Writing procedures: simple and efficient by going digital

Procedures are among the most important elements of the industrial documentation system. Each of them serves as a reference point for the employees concerned and it is its ability to guide them that determines their efficiency in their respective positions. It is therefore by ensuring that they have well-designed procedures in place that companies put themselves in the right conditions to achieve the objectives set.

But writing procedures is a relatively complex and specialized job. This task involves a lot of effort in terms of gathering the necessary information, creating the document itself and updating it. And in these 3 activities, digital technology provides considerable support. Let’s see how the digitization of procedure writing makes it easier and faster with dedicated tools

Collect information more easily

In industry as in other fields, to correctly perform an action or a sequence of actions, you need a reference document; it is the procedure. Without being as detailed as the operating procedure, it allows the user to do his work in compliance with standards, regulatory requirements, quality requirements and possibly pre-established deadlines. There are procedures for maintenance, non-conformity control, archiving, product traceability and internal audit, to name but a few.
However, in order to draft procedures, it is necessary to collect all the information supposed to be included in them beforehand. For this, the tools of new technologies are valuable. Thanks to specifically developed modules, it is easier and faster to search, enter and classify the necessary data so that they can then be organized and the writing process can begin. It is obvious that carrying out this mission on a computer and tablet is much more practical and less time-consuming than doing it on paper, using the traditional method.

Creation of the procedure content: speed and simplicity thanks to the digital tool

Once the data have been collected, the procedure can be developed and written. Here again, digital makes things less tedious while expanding the possibilities thanks to the functionalities offered by software that could be compared to mind mapping.
It is possible to produce visual and interactive procedures in the form of logigrams, consisting of symbols, connectors and other graphic elements representing the actions to be carried out, their sequence, as well as the results to be obtained.

When it comes to drafting procedures, the ISO 9001 standard allows complete freedom of form, as long as the documents in question meet the following requirements: simplicity, conciseness, suitability of content for the user, structure and organisation.

Digital work instruction software solutions, such as we develop at Picomto, make it easy and fast to create procedures in just a few clicks.

Digital technology for a better update of the procedure

It is not enough to write procedures well and formalize them in an intelligent way. As with any industrial document, they are subject to regular improvement.
Boosting procedures by updating them as employees report information is a direct part of a continuous improvement process and a quality approach, for optimal customer satisfaction.

Writing effective procedures also means confronting them with the reality on the ground, taking corrective action when necessary.

Why use industry-specific software and these standards?

At Picomto, we develop our digital work instruction solution in compliance with industrial regulations (ISO 9001, FDA, GMP etc…) and with the objective of:

  • Create a clear and efficient procedure in a few minutes using a dedicated creation tool
  • Consult clear and unambiguous procedures for technicians
  • Provide a tool to simplify and facilitate field data collection

There are of course other use cases for using dedicated software. Do not hesitate to contact our specialists.