Contract Manufacturing
These are common questions often raised and challenged by the stakeholders of CEMs across the globe, the answer lies in relationships and understanding the market and customers you are already trading with. It is easier to sell to what you know than to enter into the unknown where the risk is greater. Flexibility in an evolving world is the corner stone of a successful CEM business today and in the future, allowing the provision of high mix low volume. Finding the right balance with the order book is one of short, medium and long term strategies with the key drivers being service and sectors. Technological innovation will continue to affect all areas of industry, and unless
CEMs can respond with updated processes backed by trained, skilled staff, that respond with flexibility and agility they will be left behind. Successful CEMs should focus on maintaining a workforce that is highly skilled, and a dedication to employing and nurturing the next generation of engineers. Being flexible, adapatable and understanding the scope of customers projects combined with key workers, will provide the foundations of a successful CEM business.
eXception |
www.exception.com
Mark Davies is Operations Director, eXception Group
eXception worked with Apollo Fire Detectors to gain maximum efficiencies with the introduction of an upgraded and streamlined supply chain process
Xception Group worked together with the world’s largest manufacturer of fire detection solutions, Apollo, on a sophisticated supply chain solution that has helped to increase service levels and reduce costs for the company. In partnership, the companies devised a lean supply chain process that has significantly improved the delivery and supply of the 4.8m circuit boards eXception supplies each year to Apollo. Working
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collaboratively, significant changes to working practices were made and a new methodology that reduced stock levels devised, increasing visibility and which saw on time deliveries rise from 96.7 per cent to 99.8% in less than a year. Recently embarking on a change management programme, Apollo implemented
an efficiency drive that would allow it to have a leaner, more cost effective supply chain. Relying heavily on a roster of 150 preferred suppliers, of which eXception Group is within the top 3, it needed to bring each supplier into line as quickly as possible. Tim Coletta, Supply Chain Manager at Apollo commented, “eXception is a critical
supplier, they supply us with a component which is fundamental to our products. With all our products manufactured in the UK for delivery to subsidiaries all over the globe, this predicates the need for good suppliers.” He continued, “Within the organisation they are now known as a ‘whisper account’ which means our buying personnel spend the maximum of 15 minutes each week over the phone. It’s seamless, we have deliveries twice a week, hold far less stock, are able to quickly and seamlessly respond to spikes in demand. As such, our risk exposure has reduced significantly. We now have in place World class policies and procedures that we will continue to replicate with other preferred suppliers.” Commenting Steven Healings, Supply Chain Director at eXception Group said, “In any business relationship it is essential that suppliers listen to their customers and understand their key business drivers, and fundamentally be prepared to adapt their own process to meet new challenges.”
Adoption of the new policies and methodologies has reduced the administration time spent by both Apollo and eXception in purchase order placement, acknowledgement, reschedule and cancellations. This in turn has freed eXception to manage Apollo’s supply chain far more efficiently, including ordering in large batches, fewer purchase orders placed, a significant reduction in changes to purchase orders and the use of low cost logistics solutions. As a result, a large amount of the “fire fighting” approach to program or product changes has now been taken out of the supply chain processes.
eXception has also been able to meet Apollo’s cost reduction challenges, while improving stock availability and flexibility.
www.cieonline.co.uk Components in Electronics October 2012 17
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