Blog (12)
Making IT work in the wire & cable industry: Warehousing and Logistics
Written by Albert Groothedde
In our previous blog we discussed the added value IT in the wire & cable industry for Product Engineering and Quoting, for Sales and Invoicing, Planning and Quality Assurance. We will now explore how to improve business performance by investing in IT for Warehousing and Logistics.
In Warehousing and Logistics it’s about getting the finished products at the customer at the agreed delivery time, while keeping the inventory at the lowest level possible.
Making IT work in the wire & cable industry: Quality Assurance
Written by Albert GrootheddeIn our previous blogs we discussed the added value IT has in the wire & cable industry for Product Engineering and Quoting, for Sales and Invoicing and Planning. We will now explore how to improve business performance by investing in IT for Quality Assurance.
The (increasing) product regulation in the wire & cable industry translates in a significant number of quality tests that need to be executed for different cable types. These tests can include multiple measurements and can be applicable for every drum, for a sample test depending on volume or time. The processes related to Quality Assurance can be very time consuming
The impact of Industry 4.0 on the Wire & Cable Industry
Written by Albert GrootheddeIn this blog, I want to elaborate on the meaning of Industry 4.0 for the Wire & Cable business. However, what is Industry 4.0?
Making IT work in the wire & cable industry: Planning
Written by Albert GrootheddeIn our previous blog we discussed the added value IT in the wire & cable industry for Product Engineering and Quoting as well as for Sales and Invoicing. We will now explore how to improve business performance by investing in IT for Planning.
Planning in the wire & cable industry is a balancing act to maximize production efficiency while keeping inventory at an acceptable level. At the same time, the cables have to be shipped to the customer at the confirmed date.
Making IT work in the wire & cable industry: Sales and Invoicing
Written by Albert GrootheddeIn our previous blog we discussed the added value IT in the wire & cable industry specifically for Product Engineering and Quoting. We will now explore how to improve business performance by investing in IT for Sales and Invoicing.
The main priority in sales is to respond to customer needs fast and accurately. In today’s world the information associated to customer requirements are increasing both in volume and volatility. A successful company is able to deal with this information effectively.
Making IT work in the wire & cable industry: Product Engineering and Quoting
Written by Albert GrootheddeIn our previous blog, we discussed the need of using IT in the wire & cable industry in relation to market developments. We will now explore the specific business domains in the wire & cable industry that can benefit from Information Technology. Based on our experience in the wire & cable industry we will focus on those business domains where we often find opportunities to improve business performance by investing in IT, starting with Product Engineering and Quoting.
Making IT work in the wire & cable industry: market trends
Written by Albert Groothedde
Information Technology (IT) has become a key asset for companies to optimize their business processes and create competitive advantage. Still, the way and the intensity of using IT is quite different across industries and individual companies. In a series of blogs we will explore the potential added value of Information Technology, specifically for the wire & cable industry.
Why a dedicated ERP solution for Wire&Cable? Three reasons...
Written by Albert Groothedde
Wire & cable manufacturers and distributors are not just regular businesses. They have specific requirements, which cannot be facilitated in a regular ERP solution. Here are 3 out of many more reasons to consider an ERP solution that is specific for the wire & cable industry.
100 plus 200 does not equal 300 in the wire and cable manufacturers and distributors. So, basic math doesn’t seem to work in this type of companies.
And that is a challenge for standard ERP systems as they do rely on math. The wire and cable industry requires a specialized ERP solution that understands cable calculus.
Quote, Design and Manufacture a New Cable in 30 minutes
Written by Albert Groothedde
Accelerate your Time to Market
Wire and Cable manufacturers operate in a competitive market. Even companies that deliver custom cables have to fight for every order. In these circumstances the company should excel at all fronts: price, quality, reliability, and also on responsiveness to the requirements of the customer.It makes our cable factory a Smart Cable Factory!
Check out the webinar in which we demonstrate the power of the CableSuite.
More...
Copper is the new gold
Simply put: producing cables is about packaging (insulating) of highly conductive materials. These conductive materials, such as copper and aluminum, are relatively expensive and drive most of the material costs of a cable. The costs of copper easily run up to 90% of the material costs of a cable.It’s the reason that cable manufacturers and distributors do care about material losses in production and cutting.
However, there is an even more significant business issue with the use of copper and aluminum. It’s their extremely volatile prices.
Why ERP systems don't understand the cable calculus
Written by Albert GrootheddeIn the cable industry lengths 200m and 100m don’t add up to a length of 300m. How to deal with this in your ERP system.
