With the cost of raw materials apparently not going down any time soon, scrap reduction has never been more important for manufacturers. To ensure the maximum use of materials, precision laser-cutting and water-jet machines have been developed. Computerized metal stamping can bring out parts and pieces to the very edge of the stock. In manufacturing, materials management has been made better because both machining technology and management through cost accounting have been improved.

In short, accountability is in place on the shop floor and in the front office, and this means that tracking scrap is part of the production process. Of course, the relationship between shop floor and front office has always been one made through data, and it is through data that the root causes of scrap and the methods for its reduction are found.

In short, scrap rate (or yield quality) is a function of production standards and the cost of quality itself: process settings, raw material lots, maintenance activity, operator focus, and so forth. Better working processes and more cost effectiveness in materials management, especially in the creation of scrap, can enhance a manufacturer’s competitive edge. And, competitiveness today is measured in terms of (more…)

Remaining in play is the name of the game in manufacturing competition today. That is to say, to find the orders that keep things going, and going well, you have to be on the field with your competitors in the first place. That’s where the action is found, that’s where potential customers come to look for services, parts, and products. Through consolidation, however, the competition is changing. The days of parity, where niches were carved to pinpoint exactly what you and your competitors were all about, are becoming fewer and fewer. To remain in play in manufacturing today, a company must often introduce flexibility into their shop floor operations. Once a novel notion, flexible manufacturing is increasingly taking hold as both a practice in the shop and a philosophical approach for management.

Manufacturers no longer work in isolation from each other; rather, they usually exist as part and parcel of a large supply chain whereby the degree of success of one partner is driven by the reciprocal success of the others. Throughout the supply chain, the potential for downstream producers being flexible in their production activities means that unless you are equally dynamic you could easily lose the work as the upstream partner. This concept is more fully considered as customizability whereby operations must be (more…)