Metco Precision Metalwork ltd, a Bedford-based company, produces bespoke metal parts to make up items that form a part of the landscape of everyday living, such as shop shelving, petrol station signs and plane seats. At the forefront of manufacturing metalwork components for over twenty years, Metco thrives in this competitive arena by offering its customers an exemplary service, top-notch quality, fast turnaround and value for money. The impressive names that form Metco's loyal customer base bear testimony that it lives up to its promise. "All our business is generated through a network of clients providing regular repeat orders", explains Bob Davies, General Manager at Metco. "I think that says it all."
An Exemplary Service
Metco has a history of embracing the latest technology to help keep a competitive edge and now use software to control every aspect of the production process, from the order and planning stages through to final delivery. At the heart of Metco' operations, DISTRiX, supply chain and distribution software from Dataday provides the necessary control to ensure validation at every stage of the manufacturing process.
First in first out
Once an order is received from a client, a drawing specification is detailed and the production planning kicks into action. DISTRiX functionality gives Metco the ability to rapidly calculate materials requirement and shortages for all, any, of a selection of active production jobs. Jobs are automatically generated and scheduled and materials purchase orders are raised as part of the process. This way, 'first in first out' allocation can be assigned to existing stock as each job comes through. Extra material is ordered only when needed for production.
The customer order number and the operational sequence for each stage of production are entered into DISTRiX and Metco' CNS system is programmed for press and laser cut machines with the exact details taken from the original drawings. Metco currently have around 80 different variations for these operational procedures, which tell the operator whether an item needs folding, fitting, welding and cleaning and when it needs to be sent out to finishers for plating or assembly before being dispatched.
Each one of these operational stages is bar-coded, enabling the production process to be validated as it moves from one process to the next. As each phase of the production process is completed and validated, the manager responsible scans the corresponding barcode so DISTRiX registers it as complete and the production process can then continue through the rest of the pre-programmed stages until it reaches inspection.
Control and Flexibility
Although DISTRiX provides control over the sequence of events it also has sufficient inbuilt flexibility to enable an operator to correct a job and resubmit it for validation, or to cancel it and start again. An operator may decide that they simply need to repeat the current stage, for instance a polishing process has not produced a satisfactory result and a part may need to be resubmitted for a second round. Perhaps a component may need returning to a previous stage, it may have been erroneously painted white instead of blue, and therefore need stripping and repainting.
Or the problem could be irretrievable; a part may have had holes drilled in the incorrect place and therefore need scrapping altogether. DISTRiX monitors all these activities, so a manager can run a report on any particular job to check the error ratio or track the number of jobs that have needed repeating at any particular stage. DISTRiX will have also calculated how much stock has been used for each job and can clearly identify any wastage.
Each item is assessed for quality and inspection before Metco's prove programs put all orders through a second check prior to dispatch. The production process can take place within 24 hours and total orders are usually turned around in three to four days.
"DISTRiX is the core to the whole process, I really don't know what we would do without it", comments Bob, "It enables everybody involved with the job to be continuously up to date. I always know where things are, what is moving well or what is moving too slowly. DISTRiX also enables me to gauge a good overall view to operations away from the production floor by providing easy traceability, including order history and how the composition or structure of components are changing over time."
Customer Confidence
Thirty years ago T-cards, job sheets and word of mouth controlled manufacturing systems. Supervisors would need to move constantly backwards and forwards between sections to keep track of each stage of the operation. And if a customer needed to know what stage production was at and when they could expect delivery they would perhaps wait a day or more to find out. Operations were tediously slow and headcount high, making overall production expensive.
With DISTRiX, viewing work in progress is instantaneous and tracking is easy. "DISTRiX gives customers a great deal of confidence in Metco's operations. We are in complete control of the operation because updated information is immediately accessible throughout the company." Says Bob. The end result? Maximised productivity, significant cost savings, and greater customer satisfaction!
