Job shops are one of the few branches of manufacturing that is likely to keep its production domestic. But that doesn’t mean that job shops don’t have to compete with the rock-bottom labor and prices of foreign competition. As overseas competition continues to put the squeeze on the manufacturing industry, job shops have turned to technology to help stay competitive in a global economy.
A savvy use of technology and a skills advantage are two things that will keep job shops profitable even as the trend of outsourcing continues. At Software Advice, I recently dug into the job shop industry to find out which technologies enhance the skills advantage of job shops the most. I came up with five technologies that I see at the forefront of driving competition: 3D computer-aided design (CAD), laser cutting tools, shop floor software, iPad workforce integration, and outsourced marketing firms.
Here’s a bit of elaboration on three of these:
1. CAD Modeling Programs
The design process can be a sticking point in production. Historically, most shops have relied on outside engineering firms to take care of design and prototyping. Today, however, we’re starting to see the convergence of design and production. Computer-aided design (CAD) has made it possible for these two aspects of manufacturing to exist under a single roof. CAD software automates a significant amount of the design process by preloading templates and snapping contours lines with the click of the mouse. Since the design can be fed into an automated computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) device, CAD also improves the efficiency of production. Once the product is designed, a significant portion of production can be handled by machine with the finishing touches put on by hand. This limits the painstaking process of machine retooling and tool path programming.
2. iPad Software Integration
The iPad is arguably the hottest piece of consumer tech around. In the manufacturing industry, that’s not quite true. However, job shops are starting to come around and adapt the iPad to improve their business processes. The iPad can be a great productivity boon on the shop floor. Consider this: a worker at their station can pull up work orders directly from their table to view instructions on how to complete a project from their iPad. Once the job is done, the labor hours can be logged immediately into the shop’s tracking system, and the next job can be pulled up on the tablet. This creates real-time worker knowledge and timely information for managers.
3. Shop Floor Software
Of course, having the machines do much of the work for you is rather meaningless if your machines aren’t running at an optimal level. If it can’t be measured, it can’t be improved. Shop floor software, such as Exact JobBOSS or Epicor Express, can help improve efficiency in many ways but one of the recent innovations is the ability to track machine efficiency levels. Previously, most machine data was either not recorded at all, or poorly recorded by hand. This effectively created a black hole of machine data. Today, machine monitoring software can track overall equipment effectiveness in real time. This will monitor metrics such as the number of parts the machine produces in an hour, machine availability time, and production control. Having this information at the disposal of the job shop allows for constant minor tweaks to be made to the machines, which can result in major productivity increases.
To see the other technologies that I review in my article, visit the Software Advice blog at: 5 Technologies Driving Job Shop Competitiveness.
