Press Release

Spokane, WA – Pearson Packaging Systems announces the third release of its User Centric Design (UCD) program, an initiative launched in 2014 to make machine operation and maintenance tasks easy to learn, fast to perform and error-free. Working closely with customers to understand the challenges they face, a dedicated team continually develops solutions and validates their effectiveness.

UCD 3.0 specifically targets troubleshooting and fault recovery support for machine users. A new Output Test feature enables manual operation of discreet machine functions, such as air cylinders and vacuum sections. By observing and listening to individual parts as they run, technicians can more easily pinpoint problematic components and fix them faster – in many cases, before they negatively impact operation.

“When a machine isn’t operating correctly, the ability to quickly diagnose what’s going on and subsequently resolve the issue is critical – time savings equate to monetary savings for our customers. Being able to proactively identify issues so output quality and production rates aren’t impacted is ideal.” says Gina Donlin, Pearson’s User Experience Manager.

Furthermore, existing Fault Recovery menus have been enhanced to easily guide users from fault identification to fault recovery with the aid of a fault map and concise, step-by-step instructions. On-screen pop-ups enable users to quickly access data from other HMI pages without having to navigate away from and then back to the page.

Pearson is dedicated to continue to expand and refine the UCD program in the coming years. “Customers are telling us that the features of the program are far more advanced than any of their other secondary packaging machines in their plants. As a company driven by Continuous Improvement, we’ll keep implementing new tools and technologies to help our end users have the most intuitive and efficient interactions with Pearson equipment,” declares Michael Senske, CEO of Pearson Packaging Systems.

The first release of UCD included a completely new Graphical User Interface including standard screen formatting and terminology, reduced screen counts and an increased use of icons and graphics. Additionally, it provided operators valuable tools like interactive maps, step-by-step changeover and fault recovery instructions, numbered and easily-identifiable changeover points and accuracy tools like scales, pointers and counters.

The second release focused around optimizing machine maintenance to improve performance and extend the equipment life. Configurable alerts and directions for Clean, Inspect and Lubricate (CIL) procedures remind maintenance technicians when and how to carry out routine maintenance tasks.

The latest version of Pearson’s User Centric Design will be available beginning January 1, 2017.