Panel building

Automated panel production

Standardization in electrical engineering

From the digital twin to the finished control cabinet in record time

There’s no need to worry about a lack of skilled personnel for control panel manufacturing: with Eplan software and perfectly matched manufacturing equipment from Rittal, you can effectively save working hours and resources. Use qualified personnel in a more targeted manner, while less-experienced workers can quickly produce control cabinets.

Your workflow

Your challenge
Our solution

A skilled-worker shortage in panel production: full order books or long faces?

The order books are full, yet some jobs remain unfilled: it’s often not easy to find qualified personnel, especially for panel production. The company would love to take even more business, but long-term employees already have their hands full in the day-to-day work of control cabinet assembly. Between drilling patterns, crimping cables and wiring according to the schematics, there simply isn’t any more time for taking on additional projects.

At the same time, clients are turning up the heat: both volume production and highly customized production for one-of-a-kind items must be delivered as quickly as possible. Can the momentum from the design department also be used for control cabinet manufacturing?

3D models, assistance systems and production equipment accelerate manufacturing and reduce work times

Does your design department plan control cabinet layouts in 3D? Then the data from the engineering designs can serve as the technical specifications for production equipment.

For instance, mounting plates can be drilled fully automatically, or cables routed in 3D can be cut-to-length and crimped. Yet 3D models, assistance systems and manufacturing equipment can also help making production steps completed by hand even easier.

Assistance that can make manual processes in control panel assembly even easier

Derive manufacturing drawings and cutting lists for cable ducts
3D routing to determine cable lengths
Use equipment for component labelling or automatic crimping machines
Step by step guides for cabling and component placement

⇒ The 3D model supplies lists and instructions for production

Automated panel production

Use software for order processing and production management
Seamless data transfer to manufacturing equipment
Use equipment for automated cabinet modification
Automatically cut, crimp and bundle cables

⇒ The 3D model delivers the data for using automation manufacturing equipment

Ten ways to optimize your panel building processes

View (pdf)

Cabling takes up 49% of manufacturing time

Control Cabinet Manufacturing 4.0

The schematics take up 320 pages on average
Based on this, the time required for cabling averages about 54 hours
This corresponds to 49% of the entire time needed for manufacturing
Reading these documents alone takes almost 17 hours

These are just a few of the findings of the “Control Cabinet Manufacturing 4.0” study, prepared by the Institute for Control Engineering of Machine Tools and Manufacturing Units at the University of Stuttgart.

You can request a copy of the complete publication from Eplan free of charge.

Request your copy

That's how our customers in panel building benefit from working with Eplan

700 panels are now every year. Back in 2015, it was just 180.

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1 Day is all it now takes to build ten enclosures – not two weeks as it did before.

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“Switching to Rittal and Eplan technology was a real game-changer. The automation technology and software are enabling us to grow at last – even with the same number of staff.”

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PICHLERwerke was able to implement a semi-automated copper busbar production process using Eplan software and punching and bending machines from Rittal Automation Systems, thereby increasing quality and efficiency.

“Together with Eplan, we are shaping the future of automation – thanks to the end-to-end data integrity of Eplan solutions, we are creating panel building 4.0 for the added value of our customers.”

“Automation – along with the integrated, end-to-end use and continued processing of data on a central platform – brings us clear benefits from rationalization and optimisation, even if it’s for just a single highly customised system.“

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Take full advantage of the momentum from the design department for panel building with Eplan and Rittal

Everything from a single source: Eplan and Rittal supply you with software, services, tools and manufacturing equipment for your entire value chain in control cabinet manufacturing. The various solutions from these affiliated companies are perfectly in sync, letting you seamlessly transfer data from the Eplan electrical designs to be used to operate manufacturing systems from Rittal for automated control cabinet manufacturing.

Have existing manufacturing equipment from another supplier? Don’t worry, Eplan can export to many types of manufacturing machines in addition to Rittal.

Rittal Perforex

Automated cabinet modification

Simply set the mounting plate, then the manufacturing system automatically bores holes and mills threads, not to mention cuts any notches in the cabinet. The required data is taken from the 3D model of the control cabinet created with Eplan software.

Rittal Wire Terminal

Preparing cables for wiring

Cutting to length, labelling, crimping and bundling cables all happens automatically with the Rittal Wire Terminal. Preparing the cables can take place in parallel to the cabinet modifications based on the virtual prototype of the control cabinet.

Rittal Perforex
Rittal Wire Terminal

Eplan Smart Production

Digital assistance systems

Eplan Smart Production is an assistance system for employees in control cabinet manufacturing. Using checklists, employees are led through individual component installation and control cabinet wiring processes. The system provides the information needed for each work step. A 3D model of the control cabinet provides an even better understanding of which action is currently required.

Rittal ePOCKET

Virtual control cabinet documentation repository

Put an end to hundreds of pages of outdated paper documentation during the ongoing operations of machines and plant systems. With the Rittal ePOCKET, you can share up-to-date machine and plant system documentation and access selected Rittal control cabinets directly via QR code. This makes maintenance and servicing easier.

Eplan Smart Mounting and Smart Wiring
Rittal ePOCKET

Find out more about Rittal

Machine building
Automating switchgear manufacturing

Do you have challenges in engineering and manufacturing of machines?

Discover your possibilities with Eplan in mechanical engineering as well. Learn more about automated engineering and machine wiring.

Find out more

Gradually towards automated work

The production data derived from the digital twin enables step-by-step automation – also in the production of switchgear. Processing machines can automatically mill the cut-outs required in the switch cabinet, and copper rails are also cut to length, punched and bent semi-automatically based on the data from the 3D planning.

Learn more

Would you like to find out more about Eplan’s software and services? We’re happy to help!