July 1997, Volume 3, No. 7
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July 1997, Volume 3, No. 7 Scheduling System Helps Eltron Help Its Customers |
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The company had grown quite quickly since its founding in the early 1990s, but as volumes continued to rise, it seemed as though manufacturing and shipping times would too, delaying deliveries to customers who rely on bar coding to help their businesses run smoothly. Eltron managers realized that their reputation would be at risk if they couldn't improve the efficiency of their manufacturing process. "We needed manufacturing-oriented technology that integrated accounting support," said Dan Toomey, Eltron's vice president of finance and CFO, "but most of the packages we looked at were financial packages that integrated with manufacturing." Ultimately, Eltron opted to implement the Manufacturing Software System (MSS) from Fourth Shift (Minneapolis, Minn.; http://www.fs.com). MSS is comprised of over 40 modules and is designed to control and manage every aspect of a manufacturing enterprise. MSS for Objects, the latest version of the solution, provides for multi-site customer order fulfillment. Orders taken centrally or at geographically distributed facilities are able to be fulfilled from one or more MSS-based manufacturing sites. Once Eltron deployed MSS, it was able to coordinate the activities of every department that has an impact on manufacturing. The most immediately measurable improvement was that orders could be shipped much faster - in three days, instead of two weeks - and Eltron was already way ahead of the industry average of four to six weeks. The advantage to using a software-based manufacturing scheduling system is that it helps Eltron ensure that the right materials are on hand when they're needed and that inventories (and their associated cash outlays) are kept to a minimum. Manufacturing delays have been reduced or eliminated, making it possible to generate more revenue by producing and shipping five times more product more quickly at less cost (the number of employees grew by only 20% in the same period). Order status and shipping information can now be updated as changes occur, giving the customer service staff the data they need to provide reliable service and keep customers informed. Management is now able to track sales and usage patterns, generating reports on an "as needed" basis to facilitate timely business decisions. According to Toomey, "There's better communication now between departments and they have the information they need to get their jobs done more effectively." For example, when engineers enter specifications into the system, the warehouse knows exactly what parts to have ready, and manufacturing can plan their production schedule. As the order progresses through the fabrication process, customer service knows when it will ship, whether the order is complete, and when it actually goes out. The scheduling system has helped Eltron lower its operating costs, improve delivery times and increase output to such an extent that it was able to more than double its revenues and pay for the system in the first year of use. In fact, revenues have grown 220%.
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