FactoryMaster is a comprehensive manufacturing system with full material & product batch traceability (suitable for aerospace, automotive, defence, gas, medical, nuclear, food & most manufacturing assembly organisations). FactoryMaster includes quotation build-up & production, sales order processing, delivery notes, release notes (certificates of conformity), sales invoicing (with integration to 3rd party accounting systems), purchase order processing, goods receiving, stock control, M.R.P. (material requirements planning), drawing recipe register control, manufacturing instructions, job card production, scheduling, shop floor data capture, time & attendance, extensive quality options & integration & full W.I.P. & job costing. FactoryMaster 2000 is a cost effective solution that helps organisations utilise the latest technology to assist in the planning and day-to-day operation of the company’s commercial and production processes.
In detail the main features of FactoryMaster 2000 include estimating and quotation letter production, this utilises the resource specification database of a companys machines and processes and their associated hourly charge rates, along with sub-contract processes an organisation uses. A quotation is initially specified by assigning to the appropriate customer and detailing the items and batch quantities to be quoted. Quotations are quickly built-up by estimating the set and operation times for each operation step and associating with the appropriate resource code. This process will utilise the rate per hour of a defined resource. After material and process prices are allocated, the system calculates the appropriate batch prices which the estimator can accept or override with a commercially more suitable price.
An additional feature is a detailed quotation breakdown and analysis sheet which can be produced for the in-house file copy. The benefits provided by this system include; consistent, detailed and rapid response to enquiries, easy access to an organised reference base of quotations, quotations can be very quickly generated from Template quotes, when used in conjunction with other aspects of FactoryMaster the quotation data can be used for first line Shop Floor Scheduling. Using the Sales Order book feature of FactoryMaster orders are entered against the relevant customer and their quoted order number with the option of specifying different delivery and invoice addresses if necessary. Multiple parts may be listed against the one customer order number and then any number of call-off quantities and dates can be entered for each Part. If customers frequently change their call-off requirements they can quickly and easily be updated. Using FactoryMaster each call-off is allocated to a works order which is then used for shop floor scheduling and production planning.
For any one part, one or more call-off quantity from one or more customer order can be planned into one or more Works Order – thereby allowing the flexibility, and economy, of manufacturing (for example) one Batch covering 3 months requirement made-up of 13 weekly call-offs. Rated as one of the most powerful tools in the FactoryMaster package, the MRP has the potential for saving an enormous amount of planning time and effort and avoiding the embarrassment of Raw Material or Components not being ordered in time or Internal Works Orders not being commenced allowing sufficient Production Lead Time. The benefits of FactoryMasters M.R.P. are especially helpful where you manufacture many Assemblies and Sub-Assemblies with a number of common Components or Sub-Assemblies and your Customers have a very volatile Call-Off Requirement on you. This combination creates an administrative nightmare without some form of automation, which is easily provided by FactoryMasters MRP software. Mr Burton, MD of a company who supply rolls-Royce is full of praise, “Before we chose FactoryMaster, our business was under great pressure, responding to the exacting demands of Rolls-Royce and regularly delivering late due to us struggling to keep on top of the larger assemblies.
When companies like ourselves are late on delivery, the knock-on effects can be serious and expensive. Thankfully, FM2000’s MRP facility with lead times tells us what we need and when we need to order it. Furthermore, the administration involved in processing a Rolls-Royce sales order schedule used to take us nearly two weeks. FactoryMaster has reduced this task to a matter of hours Figure 1 Microsoft Axapta Microsoft Axapta supports an entire small business. It includes comprehensive functionality that spans manufacturing, distribution, supply chain management, project management, financial management, customer relationship management, human resource management and business analysis.
Business processes can immediately be extended to the internet, with all functionality stored in one source, its easy to connect and collaborate with customers, partners, employees and the trading community. Whether a business is operating in one location, a multi-site or doing business across borders, Axapta can help it seize opportunity. The flexibility and ease of use mean a business can be run in a variety of ways and expand quickly. Axapta is advertised as having more functionality than any other mid-market solution, everything is installed right from the start, but on a pay-as-you-use basis. When you need more, its ready and waiting for you. Key elements of the Axapta package are: Financial management with dimensions Inter-company accounting and consolidation Complete audit trail. Sales force and marketing automation Telemarketing and questionnaires o Sales management Customer self-service websites Computer telephone integration o Document management. Organizational charts and employee registration Skills mapping and recruitment o Employee self-service websites Business process management. Designer for multidimensional data cubes Integration with Microsoft Analysis Services Analysis views through embedded Pivot Tables Balanced scorecard with key performance indicators. Supports local legal and accounting requirements Multiple languages Multiple currencies Local sales and support.
One integrated and web-enabled business logic Three-tier, scalable system architecture o Open source code with integrated development environment Conforms to all relevant technology standards and interfaces. MRPII-compliant supply and demand planning o Finite and infinite capacity and materials planning Job scheduling and sequencing Resource management Shop floor management o Work order management with job costing Product configuration o Graphical bill of material designer with version control. Multi-site warehouse management Inventory management with dimensions o Order handling with trade agreements Order promising o Item and lot number reservation and tracking. Demand forecasting Inter-company trade Procurement management o Partner self-service websites o Performance monitoring Electronic information exchange. Project types and hierarchies Project finance and invoicing Consultant self-service websites A good example of the use of Axapta is Anchor Corp.
A wholesaler of boating accessories. Anchor Corp. doesnt add to the products or alter them in any way. They installed Axapta in year 1, starting with the Finance and Trade modules. A few months later, they decide to add Logistics and CRM. No problem – their installation includes every module. When an employee enters a license code for Logistics and CRM and theyll appear immediately throughout the system and be populated with relevant data from other modules. No coding, no upgrading, no reinstallation required. As well as entire modules, using Axapta Anchor Corp. can also activate and deactivate specific features. If a company has no production line, it wont need the bill of materials feature. So a user can simply open the features menu and click it off. And immediately, the bill of materials becomes invisible throughout the system – on every screen, form and report, even in the help system. Should that company ever start some form of production – such as packing items in special boxes, it can reactivate bill of materials in the same way. Warehouse management is also benefited using Axapta, here a user can set up multiple warehouses, the number of aisles in each warehouse, picking locations and areas for primary storage. They can enter the number of shelves in each aisle, their height, depth and width and the number of outbound and inbound docks.
They can define the functions of forklifts and enter temporary blockages when shelves are damaged. Axapta then uses all this information to find the best place to store different items and the best time to pick them. One benefit of Axapta compared to the other three packages is its integration with other common Microsoft products. Install a new version of a Microsoft operating system and Axapta will automatically take on the new look and other improvements. Axapta can also provide excellent monitoring functions such as tracking the sales of your top 5 customers, or the downtime on a critical machine. Axapta is highly versatile to different business environments, for example, a single-site company based in Spain may know theres a market for their product in Sweden, so they send a small team to open an office. Using their normal logins, the team runs Axapta over the Internet. They enjoy the same screens and functionality as they would in Spain including customizations. But of course, theyre now in Sweden.
So in a click, you activate the local settings, including currency. The team can now do business the Swedish way, but continue to work in Spanish. To accommodate customers, they print documents such as quotations and invoices in Swedish. When it comes to financials, Axapta records Swedish transactions separately from Spanish ones. Whats more, theyre recorded in the currencies of both countries saving time on reporting. Open a second office in Sweden and its records will again be separate. Prodman 4 Prodman is a complete production management suite designed for the needs of small to medium sized manufacturing enterprises, or subcontractors with assembly operations. The software suite contains all you need to computerise and control all aspects of your business and puts that information at your fingertips. One advantage of Prodman 4 is that it can pay for itself in weeks.
With over 300 users in Europe, USA, and Asia the product is proven in a wide range of industries. The Prodman range of complete manufacturing solutions has resulted from continual feedback and response to customer needs. The current economic climate has led to customer demand for shorter and more accurate delivery lead times and accurate control of costs. The benefits obtained by users of Prodman include: o Increase in productivity o Reduction in inventory o Efficient monitoring of work in progress o Improvement in on-time delivery performance o Control of costs of materials, equipment, employees, and sub-contractors Prodman 4 consists of a production optimization module, a well test analysis module, a gas lift diagnostics module, and a material balance module. ProdMan potential production gains Table x Range Average Sustained Well Surveillance 3-7% 5% Production Optimization 2-6% 4% Automation (SCADA/DCS) 2-4% 3% Average production gains 12%(x) Prodman 4 is especial suitable for small and medium size manufacturing which area is energy, such as oil and gas. Figure x shows the high average the potential production gains, it means the aggressive potential increase of the product.
Comments from Prodman 4 users “… Prodman controls and monitors the whole company” Harry Singh, Avionic Components Limited “The system provides me with control over manufacturing and up to date management information” Adrian James, Haropa Products Limited The Marble Master Program The Marble Master is a Windows based program specifically designed for marble manufacturers to take orders and produce production orders, installation orders and invoices for a Cultured Marble Operation. In addition, the program will maintain a list of Customers, Products, Shipping Addresses, and product remakes. In the process of taking orders, the program will calculate prices and production weights on variable sized items as well as capturing dimensions for use in production. It is a program used to manage the sales, specifications and production of cultured marble (cast polymer) and solid surface sinks, tubs, shower pans, vanities and similar fixtures. The program collects order information, prices the products, produces a sales order, creates a shop work order (with a picture for custom sized items), provides printed instructions for installers, and produces an invoice for the customer.
Marble Masters Functions: i.Helps you schedule pours, by any combination of mould, colour, based on your needs ii.Helps you manage your production work flow, tracking work from estimate to completed install iii.Prints visual work orders based on visually entered dimensions. These visuals help you reduce data entry and production errors. iv.Manages and reports the production of remakes and damaged items v.Manages inventory of raw materials vi.Reports sales and sales tax Comparisons Prodman 4 is a widely used software help the manufactory industry deal with their supply management, includes raw materials, ware house and delivery. Its successful software which we can tell from the comments and figure x in table x, it will have good market. FactoryMaster 2000 is more detailed than Prodman 4 in that it contains many more modules, and therefore it would probably be more appropriate for a large and detailed company with an extensive BOM and production line.
