According to www.PlasticsNews.com, leading industry experts and economists forecast growth and strong increases in production rates for 2016 and 2017. One of the country’s most informed economists and President of ITR Economics Dr. Alan Beaulieu, predicts that the first half of 2015 will show modest gains, but there will be an upturn in demand for plastics as early as Q3 2015, driven by demand from the housing and automotive sectors. And then, get ready for 2016, which, he says, “will be one hell of a ride”! So how do you prepare for the projected growth? Do you hire more people, invest in the latest machinery? Re-design your processes? Our team of experts at Ellipse Solutions suggests to invest in a better technology and consider a new ERP solution.
Plastics manufacturers can gain a lot of competitive advantage and stand to reap great benefits from selecting the right ERP system. From having better product configuration tools and being able to minimize downtime by improving production efficiency, to attaining simple cost control over resin price fluctuation, real time inventory management and integration with shop floor machinery - a new ERP can arm your business with the best means to be competitive and effective in the new growing economy. Implementing the right ERP in your molding or extrusion business should be one of the best investments you’ll ever make, but with a vast variety of applications out there how do you chose the right one and what factors should be considered?
Strong product configuration tools
Meet customer specific requirements and configure to order! Is your new ERP software able to set up a product configuration model, where you can create distinct product variants that have unique bill of materials (BOM) and unique production routes? In made-to-order plastics fabrication, whether you are a custom sheet extruder or an injection mold manufacturer specializing in medical parts, you should be able to configure items on sales quotations or sales orders. Unlike configurator products that offer limited integration with the ERP system and function with proprietary databases that require time-consuming data uploads, choose a software with an advanced built in configurator functionality that directly accesses the ERP system’s database so you can move configuration results instantly to any area of the ERP application.
Internet of Things (IoT) and MES.
Plastics manufacturing is getting a lot smarter and the Internet of Things (IoT) is changing manufacturing as we know it. Factories and plants that are connected to the internet are more efficient, productive and perceptive than their non-connected competition. Does your ERP software allow you to connect your blenders, forklifts, and tablets to the web? An advanced ERP system should offer an advanced MES functionality, connecting your shop floor machinery with your ERP in real time, allowing you to gain access to comprehensive performance data in real-time, evaluating and capitalizing on opportunities faster and more intelligently. How would you like to have a mold monitoring system that can be configured to provide real-time alerts when a mold is not operating within user-defined limits or be able to set required preventive maintenance intervals and be notified if a mold is approaching it or is overdue for it? Are you able to track real-time performance measures, such as cycle time and efficiency and notify users of its performance? With advanced MES functionality of a new ERP system you can increase visibility into information, both in the plant and across the supply chain.
Big Data and advanced BI tools
Now that you got all these data, what are you going to do with it? Don’t rely on lean production and cost cutting to keep up! Choose an ERP with Big Data capabilities and advanced BI tools to collect and analyze the information that is generated by MES and turn it into actionable data to drive your decisions and optimize your results. A few tools worth mentioning here are Microsoft Dynamics AX, Power BI and Machine Learning. Arm yourself with the intelligence to predict trends, uncover insights, and operate at continual peak performance. Top your competition through a wealth of business intelligence that is available through insightful, user friendly dashboards and reports. The need to collect and analyze production and administrative data is a concept that is here to stay.
Inventory control
If you think that the easiest way to find some missing inventory is to place a new PO, then think again! Logistics in a competitive ERP solution should automate your inventory management processes and give you the flexibility to manage inventory and purchasing according to your needs. Functionality specific to plastics industry can include an ability to track and store inventory in various units of measure, such as weight, linear dimensions or pieces, and ability to track serialized inventory from finished goods to raw materials. It should also allow you to:
Optimize inventory levels by matching supply with customer demand
Provide a detailed insight into your inventory and item tracking
Improve your materials requirements planning with flexible options for managing BOMs
Create BOMs quickly and easily
Classify your inventory according to storage and item characteristics
Track items throughout the system using batch and serial numbers
Have a direct access to information telling you where items were used and where they can be found
Exchange information with production, master planning, trade, finance, and CRM, to help ensure a high degree of synergy between various areas of your organization.
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