A leading metal coatings company based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, specializes in providing high-quality, powder-coated products across a diverse range of metal types, including die-cast aluminum, steel, galvanized steel, and stainless steel in various sizes. Operating round the clock with two shifts, this company is committed to offering top-tier quality, exceptional service, and swift deliveries for its customers.
The Challenge:
Before adopting Steelhead's metal finishing manufacturing ERP solution, this company operated with a paper-based system. This outdated approach created several operational challenges, hindering their ability to meet customer demands efficiently and accurately. They faced issues with order processing, document management, and scheduling.
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Inefficiencies in Order Processing: They relied on manual processes, which included searching through Word documents, extracting information from previous orders, and creating purchase orders (POs) by hand. This labor-intensive method was prone to errors and time-consuming.
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Lack of Order Visibility: The absence of a centralized system for order management meant that the team had limited visibility into the status of ongoing orders. This lack of transparency made it difficult to track progress and prioritize tasks.
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Scheduling Challenges: They managed an extensive workload with a substantial number of work orders daily. Without an effective scheduling system, it was challenging to allocate resources efficiently, leading to missed deadlines and delays in order fulfillment.
The Solution:
The company found the solution to these challenges in Steelhead's job shop software. The software's robust features, including smelt functionality and scheduling capabilities, provided the company with the tools needed to streamline operations and enhance customer service.
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Smelt Functionality: Steelhead's ERP allowed them to digitize their Word documents, consolidating critical information related to racking, packing instructions, and more with its data integration module called Smelt. This digital transformation service improved data accuracy and made information readily accessible in no time.
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Enhanced Order Visibility: With the adoption of Steelhead, they gained a significant boost in order visibility. They could now track the status of each order in real time, making it easier to manage workloads efficiently and prioritize tasks.
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Efficient Scheduling: Steelhead's scheduling feature empowered them to optimize their production schedule. With a clear view of the day's workload, they could allocate resources more effectively, ensuring orders were completed ahead of schedule, and meeting their aggressive lead times.
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Customized Customer Invoicing: The company needed to provide bundled invoices to their large customers with multiple orders so they don’t receive an automated email for each individual invoice (resulting in many notifications per day). Steelhead custom-designed this functionality to meet this requirement, enabling them to send consolidated invoices in a streamlined and customer-friendly manner that doesn’t fill up an inbox.
The Results:
The company experienced significant improvements in its operations after implementing Steelhead's manufacturing ERP:
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Time Savings: The Operations Manager noted that he now had more free time than he had in the last year and a half, thanks to Steelhead. The software eliminated many time-consuming manual tasks.
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Operational Efficiency: The Operations Manager also stated that 80-90% of his job became easier due to Steelhead. The ERP streamlined their processes, reduced errors, and enhanced overall efficiency.
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On-Time Deliveries: With improved scheduling and order visibility, they could consistently meet aggressive lead times, ensuring on-time deliveries and enhanced customer satisfaction.
By partnering with Steelhead and implementing their manufacturing ERP, this metal finishing company successfully transitioned from a paper-based, error-prone system to an efficient, digitally-driven operation. The company now enjoys streamlined processes, increased productivity, and the ability to meet customer demands with ease, ultimately contributing to its continued success in the highly competitive metal coatings industry.