Machine Configuration

Overview

Access: Admin only. Roles and access.

Let admins create a machine setup or refine how an existing machine is configured.

Administrators can open Machine Settings from the gear in the machine detail header, or from the machine row menu in the Admin Panel.

Access

What You Can See

• Vertical tabs for setup areas such as basic information, AVA assignments, energy monitoring, ratings, timeline ranges, timeline rules, and features.
• Unsaved-change indicators on tabs.

What You Can Do

• Complete the initial machine setup.
• Update how the machine is grouped and measured.
• Save changes tab by tab.

For Sensor powered by machine, Active shift, Energy monitor, and the options under PDA Assist, click the checkbox or its title. Clicking descriptions or empty space leaves the setting unchanged.

AVA Device Assignments

An AVA assignment connects an AVA device to this machine. Open Configuration → AVA Assignments to select and connect a device. When several devices are connected, drag them up or down to set their priority.

Invalid or duplicate entries are identified before saving. Correct the flagged entries, then save the tab before leaving it. See Configure a Machine for the setup steps.

Sensors Powered by the Machine

In Configuration → Basic Info, enable Sensor powered by machine if the sensor receives power only while the machine is switched on. Save the tab after changing this setting.

With this setting enabled, a missing signal from that sensor is shown as machine off instead of unknown. This helps you recognize an expected shutdown. Use the setting only when the sensor actually loses power with the machine, so an unexplained loss of data is not mistaken for a shutdown.

Kind, Energy Monitoring, Ratings, and Features

In Basic Info, choose Kind → Machine for a machine with an AVA or Kind → Work center for a workplace without one. Work centers cannot receive AVA assignments and show only the applicable configuration tabs.

When switching a machine with AVAs, Switch to work center? lists the affected devices. Unassign and switch removes their assignments and stops all KPI calculation. To collect readings again, save the kind as Machine, then assign an AVA in the AVA tab. Follow the configuration workflow.

An optional Energy monitor measures consumption, voltage, power factor, and frequency. Machine rating stores targets for OEE, PRO, AVL, production/idle/off time per hour, and energy consumption/wastage. Actual-versus-rating comparisons do not make the target an actual measurement.

Machine features define custom sensor readings, such as temperature or vibration, with name, unit, minimum/maximum threshold, precision, and multiplication factor. Machine tags support grouping and filtering.

Simultaneous Work and the Forecaster

Administrators set Planning → Jobs in parallel in the machine’s basic information. Enter a whole number from 1 to 100 and save the tab. This is how many assignments the machine can run at the same time; the Forecaster uses it for expected times.

Set the value to match actual capacity. For example, 2 means the forecast can allow two assignments to run together. Follow Configure a Machine.

Timeline Rules and Ranges

Administrators can review Machine Settings → Downtime reason rules. A reason chosen by the machine operator or set by hand takes priority. When automatic break labels are enabled, an eligible break's reason comes next. Downtime reason rules apply to the remaining idle or off time; without a matching reason, the time stays unlabelled.

Since November 5, 2026 (v1.5.153), the rules apply to more idle and off downtimes. Downtime reason totals in reports and charts can therefore change for machines with rules. Downtimes from before the update remain unchanged. See automatic rules.

For Off, Idle, and Preparation, automatic reason rules are checked in this order: the reason's specific rule, its DEFAULT rule, then Global rules. Configure only the rules needed.

Timeline ranges / Time range are duration buckets, for example 1–5 and 5–30 minutes, used in Idletime Distribution. Timeline reasons have type and level 1–5 fields, but their exact effects are not established in the reference.

Active Shift Settings

Administrators choose Shifts → Active shift in the machine configuration. When enabled, a shift starts automatically when the machine begins idle, production, or preparation. When disabled, shifts follow the assigned shift group's schedule.

Enter all three durations in hours, greater than 0. Neither the minimum nor the stop length may exceed the maximum.

When you enable Active shift, Switch to active shifts? explains that scheduled shifts are removed from today onward. Shifts already recorded today are kept. The shift group stays assigned but is not used. Review this effect before selecting Continue.

When you disable it, Switch back to scheduled shifts? explains that the running active shift ends immediately and scheduled shifts from the assigned group are created from today. Review the assigned group before selecting Continue.

The Active shift badge identifies machines using this mode. Its explanation shows the minimum, stop, and maximum durations. Some alert rules do not fire for these machines; check the rule's notice before relying on it. Follow Configure a Machine for the steps.

Waiting for the next active shift or waiting for machine start means the next shift has not started yet. It starts automatically when the machine begins idle, production, or preparation. Until then, planned shifts from the assigned shift group are shown. This display does not switch off active shifts.

PDA Assist: Interval Assistance and Warnings

Only administrators can change these settings. Open Machine Settings → PDA Assist (previously PDA Assistant). Interval assist and Warnings each have a checkbox in their heading. Clearing it collapses the settings. The summary beneath the heading shows what is active.

When you first enable a section with no saved options, start and end correction or three recommended warnings are preselected. The note Recommended options were switched on. Review them and press Save. stays until you save. Review the selection before Save. If the section is on but none of its options are enabled, the summary turns amber and tells you to choose options.

Start and End Times

Live interval assistance is off by default. Enable Interval assist, then choose Start time, End time, or automatic ending as needed.

Under Start time → Production order: move the start back to…, choose the allowed times:

• End of the previous interval includes changeover time in the new order. Set the maximum gap and how much off time is allowed between intervals.
• Start of idle time includes the idle stretch before the most recent production, such as warming up.
• Start of production uses the start of the most recent production stretch.

Under Setup (preparation): move the start back to…, choose setup options independently:

• End of the previous order includes the time since the last order, even if the machine was off in between. The maximum gap still applies.
• When the machine stopped producing uses the end of the last production.
• When the machine was switched on includes setup since switch-on, even if test pieces have been produced since.

Under End time → Production order: move the end back to…, End of the last production uses the last moment of production. End of activity also includes the following idle time until switch-off. Under Setup (preparation), When production started ends setup at the first production after setup began. For example, setup from 08:00, production from 08:40, and Stop at 08:46 give a setup end of 08:40.

Saved machines keep their existing behaviour until you change these options. Production options no longer control setup options. Each start and end section shows how far back times can be offered. Use the information icons beside the options for a small example.

These choices also guide Improve intervals. When live assistance is off, expand Allowed times for Improve intervals to edit them. Reviewing past days only proposes changes; someone must apply them.

How Changes Are Applied

Under How changes are applied, choose Ask the operator or Pick the best automatically when several times fit. The automatic choice uses the earliest allowed start or latest allowed end. Operators can reverse an automatic adjustment with Undo or choose another time with Change….

Set Apply automatically up to (hours) and Ask the operator up to (hours). Each accepts 0.5–12 hours in half-hour steps; both default to 6 hours. The asking limit cannot be smaller than the automatic limit. Times between the limits require a choice. Older times are not offered. The previous interval's end also has its own gap conditions.

Open How changes are applied → How are the times chosen? to read this machine's limits and try the six examples: Late start, Several times, Short gap ignored, Off between orders, Late stop, and Forgotten stop. Use Back and Next to move through machine activity, the operator's action, and the result.

Only real machine events or the previous interval's end are offered. Times are never moved to a limit where nothing happened. The most recent times appear first; earlier choices are under Other times, newest first, with up to 20 offered times in total. Nothing before the previous order's end is offered.

Missing data shorter than 10 minutes does not split a stretch of activity. Idle, off, or preparation periods shorter than 2 minutes are also ignored. Longer interruptions count separately. For example, production from 19:33 with a five-minute data gap at 20:10 can still give a start of 19:33.

Auto-end Forgotten Intervals

Enable Auto-end forgotten intervals and choose off or off or idle, then the waiting time. When enabled, it keeps checking even when nobody has the PDA page open. Only production intervals end this way, never preparation.

The end is set to the last production time, or when the machine stopped if nothing was produced. Quantities are not booked and the order is not marked complete by this action. Operators must check and book quantities afterwards. To prevent automatic ending, turn this option off and select Save.

If automatic ending comes before the Machine off, order still running warning, operators will not see that warning. The settings explain this. Snoozing a warning or muting sound does not turn off automatic ending.

Warning Settings

Enable Warnings, then choose each warning's delay, severity, and speaker setting. The delay is how long the situation must last before a warning appears. Order carried across shift change needs assigned shifts. Keep Live data is stale enabled because other warnings may be unreliable without fresh data.

Multiple orders running appears only when the number exceeds Jobs in parallel. Live data is stale needs at least 5 minutes of delay; other minute-based delays need at least 1 minute.

Info is a silent note in the warning list. Warning shows an orange banner and orange light around the whole page. Critical shows a red banner and flashing screen border. Snooze sets how long operators can hide and silence a warning before it returns if the problem remains.

Open the information icon beside a warning by pointing to it, focusing it, or tapping it. When it appears shows the delay from the event that starts the wait. For the machine-off warning, a second marker shows automatic ending when enabled. What the operator sees previews the chosen severity and shows a speaker when sound is on. It follows the settings currently shown, including unsaved changes. The preview is static and does not flash or play an alarm.

How operators see warnings compares the three severities. The floating warning button at the bottom left lists all active warnings and lets operators snooze them.

Alarm Sound

Turn on Alarm sound, then enable the speaker for each warning that should sound. Info is always silent. Set the volume, repeat interval, and whether sound is restricted to active shifts. Test the volume: Warning plays two beeps; Critical plays three alternating high and low beeps.

Sound repeats until the warning is handled or snoozed. Operators can mute their device. The browser needs a tap on the page before sound can play; some browsers cannot play alarm sounds.

Reset, Save, and Copy Settings

Reset to defaults at the bottom of either open section resets that section's options after confirmation. Its on/off selection stays as it is. Select Save to keep the reset or other changes; Unsaved changes identifies edits still waiting to be saved.

Copy to other machines… copies both interval assistance and warnings as shown, including unsaved edits. Choose destinations and review the replacement notice before confirming. Their other settings stay unchanged. Check success and failure counts, and save the current machine separately. Follow Configure a Machine.

Downtime Reasons for This Machine

Administrators use Machine Settings → Downtime reasons for machines and work centers. Save a new machine before setting its reasons.

• All reasons (default) offers every company reason, including reasons created later.
• Only selected reasons offers a fixed list. Select at least one reason before saving. Search by code or reason and filter by category. Select all visible adds the visible reasons; clearing the selection removes all ticks, including hidden ones.

Save the tab to keep this machine's selection. Apply to other machines replaces the destinations' lists with the current selection or all-reasons mode. Review the destinations before confirming.

New reason opens the shared reason form. The current machine starts ticked under Available on machines. Keep it ticked if the reason should be offered here. Editing a reason's name, code, category, or colour affects every machine using it. See Create and Manage Downtime Reasons for availability and deletion limits.

The selection limits both the reasons people can assign and the reasons automatic rules and shift breaks can use. Removing a reason from this list keeps past labels. Deleting the shared reason also removes it from rules, defaults and breaks. If deletion empties a restricted list, the machine offers no reasons until an administrator changes it. Check the warnings in Break Settings for breaks whose reason this machine does not offer.

Main Entities

• Machine
• Hall
• Shift Group
• Energy Monitor
• Timeline Rule
• Feature

Outcomes and Limits

Common Outcomes

• The machine is ready for monitoring, planning, and alerting.

Limits and Empty States

• Some tabs are only fully usable after the machine exists.
• Users must save tab changes before leaving them.

Related Pages

• Energy Consumption, Wastage & Costs FAQs
• Machine Details
• Machines
• Alert Rules
• Data Acquisition (PDA)

Related Workflows

• Configure a Machine
• Add a Machine