How BORIS Can Help Engineers Save More Time When Designing a Product

Time management is a highly discussed topic nowadays. Although engineers are skilled at finding ways to increase productivity, efficiency, and performance, this problem is still acute.

It’s especially true in the modern business frameworks when specialists have to work under constant pressure, struggling to meet deadlines. Sometimes this work overflow happens because of poor management decisions, but reasons are often purely practical.

Engineers waste too much time on tedious activities like updating CAD files, searching for data, or running various checks. Many of these activities don’t require an engineer’s skill and expertise and can be completed by lower-tier personnel or even by computer programs. Lifting that burden off your most expensive employees will get them more time to create new designs and solutions.

Defining time-wasting activities for engineers

Let’s not concentrate on time-wasters common for any human being, not just an engineer. Any manager knows that the demon of procrastination feasts upon the idle. It may come in different distractions like social networks or chit-chatting gone too far.

Everyone is vulnerable to this problem, and that’s why staff members should always stay motivated to avoid missed deadlines and overstressing.

So let’s take a look into the work that keeps engineers busy and hardworking but barely helps a company move forward.

Getting access and downloading CADs

Companies tend to use various data management systems to organize and centralize data, making it easier to store and search for. Before starting work, a designer or an engineer must first check out and download the CAD files needed.

Downloading may take time, depending on how good a company’s internet connection is and how large the file is. Respectively, upon making changes, the data must be checked back in and uploaded to the storage so that others have access to it.

The more complex a design is, the more delays it takes to change it and adequately integrate it into the data system. Another problem walks alongside, too: when changing something in a CAD file, you need to make sure that other team members have uploaded the new version. Otherwise, the company will build on outdated CADs, giving days, if not weeks, of advantage to competitors.

Engineering changes made on a CAD file magnify the problem with outdated models. If data can’t be relied upon to be current, an engineer needs additional time to search for the latest version.

The problem only worsens if changes are made to the outdated version. In this case, it causes a landslide of errors and a massive waste of time, as an engineer needs to run through all the wrong pieces and search for the one root of the problem.

Our solution is called BORIS, and it can help with the problem. It is a blockchain-based plugin that uses a compilation of smart contracts and tracking services to make an engineer’s life easier. It has a digital contract module for faster integration of new file versions with previous dependencies intact.

When a collaborator registers a new version via the plugin, other plugin users get notified of the new version released. Besides, the system indicates on the basis of which version a new one was created. The integrated version control and exchange features minimize the occurrence of human error and increase efficiency.

Searching for information

Since engineers often need access to a company’s most valuable assets and IPs, getting it may become painful. The employee needs to prove that they need access to this particular piece of design to do their work.

The security concerns are understandable, as intellectual property (IP) is the most valuable asset any designer has. But in some cases, accessing anything, not just a CAD file, can take a lot of time. And the larger a company gets, the more rigid and slower its security systems get.

This problem can be addressed with CADTrack, part of our BORIS solution. As the name suggests, it is a management interface used for tracking services, which helps an engineer know whether they are dealing with up-to-date information or not.

Working with external collaborators

Sometimes an engineer needs to spend a lot of time getting the tools needed for work. The same cruelly slow procedure will repeat when sending files to an external collaborator. Again, this is understandable, too, because employees usually send all information via emails which is not the safest way. But still, it is the fastest, and in design, business time is of the essence.

The main reason the long delays happen is to protect the company from human error. For example, if an engineer is to confuse email addresses when sending a CAD file, it may lead to dire circumstances for the company’s future.

But BORIS can help you with it, too. Out end-to-end protection digitally signs, encrypts, and tracks your files, no matter where you send them. And as it is signed with your digital fingerprint, you alone have the key proving ownership of it.

Since BORIS operates on blockchain, it timestamps all the files sent. This means that you have legal proof of ownership, thanks to the precise time of creation uploaded in the hash. This innovation will help reduce the time needed to triple-check all security precautions, before sending a CAD file.

Communication issues

Poor interaction between staff members can have a tremendous impact on the workplace. Unclear instructions from managers, pointless meetings with no agenda, and other stressors can hamper the workflow. This, combined with larger structures’ communication barriers resulting in low morale, leads to delays in meeting deadlines.

BORIS can’t help you communicate well with your colleagues and partners. But with us, you can be sure that your data is shared safely and, thus, get peace of mind. So if stressed levels are reduced among all in your team, you are likely to have healthier relations. Don’t hesitate to choose BORIS as your workplace climate manager.