You can say one thing about the manufacturing industry: There’s never a dull moment. No one knows this better than small and mid-sized manufacturers (SMMs).
Operating under tight margins, tighter deadlines, and increasing competition aren’t the only challenges. There are also industry disruptions that continually pop up: supply chain issues, inflation, changing customer demands—you name it! On top of it all, there’s the constant push to increase manufacturing throughput and revenues.
SMMs need every advantage, especially when it comes to production planning, production floor tracking, and quality assurance. SMMs are increasingly embarking on a digital transformation as they search for better solutions—all with the end goal of fueling business growth.
A manufacturing execution system (MES) is key to making this a reality. And it’s not reserved for large-scale manufacturers anymore. SMMs can’t afford to wait for months on end for a consultant to create a perfect model. They need to start solving challenges from day one. That requires a digital roadmap that works for an SMM’s dynamic environment and can evolve with the business.
Used by operations managers, production managers, schedulers, packaging specialists, fulfillment operators, quality assurance teams, and shop floor fabricators, Prodsmart is a cloud-connected MES and light enterprise resource planning (ERP) system that capitalizes on the use of web browsers and mobile devices for operation. It minimizes the overhead needed to get SMMs up and running sooner—all with the flexibility to start managing production data right away and enable future business growth.
Prodsmart is Autodesk’s shop floor management solution that provides SMMs and fabricators the ability to manage all aspects of production, giving insights into the production flow to identify where waste occurs, predict maintenance, and get a holistic view of employee performance.
There are several ways SMMs are finding success on their digital journey through the use of smart solutions designed for their unique needs.
SMMs constantly face important decisions on a daily—or even moment-by-moment—basis. But the challenge is having all the data available to make nimble and crucial manufacturing decisions that move the needle for business growth.
Increased manufacturing throughput can be achieved by leveraging Prodsmart to track production schedules, monitor shop floor activities, and streamline and optimize every part of the manufacturing process.
For the manufacturing engineer, production planning and optimizing the shop floor help boost return on investment, while minimizing machine and operator downtime. Prodsmart centralizes the optimization of people and processes, while enabling the development of maintenance strategies.
A production manager’s focus on tracking and traceability can also be enhanced. Take inventory and supply chain management, for example. Real-time inventory management features let you reduce out-of-stock items, increase sales, and source intermediate products with a click of a mouse or swipe of a finger.
Using data provides a new level of actionable insights across all production planning and tracking, from scheduling to monitoring shop floor activities, maintenance scheduling, production tracking dashboards, and more.
A strong system and processes for quality assurance are crucial for SMMs to prevent production errors and reduce defects or downtime. Providing the quality assurance manager with a digital approach increases accuracy to ensure products meet requirements and standards—all while reducing previously time-consuming tasks.
Now, a quality assurance manager can enjoy a paper-free existence. Prodsmart helps ensure quality assurance processes are up to par. Audit-compliant reports can be created directly from real-time data on the shop floor. This means there is no more wasted time searching for documents, tracking down information, or worrying about compliance.
Everyone wants their business to thrive, whether it’s taking on more projects, producing products in less time, or helping to empower employees with new opportunities to use their skills. It also takes a lot of flexibility to make this happen. Prodsmart helps SMMs respond to customer and market demands and grow their business across the entire spectrum.
SMMs can now digitalize their processes without the disruption and cost usually associated with MES offerings in the past. Prodsmart brings the power that was once only reserved for large-scale manufacturers.
Through workflow visualization, SMMs can identify bottlenecks, set priorities, avoid overload, and continuously improve the production system.
Taking the first step in digitalization opens new doors to adapting, thriving, and growing a manufacturing business—no matter the size or scope.
Connect With Us
