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Client Profile
AUTECS (Automotive
Electronic Control Systems) is a joint venture operation between Unisia JEC (of Japan) and
The Robert Bosch Company (of Germany). The
company produces engine management components for the Automotive Original Equipment
manufacturers in the North American market.
The company resides in a eighty-one
thousand square foot facility located in Anderson, SC., and employs approximately three
hundred people, using state-of-the art high-volume equipment to assemble their products. Current product demand has the plant
running three shifts, six days a week. This medium-sized, growth-oriented company was
conceived in 1988 and shipped its first units in 1989.
AUTECS is QS9000 certified. They
intend to remain lean, competitive, and a technical leader, both on the shop floor and in
the office environment.
AUTECS
produces a variety of electronic Engine Control Unit and Transmission Control Unit as well
as a line of Air Flow sensing and control units for such demanding customers as Nissan,
Saturn, and Subaru-Isuzu.
In many cases, AUTECS is the sole supplier to the OEM. Therefore, on-time delivery and zero defect
quality is paramount.
Project Background
AUTECS
employed a nationally known Accounting/Consulting firm to perform a study and provide
recommendations on how they might achieve these goals.
The result of the study was a 46-page report of suggested improvements. A significant portion of those findings centered
on the fact that AUTECS had a very capable ERP
system (PRMS 8.4), but that the software was
under-utilized.
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With these findings in mind, AUTECS began a search for an experienced PRMS consulting firm to help them better utilize
the software. After interviewing several
firms, AUTECS ultimately selected Systems Conversion Ltd., of Cartersville, Georgia.
This respected firm offered them the
most experienced consulting personnel, the largest breadth of technical resources, and a
superior project-implementation methodology.
Project Planning
Project
Planning began with a formal Needs Survey of AUTECS
by consultants from Systems Conversion Ltd. SCL found that:
·
AUTECS was utilizing about
20-25% of the capability of the system.
· A number of
“home-grown” processes had been developed in place of system processes.
· The cause of the
under-utilization and circumventing processes was a lack of knowledge and understanding
about PRMS.
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