New Data Platform at ASML
Tech x Data
ASML is the worldwide innovation leader in the semiconductor industry. The company provides chipmakers with everything they need – hardware, software and services – to mass produce patterns on silicon through lithography. ASML has its headquarters in the Eindhoven area, the Netherlands, with operations spread across 60 locations in Europe, Asia and the US. ASML has more than 24,900 employees, from 118 different nationalities.
The situation
ASML designs and builds highly complex machinery and equipment. Every customer demands different configurations and has specific requirements. Engineers in the factory need to have access to very detailed instructions in order to deliver the high-quality products. For the customers of ASML, for example Intel and Samsung, downtime of their production line is extremely costly. This means that ASML’s support engineers, working worldwide, the need to be able fix issues and make repairs in as little time as possible. Proper manuals for each part of every machine are of great relevance for them to be able to do their work properly and to meet the SLA’s.
ASML was looking for a different approach to their content management system. Was it possible to develop a new application or platform, that would be easy to maintain, user friendly, accessible at any time and at every location and safe and compliant at the same time? For a highly innovative company as ASML, protection of its IP and of customer’s business-sensitive information is crucial. When every minute counts at a customer’s site, an engineer needs to have instant access to the right information, in order to be able to act quickly and correctly.
The solution
Heroes approached this case as it would approach a data-based challenge. Eventually, the information in the working instructions and manuals is nothing more than data. Every step, building block, part or procedure is a piece of data. By giving this data context through visualization & structure and store it in the right way, we give meaning to the information.
Heroes played an important role in setting up the architecture and product selection. We were also involved in defining the data structure and configuration of the visualization solution as well as managing the external supplier for adding new required functionalities.
The advantage of this unique data approach is that the manuals and work instructions are accessible everywhere and are always up to date. The engineer does not have to download manuals locally on his laptop but can access customer or machine specific information on demand. And even more important, all manuals are also unique and therefore only applicable to one configuration. This ultimately allows the work instructions of a specific device to be transferred to the customer, without risk of IP.
The three key takeaways for every company
Customized requirements demand flexibility: Specialized industries like ASML's need tailored solutions to cater to diverse customer configurations and unique needs.
Immediate access to critical information: In high-stakes industries, engineers must have quick, on-demand access to updated data to prevent costly downtimes.
Balancing accessibility with IP protection: Companies must ensure easy data accessibility for their teams while safeguarding proprietary information and intellectual property.
This project shows that a data-based approach can be applied to challenges that might not seem data-related at first sight. Our different, out-of-the-box view and analysis supported not only a new way of structuring and organizing mission-critical, highly complicated and sensitive information, but it also offered solutions to other challenges, such as access, usability and security.
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