“Global Shop is a huge part of our success”, praises Tom Lewis, President of Wilshire. Tom goes on to describe how rapidly he’s watched his business expand after implementing Global Shop Solutions in 1986. “Our business has easily increased by at least 30% in the past few years without adding any new personnel,” he adds coolly. “It amazes me how proficient everyone is. I’m amazed at how everything flows in this place”. That proficiency Tom speaks of can easily be attributed to his daughter, Dana Ullerich.

After coming on in 1994, Dana began single-handedly implementing Global Shop Solutions’ GS Financial Solutions and Material Solutions modules. She also took it upon herself to install the software onto her personal laptop in order to completely learn the system and teach it to Wilshire employees. “It’s amazing. When I came on in ’94, they were only using half of the system! After 8 years, I think everyone was so amazed at the manufacturing aspect of the Global Shop software, they just forgot everything else it could do”, confessed Dana. Fortunately, Dana also admits that the ease of use of Global Shop Solutions One-System ERP Solutions™ allows employees to train each other in utilizing the system, taking some of the weight off her shoulders.

Dana and Tom confess their excitement about the latest upgrades for the Global Shop Solutions software as well as upcoming Global Shop Regional Users’ Conferences which “provide old customers new efficiency and a new outlook” Dana adds, “it’s a way for us to see what we’re doing right and what we could be doing better”. From Global Shop Solutions, we’d like to send a huge thank you to Tom and Dana for staying and evolving with us as we continue to “strive for excellence”.

To hear more about Wilshire Precision’s experience with Global Shop Solutions, don’t forget to come see us at the Manufacturing ERP Experience in Irvine, CA February 29-March 1, 2012!

Every manufacturer knows that implementing is the hardest part of an ERP software purchase. But, where most systems require a complete change in the way you do business, Global Shop Solutions One-System ERP Solutions™ works with the way you do business to make it more efficient and effective. That fact alone can reduce the time it takes to implement ERP software.

Our achievements in implementation can’t simply be accredited to our software. It is also the time and dedication of our implementation team that really drive our efforts home. From the moment our customers make the decision to purchase the Global Shop Solutions One-System ERP Solutions™ our implementation team works non-stop to help them get the most out of their investment and they don’t stop until the job is complete. That is why we have the most successful implementations in the industry.

It starts with generating an estimate, which in most cases, only takes a few seconds. Then a customer quote with automatic multiple requests for vendor quotes. Upon receipt of the order, a sales order gets generated with a few keystrokes. From that, a production/work order is scheduled, and labor input for both payroll and job costing/direct and indirect is tracked with minimal input via biometric and touch-screen input. Material and parts procurement and inventory transactions are automated. Invoicing and shipping documents are automated from sales orders and updated accounts receivable. Customer service is enhanced, with the status of all orders at yours’ or the customer’s fingertips. And, the fully-integrated CRM helps with new sales opportunities.

A single system is specifically designed to streamline manufacturing operations and position your company for growth. You will achieve improved on-time delivery and quality, increased sales and reduced costs because all departments are communicating with the same tools and analyses.

Integrated single system ERP is an inherently simple concept to understand. Many companies use a variety of disparate software, spreadsheets and data management tools to run the business. This results in costly inaccuracies, inconsistencies and inefficiencies in every area of the business. Single system ERP puts all data collection into one centralized location. Everything you need to run your business — from accounting to manufacturing to customer relationship management — comes together in one integrated system.

This type of manufacturing (or job shop) software serves as the central organizing hub for your entire business. It makes all the systems and processes more visible, and integrates every step of the manufacturing process so that employees can do their jobs more efficiently and management can make better-informed, real-time decisions. It enables lean processes, so that management can focus its time and attention on continuous improvement, sales and growth.

The key word with single system ERP software is integrated. Many ERP companies purchase third-party software programs and then patch them together into one package. This often results in system incompatibilities or difficult workarounds. Single system’s core applications are all architected and written in-house from the ground up.

The most powerful single system ERP software offers virtually unlimited capacity to manage customers, materials, inventory, sales, accounting and other critical data, all in one system. Lean manufacturing will become a way of life for your entire company, not just those on the shop floor.

Here is where many manufacturers using enterprise resource planning software (ERP) realize their quickest and biggest return on investment. How? It’s simply a matter of using ERP to accurately track shop labor, both direct and indirect, for the very first time. Without an ERP system, most companies don’t track direct labor, or they do it very poorly. With ERP, it’s much easier and more accurate to track direct labor for every job on the shop floor. Employees simply log into the system when they start a job, log out when they finish, and an advanced ERP system should do the rest.

The ERP system automatically records direct labor time for every employee. It assigns any time not on a job to indirect labor. And, it offers a variety of reporting options that allow you to make better labor allocation decisions. All of which improves labor efficiency in several important ways:

• Reduced labor costs. ERP improves direct and indirect labor costs by measuring how much time employees spend on a job. Direct labor is measured down to the minute. Indirect labor is meticulously accounted for and minimized, with all the documentation and scheduling performed online.
• Reduced overtime. When manufacturers perceive the need to work overtime, it usually means that too many employees work overtime. An ERP system often has the capability to dramatically reduce overtime costs by identifying the specific areas that need to work overtime and allowing you to schedule only those employees rather than an entire department.
• Less employee downtime. With ERP job logon and tracking, operators know exactly what they are supposed to be working on and when. There is no wasted time searching for lost job orders, fumbling through paperwork, waiting for materials to arrive, or standing around wondering what to do next.
• More accurate job costing. You can’t determine the true cost of a job until you know all the labor time involved. Without an integrated system to track all labor and material expenses, this usually occurs one or two days after the job is completed. With ERP software, you can close the work order on the same day the job is finished, with complete confidence that all costs are accounted for.
• More accurate estimating. A good ERP system will provide an effective check-and-balance system between estimating and actual results. By comparing the employee’s time on the job with the estimate, you can assess the accuracy of your estimator and/or determine whether employees are performing up to the estimator’s expectations.
• Increased accountability. Employees want to perform well, but without accurate feedback they have no real way of knowing how they are doing. When you measure their performance with ERP tools, areas that need improvement become apparent. Some manufacturers using ERP can expect to experience reductions in indirect time of 10% to 12% just by measuring alone.

Well, stop and think about delivering a part or assembly with a 99+% on-time delivery with impeccable quality. Then think about how much time is freed up because quoting is more accurate and easily generated. Because it requires very little input generating a sales order, work order, packing list or invoice. Because purchasing and scheduling are automated. Because shop floor control is easy to use with minimum input and very little, if any, paper. And so on, and so forth.

With powerful ERP software, the system will automatically run much of your business for you. Existing customers will want to give you more business. And, you will have much more time to focus on new business. In fact, choosing the right ERP software will help you increase sales.

Of course, ERP software for manufacturers should help lower costs and streamline operations. What is a real surprise is how much it helps to increase sales. Think about it.

When you’re constantly sitting in production meetings or putting out fires on the shop floor, you have no time to focus on growing the business. You’re so caught up in getting the product out the door on time that you can’t slow down long enough to look at ways to bring new business in the door.

A good ERP software solution should let you quote faster and more accurately for improved closing ratios. It should also automate purchasing (often called APS), inventory control, shipping, invoicing and other expensive, time-consuming activities. And, it will dramatically improve quality and on-time delivery while giving you total control of the shop floor.

How does this help to increase sales? When you deliver on time every time, word gets out in the marketplace. Existing customers tell others that you’re a vendor they can count on. They start looking for ways to give you more business. Even better, previously dissatisfied customers start coming back.

ERP helps you close new business by showing potential customers how the software makes your production processes more predictable and reliable. How it makes you accessible to your customers, and your customers accessible to you. In short: You reduce surprises in your relationships with customers, and they like that – a lot!

A nice perk of using ERP software for customer relationship management is that is helps you do a better job of customer selection. Unprofitable customers drain your time and resources and prevent you from going after profitable ones. The data tracking capabilities built into your ERP software system make it easy to discern which customers actually make you money and which ones don’t.

But again, the most important factor of using ERP software for customer management is that it frees up your time so that you can think about how to go after bigger and more profitable customers. So, yes, purchase an ERP system to reduce costs and streamline operations. But don’t be surprised when it allows you to do what every business needs to do — increase sales.

ISO certification requires documenting what you do and proving that you do what you document. Some ERP software has complete traceability including lot, heat and serial number for getting a real edge on quality audits. You can also catch non-performance before it really starts on designated screens in real-time or on each day’s early morning reports.

Of course, impeccable quality always enhances your value to the customer and often means added sales. Scrap costs are reduced through real-time employee reporting, as well as vendor, part and other analysis. With ERP software, you gain considerable advantage over these issues when compared to most non-ERP operations.

With ERP software oversight and documentation, quality means a lot more than just finding and fixing bad parts. It means easy ISO and QS-9000 certification. It also means lower quality costs from accountability by employee, vendor and other defect originations. ERP software makes it easy to qualify for and maintain ISO and QS-9000 certifications by automatically documenting everything you do on the shop floor. The system provides precise, highly accurate data trails. It makes ISO audits easier and more efficient. Ultimately, it allows you to be fully compliant, giving your company a distinct edge in the global marketplace.

ERP software systems should also provide complete traceability of every part or material that comes through your door. Suppose a vendor notifies you of a problem with a part they shipped, putting your customers at risk. With a robust and accurate system, you can enter the heat number into the system and instantly know every part, work order and customer on which the part was used. More important, you can instantly determine the status of all work orders involving the part, allowing you to stop work in progress, postpone shipment, or notify customers that there may be an issue.

Through all of this, ERP software can help you find and fix non-conforming parts, with powerful features such as:

• Non-conforming alerts. When an operator on the shop floor records a non-conforming part, your ERP system instantly notifies the shop foreman, in-process inspector and other selected personnel. One click of the mouse should then tell you everything you need to know about the part — work order, number of pieces, work station, employee and customer. It can also tell you the value of the part so you can determine the cost of the non-conformance and take appropriate action.
• Customizable reporting. Need to know your biggest reported defect type? Or, the most costly? A built-in non-conforming part report will automatically list all reported defects, sorted by part number, machine number, operator, defect code or other criteria of your choosing, including dollar amount. In addition, the non-conforming materials report tracks when and why vendor materials fail to meet your specifications. Really, quality control for manufacturers has never been as easy as it is today via ERP system tools.
• Multiple tracking options. With ERP, you should be able to rapidly track by lot, bin or heat number for total control over every part that comes in your front door and goes out the back. If a customer work order requires serialization, the system automatically applies it to every document that goes through the shop, from initial work order through final invoice. It also gives you instant access to every transaction involving that product throughout the entire plant.
• Statistical analysis tools. Some of the best ERP systems have built-in statistical analysis tools to allow you to make better management decisions. Suppose, for example, the non-conforming parts report identifies 50 parts with a hole in the wrong location. When you run the report by dollar value, it shows the 50 parts with a total value of $150. The report also lists a defect with only three pieces, but those pieces are valued at $1,200 each. Which job do you think would get your immediate attention?

With ERP software, most inventory transactions require little, if any, input. Inventory management is very automated, which leads to even more savings through reduction in labor. Customizable options allow for the lot, serial and bin tracking required in many precision industries such as aerospace. Plus, if your ERP software system is a good one, you should also have the ability to cycle your inventory, keeping inventory accurate and dramatically reducing the costs of physical inventories.

What does this mean in terms of real dollars? First, you get a one-time gain in cash flow, with even small to medium-sized companies experiencing as much as, or more than, $100,000 in inventory reduction. Then, you get the annual recurring savings from the cost of carrying inventory, which includes interest, insurance, obsolescence, physical counting and warehousing. With carrying costs averaging 20% a year for most manufacturing companies, a $100,000 reduction in inventory translates into an additional savings of $20,000 a year that goes straight to your bottom line.

Inventory control is one area where most manufacturing companies can achieve huge cost savings and productivity gains. With a sophisticated materials tracking and purchasing module offering wireless material and inventory monitoring, your business can remain ahead of competitors who don’t have it or use it. Specific features and functions of some ERP materials monitoring tools include:

• Automated inventory control. Look for a variety of standard options for tracking parts and materials in an ERP system. The software should allow easy customization so that you can categorize and track parts in a manner that best suits your unique business needs. It should also eliminate the need for multiple data entry of the same information and increases efficiencies by tracking all data through one system.
• Improved inventory accuracy. Anyone who has worked in manufacturing knows that physical inventory counts are notoriously inaccurate. With an ERP software system that has customizable cycle counting, barcoding, and scanning capabilities, you’ll save time and money by dramatically reducing the need for annual manual inventory counts and improve accuracy.
• Automated work orders. Based on the data you input, an ERP system should also automatically identify which work orders need to be created and allow you to review and change those that have already been created. Look for features that will allow you to trace individual parts by lot, bin and serial number to provide tracking detail on all parts and materials from the time they arrive at your door until they leave the shop as part of the finished product.

In addition to lower inventory costs, an manufacturing ERP software system will provide efficiency gains by combining all the different inventory-related activities into one integrated system. Having one single point of data entry eliminates the mistakes that often occur with multiple data entry, and makes it quicker and easier to track data as it flows through the system.

ERP reduces the time and manpower needed to perform inventory control by automating most or all of the activities that are typically performed by hand. You’ll make fewer inventory counts in less time, with less people, and with a higher degree of accuracy than you ever thought possible. From accounting to the shop floor, a robust ERP software can (should) easily save five to 10 hours a day in staffing costs alone.

Most small business owners welcome these changes because they have given them access to markets that previously were open only to the largest corporations. On the other hand, small business owners are realizing that competing with mega-enterprises for access to markets also forces them to deal with many of the same problems that confront big organizations.

Take for example, something that is common amongst most businesses of any size—shipping out. To sell your goods globally, the cost of shipping and receiving goods across borders must be accounted for when building your business strategies. In addition, complying with environmental regulations, tax laws, and other policies in multiple countries increases the complexity of running a business. Global competition, as a function of the Internet Age, is also forcing companies—both large and small—to do more to meet the needs of individual customers.

For manufacturers, this means building and managing more products, as well as maintaining better records of customer preferences when it comes to products, methods of delivery, and issues related to service. Small businesses that count mega-enterprises as customers must also incorporate specific forms of information technology (such as electronic data interchange, or EDI) to connect to a particular supplier network, or transmit documents in exact formats.

With so much to consider, small business owners increasingly have to confront one essential question: Do we need an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system? On the surface, that’s a difficult question for small business owners because ERP systems historically have been associated with large organizations that fill large number of orders for numerous customers. There also is a widespread perception that installing and maintaining an ERP system is a time-consuming, expensive undertaking—and much too complex for any small business.

Fortunately, technological developments have transformed the nature of ERP. Advanced ERP systems are often professionally installed, easy to use, and simple to maintain, putting them well within the reach—from both a technical and financial standpoint—of small manufacturing operations. These systems give small businesses the tools they need to compete in the global marketplace without busting their budgets.

With small business owners realizing that word-processing systems and spreadsheets are insufficient for managing a modern enterprise, ERP systems are becoming increasing attractive for operational control. The first step in that journey is, ironically, turning back to the Internet for information. The Internet is a trove of information, and is populated by thought-leadership and education on the subject of evaluating and selecting the right ERP system for a manufacturing or job shop business.

The Internet Age is a double-edged sword. That is to say, while on one side the demands of speed born of having Internet access is ever-increasing to seemingly impossible rates of performance, the other edge provides the means for meeting those demands. With ERP software, a manufacturer can often get the best of both for the purposes of competing globally with the big boys.

However, many small manufacturers have myriad other issues to contend with that big businesses don’t have, or have an easier time facilitating by virtue of economic scaling. Certainly, in today’s tight credit markets, limited access to financial resources is a key hurdle for small businesses. This is exacerbated by increasingly higher operational costs and the constant difficulty in finding qualified people to work for you.

Solving your problems so you can get onto your work is the driving force behind the quest for shop control software. When it comes to choosing an enterprise resource planning (ERP) software specifically for small businesses, trying to shoehorn a large-scale system into a small operation is not the most desirable approach. The result is often owning a bunch of bells and whistles that are not needed, and/or wasting time training to use them for no particular business application in your shop.

In short: Small manufacturing businesses have their own unique set of function requirements when it comes to choosing an ERP software solution. For example, when a small business makes a flawed decision about anything, the ability to absorb the consequences of it is usually much harder than when a large business makes a similar mistake.

Another ERP software acquisition issue for small businesses is that they don’t—or can’t—staff a full-time IT area. In a small business, complex, hard to learn, and difficult to understand ERP systems are not maintained by a technologist, but rather by any number of people within the small business—people whose business lineage may not have included computer and ERP software system integration.

For this reason, ERP software vendors that install and maintain systems designed specifically for small businesses are good places to turn to in your search. Helping to build a good implementation plan, installing the software and converting, and great service after the sale are the sorts of benefits that come with developing a one-on-one relationship with the ERP software provider. They are also the sorts of benefits absent from the larger ERP software provide.

Small manufacturing businesses simply don’t have all the time in the world to dwell on problem issues/bugs with a large, complex, ERP software installation. Indeed, the notion defeats the promise of efficiency hawked by the large-business ERP vendor. Ultimately, for a small manufacturing business, finding an ERP software is more often the need for finding a trusted compatible ERP vendor first; then moving on to assess the performance, efficiency, and productivity of the software as it relates to your specific small business needs.

So what are the differences? In a lean manufacturing environment production is based on real customer demand. In a traditional manufacturing environment production is based on what you hope to sell. Instead of pushing product into the market (a sometimes dangerous thing to do in this economy), lean production pulls the product through a system that is set up to quickly respond to a customer’s needs and demands.

While in a lean management approach to manufacturing, production is made to order and pulled from the existing order levels, in traditional management other forces are at work to counter the irrational tendencies inherent in the system. For example, in the lean approach, production is made to order; in traditional management, production is primarily based on forecasting and products are made to replenish inventories.

As well, cycle times for inventories themselves are measures in terms of hours and days in the lean approach, while cycle time are measured in terms of weeks and even months in the traditional model. In a related concept, lean management usually employs the one-piece flow inventory levels; by contrast, traditional methods continue to use the large batch production approach inherent in the push-production approach.

Costing is such an important issue in manufacturing today, that one would be hard-pressed to understand how or why quality would be a random consideration. Wasted time and material translates into wasted money and wasted profit. However, when mass production must use traditional management methods, quality assessment is indeed just that—random sampling. By contrast, lean management takes quality control to the station level in attempt to head-off inefficiencies and scrapping. In this way, the causes and corrective actions to change inefficiencies are assessed more frequently and with continuous improvement effect.

Certainly, scheduling is a much more important and flexible notion in the lean management approach to manufacturing. Changes in schedule—whether for order influx, machine maintenance, or any number of issues—is much more facilitated and capacity better planned. In traditional, large batch, production, however, schedules are usually much more rigid and harder to adjust merely because of the sheer volume of items on the production line at any single time.