Hi All,

I may have a need to produce a floor plan and work instructions for a QA, decant and storage process.

I have not produced these documents before so I was looking for some advice and possibly some examples of floor plans and work instructions.

I know it may seem a little wiered that somone working in the Automotive industry has not had to produce these things before, but it is important to point out the manuafacturing of these products is done remotely and TRANSFERRED to my location. The products then go through the Decant/QA Inspection and Storage operations here.

I need to document these processes on a floor plan and have work instructions ready for use.

Can anyone suggest anything to help me out?

In my opinion, you need to have a good idea of the "process" which goes into something you describe as "weird"
I know it may seem a little wiered that somone working in the Automotive industry has not had to produce these things before, but it is important to point out the manuafacturing of these products is done remotely and TRANSFERRED to my location. The products then go through the Decant/QA Inspection and Storage operations here.

I need to document these processes on a floor plan and have work instructions ready for use. Thus said, I'd start with a flow chart which identifies the steps and the order in which they are performed from the time the material hits your dock until they ultimately leave your area for inclusion in a product.

This flow chart will give you an idea of an efficient floor plan so each step can be performed. The work instructions are just details of what happens and "how" at each step in your flow chart.

With the information in hand, it is a simple transition to sketch the floor plan so the process machinery and storage devices and work stations and inspection instruments can be located in an efficient order (pattern.) Depending on the detail necessary for the floor plan, you can enlist the aid of process engineers and architects to do the actual drawing of the floor plan.

Similarly, the "style" of each work instruction depends on the work force that will actually perform the task. Can it be done in words or do you need cartoons and photographs to avoid ambiguity and be sure of preciseness?

I don't think you need to copy someone else's work. You need something that will work for YOUR situation.

Please keep us in the loop on your progress.

Hi Wes, thank you for your comments.

I have produced the process flow diagram and this has all the steps, the inputs, ouputs, decisions, the number of operators at each station, equipment used and the way the product moves.

I am happy with this document. :D .

I will let you all know how I get on with the Floor Plan and possible use of work instructions.