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REINFORCED QUALITY, CONSISTENCY & TRAINING FOR CRYSTAL GROUP

August 25, 2020

High-performing computer solutions are essential for seamless and accurate
operations, whether it's for autonomous vehicles, critical power infrastructure,
or military missions in austere and contested environments. The overall package
needs to protect both the equipment and the data, all the while delivering
unwavering performance in unpredictable, unmanned, and unforgiving situations.

For Crystal Group, this requires unwavering attention to detail, well beyond
traditional quality standards as they design, build, and test every one of their
rugged computer solutions.

That’s because their customers –which include the U.S. Department of Defense
(DoD), autonomous vehicles OEMs, utilities, and oil, and gas companies– rely on
them to ensure their products meet or exceed AS9100D, IEEE, IEC, and military
standards, cybersecurity protections, and individual program requirements.

Using VKS Enterprise work instruction software, Crystal Group now reliably
captures program requirements and updates to industry regulations. It also
bolsters training, implements continuous improvements, and reinforces high
quality and efficiency standards by capturing tribal knowledge.

Given their high-mix, low-volume production, this is essential to ensuring the
timely delivery of resilient products.


CRYSTAL GROUP DELIVERS RUGGED, RELIABLE & SECURE SOLUTIONS

Crystal Group is trusted on more than 600 vital applications across some of the
most demanding and regulated industries, such as the military, oil and gas,
aerospace, autonomous vehicles power and mining.

It specializes in the design and manufacturing of custom and commercial rugged
computer hardware solutions for harsh environments. This means that final
products have to comply with tough International Traffic in Arms Regulations
(ITAR) while abiding by strict industry and military standards.

Crystal Group products are also subject to various quality regulations,
including AS9100D quality management standards, a key driver for implementing
digital work instructions. This particular certificate sets the quality standard
requirements for aviation, space, and defense organizations.

“We implemented VKS digital work instructions to help improve quality, collect
data, and streamline our processes,” explained Rachel Manson, the Engineering
Supervisor at Crystal Group.

Along with going digital with their work instructions, Crystal Group also set a
goal to deploy the software on the factory floor within six months.

A mighty goal, but one that our U.S.-based implementation team was excited to
pursue with Crystal Group. Working together, both teams created custom work
instructions for each process and quality test that takes place within the
factory on a daily basis.

"Along with having the VKS Customer Success team available for any immediate or
complex support needed, the VKS Knowledge Center proved to be very helpful and
provided us with clear information and details on how to use VKS features and
deploy the solution." -- Rachel Manson.


2 IDENTIFIED CHALLENGES FOR CRYSTAL GROUP:

 1. Maintain quality and consistency while complying with ever-changing defense
    regulations and industry standards.
 2. Train and prepare new employees with speed and efficiency alongside an
    increased production rate and rising shop floor demands.

With the scope of industries and customers that depend on Crystal Group’s
products, there is no compromise between quality and configurations. Products
must always pass, if not surpass, strict IEEE, IEC, and military standards
(MIL-STD), including MIL-STD-810, 167-1, 461, and MIL-S-901 regulatory agencies.

Achieving and maintaining MIL standards is imperative in all programs and
platforms across the U.S. DoD. In addition to facilitating interoperability
across the Air Force, Army, and Navy, these standards are designed to equip
warfighters with proven solutions for mission success in the most challenging
and unpredictable situations.


SOLUTION #1: CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE QUALITY AND REMAIN CONSISTENT

Before we continue, let’s break down what MIL-SPEC standards like MIL-STD-810G
and its successor MIL-STD-810H represent.

The U.S. DoD lists the environmental stressors that a piece of computer hardware
and its software must be able to withstand while remaining fully operational. A
product that meets MIL-STD-810G requirements can withstand gunfire, vibrations,
extreme weather, salt fog, and fungus throughout its life cycle. MIL-STD-810H is
the updated version of the standard, which brings new changes to the build and
test procedures a component goes through.

This is where our work instructions come into play. Using work instruction
software on their premises provides Crystal Group with a foundation for process
standardization on a platform, which as Rachel explained, "is very user-friendly
and easy to implement."

From the very beginning, Crystal Group set up work instruction templates for
each testing procedure and aspect of its in-house production. This means every
design process, assembly guide, and MIL-STD test has its own template.

“By selecting the appropriate templates, we can piece a work instruction
together like a puzzle.” -- Rachel Manson

By leveraging VKS' Embedded Guidebooks, Crystal Group can create standard
templates and reference them within different work instructions. Building the
instructions this way helps reduce the creation time for build-to-order or
highly-configured products.

To keep up with evolving MIL-SPEC and other industry standards, these templates
are regularly updated with new pictures, video steps, drawings, and other
configurations. The shop floor benefits from the instant mass-update
functionality that keeps the facility paperless and the operators up-to-date.



Plant supervisors, process engineers, and decision-makers know that to track
quality consistency, let alone improve it, you have to gather and monitor
factory floor data.

In addition to work instructions, Crystal Group is leveraging VKS to build
quality directly into their manufacturing processes. By incorporating Smart
Forms within the work instructions, Crystal Group captures critical data during
product build. From tool parameters and torque values to warehouse inventory
codes, serial numbers, and more, VKS provides Crystal Group with 100%
traceability.

Find out how Smart Tools can help you win the manufacturing game!

Executives and supervisors can effortlessly filter through VKS’ real-time
reports or work instructions to access the information needed for planning,
decision-making, and continuous improvement.


SOLUTION #2: TRAINING A RELIABLE WORKFORCE

As Crystal Group has been accumulating tribal knowledge for over three decades,
finding a solution that preserved and ensured a continuous improvement standard
was imperative and will bridge them into a new realm of operational efficiency.

Likewise, a fast growth rate is great news, but it also presents a unique set of
challenges for a company. Keeping track of each new trainee’s qualifications
before having them access a certain instruction directly affects the plant’s
quality output.

“We had all this tribal knowledge and best practices in place, but VKS helped us
capture, record and share it with the new hires to secure a steady growth.“

Crystal Group needs to test every server and computer to make sure all
components work properly and meet all customer specifications.

Testing also ensures the company delivers consistent quality before shipping
products. For this reason, it's important that the digital work instructions
used by the operators are always updated in accordance with the latest best
practices. Otherwise, the tests would be ineffective.

With interactive visual instructions now in place, operators can address
critical checkpoints by following guidelines during testing and inspection.



To streamline training and gather practical data on trainees’ progress, Crystal
Group uses Certifications to ensure that only accredited operators have access
to specific Guidebooks within the software.

Using our API, Crystal Group also integrated our software with CABEM
Technologies. CABEM’s Competency Manager platform provides companies with an
all-encompassing solution to track employee competencies, credentials etc.. It
also allows managers and HR professionals to be flagged when training activities
are due, keep track of operators’ certifications, and more.

The ability to link VKS to CABEM ensures only specific users are automatically
granted access to guidebooks through the Certifications feature. This guarantees
that all processes are only run by trained personnel.



This also applies to in-process daily inspections where the Certification
feature guarantees only qualified personnel conduct validations. With easy
access to applicable technical documentation, visual guidelines, and links to
relevant data, supervisors now ensure heightened quality control and
standardized processes.


EMBRACING INDUSTRY 4.0 AND THE CONNECTED WORKER

Through elaborate APIs, VKS helps companies bridge the gap between shop floor
operators and ERP or MES systems. By providing an intuitive interface to guide
them, the VKS platform makes it easier for companies to adopt digital
technologies in the factory and facilitate standardized manufacturing processes.

Within six months, Crystal Group was also able to leverage the power of ERP
integration. Visionaries at Crystal Group use the VKS software to establish
bi-directional communication between the shop floor and their ERP system with
the help of our Enterprise module features.

With work orders being pushed directly to VKS, the software tracks completed
quantities, product build times, and all performed quality checks. This
information is pushed back to Crystal Groups’ ERP system to streamline
information and report operations as complete.

Easy access to important information processed through their ERP provides
Crystal Group with numerous benefits that range from improvements in planning
and on-time delivery (OTD) to reductions in manual entries and missing data.

By using VKS work instruction software, Crystal Group has standardized its
processes and improved training with speed and efficiency. They now instantly
capture data for any build to ensure ongoing compliance with all industrial and
military standards and regulations to further elevate their position as an
innovative industry leader.

Are you ready to be the next VKS champion? Book a demo today.


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