In manufacturing, everyone knows that the shop floor is where the action is. It is the nuts and bolts of the operation, the internal engine that generates the products and services you sell. Small issues on the shop floor are multiplied by the number of labor hours worked in a day, a week and a month. They can quietly add to the cost of goods, siphoning profits away undetected. Visibility of the data related to each employee, each workcenter, each department or each job is critical to correcting issues and improving processes. That is the core benefit of Global Shop Solutions Shop Floor Data Collection.

When an employee has their allotted labor hours in front of them on the same screen where they are clocking their production hours, it can improve personal accountability and motivation in real time. When the job is 50% complete and you see that you have used 75% of your budgeted hours, you can still make adjustments. That can’t happen if you don’t see the numbers until after the work is finished.

The visibility provided by Shop Floor Data Collection is not limited to labor budgets and hours used Senior Manufacturing Consultant, Langley Melendres explains, “Employees can easily find all the information they need from their workstation screen. They can have their dispatch lists sorted by priority on the screen and automatically updated as priorities change and new work orders are added.”

With Shop Floor Data Collection, there is no delay in communication between management and shop floor like there can be when working off of paper dispatch lists. Everything they need is available through their data screen. Documents like machine operation and safety manuals can be accessed through the terminal. Instant messaging avoids time lost while workers try to hunt down a supervisor to report problems or get answers to questions.

Real-time information access is a benefit for both workers and management. The information being collected from the shop floor can be viewed multiple ways. You can view labor data by department, by job, by workcenter or individual employee. The data does not need to be limited to hours worked. Attendance, paid time off and overtime hours can also be available in real-time for the benefit of labor management and human resources.

With Global Shop Solutions, you have plenty of choices for data collection. You can enter at the terminal touch screen, use RFID cards, biometrics and barcode scanning for collecting labor and material data. Real-time inventory control is just as important as labor hours when it comes to cost of goods and work-in-progress. Shop Floor Data Collection handles tracking of all the costs on your jobs, including allocating materials to work orders and unattended workcenter outputs.

As part of a fully-integrated ERP software system, there is no delay in viewing or analyzing what is happening on the shop floor. Payroll, inventory, customer service and management at all levels can access the information they need right from their desktops. They can view on screen or print out reports using any number of data filters to analyze the numbers from different perspectives. Customer service can provide accurate updates on job progress to customers and shop floor managers can keep production moving smoothly without unexpected dead time due to outdated information.

Real-time, accurate data flowing through a fully-integrated, comprehensive system is the power behind Global Shop Solutions ERP software for manufacturers. Flexible, easy access to that data is an added value that our users fully appreciate. You, loyal customers, are also our research and development advisors. All of our best innovations are the result of a user asking if it can be done. The robust capabilities of Shop Floor Data Collection are just one example.