Methods of Reducing Paperwork in

Manufacturing utilizing Lean Execution

and Enterprise Intelligence System of !
Edwards Enterprise"ne Software
Paul W Lynch, CEO
InSync Technologies, LLC
Introduction
In 1990, Eliyahu M Goldratt, the famed Israel-born physicist turned business consultant,
and the originator of the theory of constraints published a book titled The haystack syndrome :
sifting information out of the data ocean. Early in the book Eli says something rather profound
about modern computer systems, I think !e should cut out the middleman and hook up the
computer printers directly to the paper shredders." #his book, along !ith others !ho picked up
on Eli$s simple idea ga%e birth to the idea$s of paperless en%ironments" as !ell as modern
&usiness Intelligence soft!are.
Effecti%ely managing production operations in today$s demanding business en%ironment
is a difficult task. Market demands re'uire fle(ible agility to deli%er percei%ed %alue in the eyes
of the customer. Economic pressures call for continual process impro%ement in the seemingly
elusi%e goals of lean manufacturing," constraints scheduling" and )ust in time in%entory." *e
li%e in an era !hich is consumed by #+,$s" -three letter acronyms. and competing
management theories. *hile !orking for #/* ,utomoti%e I began to call this bu00!ord du
)our" as the theories and policy changes !ere coming faster than their implementations could be
completed. #he real 'uestion !e should be asking oursel%es is, !hat %alue !ill this particular
change or enhancement deli%er to the bottom line of the organi0ation. *hether production is
dri%en from discrete !ork orders, repetiti%e schedules or demand pull signals, any disruption in
the e(ecution process is e(tremely costly.
*hen the ine%itable finally occurs and either the demand changes, e'uipment
malfunctions, or material shortages occur, it is important that e%ery key person in the
organi0ation has immediate access to real time" information allo!ing the free flo! of decisions
or changes to be communicated across the entire enterprise. Meeting these and other challenges
re'uires only to embrace the %ery basics of manufacturing e(ecution theories that !ill allo! the
organi0ation to le%erage real-time information and ensure products are produced according to
stringent customer demands. #hese basic theories address all of the challenges any
manufacturing organi0ation faces today, and once completed embraced by the entire enterprise
they also empo!er you to configure ne! processes as you continuously impro%e operations
through the principals of +ean E(ecution1 de%eloped by me o%er the past 23 years.
4n 5age 100 of &usiness 6 the 7peed of #hought, !hich !as !ritten by &ill Gates, he
says,
Machines generally reach customers !ithin three to fi%e days of order.
8ell$s business model is based upon the e%ils of in%entory. #he more 8ell can
reduce its in%entory, the more it frees up !orking capital to dri%e into other
re%enue generating acti%ities. 8ell$s reduced in%entory translates to a sa%ings of
hundreds of millions of dollars in assets. ,t the same time, the re'uirement for
greater customer ser%ice means that you ne%er !ant to be out of stock either. 4nly
information technology can pro%ide the means to balance these needs. 95hysical
assets used to be a defining ad%antage,$ Michael says. 9:o! they$re a liability.
#he closer you get to perfect information about demand, the closer you can get to
0ero in%entory. It$s a simple formula. More in%entory means less information,
more information means less in%entory. *e$re trading physical assets for
information.$"
;tili0ing core <8Ed!ards Enterprise4ne Manufacturing soft!are along !ith our +ean
E(ecution1 methods can empo!er any manufacturer to create a paperless shop floor," and
gain immediate benefits such as=
> /eduction of manufacturing cycle time
> /eduction of order lead time
> /eduction of direct labor costs
> /eduction of data entry time
> /eduction or elimination of paper!ork
> /eduction of !ork in process -*I5. in%entory
> Increase in machine utili0ation
Implementing +ean E(ecution1 techni'ues enables critical information to flo!
throughout the organi0ation?including the often-forgotten areas of production and
manufacturing. #his re'uires that the information is !ithin the control of those !ho actually
produce your products. 5aperless shop floors" ha%e been created for a fe! for!ard-thinking
manufacturers, producing dramatic gains throughout their entire organi0ations. :o! you !ill
learn ho! the same results are possible for your company.
The Foundations of Lean Execution
@uite simply, by introducing actionable, real-time information into the traditionally
paper-based shop floor en%ironment, it is possible to create a paperless shop floor." #his real-
time control empo!ers the organi0ation to streamline production and ensure products are
deli%ered according to stringent customer demands. +ean E(ecution1 allo!s manufacturers the
fle(ibility to address the key business processes and functional acti%ities that pro%ide them !ith
the 'uickest time to benefit. ,ll of this can be implemented by simply using the basic
Manufacturing 7uite of soft!are from <8Ed!ards.
#he simple utili0ation of 4peration 7e'uence and 4peration 7tatus Aodes can le%erage
the e(isting *ork *ith 4peration 8ispatch solution to control the e%ent-dri%en notification and
!orkflo! and to pro%ide proacti%e %isibility into disruptions in the manufacturing process. *ork
instructions are communicated to !orkers in real time using a media ob)ect attachment to the
routing master file. #his approach replaces error-prone, paper-based communication !ith a
streamlined, paperless shop floor" en%ironment.
Lean Execution With JDEdwards EnterpriseOne
Fast Cost Reduction
:o! that !e ha%e defined ho! proper implementation of <8E Manufacturing can create
paperless shop floor en%ironments," the ne(t 'uestion to be ans!ered is *hat benefits !ill my
company reali0eB"
Increased Levels of On-Time and Complete Shipments
<8Ed!ards pro%ides the !orkflo!, %isibility and e%ent notification re'uired to ensure
that manufacturing is meeting customer demand. ,dditionally, these systems reduce non %alue-
added acti%ity, increase data accuracy and pro%ide the other E/5 systems !ith the real-time data
needed to ma(imi0e processing, planning and scheduling acti%ities. #his results in the ability to
increase le%els of on-time and complete shipments.
,s stated earlier +ean E(ecution1 re'uires putting information in the hands of those
!ho actually handle the in%entory or produce the products. #his is sometimes the biggest
stumbling block in entire process because managers and super%isors don$t readily belie%e that
the production and manufacturing !orkers can be trained to input the correct data. Co!e%er,
once this hurdle is o%ercome the solution creates a paperless en%ironment by gi%ing operators
instant access to !ork instructions and A,8 dra!ings, so they al!ays ha%e the up to date
information re'uired to build products that meet the customers$ demanding specifications.
More importantly, ha%ing information about e%ents as they occur allo!s decision makers
to easily identify or pre%ent potential problems and bottlenecks. Dor e(ample, the planners may
already be !ell a!are of the problems created by shortages of key manufacturing materials that
may halt production, shipments arri%ing late or incomplete, and backordersE ho!e%er, !ith a fe!
properly implemented steps the material pickers, the purchasing agent and the recei%ing
department can also be updated as to the status of critical parts. ,dditionally, the lack of
%isibility into machines operating outside control limits or processes not meeting appropriate
yields can ultimately delay customer shipments. *ith <8E *orkflo!, real-time notification of
e%ents and e(ceptions?often before they occur?allo!s the appropriate parties to take proacti%e
steps to manage them. #his !ill likely sa%e the cost of e(pediting shipments that !ere
une(pectedly completed late. ;ltimately, the ability to keep costs in check, production and
shipments on schedule, and customers happy increases bottom line profitability.
&y streamlining data ac'uisition and e(ecution for operators on the factory floor, it is
possible to create efficient processes that consist only of the %alue-added acti%ities. #he result is
a lean and efficient en%ironment. ,dditional in%estment can be made into mobile data terminals
for material handlers or strategically placed *I5 stations or terminals on the factory floor,
!orkers can then be directed to perform tasks and collect information in real time using either
third party tools or standard user interfaces. In addition, ne! employee training time is
significantly reduced, !hile !orkflo! notification and electronic communication pro%ides
crosstraining opportunities !ithin the e(isting !orkforce. +ean E(ecution1 solutions empo!er
<8Ed!ards Enterprise4ne users to easily implement and manage truly paperless manufacturing
processes.
7trengthened 8ecision-Making &ased on /eal-#ime Information
, +ean E(ecution1 implementation supplies key personnel the decision-making data
necessary to optimi0e manufacturing performance. Drom any location, the technology !ill allo!
managers to make immediate decisions on staffing, ma(imi0e labor efficiencies, control order
fulfillment and monitor machine utili0ation. /eal-time performance reports such as actual %ersus
plan, production unit cycle time, production efficiency, scrap and do!ntime by machine or !ork
cell can all be specifically configured for up-to-the-second re%ie! and action by management.
*hen une(pected e%ents do occur, +ean E(ecution1 also helps managers and lead
operators take proacti%e steps by utili0ing your customi0ed set of alerts and alarms. ;sing
!orkflo! notification key indi%iduals are notified about potential issues?before they become
costly problems. Manufacturing e(ecution solutions do not stop after notifying operators of
une(pected e%ents. #his type of system pairs e%ent notification !ith appropriate !orkflo! so
operators take suitable resolution steps in real time !ithout affecting operations.
5roduction order status and !ork in process are readily accessible %ia standard <8E
Fideo 7creens. #his can also empo!er managers and other decision-makers to communicate
information electronically to customers and other manufacturing locations. Ease of information
access also smoothes the daily transition bet!een shift managers and pro%ides updated statistics
on key performance indicators -G5I., !ellness %ie!s and other important reports.
Continuous Improvement: Adapt or Fail
Manufacturers ha%e learned that staying competiti%e means they must continually
impro%e their processes or face the conse'uences of technological 8ar!inism?"adapt or fail."
*hether the initiati%e is 7i( 7igma or kai0en, traditional implementations of <8Ed!ards
Enterprise4ne are nearly impossible to change !hen needed because they re'uire e(pensi%e,
time consuming custom code-based modifications. &ecause of this, the soft!are becomes a
barrier to operational e(cellence. #his usually means that impro%ement opportunities are lost, or
!ork-arounds are de%eloped to accomplish tasks outside of the system. #his results in poor data
accuracy.
, ne! approach, called +ean E(ecution1 has recently been compiled on the belief that
soft!are should be a catalyst for continuous impro%ement?not an obstacle. 4ur implementation
methodology not only pro%ides a detailed %ie! of plant history, but the fle(ible architecture also
allo!s reconfiguration 'uickly and cost-effecti%ely as the manufacturing operations change and
e%ol%e. *e also pro%ide the &usiness Intelligence needed to make fact-based decisions and adapt
as manufacturing operations impro%e o%er time.