5 Benefits of an Intuitive Interface – Shop Floor Management Software – JobPack

When complex information is easy to understand, the shop runs smoother.

On-time delivery rate is a point of pride for manufacturers, but sticking the landing is largely the responsibility of the scheduler. When the owner accepts a new job, they base their calculations on information provided to them by their scheduler. And if the scheduler is handed a work order they didn’t expect, it’s their job to find a way to fit it in while keeping everything else on track—or report back on possible delays so that the owners can weigh the tradeoffs.

Unfortunately, many schedulers are lacking the planning tools they need to run their shop floor effectively. Whether they’re using spreadsheets, a white board with magnets, or an ERP with a lightweight scheduling tool, their systems often resemble a jumble of information with little hierarchy and too many details that must be updated manually.

As a Manufacturing Execution System (MES), JobPack is designed to bring order to the chaos. Here’s how.

1. Account for every variable.

With dozens of projects to manage, each with their own nuances and specifications, shop schedulers have a lot to remember at once. A poor user interface can contribute to their mental load by burying information or adding unnecessary steps to the process.

JobPack’s user interface uses color coded time blocks to make it easy to see where projects are scheduled to run and which operator is on the task.

Example: Customer A is requesting to move in production of their part by one month. Customer B has a part run using the same stamping presses, but their due date is two weeks after Customer A. However, Customer B needs a special finishing process that will require you to ship their parts out to a local supplier with a turnaround time of ten days. Will you be able to accept the new deadline without scheduling overtime hours? If you do need to run overtime, will you have operators available to work the extra hours?

With JobPack: Move projects in or out by dragging and dropping. The software will track conditions, such as supplier days of operation or pickup and delivery schedules. Use “What if?” scenario planning to inform your customer communication.

2. Anticipate your inventory needs.

Too often, the vision of a manufacturing plant’s operations that exists in spreadsheets doesn’t align with the real working conditions on the shop floor. The ERP is tracking sales and purchases, payroll and benefits, inventory and supply chain—all the way to the bottom line. But without accurate reporting from your MES, those numbers can mislead you.

JobPack’s overview makes it easy to see which machines are scheduled to run what projects over the course of the days and weeks ahead.

Example: You recently lost some of your inventory of cold rolled steel to rust, and to prevent future waste you’re lowering the supply of materials you store on site. Now one of your customers is pushing their part order back by three months, but you already ordered a large volume of material to handle that project. Will you be able to use the materials you ordered before it rusts, and how will that affect the timeline of your next order?

With JobPack: Integrate with your ERP and MRP to build a clearer picture of your inventory needs. Alert purchasing when your schedule changes and new supplies need to be ordered in or put on hold.

3. Eliminate production blind spots.

When an order starts to fall behind, it can have a domino effect on your entire production line. The longer a delay goes unnoticed, the harder it is to compensate. For many manufacturers, the culprit lies in a lack of insight into the real-time operations of their shop floor.

Example: The parts on one of your machines are falling out of tolerance, and the machine is operating slower than usual. You have repairs scheduled in two days, but in the meantime, you want to understand how the downtime will affect your schedule. How long was the machine running behind, and how long will it take to catch up? Do any other machines have free spots in their schedule to take on an extra project?

The Live Status view shows which machines are running in real time.

With JobPack: Machine monitoring offers real-time insight into which machines are online and how long they are running. Spot production problems early and address them before they impact more of your operations.

4. Understand your capacity.

No one wants to pass on work, but at the same time, no one wants to damage a customer relationship by making promises they can’t fulfill. Overtime is always a backup option, but it can also eat into profit margins—and that’s assuming there are enough operators available to do the job.

JobPack’s capacity window provides a projection of future workloads.

Example: A customer has a new, large order with a hard deadline, but they’re willing to pay a premium to expedite the job. You know that you’ll have another large order coming through in a couple months, and that both your current workload and the new order must be complete by then to ensure you make your deadlines. Do you have the capacity to take on the extra work?

With JobPack: Capacity planning tools make it possible to forecast workloads months into the future. Test different schedules to see how re-ordering projects can eliminate inefficient downtime. Use capacity to inform decisions about hiring new operators or acquiring new machinery.

5. Align your expectations with reality.

False assumptions, wishful thinking, and poor data can quickly upend the best laid plans. However, many production delays share a common cause, and learning to identify trigger points can help you implement process improvements.

Compare you planned vs actual production time to improve future estimates.

Example: You tried to slot a small project between two larger projects, but something went off and now you’re half a shift behind. Talking to your operators, you realized you forgot to pad in the time it takes to change out dies between presses, and the necessary die maintenance that is needed between part runs.

Improve your resource planning with analytics that show where your time is actually spent.

With JobPack: Data analytics help you see how well you planned your schedule. Spot trends and learn to adjust accordingly. Add padding to the schedule where delays are frequent, and have a history of production success to back you when a new customer asks about your processes.

The clarity JobPack brings to your shop floor can be measured from your on-time delivery rate to your bottom line.

One thing that can’t be measured, however, is the peace of mind that comes from knowing you can trust your schedule to offer a reliable glimpse into the future. JobPack delivers that reliability by accounting for the nitty gritty details that are hard to remember so that you can keep your attention on the big picture. If you’d like to see our software in action, contact us today. We’d be happy to take you through a free demo of our capabilities.