What Is a Worker Terminal?
A Worker Terminal is a digital interface installed directly at the machine operator's workstation — typically as a touch monitor, industrial tablet or simple PC next to the machine. It replaces the traditional paper-based job traveler and handwritten time sheets with an intuitive, touch-optimized application.
The operator sees exactly the jobs scheduled for their machine on the terminal. With a single tap they report the start of an operation, provide feedback on completed piece counts during processing, and confirm completion at the end. Each of these actions is logged to the second and is immediately available to the production planner in the office.
The crucial difference from conventional methods: feedback is provided at the time it happens, not hours later at the end of the shift or the next morning. This creates a continuous, gap-free picture of the current production status — from the first setup to the final deburring.
In the context of Shop Floor Data Collection (SFDC), the Worker Terminal forms the interface between the shop floor and the planning office. It collects data where it originates — directly at the machine — and makes it available without media breaks for planning, post-calculation and analysis.
Why Real-Time Feedback Is Critical
In many manufacturing companies, there is a gap of several hours — sometimes even a full day — between what actually happens in production and when the office learns about it. This delay has far-reaching consequences for planning, costing and customer communication. Real-time feedback eliminates this blind spot.
Instant Target-Actual Comparison
As soon as an operator starts an operation, the actual time begins tracking. The planner sees on the Gantt board in real time whether a job is on schedule or whether the estimated processing time has already been exceeded. Deviations are noticed immediately, not weeks later during post-calculation.
Track Order Progress Live
Which job is currently running on which machine? How many pieces have been completed? The system answers these questions automatically. When a customer calls asking for status, nobody needs to walk to the shop floor anymore — a glance at the planning board is enough.
Identify Bottlenecks Immediately
When a machine unexpectedly stops or an operation takes significantly longer than planned, the production manager sees it immediately on the planning board. They can react before subsequent jobs fall behind schedule — for example by rescheduling to an alternative machine or by adjusting the sequence.
Reliable Basis for Post-Calculation
Every work session is stored with exact start and end times. This provides precise actual times per operation and per order. For post-calculation or repeat orders, you rely on solid data instead of estimates.
Transparency for Office and Shop Floor
Real-time feedback creates a shared information base. The planner in the office, the foreman on the shop floor and management all see the same current status. Misunderstandings caused by verbal handoffs or outdated lists are a thing of the past. This saves time every day and prevents errors.
Common Problems Without Digital Feedback
Companies that still rely on paper job travelers, handwritten time sheets or verbal agreements know these situations all too well:
Paperwork and media breaks: Job travelers move with the workpiece through the shop floor, get lost or become illegible. At the end of the shift, someone types up the handwritten notes — error-prone and time-consuming. Some entries are missing entirely because the sheet ended up in the chip bin.
Delayed recording at end of day: Time data is not captured during work but reconstructed from memory. The operator estimates in the afternoon that they started order XY "around half past eight." The resulting times are inaccurate and useless for serious post-calculation.
No transparency on active jobs: The planner in the office has no current picture of what is happening on the shop floor. Whether an urgent order has already been started or whether a machine has been idle for an hour — they only find out when they personally ask. When customers call about delivery status, there is no informed answer.
The planner plans blind: Without feedback from the shop floor, detailed scheduling is based on assumptions. The planner assumes a job is finished when it is actually still running. Or they schedule a machine that has actually been waiting for the next job for hours. The result: idle time in one place, overload in another.
Time data is inaccurate or missing entirely: Without systematic recording, there are no reliable figures for processing times. Quotes are calculated by gut feeling. For orders manufactured for the third time, nobody knows exactly how long they actually took last time.
All these problems share a common cause: Information from the shop floor reaches the office too late, too inaccurately, or not at all. A Worker Terminal solves this fundamental problem by moving data collection to where the work takes place — and transmitting the results to the planning level in real time.
The GanttWork Worker Terminal in Detail
The Worker Terminal in GanttWork was specifically developed for use in manufacturing. It is not a stripped-down version of the planning interface, but a dedicated view tailored to the needs of the machine operator.
Touch-Optimized for Tablets and Monitors
The entire interface is designed for touch operation. Large buttons, clear contrasts and a streamlined display ensure that the operator can recognize and operate everything even with oily gloves or from a meter away. Whether an affordable Android tablet, a rugged industrial panel or an existing monitor with a touch overlay — the terminal runs in the browser and requires no special hardware.
Start and Stop Jobs with One Tap
The operator sees the jobs planned for their machine in the correct order. A tap on "Start" begins time tracking. A tap on "Stop" ends it. In between, the operator can take breaks without the job time continuing. Each work session is saved as a separate record — with exact start and end times, duration in minutes and assignment to the operation.
View Drawings and Documents Directly
Technical drawings, manufacturing instructions or inspection protocols can be attached to each order. The operator accesses these documents directly at the terminal — without browsing through paper folders or searching for the right file on a PC. Especially for one-off parts and first-time orders where every workpiece has different dimensions and tolerances, this saves several minutes of search time per job.
Read-Only Gantt View for Operators
In addition to the pure job view, operators can also access a read-only Gantt board. On it they see the planned jobs for their machine on the timeline — and understand at a glance what is scheduled for today, tomorrow and the day after. This creates predictability for the individual employee and reduces inquiries to the foreman or work planner.
Up to 6 Terminal Configurations
GanttWork supports up to six independent terminal configurations. Each terminal displays its own selection of machines in a freely configurable grid. For example, Terminal 1 can show the three CNC milling machines in Hall A, Terminal 2 the lathes in Hall B and Terminal 3 the laser cutter with its associated press brake. Each machine can appear in multiple terminals simultaneously if it makes spatial sense.
Machine Tiles with Traffic Light Status
On the terminal, each machine is displayed as a tile. The tile shows the current machine status at a glance: Green means a job is running. Yellow signals that the machine is ready but no job has been started. Additionally, the operator can see the current job name, the part, the planned time and the elapsed actual time on the tile. A tap on the tile opens the detail view with all functions.
Using SFDC Data for Better Planning
Shop floor data collection via the Worker Terminal delivers more than just a current status report. The collected data becomes a strategic tool for production control and costing.
Target/Actual Time Analysis
For every operation, GanttWork stores the estimated target time and the actual time. In the order overview you can immediately see where your estimates were accurate and where systematic deviations occur. Was the milling of a particular part always 30% longer than estimated? Then adjust the standard time for future quotes accordingly.
Minutes per Piece
For batch orders, the system records the total time and the number of pieces produced. This automatically yields the actual processing time per piece. This metric is invaluable for quoting: for a follow-up order of 200 pieces, you know exactly how many machine hours to plan for.
Make Machine Utilization Visible
The actual utilization of every machine can be derived from the SFDC data. How many hours per day does the 5-axis mill run productively? How much idle time occurs between two jobs? These insights help with investment decisions and shift planning.
Historical Data for Future Costing
With every completed order, your data base grows. When a customer reorders the same part after two years, you can look up the actual manufacturing times from the last order. Instead of estimating by gut feeling, your quote is based on measured values — more precise and with less risk.
From Data Collection to a Continuous Cycle
SFDC data closes a loop: Planning → Manufacturing → Feedback → Analysis → Better Planning. The longer you use the system, the more accurate your time estimates become, the more realistic your delivery dates and the more well-founded your quotes. The Worker Terminal is the first building block in this cycle — it ensures that data reliably enters the system in the first place.
No MES Required — SFDC Without the Overhead
When shop floor data collection and shopfloor terminals are mentioned, many business owners immediately think of MES systems (Manufacturing Execution Systems). Full MES solutions offer extensive functionality from machine data acquisition through quality management to traceability. The catch: they are complex, expensive and typically take months to implement.
For a CNC contract manufacturer with 3 to 50 machines, a full MES is often overkill. What these companies actually need is the answer to three simple questions: Which job is currently running? How long is it taking? Is it on schedule?
That is exactly what GanttWork delivers — as SFDC-Light integrated directly into the detailed scheduling software. No separate system, no additional licenses, no complex connection to machine controllers. The Worker Terminal is part of the GanttWork application and is ready to use immediately once your machines are set up as resources.
The advantage of this integrated approach: Planning and feedback live in one system. The planner sees real-time feedback from the shop floor on the same board where they schedule jobs. There is no data export, no interface and no synchronization needed between two separate software worlds.
| Traditional MES | GanttWork SFDC | |
|---|---|---|
| Implementation Time | 3–12 months | Ready to use immediately |
| Cost | Often five to six figures | Included in the GanttWork subscription |
| Complexity | High, training required | Intuitive to use |
| Integration | Separate system alongside ERP/APS | Integrated into detailed scheduling |
| Machine Connectivity | OPC-UA, sensors required | Manual feedback (no retrofitting) |
| Target Audience | Large enterprises, automotive | SMEs with 3–50 machines |
This does not mean that GanttWork replaces an MES — for companies with strict traceability requirements (automotive, medical technology), an MES may additionally make sense. But for the vast majority of contract manufacturers and machining shops in Austria and Germany, GanttWork offers exactly the SFDC functionality that is actually needed in daily operations — without the overhead of an enterprise system.
Experience the Worker Terminal Live
See for yourself how simple digital shop floor data collection can be. We will set up a personal demo instance for you — with your machines, your shifts and if desired with real order data. Your first Worker Terminal will be running in less than an hour.
Request a Free DemoNo credit card · No obligation · Personal setup