Kartik Sharma | UX & Product Design Portfolio

Transforming Wiring for Low Voltage CC

Digitizing assembler process to save $6.5M annually

MY ROLE

User Experience Lead

Interaction Design

Visual Design

User Experience Lead

Interaction Design

Visual Design

DELIVERABLES

Component Libraries

Research Insights

High Fidelity Designs

Component Libraries

Research Insights

High Fidelity Designs

TEAM

Designers

Developers

CAD Team

Manufacturing Engineer

Designers

Developers

CAD Team

Manufacturing Engineer

YEAR

2022 - 2026

What was the problem?

Company was losing $6.5M per year due to assembly errors in cabinet building

Wiring up a cabinet is expensive.

Since wiring is a specialized skill, and even experienced personnel can make mistakes. We identified it as a key factor behind rising costs and quality issues. Not only that but it leads to some gross numbers and errors.

The traditional method of wiring cabinets involves looking at schematics which are drawn in A0 size sheets.

There are multiple A0 sheets (around 8 to 10)
Assemblers have to cross check everything in the sheet, then focus on cabinet, then back to sheets
No ability to mark and comment on anything
They have to re-verify if a wire is installed or not

The traditional method of wiring cabinets involves looking at schematics which are drawn in A0 size sheets.

There are multiple A0 sheets (around 8 to 10)
Assemblers have to cross check everything in the sheet, then focus on cabinet, then back to sheets
No ability to mark and comment on anything
They have to re-verify if a wire is installed or not

60%

Motor Control Centre labor is wiring

48%

Production issues are

wiring related

Production issues are

wiring related

4+ weeks

Training required to

read a schematic

Training required to

read a schematic

#1 reason to quit

Job complexities sited as the main reason to quit. These include training and schematic reading.

The Research

Researching what assemblers face

Our research led us to discover the problems technicians face with the traditional method. During the discovery phase, we focused on two main goals:
- Gather insights on user behavior and the actual problem they face daily
- Research on some of the competitor apps in the market right now

Conducting user interviews

Conducting user interviews gave us much needed insights on the current process and how assemblers experience affect the build.

To ensure the best results, we developed an early prototype that included the core features of the final app. We then tested it with real users, which gave us valuable insights into their behavior, needs, and expectations when using a new application.

User Personas

We talked with lots of users with varying experience

Our user personas ranged from:
- Assemblers who were very experienced in the field with more than 10-12 years of experience
- Assemblers who were completely new to the system and had no prior experience

Introducing new things should not alter my workflow too much. I still want the freedom to work the assemblies as I want to.

Jessica Guadalupe

Age : 45 years

Role : Senior Assembler

As a 20-year veteran of assembly work, Jessica is so proficient that she no longer requires schematics for assembly projects, and other assembler often seek her guidance because of her expertise. This causes her to sometimes missing her own monthly assembly targets. To support her effectively, the new application should integrate seamlessly into her established workflow without creating unnecessary complexities.

Main Points :

Don't want the application to change her workflow too much that she mastered over 20 years.
Application should be easy to follow and built keeping users with less exposure to tech in mind.
Records of the assemblies she has done.

Don't want the application to change her workflow too much that she mastered over 20 years.
Application should be easy to follow and built keeping users with less exposure to tech in mind.
Records of the assemblies she has done.

I don't have much experience in assembly work and I want my application to make things simpler for me.

Miguel Carrera

Age : 21 years

Role : New Assembler

As a new assembler, Miguel has gone through comprehensive training in both mechanical and electrical assemblies, though the latter required a twelve-week deep dive into mastering complex schematics and specialized tools. To support his transition into the team, the application should prioritize clarity and ease of use, ensuring he can perform his tasks effectively with minimal additional training.

Main Points :

Even after training he still is not clarified on many aspects of assembly process.
Whenever Miguel is stuck, he seeks the assistance of senior assemblers which halts their progress on their assemblies.
The application should be user intuitive, and should make the workflow simpler.

Even after training he still is not clarified on many aspects of assembly process.
Whenever Miguel is stuck, he seeks the assistance of senior assemblers which halts their progress on their assemblies.
The application should be user intuitive, and should make the workflow simpler.

Implementing The Solution

Saving cabinet building time and reducing errors

Digitization helps in keeping track of the wiring progress and changes.

The new method involves assemblers interacting with our application.

They can keep track of project status
Can create comments and highlight wires.
Application assists in wiring by providing instructions and Model.

The new method involves assemblers interacting with our application.

They can keep track of project status
Can create comments and highlight wires.
Application assists in wiring by providing instructions and Model.

So the application needs to be user-friendly, easy to navigate and there should not be a high learning curve.

The Design Process

Overview from idea

to concept

Overview from idea

to concept

Following an agile approach to the design and development. We followed a the simple process going from research all the way to delivering the final outcomes to the devs for implementation.

Research

Discovery Phase

User Interviews

Competitive Analysis

Idea Generation

Defining Problem

User Journey

Edge Cases

Solutions

User Flow

Wireframing

Prototyping

Edge Cases Design

Testing

Internal Testing

Usability Testing

Delivery

Figma Files

Design Assets

Solutions QA

Research

Discovery Phase

User Interviews

Competitive Analysis

Idea Generation

Defining Problem

User Journey

Edge Cases

Solutions

User Flow

Wireframing

Prototyping

Edge Cases Design

Testing

Internal Testing

Usability Testing

Delivery

Figma Files

Design Assets

Solutions QA

Mapping out the journey

Sketching out the wireframes

Ideas Coming Together

Flying from concepts to actual design

It was finally great to see our ideas coming together to create and develop the application.

Implementing The Solution

Building the application with CAD features and wire tracking

We digitized the whole process of wiring.

Putting everything together we built a user-friendly application with key features like Bluetooth voltmeter integration, downtime reporting, project commenting, and interactive CAD model viewing.

Before

No paper trail

12 weeks to train

Wiring prone to errors

After

Paper trail availability

6-8 weeks to train

Reduced error rate

Testing It Out

Launching in the plants

Digital Pilot was a success and we took all the feedback users gave us. After implementing the changes we launched the app for real production.

$4m+

Savings so far

-60%

Faster onboarding

+65%

Improved retention

-55%

Fewer wiring issues

-15%

Less rework needed

Here's the summary

To summarize everything

We created a video package which highlights the problem, the research and iterations, and the solution we created.

Key Metrics

Highlighting the impact of the project

Here are the main key metrics that we got as a result of our solution implementation.

$6.5M

Saved so far

60%

Faster Onboarding

6 weeks

Training time reduced

(from 10 weeks)

Training time reduced

(from 10 weeks)

55%

Reduction in errors

Have a project you’re excited about?

Drop me a message.

Have a project you’re excited about?

Drop me a message.

Have a project you’re excited about?

Drop me a message.

Have a project you’re excited about?

Drop me a message.

Let’s team up and make something amazing.

Let's connect

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