A company’s fastener requirements are particular to their types of business and need to be addressed to meet these needs.
For instance, a rail shed that maintains and services trains will have a distinct requirement, compared with an electronics firm producing set-top boxes and, in turn, these companies will have differing demands to an automotive manufacturer. All these diverse types of business share a common need, requiring fasteners and category ‘C’ parts essential for their productivity. Maintaining a consistent supply can be a problem, along with the associated costs, including logistics and storage, to consider.
“Adopting a Kanban – put simply, a delivery method for the parts needed on the shop floor – ensures delivery of parts occurs effectively,” says Staytite. “Typically, this would involve bins or containers on a shelf. There’s nothing special about that, but what if the levels of stock managed themselves, without any need to order?
“Once a Kanban has been installed, this is exactly what you would expect, with the normal operation of part replenishment converted to an automatic process, alleviating the need to check stock levels, order or take delivery of parts. The entire operation is usage-driven by the shop floor. Once consumed, you would only receive the parts you need, replenished to a predetermined quantity. This eliminates waste and can save space, time and money, along with a host of other ‘hidden’ administration costs.”
THE CHOICE
Supplier reduction is effective when a Kanban isn’t limited to fasteners. Companies that manufacture and sell products have to cooperate with hundreds and, in some cases, thousands of suppliers and distributors. As an example, if the company you work for is in the automotive industry, you might source and purchase bolts from one supplier, but source cables from another.
“But why use numerous different suppliers when one would suffice?” Staytite argues. “Benefits include, but are not limited to, dedicated account management, single audit trail, consolidated invoices and cost reduction.”
Engineered solutions can offer significant savings on the application of parts. “Picture the following scenario: your company may be a manufacturer of televisions that are sold in high volumes around the world, which can incorporate many screws, nuts and washers etc. Have questions ever been asked; do we need all these parts? Is there a simplified way to put our unit together? How can we speed up production, utilising a different fastener? Are the parts being used optimised to the task or application you are undertaking? Whilst the fastener you are using may be sufficient, it may be the case that a technical team is able to suggest more cost-effective alternatives; also looking at the total assemble costs, including part rationalisation, part reduction and changes in plating finishes.”
Staytite concludes that, to provide a ‘full service’, “you need to deliver a combination of services tackling cost and efficiencies from many different angles” – not only to supply the ‘nuts & bolts’ or the bespoke ‘gizmo’, but also to fully support the company receiving those parts.
