Visual South Insights

Chances are good you don't need to hire someone

I have a certain passion for helping companies manage their capacity by scheduling properly. In this blog post, I’m going to discuss a common thought process companies go through to finally get to the point of using ERP to schedule their shop floor: They need to hire a Scheduler. Put someone in charge and have them get the company to the promised land of scheduling properly. It sounds reasonable, but in my experience, it’s a misguided strategy. Let me explain why.

I used VISUAL ERP scheduling

When I was a Plant Manager at a rotary die manufacturer in 1994, I bought an ERP system. The biggest problem I was trying to solve was scheduling the shop floor. We were in an industry that demanded 2-4 day lead times. Everything we did was custom; each work order had around 20 operations. It was rare for me to get a question about our ability to produce a die, because we had all the right type of fabricating equipment to produce a die. The real question was if we could produce it in the lead time the customer provided. In other words, did we have enough open capacity to do what the customer wanted us to do?

Intended audience

As an ERP vendor for small and medium-sized manufacturers, we see a wide variety of tactics when it comes to managing information technologies. Some companies have a dedicated IT staff whose sole responsibility is keeping all servers, clients, networks, applications, and other related systems up and running. These companies typically also have a database administrator who insures all critical databases are properly backed up and maintained. However, we also commonly see manufacturers put less emphasis on IT. In other words, someone has been designated as the “IT” person, yet that is not their primary role.

Knowledge is power

The power of an ERP solution is highly dependent on the knowledge of the company using it.  One company can use the software really well, while another company, well, not so much.  We often use the analogy of an airplane; the airplane is built to fly, but it only works if there is a pilot sitting in it that knows what he is doing.  Is your company flying the plane, or figuring out how to open the cockpit door?

What is big data?

The term big data may mean different things to different people and organizations.

Google’s dictionary defines big data as “extremely large data sets that may be analyzed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations, especially relating to human behavior and interactions.”

Riddle

If you had to travel from New York City to San Francisco, what’s faster, a jet or a car?

♩♫ Jeopardy music ♫♩

Right now you’re thinking, “The obvious answer is “jet”. But if that’s the right answer, this wouldn’t be a riddle.”

Why have ERP without manufacturing analytics?

If you use work orders to produce goods and aren’t getting manufacturing analytics out of your ERP system, you have an important resource that’s untapped. The good news is this can be fixed. The other good news is fixing it will lead to a smoother operating production floor with a more predictable output. There is no “easy” button, but there is a proven method you can follow to mine manufacturing analytics. Companies that use this method find managing production is easier, because they have data. They know what to fix, and just as importantly, what to leave alone. Data leads to focus, which leads to better results. It’s not magic, but it does work.

Oh, you’ll want a custom report

In 1789, Benjamin Franklin wrote, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” I think he got it mostly right. He should have said: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death, taxes, and the need for custom reports from your ERP system.” In Ben’s defense, computers and ERP systems weren’t invented yet, so he did the best he could...

What do you sell?

In the job shop machine industry there is a funny answer to the question, “What do you make?” The response is, “Chips. We make metal chips. The faster we make them, the better we are doing.” (Metal chips are made with a metal cutting tool removing the material you don’t want. The tools are used on equipment like a lathe or a mill. Want to know how they work? Read this.)

Data collection

It seems that “manufacturing data analytics” is the popular buzz term in every facility these days. Management concludes they must collect and analyze as much data as possible to identify trends and opportunities within the manufacturing process. Every sample of data should somehow equate to an ability to gain a competitive advantage. And yet the most common result is analysis paralysis.