Using Mobile Devices in Manufacturing
One of the largest challenges that small and midsize manufacturing firms are facing today involves reducing costs to compete in the global economy.
Many manufacturers are finding that strategically incorporating mobile devices into various business processes is a way to achieve more productivity from existing resources—people, products, and equipment.
Where Do Mobile Devices Work?
- For original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), adding a mobile product, a mobile controller for an existing product or a mobile application to a main product line works to sell more to existing customers and bring in new customers.
Do your competitors have a mobile product? Have your customers asked for smaller form factors for your product?
- For other types of manufacturing, changing from a paper process to input on a mobile device with automatic wireless transmission to the main computer can dramatically boost worker productivity. Any process that involves collecting data using paper documents is potentially a candidate for a mobile solution to reduce data entry errors and speed up the reporting process.
Where do your workers use clipboards to record data?
- Another way to gain substantial productivity for a manufacturer is expanding the amount and types of data that a manager, sales rep, or field support person can access remotely to avoid keeping duplicate manual systems and provide better customer support to increase sales. The cell phone, PDA or mobile computer becomes a portable work tool that saves time and speeds sales.
Are mobile workers keeping duplicate paper systems because they don’t have access to essential information on the road? Do workers wait to send data because it is difficult to work on a laptop in some locations?
Real Examples, Real Results
Microsoft put together four case studies that offer insight into how manufacturers are using mobile devices to add revenue, save worker time and improve worker productivity:
- Ecom Instruments – This innovative instrument manufacturer created a line of mobile devices safe to use in hazardous situations to eliminate labor intensive manual data collection for manufacturers who work with combustible materials.
- Fresh Mark – Complying with US Department of Agriculture regulations was generating large amounts of paperwork. By implementing a system using mobile devices, Fresh Mark reduced the lag time in reporting and improved the way employees and supervisors handle problems to avoid waste with perishable goods.
- Simpson Strong-Tie – This manufacturer of steel connectors for wood frame construction discovered that sales reps were not using their CRM system because of issues with the system. An upgrade to the CRM system would have cost $250,000. Simpson chose instead to develop their own CRM using Windows Mobile devices. It took a developer just 6 months to create the new system, creating a substantial cost savings as well as saving many hours of sales rep time and improving response to customers.
- Acushnet Company – The premier manufacturer and distributor of name brand (Titleist, FootJoy, Pinnacle, and Cobra) golf equipment found that their paper based order entry system had become inefficient and costly. The new system using Windows Mobile Pocket PC phones reduced order processing from weeks to minutes, reduced inventory staff from six to one and improved customer service.