Greetings!
Back in 2003, Forrester Research predicted that by
2008, most large manufacturers will deploy Internet-
enabled flexible manufacturing.
While adoption lags behind this prediction, the
processes and technologies discussed in this article
seem to finally be ready for primetime.
I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and I look
forward to working with you towards a prosperous
2008.
The need for flexible and responsive manufacturing
processes is certainly felt throughout our industry.
Many of the upholstery manufacturers we work with
are making concerted efforts to implement critical
operational initiatives mentioned in the article:
- redirecting orders to meet customer expected
service levels;
- reallocating capacity to optimize business
objectives; and
- eliminating inventory buffers by building to actual
demand.
So why aren't we there yet? The key, according to
Forrester, is connecting shop-floor data to operational
systems. What Forrester failed to identify and what
manufacturers have been missing, in my opinion, are
tools that help production managers transform
shop-floor data into operational decisions.
Without such tools, there is just too much information
for managers to react to. Management by exception
works when the exceptions are kept to minimum. The
twisted reality of today's manufacturing is that
exceptions are the norm.
The reaction we get when we present the concept of
Total Production Optimization tells me that upholstery
manufacturers recognize the need for flexible
manufacturing. Plataine's vision is to help them make
it a reality. The "aha!" in their reaction tells me that we
might finally be getting there.
I am extremely interested in your input. Please let me
know what you think.
Elery Pfeffer
President
Plataine
