Creating the Ideal Andon System Structure

Before starting andon in your Azumuta workspace, we recommend that you first create the structure for it. Here's what an ideal andon system structure looks like.

Ideally, your Azumuta environment has (at least) one factory under the Explore section (which can be found on the sidebar). A factory is similar to a folder, and it represents a manufacturing plant. So, we can say that a factory in Azumuta is a main folder that contains everything (e.g., zones, work instructions, etc.) within your manufacturing plant.

A manufacturing plant in practice could comprise several production zones/assembly lines. In Azumuta, a production zone/assembly line is represented by a zone. A zone can contain one or multiple work instructions.

Thus, before setting up your andon system, we recommend that you first create the following structure in your workspace:

1. This is a factory, symbolized by the factory icon. A factory in an Azumuta workspace generally represents a manufacturing plant. A factory can house multiple zones. Ideally, there’s only one factory within a workspace. Nonetheless, you can also have more than one factory within a workspace. For example, you might have multiple manufacturing plants within your site – and each plant is represented by a factory in Azumuta.
2. This is a zone, symbolized by the pin icon. A zone in an Azumuta workspace generally represents a production zone/assembly line within a manufacturing plant. A zone can house multiple work instructions.
3. This is a work instruction, symbolized by the book icon.

Note: You don't have to create the structure shown in this webpage in order to use our andon functionality. However, to use this functionality to its fullest (including using its data visualization feature), we recommend you to follow the structure shown in this webpage.

The sections below cover how to create a factory and a zone.

How to Create a Factory

1. Click Settings under Management.
2. Click Top-level items under General.
3. Click the yellow plus icon in the bottom right corner of the screen.
4. Click Create factory.
5. Type in the factory’s name.
6. Click Create.

Note: Depending on your workspace configuration, the steps needed to create a factory in your workspace might slightly differ than the ones shown in this section. If you need any help in creating a factory, please contact us through our support@azumuta.com email.

How to Create a Zone

1. Click an existing factory. You can find your list of factories under Explore on the sidebar.
2. Click the yellow plus icon in the bottom right corner of the screen.
3. Fill in the existing fields (only the zone name field is mandatory).
4. Click Add.

Adding a Sound to a Zone

One of the advantages of using a digital andon in Azumuta is that you can configure an andon widget to play a specific sound whenever an andon is called. That way, your admins will be immediately aware whenever an andon is called.

Generally, the sound file of an alarm is used in this context.

To do this, you will first need to add a sound file to a zone. Here’s how:

1. Make sure that you already have the audio file that you will use.
2. Navigate to an existing zone.
3. Click Edit (next to the pencil icon).
4. Click Choose files under Attachments.
5. Upload the audio file.
6. Click the ⋮ (three-dot) icon next to the audio file that you’ve uploaded.
7. Click Add tags.
8. Provide a tag for the audio file. The tag will be used to identify the sound that will be played on each andon widget.
9. After you’ve typed in the tag, click Add tag.
10. When you’re done, click the green Save button.
11. Wait until the file upload process is complete.

Assigning a Work Instruction to a Zone

In order for a zone to be usable, you will need to populate it with work instructions. Here’s how to add an existing work instruction to a zone:

1. Navigate to an existing work instruction that you would like to add to a zone.
2. Click the ⋮ (three-dot) icon next to the work instruction’s name.
3. Click Assign to zones.
4. Select the zone(s) to which you would like to add this work instruction. You can add a work instruction to multiple zones.

Editing a Factory or a Zone

This section also covers how to edit a factory or a zone.

1. Hover your cursor over the factory/zone that you wish to edit.
2. Click Edit factory or Edit zone.
3. Perform the desired edits.
4. After you’re done, click Save. However, to cancel your edits, click Cancel.

Deleting a Factory or a Zone

Moreover, we will also explain how to delete a factory or a zone.

1. Hover your cursor over the factory/zone that you wish to delete.
2. Click Delete factory or Delete zone.
3. Type in the factory’s or the zone’s name.
4. Click Delete permanently.

Unassign a Work Instruction from a Zone

To close this article, here's how to unassign a work instruction from a zone:

1. Navigate to a work instruction that has been assigned to a zone.
2. Click the ⋮ (three-dot) icon next to the work instruction’s name.
3. Click Assign to zones.
4. Untick the checkbox next to the zone(s) that you would like to unassign this work instruction from.