Posted by Diane Ramaglia on Wed, May 12, 2010 @ 03:13 PM
I have been in the manufacturing business for over 18 years. When I first started I was working in accounting and then moved over to operations. It was all about dollars and cents and what we could improve to be more profitable. The plant manager was a great teacher and focused on continuous improvement. He would have us look at the root cause of an issue and tell us to "fix it or else." We all knew that "or else" meant having a job the next day or not so we took this suggestion seriously.
First, we started to look at our plant utilization based on the production reports that were being entered into our ERP system. We started to review our downtime reports to track what truly was keeping our machines from running. We found that setups were not being started when they were supposed to due to a lack of labor and machines were sitting idle due to a lack of material or machine operators.
Next, we started to evaluate why we didn't have enough labor for machine setups. One reason found was that the scheduler was scheduling multiple jobs to be setup at the same time. We started to look at minimizing the number of setups within a shift. We decided to put two people on a setup which allowed the setup to take half the time that it would normally take. So far, so good. But soon reality showed that there were times we truly did need additional setup technicians due to the demand coming in from the customers. After reviewing the cost of the machine sitting down due to setups, we found that it was costing us more than hiring a new setup/process technician. So we hired a couple of setup technicians to keep our shop running.
Our next step was to look at why we didn't have operators to run the jobs. We established that there had been a cut back in the number of operators per shift because of the previously mentioned setup issues coupled with wanting to eliminate having operators being paid to just sit around. Since we fixed the setup issues, we could better utilize our labor capacity reports to determine how many operators we needed for each shift. While we still maintained a minimal direct labor force, we also hired temporary employees as needed for certain machines/jobs to backfill labor where it was truly needed.
Lastly, we tackled the issue of raw material. We found that the machine monitoring system was accounting for cycles that the production report but our actual people were not. This was an eye-opening gap in material consumption and inventory management that would not have been identified without our ERP software. It was discovered that during the setup of certain jobs, more scrap was being produced than what was originally accounted for in the creation of BOM's. There were two things we reviewed: how to cut back on the scrap being produced and should we update the BOM's to more accurately reflect the setup process. Depending on the part being produced we modified our records accordingly and the gains were significant.
To see the changes we had made using the information from the system was great. I still use this information today when assisting other companies with their internal issues.
To view another success utiliation story, we invite you to read about Donnelly Custom Manufacturing.
Posted by Daniele Fresca on Thu, Apr 29, 2010 @ 01:02 PM
We have all done it. We've all said something was "good enough." It isn't great, it isn't bad; it's just okay. Whether it is your house, your car, your job, etc.... we often find that settling for things is easier than pursuing another option. And we are right, it is often easier. But is it the best way to go about evaluation and decision making. No it isn't.
The same holds true with ERP software. When asked, leaders of many manufacturing companies I recently talked with tell me that their ERP software is "just okay." They know that it doesn't meet a majority of their needs but they aren't compelled enough to change. The reasons vary as infinitely as the companies themselves. For some, not changing is due to cash flow - or lack there of. For others, business is slowing down and committing to a new ERP system isn't a top priority. For a different group, the opposite is true; business is picking up speed again and now there is no time to put effort into a change. Still others feel the pain from their last ERP implementation many years ago and assume that doing nothing is simply easier than changing.
Whatever your reason is to settle for "just okay" think of this: in other aspects of your manufacturing facility is settling an option? If product rolled off your machines, conveyors, or assembly tables that was obviously flawed, would you still send them to your client? If an employee was consistently late or offered little value would you still employ them? The truth is we put more stock in the quality of our products and employees than we do in investing in the proper tools to assist in the process. ERP is one of those important tools that is often neglected and it shouldn't be.
ERP systems should make the job of running a manufacturing company easier by accurately meeting your business process and manufacturing needs. Your ERP system should allow you to do more with less! It should help identify areas within your processes where time and money can be saved. It should increase communication across all departments within the company. A great ERP should also automate information obtained from the shop floor and eliminate redundant data entry.
But it is more than just basic ERP functionality. An ERP system should also be able to provide relevant information to its users in a timely manner, with valid data. If a facility manager can't get information like "total down time and its main reason for the last 30 days" or "most profitable and least profitable produced part - based on actual costing - within the last 2 weeks" then the ERP system isn't doing enough for you. Your ERP system should tell you when tools/dies/machines are up for maintenance based on actual usage before they require repair, rather than after they fail. A good ERP system should be an enhancement to the manufacturing process, not a hindrance. By obtaining valuable and accurate information in a timely manner, ERP should help manufacturers produce better product because it identifies areas of improvement or success.
So, I invite you to take a few minutes and think about how your ERP system is helping your company and how it might help your become more competitive. Evaluate your ERP and ask is it "good enough" and then decide to demand great!
Want more information on how a great ERP can help your facility? Download our whitepaper "How The Small Get Mighty"
Posted by Neil Gow on Wed, Mar 31, 2010 @ 06:37 AM
Wouldn't it be great if we could all take the time to be an undercover boss? It seems like such a great idea. Slip in unnoticed and walk in the other person's shoes, spending a few day's on the "front lines" with the employees. With a good manufacturing ERP system and real-time monitoring you can accomplish just that.
If anyone knew you were the CEO or other corporate leader, they might try to impress you. Not everyone is going to be scared of what the boss might think of their work; however, if the boss was looking over your shoulder, you may have a tendency to act differently or work harder. You may even try to prove that you are worth the paycheck given to you at the end of the week. Perhaps even worthy of a raise!
In 1978 I entered into the manufacturing business of injection molding and was immediately confronted with a question, "How do you know what the people are doing right now?" At that time the only way to answer the question was to do "rounds". Which meant, start at one end of the shop, go to every work station, and check the status of all jobs. The trouble was I could never see the whole shop; I could only be at one machine at a time. And all the employees knew I would be along every ½ hour or so.
Well, if I had the technicians and lead personnel do rounds, I could become more efficient and have "eyes" in more places at once. I would then have them report how things were going. Great, but I was still lacking that snapshot view of how the shop was performing. In my world that was critical! I mean, if I blinked, the number of rejected parts could go through the roof! The wrong job was being set up! Material was not available! It seemed there was always something slipping through the cracks.
We had computers and programs which provided some answers to my dilemma. Work orders and inventory lists could be created and maintained. Schedules could be printed and machines had the ability to show cycle times and hours run. The trouble was none of these were linked together and could not be seen at a glance. The "office stuff" was available in print, but the shop floor was out on an island.
Within a few years, MRP systems could address many departmental needs. Eventually stand-alone systems were added for quality or cycle counting, even machine status (running, down, need help, etc.). These were outstanding developments! But something was still lacking.
Now with manufacturing ERP we can have a much broader view, from the prospects and quotes, to shipping finished goods and everything in-between. And for those who recognize the value, we can see how each and every machine is performing compared to the standard, and have it "live and in real-time". Data brought directly to your PC, your laptop or PDA, all without doing rounds!
So if you are thinking of trying to be an "Undercover Boss" for a few days, go ahead - but now, focus on the people and how your policies are affecting their performance. EnterpriseIQ Manufacturing ERP can guide you through the shop and can take you directly to where the issues are, and using RealTime Monitoring can help achieve higher yields while implementing lean manufacturing techniques. Let a good ERP system go under the covers in manufacturing and let your "rounds" be interactive and personal with your most valuable asset, your people on the front line.