ZPointCS is the second shopfloor management system generation from AMS Engineering. It allows a supervision and control of the production process, as well as the recording of process data for the technical (AMS analysis software LTA CS) or commercial (ERP) analysis later.
ZPointCS offers a large part of the functionality of the reliable shopfloor management system ZPoint, like the administration of orders and shifts for example, the possibility of allocating standstills and operating statuses, alarm diagnosis.

The functionality provided by ZPointCS includes

• Administration of shift and order data
• Recording of operating statuses and standstills
• Continuous calculation of identification numbers
• Support at the diagnosis
• Recording of operation and product data
• Administration of Rezeptur and configuration values
• Administration of authorizations with AMS UserManager
• Host linking
• Distributed clients (on NT workstations or on CE terminals over a Windows NT terminal server)
• Online language switching (German and English available, further languages on customer demand)
• Variable operator panels in pure-Java can be generated with Borland JBuilder
• Loupe Functionality - oversized display of the Client

ZPointCS offers several innovations and improvements compared to the ZPoint system:

Because of the usage of a CS-architecture for the system, the functionality can be distributed within the network as required. A ZPointCS system contains the following components:

• ZPointCS server: it establishes the connection to one or several machines (dependent on the performance of the used computer and the machine size) over a process bus and because of this, is usually situated near the machine. The server carries out the data acquisition and compression, saves data in the database and serves clients.
• Database server: it is used for the administration of the machine configuration, for the filing of process data and also as an interface for the analysis and ERP systems. The database server can be installed either at the same computer as the ZPointCS server or at a central point in the network for several ZPointCS servers (a local database server has to be installed for failure protection).
• ZPointCS clients: ZPointCS clients are the interface of the system with the various users and can be distributed at several places in the network, to be able to supervise the current state of the process at the different places and make inputs as required.
• The use of a CS architecture provides the possibility of distributing the data processing (ZPointCS server) and the visualization functionality (ZPointCS client) within the network and it also makes a supervision of the machine and the running processes from several separate places possible.
• Because of the division in a server and a client part, it is possible to use different clients for different information needs. Therefore it is possible, for example, to offer a client to a machine operator, of which the focus is set on the operation and diagnosis of the machine, whereas a plant manager is provided with a client, which displays and illustrates the characteristics of several machines.
• The several clients can also be adjusted and extended by the client to his needs.
• The ZPointCS server has a defined interface for the connection to controls, which makes a simultaneous recording of data from different controls possible. Additionally it allows an easy and fast development of further communication modules for controls, resp. process busses not yet developed.

Option: Package Rezeptur

The package Rezeptur allows the administration of type data. It includes the input functionality of the ZPointCS client as well as the interface to send the data to the PLC.

Option: Measure data acquisition

This option allows to save product related measured data (e.g. energy, length,…), which are collected in the PLC, in QS-Stat-Format® (DFD/DFX-format).
To save the measured data with setpoint values and limits (tolerance limits, action limits,…), the Option: Package Rezeptur is needed additionally for administration.

Option: Software interface host linking

With this option it is possible to connect ZPointCS to a host system (e.g. ERP-system) over our database interface.

Option: Package software interface host linking + measure data acquisition + package Rezeptur

This package is a combination of the above mentioned options.