IMA

Spare parts catalogs with integrated electrical documentation from ELCAD

IMA develops, produces and markets machines and systems for the woodworking industry, especially edgebending and finishing machines as well as transport and handling systems worldwide. For more than 60 years the company ranks at the top for technology leadership in planning, development and realisation of complex production lines and systems in its industry. The most important manufacturers of kitchen, office and take-apart furniture as well as door and prefabricated building units are IMA’s customers. The company generated a turnover of 115 million euros in 2010, employs more than 750 people in nine subsidiaries in Europe, America and Asia and is globally represented by more than 60 trade partners in 60 countries.

Since 2002, IMA has been operating a spare parts catalog system based on PARTS-PUBLISHER. Using PARTS-PUBLISHER the company provides machine-specific catalogs on paper and CD. Since 2010, parts catalogs are integrated in an Internet service portal furthermore.

The challenge

Electric and pneumatic diagrams from ELCAD (AUCOTEC) are to be integrated into the spare parts catalog system from 2010/2011.

The solution

As an interface, jointly developed by AUCOTEC and Docware, exists for connecting PARTS-PUBLISHER and ELCAD, a fully automated solution was able to be implemented for the desired integration of electric and pneumatic schematics in the catalog system (paper, CD and Internet catalogs) without great effort and expense. 

The interface works as a plug-in at the ELCAD system. Circuit  diagrams and components, as well as information on their representation and ordering details, are adopted automatically from ELCAD to the PARTS-PUBLISHER workbench, where they are integrated directly to the automated catalog creation. This is how with just a few mouse clicks an information platform is formed which supports mechanics, pneumatics and electrics. Mechanical components and circuit diagrams are partially linked. 

Navigation is done via the circuit plan directory, component IDs and interactive circuit diagrams. Mechanical, pneumatical and electrical components can be ordered directly from the catalogue using a common shopping cart.  

The schematics viewer of the PARTS-PUBLISHER spare parts catalog (CD/DVD, Internet) offers numerous features which provide excellent support in electrical fault elimination including signal monitoring:

• Display of data sheets like in the parts catalog
• Navigation via drawing directory or component ID
• Hotspots on the data sheets for components and interruption points
• Separate dialogue for searching for components
• Attributes: Display of additional information and products or parts lists for the individual components (also originating from ELCAD)
• Linking between mechanical and electrical spare parts catalog: In the case of already existing separate link information (material number in the circuit diagram), one can switch back and forth between the mechanical spare parts catalog and the circuit diagram.

„With the integration of electro and pneumatic schematics in our parts catalogs we provide an allround information and ordering system that professionally supports our customers in all domains of the part search and ordering. Thanks to the fully-automatic import of electro projects from ELCAD into the parts catalog system PARTS-PUBLISHER this benefit for our customers is no real additional effort for us.“

Dirk Münze, Technical Documentation, IMA Klessmann GmbH