Printronix simulation software case study
Company: Printronix
By Ronald Dabbah, Printronix
Summary
Printronix was losing business because of our inability to meet the customers shipping requirements. Our solution to faster shipping was, with the aid of an analysis using a ProModel simulation model, to build an inventory of high level generic "printer plains". This inventory of generic "printer plains" enabled us to configure and ship printers within three days of the order.
Case Study
Printronix standard manufacturing process was to build a printer from the ground up at the time of order. Average lead time on a printer from time of order to time of shipment was 18 working days. The customers expectations were to have their order shipped within a week. In an effort to meet the customers shipping expectations, we built and inventoried finished printers based on a master scheduling forecast. We found that the mix and quantities were not always adequate to meet customer demand. In order for us to achieve 100% customer satisfaction we would have had to triple the existing finish printer inventory.
We decided to build a printer to it's highest generic level and hold it in a kanban. Upon receipt of the order, the printer plain could be quickly configured and shipped. This was accomplished by splitting the printer manufacturing process into two stages: printer plain assembly and final printer configuration. We used computer simulation to model this process and determine how many of the five printer plain assemblies would be necessary to support the 110 top level printers.
The results of the simulation model lead us to a printer plain kanban size that was 60% less costly than inventorying finished printers. We went ahead with the changes and the results were almost exactly what the model had predicted.
Lead time was reduced from 18 to 3 days, finished goods inventory was eliminated and a floor controlled just-in-time delivery process was implemented.
