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February2020
BoostingValueinaTechnicalManualByShannonThompson,DocumentationSpecialist,CorporateProjectServices,WengerManufacturing,Inc.
Ican’tsayIknowanyonewhowouldcallanoperationsmanual“riveting”ora“realpageturner”—buthereatCorporateProjectServiceswetreattheseresourcesasanopportunitytoaddvalueforourclients.
Thoughtechnicalinnature,welookatthemasacommunicationtoolthatweusetohelpourclientsbridgethegapbetweenideasandexecution.AllofusatCPS,andWengerManufacturingasawhole,strivetocreatethiskindofvalueeachandeveryday—andthatcoverseverythingfromequipmenttoprocessestoourconsultingservices…andevenouroperationsmanuals.
IleadtheTechnicalPublicationsGroupforCPS,andourobjectiveistocreateinstructionalresourcesthatempowerclientstogetthemostproductivitypossiblefromtheirWengerequipment.Whatwecreateincludesinstallation,howtorunitandadjustsettings,cleaningandsanitation,howtotieittootherpiecesofequipment,andmore,dependingontheclients’needs.
Wedon’tlookateachprojectasjustanothertechnicalmanual;weseeitasanopportunitytooffersomethingusefulandbeneficialtoclients.Thatrequiresthinkingbeyondourtechnicalexpertisetocapturewhat’srelevantandmeaningful—the“how”andthe“why”ofallthe
processesandoperationsassociatedwithfactoryequipment.
Why?Becauseeventhoughit’satechnicaldocument,it’salsoacommunicationvehicle.Andforthattobeeffective,wehavetothinkaboutitinawaythat’sdifferentthanexpected.
Yet,simplifyingcomplexinformationcanbeastretchforourtechnicalbrains.Ourworldisfilledwithengineersandprocesstechnologyexperts,sowenaturallydefaulttotechnicaljargon…becausethat’sjustthewaywethink.Sothekeyistogostraighttothesourcetopickoutwhat’smeaningfulsoyoureallycanbridge
thatgapratherthanjustcreatingahow-todocument.
BeyondNutsandBoltsWhenItookthisrolewithCPSafewyearsago,mymanagertoldmerightoutofthegatetobecomeknowledgeableabouteverything—thatmeantengineering,extrusion,safety,dryingandeveryothercomponentourbusinessoffers.There’sgeniusthinkinginthatbecausedocumentingthestepsinsettingupatwin-screwextruderisfardifferentthanunderstandingWHYthosestepsareimportant,andhowtheyfitintotheoverallprocess.
That’swhereon-the-groundexperiencereallymakesadifference,andhowwereallygetto
February2020
theheartofit—the“how”andthe“why,”ifyouwill.
Nothingbeatshands-onexperiencewhenitcomestolearning.Youcanspendhoursatyourdeskreadingabouthowamachineworks,andthatwillgiveyouinformationandideas.Butthere’snosubstituteforwhatyougainfromobservingtheequipmentandalltherelatedprocessesinactionwithyourowneyes.It’showyoudiscovertheissuesoperatorsmayrunintowithinstallationsandhowtheyneedtoworkwiththesettingsonthemachinetoaddressthem.Thisexperiencetellsyouwhichstepsrequirelessexplanation,andwhicharethemostrelevantandusefultotheclientandthereforedeservemoreattention.
ImmersingmyselfwiththeequipmentishowI’mabletocraftthemostbeneficial,all-encompassingresourcepossible.OnlythroughthissubmersionintotheenvironmentandtheprocessesishowIcanpickoutwhat’srelevantandassesswhichpartsnecessitatemoreexplanationandinwhatform.Ilearnwhat’simportant,whatquestionstoask,anditpreparesmetofieldquestionsfromclients(orknowwhototurntofortheanswer).WhileImaynoteverbeamasterofthesedisciplines,havingasolidunderstandingaboutthemishowIbringvaluetotheendproduct.
PickingOutWhatMattersMostOurmanualsarenotonesizefitsall,andwetailorthemforeachclientbyfirstunderstandinghowthisequipmentfitsintotheirgoals.
Todeterminetherightapproach,youhavetostartattheend—whatdoesthecompletemanualneedtolooklike?Whatdoweneedittoaccomplish?Whatproblemsdoweneedittosolve?Whataretheinterlockingpieces?Knowingthesefactorshelpsus—onceagain—gettothe“why”andthe“how”foreachclient.Thenwemaketheroadmap.
Lookingatitfromeveryangleisthekey.You’vegottobeupcloseandpersonalwiththeequipment,butyou’vealsogottotakeastepbacktoseeitfromabroaderpointofview.Sometimesanoutsidesourcecomesupwiththebestquestions—somyadvicealwaysistofindaneutralpartytotestwhatyou’vewritten.Heorshecanflagstepsthatareconfusingthatwemaynotnoticebecauseweseeiteveryday.
Wealsohavetotakeintoconsiderationthevariousaudiencesandtheirinformationneeds.Itmustbeuser-centricandeffectiveforthefactoryfloor,becauseapoorlycraftedresourcecanleadtoerrorsanddowntime.Puttingyourselfintheirshoeshelpsguideselectionofrelevantinformationtoinclude.
Customersdon’tnecessarilyaskforthis—mostmayassumewhatwecreateisjustatechnicaldocumenttokeepontheshelfandreferencewhenneeded.Butoncetheyhaveit,theyseethevalue.Theydidn’tknowtheyneededituntiltheyhaveit—andthenwe’veexceededtheirexpectations.
Ourintentwiththesetechnicalmanualsistoprovidethelinkbetweenthecustomerandgettingthemostfromtheirextrusionequipmentandprocesses—it’sjustoneofmanywaysCPSbridgesthegap,andweworkhardtofulfillthatgoaleveryday.
IfyouhavequestionsforCPSorwanttolearnmoreabouthowourconsultingservicesandresourcescanhelpyoureachyourgoals,pleasereachouttoourteam.
CorporateProjectServices,adivisionofWengerManufacturing,isadynamicgroupofplanningspecialistsbackedbyWenger’smorethan80yearsofprocesssystemsupplytotheindustry.Ourknowledgebaseandbreadthofexperienceinextrusionprocessingandfacilitiesconstructionisunsurpassed–andourcommitmenttoexcellenceisrecognizedaroundtheworld.