Reasons to Invest in Automation and Software

Q: I own a small finishing shop looking for ways to grow. We have a traditional approach, but it’s becoming apparent we need to update our processes. What advice do you have for assessing software and automation solutions?

Companies in all areas of manufacturing are investing more in automation. Specifically, automating the processes and tasks that machines can do quicker and better than humans and integrating them with a company’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and other technology. If your business hasn’t yet jumped on the automation bandwagon, it’s time to consider how investing in software and automation can help improve your business now and set the stage for its future.

Labor challenges

Whether reducing labor costs or addressing workforce issues, automation may provide a solution. Automation is already being used in place of human labor in areas such as picking and moving parts, assembly, inspection and more. Other examples where automation can be used include:

• BOM compare – Reduces expensive engineering time by eliminating the manual comparing of CAD/CAM BOMs (bill of materials) against existing BOMs in your ERP system.

• RFID – Improves the speed and reliability of employee software logins and inventory tracking.

• Automated purchasing – Reduces headcount in the purchasing department while lowering overall purchasing costs.

• Human resources and payroll integrations – Dramatically reduces HR personnel costs by managing employees and benefits in one system.

Eliminating waste

In manufacturing, human error can often lead to wasted time
and resources. Automation can improve both speed and accuracy. 

• Accurate inventory — Automating inventory processes such as picking parts and materials and lot tracking can turn accurate inventory from an unfulfilled wish into reality. Automated equipment can also reduce lost or misplaced materials and minimize expiration or spoilage of inventory.
• Reduce scrap and rework — Even highly skilled operators can’t match the repeatable accuracy automation produces on routine or less complex processes. Some automated machines can also perform multiple operations, eliminating the time required to move materials from one work center to another.
• Eliminate paper — Paper documents slow down the production process by getting lost, misfiled or sent to the wrong person. With automated document management, you can stop shuffling papers and start focusing your human capital on making decisions and creating value. When you digitally send the right data to the right people at the right time, shop floor personnel no longer waste time hunting down routers, drawings, BOMs, POs, or inventory lists.

Improved turnaround times

Automation lets you process orders faster, reduce setup and production times, and get your product out the door quicker. These are just some of the automations that can help improve your production process:

• CAD interface — Enables the building of huge BOMs in a few hours rather than days or even weeks.

• Nesting interface — Reduces setup times and material waste by automatically arranging part shapes on bulk pieces of stock material.

• EDI — Cuts administrative time and costs for you and your customers with single-entry data transactions.

• E-commerce integration — Saves time for your customers by allowing them to order and pay directly from your website while automatically sending all job data to your ERP system.

Improved quality and safety

These days, you either produce quality products or you don’t survive. Yet, the cost of achieving the required quality can make it hard to offer competitive prices. Automating quality procedures can help improve quality and reduce its cost at the same time by:

• Simplifying management of rework, rejects and scrap

• Reducing the amount of time to produce and implement engineering change notices

• Controlling every aspect of part revisions and inactivations through your ERP system

• Simplifying the process of qualifying for and maintaining ISO and other certifications

In addition, automating production processes can help improve employee safety in three important ways:

• Removing workers from dangerous work procedures

• Enabling faster response to emergencies with real-time monitoring

• Using safety planning software to simplify safety protocol updates and emergency response plans

Future proof your business

Automation improves the ability to forecast trends, see how customer needs will change, and prepare for those changes from a technology and strategy standpoint so you can get there ahead of the competition.

Automating the data gathering process with Dashboards provides immediate access to accurate, real-time data while reporting or displaying it in any format you choose. This allows you to:

• Identify trends with customers, products and your industry segment

• Analyze your business health by drilling down to any level of detail

• Forecast future customer needs and products/ solutions to meet them

• Make faster, better decisions

Getting automation right

Implementing automation is not a quick fix. It’s a continual process where your business evolves with the technology. Automation also requires a large investment in software and machinery. To ensure your capital is spent wisely:

• Align your automation strategy with your business and operations strategy. Never implement an automation just for the sake of doing it. Every automation should have a specific purpose and desired outcome that aligns with your long-term business goals.

• Define the problem and the expected benefits. Before investing in automation, get clear on the problem you need to solve and how the software or equipment provides the best solution. Know what improvements the automation will offer and how it will benefit your business and your customers.

• Measure the ROI. It can be easy to overspend on automation software and machinery. To justify the investments, automation should be able to meet current needs while offering the flexibility to adapt to foreseeable future needs.