing space for design engineers by relieving them of repetitive tasks such as placing checkmarks in options lists and comparing tables. The conclusion? A resounding success – freeing up time for new ideas. After all, designing mobile machines also requires innovations, such as the use of electric motors, that require the design engineers’ experience and expertise.
