PC‑Topp now supports information on stereo and tool location. Location data for two stereos and one tool can be sent to PC‑Topp via the new location field that has been added to the order data and OTDATA interface.

Likewise the stereo / tool availability module including the AVDATA interface allows specifying the location of stereo and tool numbers. If the location information is not specified in the stereo / tool availability module or AVDATA interface, this is ignored in order to not erase any existing information about location in particular orders.

(The stereo and tool location feature used to be available only as a personalized option; it has now become a standard PC‑Topp functionality.)

In the near future the location data will be displayed in the PC‑Topp Order Summary and the Job Card, the Conversion Machine Schedule, the Machine Terminal, and the ink, stereo and tool requirements lists.

With the new Order Data Transfer Report you can download the order data transfer history displayed on the PC‑Topp.NET Order Transfer page in PDF format. This gives you an easy way to output e.g. all transfer errors during the last two weeks for printout, emailing etc.

There are two ways to create this report:

• Order Data Transfer Information by Category During Default Period of Time
  On the Order Transfer page you can click the PDF icon in the header of each category (new, updated, deleted errors) to create a report with the order transfers in just this category during the period of time displayed on the page (14 days by default; longer periods can be set on request). 
  
• Free Choice of Category and Period of Time of Order Data Transfer Information
  
  Clicking the “Order Data Transfer History” link in the bottom of the Order Transfer page will open a new page that offers further options for customizing the report. You can select
  
  
  • Whether you want to output all or just selected categories of order transfers,
  • The period of time the Order Data Transfer Report should cover.

The PC Topp.NET Articles page has been enhanced with new article specific settings for set-up waste and run waste. These allow PC Topp to calculate an order’s target quantity to be produced on the corrugator (i.e. the ordered quantity plus the expected waste) more precisely.

The options for defining set-up waste and run waste of orders for a specific article are similar to those for the article speed settings. (It applies to both speed and waste settings that order specific settings override article specific and machine specific settings.)

• Production History Data
  PC-Topp uses production history data for calculating article specific speed and waste under the following conditions:
  • In the Article Configuration the article history is enabled,
  • There is production history data available for this article,
  • There are no article specific settings.
  Using history data for calculating the orders’ speed and target quantity offers significant advantages:
  • Differences in the production of individual articles are allowed for.
  • Corrugator Scheduling gets more precise because it can take real production data into account.
• Article Specific Settings
  If there is no history data available for the article PC-Topp checks whether this option is set. It can be used for difficult articles to enter speed and waste figures derived from practical experience.
• Machine Specific Settings
  If there are neither history data nor article specific settings for the article then PC-Topp falls back on the machine specific settings. (Machine specific  waste is defined under “Calculation of Target Quantity” on the Machine Settings page.)

Now you can assign special instructions to individual orders that describe what should be done when this order runs on a specific machine. This functionality can be used e.g. for marking orders whose production is to be controlled by a supervisor or orders that require special quality checks.

You can do so by defining so called production control codes in the new Production Control Codes page (to be found in the PC-Topp.NET Settings section). Each production control code has a description where you can enter an instruction how to treat the order(s) marked with this code. Production control codes can be assigned to any conversion step of an order via the order data transfer.

At the Machine Terminal, in Conversion Machine Scheduling, and in the Order Summary orders with a production control code appear as follows:

• They are marked with a colored icon so you immediately recognize them.
• Their description text is displayed in a tooltip (Conversion Machine Scheduling and Order Summary) resp. on the General Tab of the Machine Terminal.

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As of now any application that can access the PC-Topp SQL Server database can print bar codes. The first example of this new option is the new PC-Topp.NET corrugator material list. It is now available as a Crystal report in a standard as well as a personalized version that supports bar codes.

The new material list displays the actual program sequence, i.e. the sequence at the corrugator (not the sequence in Program Memory). Much like the classical material list but in a clearer structure, both versions of the PDF material list show

• The required quantities per program and paper code in meters and kilograms, organized by outside liner resp. single facer,
• The total quantity to produce per flute type,
• The roll size distribution per paper.

If subsequent programs require the same paper and roll size on the same single facer then the required quantity for this paper code is totalled in the first program where this paper is used.

Additionally, the personalized extended version of the new material list supports paper bar codes for reading with a bar code scanner. The paper bar codes are displayed next to the respective paper codes in a large font size so they are easily scannable with a pistol bar code reader.