Jobshop Software Provides Tight Production Control
Screw press manufacturer De Smet Rosedowns is using the Jobshop advanced production planning and control system from Planit Software to improve the efficiency of its business. Using Crystal reporting in conjunction with Jobshop means managers can get fully customised documents for print, email or pdfs - which they say is vital to the efficient running of their business. Hull-based De Smet Rosedowns began life as a foundry and over the years has also manufactured cannons, equipped whaling ships and handled civil engineering work.
The company now manufactures screw presses (also known as expellers), which press and expel oil out of oil-bearing seeds such as rape seed and sunflower seed. Their small mini presses can process up to 500 kilos of seed a day, while the larger machines used by all of the major oil seed processing groups around the world, can handle 800 tonnes of seed daily. The presses are also used in the animal rendering industry for the extraction of fats and meals from animal carcasses. The company has doubled its turnover since 2005 and continues to invest in new machinery.
Jobshop has played a pivotal role in helping the business develop, as it enables managers to make decisions based on accurate, up-to-the-minute information and control costs. 'It's our database,' said IT manager Keith Hirst, who brought Jobshop into Rosedowns in 2001. 'We run the entire business on it. 'It integrates everything from quotations, sales ordering, purchasing and manufacturing, through to storage, picking and despatch and creating internal invoices for us to prepare for our export customers. 'It gives us traceability of the entire process from the initial enquiry to the final dispatch and invoice, as well as giving us visibility of the costs,' he added.
Features of Jobshop utilised by the company include: advanced production planning control system, quotations, sales order processing, materials requirement planning, purchase orders, work orders and scheduling. It also uses the 'shop floor data capture' for booking time and quantities. 'One of the real benefits of Jobshop is that it is completely flexible and we can configure its many functions and features to suit our methods of working,' said Hirst. 'Jobshop's consultants have also provided us with some bespoke features,' he added.
With its previous system, the business could only run MRP over a weekend because it took so long. 'That meant we had to wait until after the weekend to know what materials to order and it was putting our lead times back a week,' said Hirst. 'An important part of our business is the supply of spare parts for which delivery and lead times are vital. 'With Jobshop we can run MRP in five minutes, and often run it two or three times a day if necessary, to see what demand is coming through. 'We can now see instantly what we need.
'We know where everything is in manufacturing and where we are in every department at a particular time. 'Jobshop has really helped us tighten up on production,' he added. De Smet Rosedowns also makes full use of the Crystal reporting function. 'Alongside Jobshop's extensive standard enquiry and reporting functionality it allows us to get to the exact data we need and produce customised reports from which we can make informed management decisions,' said Hirst.
Powerful document customisation allows key system documents to be defined for printing, emailing or PDF creation, either via the standard internal print format or a fully customisable document based on a Crystal Report template. Crystal adds possibilities to the external documents feature, allowing De Smet Rosedowns to define the specific Jobshop data it requires, then format the document layout in any style. It is even possible to customise documents so they are different for individual managers, customers, suppliers or applications.
The company now manufactures screw presses (also known as expellers), which press and expel oil out of oil-bearing seeds such as rape seed and sunflower seed. Their small mini presses can process up to 500 kilos of seed a day, while the larger machines used by all of the major oil seed processing groups around the world, can handle 800 tonnes of seed daily. The presses are also used in the animal rendering industry for the extraction of fats and meals from animal carcasses. The company has doubled its turnover since 2005 and continues to invest in new machinery.
Jobshop has played a pivotal role in helping the business develop, as it enables managers to make decisions based on accurate, up-to-the-minute information and control costs. 'It's our database,' said IT manager Keith Hirst, who brought Jobshop into Rosedowns in 2001. 'We run the entire business on it. 'It integrates everything from quotations, sales ordering, purchasing and manufacturing, through to storage, picking and despatch and creating internal invoices for us to prepare for our export customers. 'It gives us traceability of the entire process from the initial enquiry to the final dispatch and invoice, as well as giving us visibility of the costs,' he added.
Features of Jobshop utilised by the company include: advanced production planning control system, quotations, sales order processing, materials requirement planning, purchase orders, work orders and scheduling. It also uses the 'shop floor data capture' for booking time and quantities. 'One of the real benefits of Jobshop is that it is completely flexible and we can configure its many functions and features to suit our methods of working,' said Hirst. 'Jobshop's consultants have also provided us with some bespoke features,' he added.
With its previous system, the business could only run MRP over a weekend because it took so long. 'That meant we had to wait until after the weekend to know what materials to order and it was putting our lead times back a week,' said Hirst. 'An important part of our business is the supply of spare parts for which delivery and lead times are vital. 'With Jobshop we can run MRP in five minutes, and often run it two or three times a day if necessary, to see what demand is coming through. 'We can now see instantly what we need.
'We know where everything is in manufacturing and where we are in every department at a particular time. 'Jobshop has really helped us tighten up on production,' he added. De Smet Rosedowns also makes full use of the Crystal reporting function. 'Alongside Jobshop's extensive standard enquiry and reporting functionality it allows us to get to the exact data we need and produce customised reports from which we can make informed management decisions,' said Hirst.
Powerful document customisation allows key system documents to be defined for printing, emailing or PDF creation, either via the standard internal print format or a fully customisable document based on a Crystal Report template. Crystal adds possibilities to the external documents feature, allowing De Smet Rosedowns to define the specific Jobshop data it requires, then format the document layout in any style. It is even possible to customise documents so they are different for individual managers, customers, suppliers or applications.
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