Improved production planning and control via low-cost prototype solutions

Abstract

This paper describes prototype management information systems used to support the transformation of a job-orientated manufacturer into a preferred supplier to the Aerospace Industry. As a jobbing manufacturer the company excelled at reactive management, responding rapidly to short lead-time demands. This approach, however, was inappropriate for the increasingly competitive production of steady state orders (‘runners’) and spare parts orders (‘repeaters’). As a result, the company experienced falling delivery performances and increasing work-in-progress, inventory levels and overtime requirements. Furthermore, there was only a modest understanding of customer requirements due to the poor visibility of the order book. There was also little awareness of internal and supplier capabilities, and the planning and control systems were non-existent, relying heavily on senior management expertise. The company, however, was reluctant to invest in new management information systems, aware of the risk of expensive systems unsuited to the company requirements. Instead, prototype solutions were developed using low-cost and readily available software, which provided the stability and visibility that the company required and formed the basis of a more long-term understanding of planning and control requirements. This paper describes the iterative prototype developments to support the new company infrastructure and quantifies the benefits that were achieved through their introduction.