Managing Director

It especially lack a transparent control and a harmonious balance of production logistics and IT (Serrig, March 11, 2008) – three of five manufacturing companies have exhausted less than 85 per cent of the performance potential according to a study of FELTEN GmbH in their production processes. In almost every third company, the efficiency rate is including even significantly. The Managing Director of the Software House, Werner Felten, sketched out his consulting experience the typical causes in practice: instead of meaningful metrics is mostly just a perceived transparency. Production processes typically exhibit a high degree of complexity with a variety of performance factors, which in addition also still interfering. Without so-called key performance indicators (KPI) developments can be neither solid assessed, nor can meet then optimal decisions. However many manufacturing companies to ignore this logic, by it in the production management by relying on partial impressions and perceived largely reviews instead of using the now mature methods of the machine and operating data acquisition.

As a consequence remain weaknesses either uncorrected or prove optimisation measures only limited effect, because they are relatively nebulous due to lack of accurate knowledge of structural problems. Errors in production logistics can be seen in the rearview mirror: the today’s competitive conditions require a production logistics, which must aim at a high utilization of all resources, short cycle times and low stocks and a best possible deadlines. This requires a mission-oriented planning and control, which depicts the respective production process in its machine States, Auftragsstati, etc. in real time, but immediately discloses any potential errors. The reality is however still another in many manufacturing companies, because due to lack of appropriate manufacturing execution systems (MES) the control-relevant information available until several days later. Given the delayed perception are lacking necessarily possibilities to intervene promptly heading in the processes. ERP and PPS systems usually fail the today’s requirements of flexibility: especially when a high planning complexity with a large number of products and production levels and at the same time short-term management decisions must be made, the flexibility is at a very critical moment.