Omega program. Technical analysis with Omega Research. Production management using operational scheduling

OmegaT is a free automated translation system designed to make the work of professional translators easier. Unlike most translator programs that are common among a wide range of users, this program does not perform “independent” translation. Simply put, its functions include text segmentation based on regular expressions, using exact and non-exact matches with previously translated fragments, searching for selected contexts in translation databases, checking their matches, and working with keywords.

All the functions listed above are aimed at performing the highest quality translation, regardless of the text style. Thanks to it, you can work with scientific or fiction literature, foreign technical documentation, and so on. For OmegaT to work properly, you will need to install Java. The program's interface is quite ambiguous - at first it seems complex and confusing, but after a couple of hours of work, you completely get used to it. It is also important that OmegaT supports a large number of source formats, including HTML/XHTML documents, StarOffice,

OmegaT is a translation automation system. It will not translate every word for you, the way machine translation programs and online services do.

All routine operations are automated in such a way that the translator does not have to translate the same phrase twice, and if a similar phrase appears in the text, translation options will be immediately offered.

Texts in OmegaT are presented in the form of segments. Each segment is a minimum translatable unit. In earlier versions of the program, a segment was represented by a paragraph, now a segment is equal to a sentence.

The program automatically breaks the text into segments and gives you the ability to translate them as you move through the text.

All translated segments are saved in the translation memory - in files with the TMX extension. Subsequently, these files can be collected and grouped according to the topics of the texts being translated, for example: computers, programming, design, etc. By connecting relevant translation memory files to a new project, the translator will only have to work with unique phrases.

Getting started with OmegaT

Installing the program will not cause any difficulties. It is possible to download two versions of the program. The full version comes complete with a Java virtual machine, which OmegaT will use. If you already have the Java runtime installed on your computer, download the regular version and save disk space.

Launch the program, its window is divided into three areas.

• The central part immediately after launch contains a quick start guide with OmegaT. Subsequently, it is in this area that the translated text will be located.
• At the top right is a window of fuzzy matches. Already translated segments that are more than 30% similar to the current segment are displayed here. They are taken from the translation memory of the current project and from connected translation memory files.
• At the bottom right is the glossary window. You can create glossaries yourself by adding words or phrases and their translation.

Creating a Project in OmegaT

To start translation, you must create a new project. To do this, go to the main menu -> "Project" -> "Create...".

In the dialog box that appears, go to the special folder in which you decided to store translation projects and enter the file name, which will become the name of the project. Click "Save".

The New Project Options dialog now appears.

At the very top, you need to select the language of the source files from the drop-down list. That is, what language are you going to translate from?

In the second list, select the language of the translated files - into what language you will translate the source texts.

We leave the other parameters at default; they are just right to get started.

Project File Locations

Let's look at the project structure in detail; you need to know how OmegaT stores the files that we will have to work with.

• Source files folder - untranslated files that the program imports into the project are stored here.
• Translation memory folder - here you can place files with the TMX extension from another project of a similar topic. By using previously translated templates, you will save yourself a lot of time and will be spared the hassle of re-translating similar pieces of text.
• Glossary folder - glossary files that you created earlier, for example when translating another project, are placed here.
• Glossary Write File - The name of the file into which terms from the current project are written when you decide to put words or phrases in the glossary.
• Dictionary folder - here you can place dictionaries of the StarDict electronic translator.
• Translated files folder - the resulting files will be created in this after the translation process is completed.

Click "OK" and move on to the next dialog box.

To add files to the project, click the "Import source files..." button.

Select the source file. Its contents will not be affected, the program will copy it to the appropriate project folder.

The file is now open in the editor. The first segment automatically becomes active. The segment text is bold and highlighted in green, this text is immutable, it defines the beginning of the segment.

Below we see a copy of the text in regular font, which is what we will replace with the translated text. The end of the segment is marked with a special mark - <сегмент 0001> , you cannot edit text outside of it.

Let's look at the structure of the file that we will translate. The text is specially made to demonstrate the operation of the program.

Identical segments are underlined in red, and similar ones in yellow. The remaining segments are unique, they are not emphasized in any way.

We begin to enter the translation, replacing the source text. A copy of the source text allows you to leave some words or phrases as is, without translation, for example, foreign names, surnames, trademarks or abbreviations.

After we have translated the segment, press Enter. And here the automation of the process begins to work - the segment-translation pair is recorded in the translation memory, and all segments in the project that match the translated segment are translated automatically.

You can see that identical segments are translated automatically. The next segment has now become active and is awaiting translation.

To move to the next segment, press Enter, and to return to the previous one, press Ctrl + Enter.

As soon as a similar segment has become active, the program selects the most similar segments from the translation memory and offers them on the right in the fuzzy matches window.

The original phrase and its translation are proposed. The part that distinguishes it from the current segment is highlighted in blue and bold.

Below you can see that the degree of agreement is 50%.

Production management and production planning require taking into account a huge amount of data, a detailed, operational study of processes, a developed system of information exchange and processing. The task becomes even more complicated if the company specializes in producing products with long production cycles. But today, manufacturers are offered many solutions to cope with this task, and one of them is the corporate information system Omega Production, which combines the capabilities of volume scheduling with explicit and implicit consideration of production cycles, as well as operational scheduling. The applicability of various production planning options, depending on the company’s objectives and capabilities, using the example of a number of machine-building enterprises, is considered by the technical director of Omegasoftware, Evgeniy Petrovich Kukareko.

Among the customers of the Omega Production system are many enterprises that produce complex products with long production cycles. When examining enterprises, one is always interested in their existing experience and problems in managing long-cycle production, since this experience and the automated information system existing at the enterprise are the starting point for the implementation of Omega Production.

Planning and dispatching long-cycle serial, small-scale and single production has always been a complex problem, requiring for its solution a developed system for maintaining initial engineering data, assessment and calculation when planning product production cycles.

One of the main problems in the source data for many enterprises is the lack of electronic operational workflows in their existing information systems that could be used for planning. Design specifications entered from hard copies of documents are often used as data on the structure and composition of products. In some cases, a product data management system (PDM/PLM system) is present in varying degrees of implementation.

In the absence of operational data, when planning, a number of enterprises used implicit estimates of production cycles for groups of workshops: different plans were set in final products for a group of assembly shops, a group of mechanical shops, and a group of procurement shops. In one case, based on the advance rules for pairs of workshops, the advance of the launch of parts before the release of a product was calculated with an accuracy of up to a month.

In all cases, the end result of planning was a monthly volumetric plan for the production of parts and assembly units for the workshops of the enterprise. The distribution of parts release within a month was not carried out in existing information systems.

Even if the existing automated information system had end-to-end electronic technological processes, as was the case at Ural Locomotives OJSC for the production of electric locomotives, the operation time data in calculating the launch time of batches of parts taking into account the equipment load was not used due to the complexity of the calculation algorithms and the non-compliance of the system platform with the required volumes of settlements.

The lack of operational planning does not allow for effective management of the progress of product production, seeing and assessing the workload of resources, the intensity of plans for production departments, making a more accurate calculation of the provision of the production program with material resources, and simulating variants of the production program.

The Omega Production system implements a comprehensive solution for managing initial engineering data, planning, accounting and dispatching production with accuracy down to the technological operation for complex mechanical and instrument engineering products.

Maintaining initial engineering data for operational planning and production accounting

For planning and accounting in production, it is more accurate and adequate to use not the original design, but the production compositions of products. Based on the existing experience of specific projects, Omega Production can use the following options or combinations thereof for obtaining production compositions of products based on the original design ones:

• restructuring of the original design compositions of products, adding technological parts, assemblies, work stages;
• taking into account in the composition of products data on blanks of own production;
• formation of production compositions based on the original design specifications and additional modifying documents on replacements;
• taking into account data from temporary deviation permit cards in the production compositions of products;
• generation of production trains based on the initial general design documentation and order options;
• generation or formation of vehicle kit specifications based on the initial design documentation;
• formation of production compositions of products in the form of specifications-orders with the exclusion of parts and assemblies in the hierarchy of the product composition;
• clarification of permissible substitutions in product compositions with the establishment of copy numbers to which these substitutions relate.

As a rule, a specific enterprise uses a combination of several of the above options to obtain and maintain up-to-date production compositions of products.

For complex products, it is important to ensure that Omega Production maintains instance compositions in the production and operation of products with control of changes indicated with or for instance numbers.

The main source of data on operational technology used in planning are technological processes. The development of technological processes at enterprises is carried out by technological divisions, which, as a rule, are focused on the production of technological documentation in accordance with ESTD standards.

At the same time, work on the formation of electronic technological processes at the enterprise must be structured in such a way that technological process data can be directly used in planning. And here a lot depends on the management of the system implementation project, the tasks that are set for planning, and the manageability of the personnel of technological and planning services.

At each of the enterprises where the system is being implemented, depending on the tasks being solved in production planning, requirements and rules are being formed according to which electronic technological processes should be developed. Below are examples of rules adopted by enterprises.

For example, at Ural Locomotives OJSC, in order to formulate shift-daily control tasks in the operational planning of production, control rules are established for each of the technological process operations. An example of an interface for setting control rules in a technological process is shown in Fig. 1. Control rules are established in the technical control bureau when agreeing on the technological process.

Rice. 1. Setting control rules for a process operation.

At JSC NPK Uralvagonzavod, in order to formulate in the operational planning tasks for setting up a tool and tasks for setting up a machine with the calculation and control of the adjusters’ resources, it was agreed upon to include in the technological processes the corresponding operations of the type “ Tool setting" And " Setting up the machine". To ensure the calculation of the need for tools and equipment for the production program in the technological process, tool consumption rates for transitions are calculated with summation for tool positions in the corresponding operations.

Omega Production has the following basic options for defining engineering inputs for production planning:

• Formation of production compositions, technological processes and other engineering data in the system’s engineering data management modules. Omega Production has its own developed PDM/PLM system, a system for maintaining technological data and carrying out technological calculations using calculation methods used at enterprises;
• Obtaining initial engineering data by importing from the PDM/PLM system used at the enterprise;
• Obtaining initial engineering data by importing from the PDM/PLM system used at the enterprise with formalization and addition of data required for operational planning directly in Omega Production.

For example, at Ural Locomotives OJSC, the initial design compositions of products, three-dimensional models of parts and assemblies are obtained in Omega Production by import from the Teamcenter system. The formation of production compositions of products, the formation of technological processes, and technological calculations are carried out directly in Omega Production.

At OJSC “9th Plant”, product compositions are obtained from the Search system. Technological processes are imported from the Techcard system.

A characteristic feature of many enterprises is that there are few electronic technological processes that can be used for planning compared to the range of parts and assemblies in production. It will take several years to create the complete required base of current technological processes suitable for planning. For such cases, Omega Production provides the possibility of parallel use of electronic technological processes for those parts where they are available, and data from an array of operational labor standards for other parts and assemblies.

An example of the hierarchy of the production composition of a product in the form of a representation with routes and technological processes is shown in Fig. 2.

Rice. 2. Presentation of the production composition of the product with technological processes.

Options for planning the production of products with long production cycles in the system

In our opinion, the following main factors influence the choice of the type of planning used in an enterprise:

• duration of product production cycles;
• serial production;
• available electronic input data for planning;
• quality (accuracy) of source data;
• the existing infrastructure for communicating planning data to executors and the infrastructure for entering credentials;
• qualifications and controllability of production personnel.

The Omega Production system offers the following planning options for long-cycle products:

• Volume scheduling with implicit consideration of production cycles (OKP-);
• Volume scheduling with explicit consideration of production cycles (OKP+);
• Operational scheduling (OCP).

Comparative characteristics of planning types according to the above factors, personnel requirements and initial data for planning options are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Comparative characteristics of planning types.

The presence of planning types of different complexity, requirements for infrastructure, production personnel, and initial data in Omega Production reflects the experience of working with various enterprises, makes it possible to ensure at the initial stage of implementation the choice of the type of planning that is most adequate to the state of the data and personnel of the enterprise, to ensure a gradual increase in complexity and achieved results in production management.

Production management using volume scheduling with implicit consideration of production cycles

Volume scheduling with implicit consideration of production cycles is the simplest and imposes minimal requirements for source data compared to other types of planning.

The main planning results are:

• Calculations of product range and production volumes by production departments by calendar periods (months, quarters, years) with the possibility of distribution by day within a calendar period manually or using simple algorithms;
• Calculations of the need for material resources for production departments by calendar periods;
• Calculations of the provision of material resources to production departments in accordance with production plans, taking into account delivery cycles;
• Calculations of the need and availability of production personnel for workshops in accordance with production plans.

Accounting for the movement of semi-finished products and finished parts in production is carried out according to electronic movement documents (acts of materials processing, in-plant invoices, assembly acts, etc.) up to inter-site and inter-shop transfers using, if necessary, workshop storerooms.

The main means of production dispatch in this type of planning include:

• Shop production schedules that have volumetric and calendar parts, which reflect the planned and actual volumes of production by production departments. The contents of the schedules are automatically updated both when production plans change and when products are transferred using invoices;
• User-run reports;
• Automatically updated dashboards reflecting production progress and consistent production progress indicators. By clicking on the indicator, a detailed report is opened, based on which the status of the indicator was calculated. An example of a panel is shown in Fig. 3.

Rice. 3. An example of a panel for presenting production progress data.

In general, the production management option with OBKP is characterized by low requirements for initial data and personnel using the system, ease of implementation and use, calculation of plans and products of any complexity, and a large selection of reports received.

At the same time, ObKP does not provide the necessary accuracy and efficiency of planning in relation to small-scale and single-unit production. The accuracy of accounting for the production of long-cycle products is also insufficient.

Production management using volume scheduling with explicit consideration of production cycles

Volume scheduling with explicit consideration of production cycles, calculated using data on operational technology, can significantly increase the accuracy of planning and accounting for small-scale and unit production, without placing high demands on the accuracy of operation parameters.

The main stages of ObKP+ are:

• Calculations of batch sizes of parts for the production program in accordance with assigned rules;
• Calculations of production schedules for batches of parts with determination of launch and release times for a given set of production programs.

An example of a production schedule is shown in Fig. 4;

Rice. 4 An example of a schedule for the production of batches of parts for a production program.

• Ensuring manual adjustments, defining additional restrictions in production schedules. Recalculation of production schedules taking into account manual changes and restrictions;
• Updating the production schedule when product data or production program parameters change, taking into account the fact that some batches of parts are already in production;
• Assessment of production schedules based on required resources (equipment, personnel);
• Simulation of production schedules under various parameters of production programs and resource data;
• Calculation of schedules for the need for material resources in accordance with schedules for the production of batches of parts;
• Calculations of the availability of material resources for the production schedule of batches of parts, taking into account the supply cycles of materials, purchased components, equipment;
• Calculation of task plans for production departments according to the production schedule for the nearest calendar period with the formation and issuance of route sheets for batches of parts for production. The sequence of operations in route sheets is taken from the corresponding technological processes. Data on the planned start and end times of operations are determined by the production schedule. An example of the contents of the route sheet is shown in Fig. 5;
• Formation and issuance of daily shift assignments to production personnel.

Rice. 5. Contents of the electronic route sheet.

Accounting for the movement of batches of parts in production is carried out according to route sheets with an accuracy of technological operations. To automate the accounting of completed operations, barcoding or specialized equipment can be used. When entering data on the execution of operations on the route sheet accompanying a batch of parts, other accounting documents are automatically generated, determined by the settings according to the accounting rules.

The tools for monitoring and dispatching production under ObKP+ are:

• Reflection of the actual execution of operations for batches of parts in production schedules;
• Presentation of data on implementation in plan tasks and shift-daily tasks;
• Receiving reports with a specified hierarchy of presentation of planned and actual data and summation at each level of the hierarchy;
• Graphic presentation of data on the movement of batches of parts with animation in terms of arrangement of equipment by production departments;
• Presentation of data on the progress of production in an automatically updated panel, where, unlike ObKP-, not indicators are presented, but volumetric performance indicators for production departments. An example of such a panel for Ural Locomotives OJSC is shown in Fig. 6.

Rice. 6. Panel for presenting data on production progress.

ObKP+ provides planning and accounting of production progress down to the technological operation. However, due to the expected incompleteness and inaccuracy of operational data, the planning tools provided to the user allow the assessment and adjustment of planned data at all stages of planning from the calculated production schedule to the generated daily shift assignments.

Production management using operational scheduling

Operational scheduling is a development of the methods used in ObKP+, which can be effectively applied if the data on the operations of technological processes is more fully adequacy to real production.

The planning stages in OKP are basically similar to the planning stages in ObKP+. But at the same time, calculations of production schedules for resources are made using optimization algorithms.

An example of a production schedule for the movement of batches of parts with data on equipment loading is shown in Fig. 7. An example of presenting a production schedule for equipment occupancy is shown in Fig. 8.

Rice. 7. Presentation of the production schedule for the movement of batches of parts.

Rice. 8. Presentation of production schedule for equipment.

Operational calendar planning, in comparison with ObKP+, involves a significantly lower degree of manual adjustments to algorithmically generated production schedules, task plans, and shift-daily tasks.

For effective production management using OKP, it is necessary to take into account the progress of production at the pace of operations on batches of parts. Omega Production allows you to combine ObKP+ and OKP at one enterprise.

To plan production at the enterprise level, where, in general, the accuracy of the initial data is less and the volume of calculations is greater, it is more rational to use ObKP+.

For individual workshops equipped with modern equipment, with better capabilities for bringing planned tasks to workplaces and better capabilities for automating the accounting of operations, the use of OKP is more effective. In this case, the plan of a workshop or a set of workshops, calculated in ObKP+, is refined and optimized in the OKP of the workshop.

Production planning has a direct impact on the efficiency of production, process optimization and cost reduction programs, but OmegaSoftware's experience shows that planning practices used in mechanical engineering plants do not always provide the necessary level of flexibility and accuracy. The lack of the full amount of necessary data in existing information systems and their inability to cope with complex calculation algorithms seriously reduce the efficiency of planning.

Operational planning helps to increase the efficiency of production management. It allows you to see and evaluate the workload of equipment and personnel, plans for all production departments, make a more accurate calculation of the provision of material resources, and simulate various options for the production program. But implementing such a system is not so easy; this requires high quality initial data, reliable infrastructure, qualified personnel and much more. It may take several years to create the complete required database of current technological processes suitable for planning. CIS Omega Production offers a comprehensive solution for managing initial engineering data, planning, accounting and dispatching production with accuracy down to the technological operation, while providing the opportunity to choose between types of planning that differ in complexity, requirements for infrastructure and production personnel. By starting with the implementation of the type of planning that is most adequate to the state of data and the level of personnel training, it is possible to ensure a gradual increase in complexity and, accordingly, the level of achieved results in production management.

OJSC Research and Production Corporation Uralvagonzavod named after. F.E. Dzerzhinsky, Director of Information Technology M. Kokhan:

Under the leadership of OmegaSoftware, a project related to the operational management of railcar assembly production at the production site of OJSC Research and Production Corporation Uralvagonzavod has been developed and is being successfully implemented. Issues related to operational planning, accounting and dispatch of production were resolved in a short time. As a result of the project, we plan to successfully solve production problems and increase the efficiency of business processes.

One of the distinctive characteristics of an information system is its flexibility, ability to adapt to the tasks being solved, and the possibility of modernization. Already, the company’s specialists are initiating proposals for further development of the system and actively participating in its implementation.

I consider it extremely important that OmegaSoftware software products are being successfully implemented at other production sites. Systematic implementation of the project will improve production efficiency across the Corporation.

JSC "Vityaz", chief engineer V.L. Zaitsev:

One of the most significant factors in increasing the competitiveness of an enterprise is the use of information technology in all areas of the enterprise. OJSC Vityaz began implementing the Omega Production CIS in the 3rd quarter of 2006.

During the implementation of the project, the following main tasks were solved at the enterprise:

• Management of design and technological data;
• Technical and economic planning and production planning;
• Operational accounting and production management;
• Management of inventories of material resources;
• Product sales management;
• Tool production management.

As part of this project of the state scientific and technical program, basic components have been developed to support the life cycle of television and medical equipment in the form of an integrated automated information system, the basis of which is electronic technical document management, covering the areas of communication with computer-aided design systems, product data management taking into account their life cycles and production management system.

The transition to maintaining electronic design, technological and production documentation allows us to solve problems for data collection, multidimensional analysis, preparation and provision of information that is necessary for analyzing the activities of the enterprise and making management decisions.

At the moment, the Omega Production system is accepted as the basic production management system of the enterprise. During the implementation of the system, the work of specialists from our enterprises took place in close contact, which made it possible to complete the assigned tasks in a timely and high-quality manner.