| ManEx Minute - 412008 - Part Shortage Tracking |
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Issue 412008
Greetings,
Let me start by thanking everyone who responded to the survey last week. You had many good ideas and suggestions and we are preparing to incorporate many of those suggestions into future newsletters. Keep your eyes open for the changes, I think they will make the newsletter even better.
For this week, we will address component shortages. We will address how to record, track and fill those shortages to keep production running.
Please click the " ManEx Case Solution" link, after the case, for the method recommended by ManEx.
As always, we look forward to your participation and feedback as you gain new insights and become a more effective provider of Electronic Manufacturing Services.
Sincerely,
David Sharp
ManEx, Inc.
Business Case - Inventory Control
Component Shortage Management
North Eastern Company* (N.E. Company) has a good handle on the material stream and generally has all components ready when production begins.
As is typical in manufacturing, production has attrition with each build. Fortunately, settings in their system allow purchasing and kitting to automatically adjust order and kitting levels for the expected attrition. However, occasionally parts are lost, or attrition levels are higher than expected and production does not have enough to finish the build. Depending on the lead time, this can cause serious issues with delivery.
How can N.E. Company report and track these shortages? How do they ensure they have used all possible inventory before ordering more? How do they inform purchasing of the shortages in order to get replacements? How does kitting know when the parts come in and which kits need those parts? How do they account for the shortages so as to prevent issues with future builds?
Business Case Solutions
- Additional Communication- One approach is for production to send an email, leave a note on the desk, or leave a voicemail for the responsible party to check and replenish a component shortage. While this certainly can work, this may require separate communications for each person involved and allow for finger pointing if there is an issue because traceability is difficult or impossible. Additionally, this lack of traceability can make in nearly impossible to audit for process improvements when there are issues.
- Excel File- Using a centralized excel file will allow production to report shortages along with needed details, purchasing to order replacement components, kitting to fill the shortages when they become available, and quality to review shortages for possible production process improvements. However, there are some significant issues with this method: it requires users to step outside the normal processes which increases opportunities for human error, it may require double entry to ensure the system has complete information, it lacks controls to ensure the information recorded in the excel file is complete and correct, and users may not keep it updated unless time permits. This is also difficult to audit for process improvements if needed.
- Stand-alone System- Some companies create or purchase a stand-alone communication tool for shortage reporting. Depending on the system capabilities, this may make shortage reporting easy and allow for accurate reporting and traceability. However, integration may be a challenge and it may require double entry. This is also an "extra" step that users may skip when they don't have sufficient time for other tasks.
* Company name has been changed.
ManEx Case Solution
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Make YOUR Mark
Here is a list of upcoming topics. Please email your thoughts, comments, and suggestions to mym@manex.com
- MRP by BOM
- Excess Inventory
- Order Status Updates
- Part Cross Reference
- Serial Number Tracking
If you have any topics you would like to see addresses in future newsletters, please send them to topics@manex.com.
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| Article ID: 3146 |
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