Spudnik Equipment + Dirac
.png)
Challenge
Spudnik’s lower boom assembly (Model #880) could only be reliably built by a single operator with 15 years of experience.
That expertise was never formally documented.
When the lead operator was unavailable:
- New operators required 15 hours to complete the build — 2.5x longer than normal
- Rework increased due to missed critical steps
- A skipped bolt early in the sequence created 2+ hours of rework per incident
- Production forecasts depended entirely on operator availability
Engineering BOMs were structured for design, not manufacturing, and there was no tool to translate EBOM to MBOM.
For a company scaling heavy equipment builds, production resilience hinged on undocumented knowledge.
Solution
Spudnik deployed Dirac’s platform to automatically generate animated, model-based work instructions directly from the 3D product model.
From purchase to live instructions on the floor: one week.
.gif)
Dirac enabled Spudnik to:
- Digitize expert tribal knowledge into standardized workflows
- Guide new operators through complex assemblies with animated sequencing
- Eliminate sequencing ambiguity that caused costly rework
- Restructure EBOMs into manufacturing-ready MBOMs
- Empower manufacturing engineers to adapt designs for real-world assembly
Operators no longer depended on proximity to experience. Execution became embedded in the system.
Impact
Spudnik transformed a single-operator dependency into a scalable production system.
Critical knowledge is now institutionalized, build time is predictable, and rework is prevented before it happens. Throughput no longer depends on who is present. Dirac also delivered value immediately: instructions for simpler assemblies could be generated in under 15 minutes, and measurable operational improvements were visible within weeks of deployment.
.jpg)
- 33% Faster Build Time
New operator build time dropped from 15 hours to 10 hours after a single training cycle. Throughput improved immediately, with fewer errors and less stress on the floor.
- 60% Less Rework Time
A recurring 2+ hour rework incident caused by a missed bolt installation was eliminated during Dirac trial builds. Clear, animated sequencing removed ambiguity and prevented repeat errors.
- 99% Faster Operator Ramp
New operators were able to complete the lower boom assembly independently within a week of initial Dirac deployment. Tasks that previously required ~1.5 days of guidance now take just 5–10 minutes. Operator dependency on expert support dropped significantly as well, with questions decreasing from roughly 200 per build to around 20. Ramp-up shifted from shadowing experience to executing a documented, model-driven process.
About Dirac
Dirac is a manufacturing technology company building the AI-driven system of record for production orchestration. Their product BuildOS is the first AI-driven work instruction platform that replaces document-driven manufacturing with an AI-driven, dynamic, model-based system. Dirac’s mission is to rebuild the industrial capacity of the West by turning manufacturing facilities into context-aware, adaptive, dynamic environments.
