Manufacturing Journalist TR Cutler Profiles E2 by Shoptech for Business Excellence Magazine

July 8, 2011 - PRLog -- There are many different techniques for shop scheduling including forward/backward, finite/infinite including user defined “tie breakers” when multiple jobs are competing for the same resource. Another important feature is the “what-if” simulation that allows management to answer customer requests for promise dates. Job shops must have the option of selecting the best methodology.

Whether a job shop, machine shop, or make-to-order manufacturer, there are similar problems shared.  Companies face increasing pressures from customers, dealing with constant change, meeting customer’s dues dates, and scheduling the shop floor.

Manufacturing journalist, Thomas R. Cutler, profiled the unique elements in make to order manufacturing job shops in the most current issue Business Excellence Magazine.  Cutler shared that Greg Ehemann and Rich Ehemann, Shoptech’s (www.shoptech.com) founding partners, have been around job shops their entire careers. While working in a machine shop in Cincinnati, Ohio during the 1980’s, Greg and his brother Rich were frustrated that they could not determine whether they were making or losing money on a job. Out of that frustration, the two brothers collaborated to develop a computer system to track actual costs and monitor profitability. They also experienced firsthand the need for better coordination of the other facets of running a job shop: estimating, scheduling, collecting time from the shop floor, purchasing, shipping, and even accounting.

Scheduling and Shop Management

When a customer calls and wants to know the status of their job(s), the information must be instantaneously available without having to go on the shop floor. Many companies are familiar with the manual visual scheduling tools such as cards, magnetic colored strips, or just writing on a whiteboard. Today, shop management software provides the same visual benefits of a scheduling board on the PC.

Viewing job status is only useful if the data collected on the shop floor is up-to-date and accurate. Getting up-to-date job tracking and costing information and ensuring that time is booked to the correct job, shop floor data collection equipment is an important addition to any system.

The system selected should be flexible allowing for multiple shop floor data collection methods, from manual timecards to data collection devices, scanners, and touch screens on a PC. Many shops want to move towards a paperless shop floor by allowing workers to view all the information they need on a computer screen instead of paper such as a list of all jobs scheduled on work centers, work instructions, CAD drawings and images.

There are many reasons why technology implementations fail in a job shop environment. Lack of management commitment, inadequate education and training, poor planning, not enough resources to name just a few, but there is a more basic reason—choosing the wrong system.

All these challenges addressed while simultaneously attempting to increase revenue and profitability.  Companies look to information technology to help improve processes and gain a competitive edge.   To win business job shops, machine shops, or make-to-order manufacturers must provide accurate estimates and quotations to a demanding customer base. In many cases, bills and routings are specific to a job and you must closely monitor actual costs versus the original estimate to ensure profitability.

E2 is for machine shops, job shops, fabrication shops, mold/die shops, screw shops, repair shops, service shops, captive shops, spring manufacturers, stampers, machine builders, and plastic injection molding manufacturers, to name a few.  The entire feature can be read at  http://trcutlerinc.com/Operations1_May11_NA.pdf.


Shoptech Software
www.shoptech.com
Paul Ventura
pr@shoptech.com
800-525-2143