App Introduction
The Product Model app gives a general overview about the product, the assemblies or manufacturing processes as well as the materials, parts, and energies needed for the production.
We are not only using it purely for visualizing the material streams, but we also show health, cost, and environmental information throughout the supply chain.
The Product Model is by default visualized in form of a Sankey diagram, which shows the entire product assembly, down to the smallest components, and all the processes required for each assembly. Alternatively, you can display the data in other forms (Choropleth, Heatmap, Grid).
The thicker a connection between components, the more mass, volume, length, energy or number of pieces is used at that position in the process. We are showing at the same time mass, energy, number of pieces, volume and length. The relative thickness can only be shown within one unit group. So, mass is scaled with other masses, number of pieces are scaled with the number of pieces and so on.
Open Product Model App
From the home page, go to Makersite Apps > Business > Product Model. Select the Product to open in the app.
Once the Product Model app is open, the main view shows the top level Sankey diagram for your product.
The different views available in the Product Model app are shown in the toolbar above the Sankey diagram.
To the right of the Sankey you can find the information panel, giving you quick access to more details of the product or process, finding suppliers or viewing the Product Datasheet.
You can rearrange the diagram for better clarity by using the mouse scroll wheel or touchpad to zoom the Sankey diagram in or out, and then clicking on any of the bars to drag them to a new position on the screen.
Tools and Suggestions
The Tools and Suggestions menu shows actions available on this product. The same menu is also available in the Product Datasheet app.
Tool | Description |
View Product Model | Opens the currently selected item in a Sankey (changes context). |
Explore Model | Opens the selected item in BOM Explorer. |
View details/edit | Opens the selected item in Product Datasheet. |
Compare this to other datasets | Opens a table in a pop-up where you can compare information between the current product and any other product from Makersite. |
No Product Category yet! (...) | Shows when Product Category is not assigned to your product, which disabled LCA calculations. Click to open the Compose page where you can assign the Product Category. |
Generate/Recalculate LC Models | Click to generate LC models. Product Category must be assigned, PCR must be created for that Product Category. |
Delete LC Models | Deletes existing LC models. |
Add a CAS no (...) | Applicable to chemical substances. Add a CAS nr so that Makersite can verify compliance of your product agains RSLs. |
Recalculate downstream chains | Use it to recalculate environmental impacts starting from this product all the way downstream, that is towards the final assembly. |
Ask a supplier or colleague for more information | Opens a pop-up where you can request additional information about the product from your supplier or other party. |
Add a reminder for yourself | Create a task related to this product. |
Drill-in to Switch Context
The Drill In functionality allows you to switch the context between different components. To Drill In to a specific Material, Substance, Process or Component, right click on the colored bar of the item on the Sankey diagram, and select Drill In from the contextual menu. As a result, Sankey re-models to show the selected component as the final output. The View Product Model button works in the same way.
Once Drill In has been selected, a new Sankey diagram loads, representing the flow for the selected item. In the top left corner of the Sankey diagram there is an indicator that shows which level you are currently on, and gives the option to go Back To Default Layout at any time.
Data Presentation Modes
With the Product Model app open, you can now switch between the different views within the app. These are located in the toolbar above the main view on the page. The alternative views include the default Sankey, Choropleth, Heatmap and Grid.
Choropleth
This is a map view that pinpoints exact measurements or regulations that apply within political borders. It provides an easy way to visualize how a measurement, such as an environmental impact, varies across geographic boundaries.
Supplier data in the Makersite model must be available for these results to populate.
Heatmap
This is a density visualization that represents the density of points on a map.
It displays more diffused or rationalized data, transgressing geographic boundaries.
Supplier data in the Makersite model must be available for these results to populate.
Grid
This view shows the Product Group's structure in the form of a collapsible list, where you can expand each line of the model to show the sub-components, much like the Drill In function in the Sankey view. This structure follows the imported BOM structure.
The grid view also shows calculated environmental, health or cost results or provides a detailed insight into the regulations related the processes or products in the supply chain.
All info can be exported to excel with a simple right click.
