Supporting Complex Supply Chains

Automotive supplier Metaldyne Corp., a $2.1 billion maker of thin-wall precision die castings, among other things, has nearly 80 manufacturing operations in more than 11 countries. The company also deals with numerous contractors and subcontractors.

To help support its complex supply chain, Metaldyne is turning to new software from enterprise resource planning vendor QAD Inc. that will keep track of supply and demand at its customers' and suppliers' facilities using little more than a simple Web browser and scanning technology. In July, Metaldyne will begin testing a module in QAD's hosted Supply Visualization software called Kanban Visualization (kanban is a Japanese word describing cards used to control work in progress, production, and inventory flows). Metaldyne will use the software, unveiled last week, with one of the automakers it supplies. The software will show Metaldyne in real time when supplies need to be shipped to ensure that the customer's plant never runs out.

When a customer receives supplies, a bar code is scanned, and the data from the scanner is uploaded into the Web-based QAD program on the customer's PC, where it's electronically sent to Metaldyne. The same process occurs when the customer uses the supply. At Metaldyne, the software tracks all the information coming from the customer and sends alerts to appropriate parties if supplies drop below a preset level.

Metaldyne typically plans its supply schedule based on material requirements planning from the tier-one supplier who sits between it and the automaker. But Ed Witkow, director of supply chain for Metaldyne, says errors and inexact planning can sometimes throw off the supplier schedule. "If I can see when [a customer] consumes something and make sure that we keep supply at certain levels based on that information, then it doesn't matter if an engineer put a bill of materials in wrong,'' Witkow says.

Metaldyne already has had success with QAD's Supply Visualization software, which tracks supply schedules via EDI. At its plant in Hamburg, Mich., for example, Supply Visualization helped Metaldyne reduce its raw materials stock on hand and open up 6,000 square feet of space. "We were able to put in another production line and put out more product, which in turn generates more revenue," Witkow says.

Pricing for the software depends upon configuration and how many parts or materials are put through the system.