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.
Posted by Glenn Nowak on Tue, Mar 23, 2010 @ 07:59 AM
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ERP systems are the life blood of a company as they touch and affect the daily lives of so many of your employees and business processes. Why then do so many companies today make their ERP system software choice based on the type of database or the technology platform? Putting this criteria before their business requirements is, to me, like the tail wagging the dog.
Database preference is typically based on hype or misconception of how the ERP provider utilizes the tools of the database or unawareness of newer advancements to the capabilities of the underlying technologies. Oracle, for instance, has an outdated reputation for being hard to administer and requiring an expensive, full-time database administrator. That may have been true back in the late 1990s but not today. With newer releases, increased scalability, self-tuning capabilities and advanced features this fallacy is just not the case. IQMS, for instance, also embeds the Oracle database within our system. That means we take care of all the Oracle programming so our customers do not have administrators or DBAs.
Similarly, many companies will only look at ERP systems based on the AS-400 platform because that is what they have today. They do this because their ERP system searches are most often headed up by IT departments that may have a comfort level with this platform based existing or past experience. This is a good platform for some applications but it is not what the majority of the top ERP systems today operate on. Companies today should include systems that run on Microsoft or Linux platforms as you will have more choices and more focus on finding a system that meets your business needs. The cost and performance of these other systems and the servers they run on will be just as robust as the AS-400 but more importantly they typically cost much less, as most can run in a lights out environment.
When selecting an ERP system companies should do formative needs analysis and determine fit and functionality irrespective of database or platform utilized. I say this because, in reality, 99% of the actual system users will have no clue as to what database or platform the system runs on. What really is going to matter to the end users of the system is whether they can quickly, easily and accurately execute their transactions in the system. The most important factors for a manufacturing company should be critical needs such as whether inventories are accurate, whether shipments go out on time, are inventory turns where they should be, etc... And none of these is going to really have much to do with the underlying database technology.
Now I would agree that if all things are equal regarding the capabilities of the ERP system to meet the business needs of the organization then the make or break decision could be the database technology or the platform. However, this is a decision that should be made at the end of the process not at the beginning.
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Posted by Shannon Holloway on Tue, Mar 16, 2010 @ 09:56 AM
Now, more than ever, manufacturing companies are reviewing their budgets to identify areas where cuts can be made. All too often, employee training is among the expenses that fall "below the red line". However, those that consider training an investment, rather than an expense, realize that now is the time to develop employees and prepare for growth and better times to come. This is especially true when cuts have included personnel layoffs where remaining employees need the tools and knowledge necessary to efficiently do their job and take on new tasks as well.
Whether you are considering ERP software training or some other type of employee development, it is imperative that you review all available training options to ensure that your company is getting the most return on investment. The key points to consider are as simple as remembering the Five Ws: "What, When, Why, Where, & Who".
WHAT type of training is needed? Identify areas in the organization where process improvements can be made or where employees can benefit from improved skills. Regardless of whether your HR staff needs to get up to speed on the latest tax laws or learn about the additional features of their HR software; or if your warehouse staff needs to learn how to better utilize their WMS software package, outlining the specific challenges is the first step.
WHEN should training training be taken? Some needs are more immediate than others; while other types of training are best suited for specific times of the year. Make sure to consider, not only when the training is available, but also look at what times work best for the employees involved. For example, planning a five day training class for your accounting staff at the end of the fiscal year, probably isn't the best choice. Some training classes are offered on a pre-defined schedule, while others are flexible to your needs. If you don't see what you are looking for, WHEN you need it, don't be afraid to ask. Often times, companies are willing to move things around to meet your needs whenever possible.
WHY is training needed? You've already decided what areas need improvement. The next question is to determine what you are trying to achieve with the additional training. Is it improved processes, skill development, software knowledge, etc? Once you have determined your training needs and expectations, review the available course descriptions and agendas to find the classes that best suit your needs. When available, request to speak to a trainer that teaches the course to discuss your expectations and ensure your needs will be met by the class. A small amount of preparation up front can prevent wasted training dollars.
WHERE is training offered? In this day and age, "where" can be a physical location such as a training facility, your own facility where a trainer comes to you, or a virtual location where you are connecting to a live or pre-recorded training session via the web. Each "location" has pros and cons that must be weighed to identify what best suits the needs of your organization.
WHO should attend the training? Particular care should be taken when answering this question. Choosing the correct personnel to invest in, is critical. First, make sure to choose people who share information well. Using a "train the trainer" concept to develop internal experts can help lower costs and free up training dollars to be used elsewhere in the organization. Other things to consider are the expected longevity of the employee, displayed aptitude with current responsibilities, eagerness to learn and grow, and availability, just to name a few.
Overall, investing in your employee's continuing education will give them the confidence and knowledge to perform tasks more efficiently and effectively. Ultimately, the payoff can be seen internally with improved productivity and morale and can also reach outward to improved customer relationships and customer perception.
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Posted by John Asi on Wed, Mar 10, 2010 @ 10:47 AM
Electronic Data Interchange. The words by themselves are common and simple, but once you put them together, they can be intimidating. Let's cover a very brief history regarding EDI and shed some light on how it came into existence.
The concept of EDI has been around for quite a long time (in computer years that is). In the mid-1960s many companies jumped on the success of the second generation of computer systems coming from industry giants such as IBM and DEC. These computers could correlate and manipulate amazing amounts of data compared to the manual process of retrieving information from filing cabinets and people's memories and the prospects of putting these machines to work in corporate environments opened up a new era for business. With a cost of up to $1 million, over 100,000 of these systems were put into place globally. It was soon realized that in order to be competitive in the new market that was emerging, it would be necessary to minimize the errors and inefficiencies created by the large volume of paperwork being managed. Primarily driven by the transportation industry, the Transport Data Coordinating Committee was formed in 1968 to create a standardized protocol for data translation and exchange. While not the first implementation of an EDI protocol, it was the work done by the TDCC to standardize the documents being used by the transport industry that eventually provided the basis for the establishment of the ANSI ASC X12 body in 1979. This body has created the 300+ transactions that are part of the X12 standard. In addition, in 1987 the United Nations formalized the UN/EDIFACT standard with the intent to support standardization at a global level. These organizations continue to develop and modernize the standards as technology progresses.
EDI has been around for quite a few years and does not show any signs of weakening. The use of the standard has found a strong following from large corporations to sophisticated family businesses. While at first the standard can be daunting with the huge amount of documents that are supported, an extensive amount of information and support can be found regarding the effective use and implementation of EDI transactions. Application suites such as EnterpriseIQ from IQMS can simplify the process of implementing EDI. Through the integrated EDI module, business transactions can be read and converted into usable data within the system quickly, with fewer errors, and without human interaction. These benefits are the direct result of the vision of early pioneers in the industry and do show that a collaboration of minds can make a lasting difference in the way we do business.
Posted by Tina Jolicoeur on Thu, Mar 04, 2010 @ 02:44 PM
The freedom to let it go. That's what I gave myself last month. ‘It' is the pressure I used to have professionally and personally to remember it all. But starting last month I enter everything in IQMS' Customer Relationship Management (CRM) module and I can view it whenever I want using the new EIQ Blackberry. It has literally changed my life for the better, I don't worry anymore that I've forgotten
a task or meeting. I go to sleep easier and I wake up without worry.
I've been using CRM software in one form or another for about 17 years. I've been using IQMS' CRM for almost 10 years. That's almost as long as I've been at IQMS
and the reason they weren't using it before I was hired is because IQMS hadn't developed it yet. Early in my career at IQMS the Technical Support department, Sales, Training, other departments and the developers got together and decided an integrated CRM module would be easier for all of us to use in the long run because we can develop it, we can use it, we can access other EIQ modules from it, we can
develop it some more and so on. Speaking for myself, I think one of the greatest successes of the IQMS CRM module is that it works so well we take it for granted. All of the IQMS employees use it, everyday, all day. And its ease of use and ability to track just about any activity you can think of, truly frees up your mind and your time.
As I get older I have to write things down, I wasn't always like this, I remembered phone numbers, birthdays, tasks I needed to complete, the status of customers' issues, what I needed to buy at the grocery store and where I hid this year's Christmas presents. Not anymore. Yes, it takes a few minutes to use CRM to update my customer call notes, enter in meetings (we use recurring weekly and monthly meetings which is very handy), add my hair appointment, my daughter's high school game dates, and even my grocery list. But it doesn't take any more time than if I wrote it down in a planner or a piece of paper that can get lost; and now it's in there for good and CRM reminds me when I have these events, customers to call, tasks to complete and the most beautiful thing now is I can see this on my Blackberry which means I don't have to be near a computer or even in the office. It gets better because the EIQ Blackberry is fully interactive and integrated, so I can enter these same notes, meetings, etc. right on my Blackberry, I don't have to be logged in to CRM on a computer.
I was not and am not addicted to my Blackberry, as a matter of fact until IQMS released EIQ Blackberry I didn't even want one. But when I saw what IQMS was planning with CRM and EIQ Blackberry I had an epiphany; I can enter ‘it', let ‘it' go and I will be reminded to do ‘it' when ‘it' needs to get done and I don't have to be near a computer for all of it to work! There are so many other features of CRM
and EIQ Blackberry modules that I haven't even detailed here. For example, you can view inventory availability and approve your workflows right from EIQ Blackberry. For now I'm using it to organize my life, and I am free to leave my desk and free to let ‘it' go.