How to Keep Manufacturing on Track and Fight Labor Shortages
Manufacturers need Automated Production Intelligence™ to take the guesswork out of data analysis, quoting, and strategic planning while simultaneously elevating their people and processes to new performance levels.
Even with entry-level pay exceeding minimum wage, manufacturers still struggle to attract, hire, and retain employees. The Increased demand from a resurgence of manufacturing in North America due to reshoring and kinks in the supply chain adds pressure to the situation.
So how do manufacturers—especially mid-market manufacturers—keep their business on track and fight labor shortages?
While robotics is an immediate reaction, the reconfiguration of equipment, software integration, and training has a long tail on implementation. The deeper solution requires examining the information coming from the production floor for planning, purchasing, pricing, and execution.
Automation to Increase Performance Levels of People and Process
Manufacturing leaders need automation through information systems that promptly take the guesswork out of data analysis, quoting, and strategic planning while simultaneously elevating their people and processes to new performance levels.
Technology-focused precision manufacturers use Automated Production IntelligenceTM from Datanomix to track and visualize machine performance in real-time and offer profound insights about overall factory trends. It can help manufacturers improve operations, train workers, and create a culture where people collaborate in a more unified way. Delivering the correct information rapidly to the entire organization is vital to keeping production on track to plan.
Reduce the latency between analysis and action out of the equation by broadcasting a set of factory KPIs measured in real time from the machine controls. Waiting for machine operators to bubble up the cause of downtime is fraught with error and mistrust in every dimension. The direct correlation between continuous improvement and increased output is data quality and compressing time cycles to actionable information.
Know The Pulse of Your Factory With Real-Time Production Insights
What specifically are manufacturers looking for from their data? Pinning down the true pulse of the factory lets management know if production issues are caused by the machine and tooling capability, operator training, or awareness of dozens of other externalities. Real-time production insights will build confidence and reduce stress for everyone involved by tightening those loops with live machine data.
Datanomix does all the complex data and analytics work for you by removing the paper-based tracking needed for production meetings and post-mortem reviews. Operators can focus more on running machines and building quality parts and less on entering or chasing data to affect change before the shift ends.
“Before real data, everyone had a hunch. Now everyone references the data.”
—Jack Russell, President, Rolar Products
Knowing your job performance, like cycle times, setup times, and how those compare to the business plan, will get everyone laser-focused on the actual productivity level of the entire organization. As data becomes the trusted authority, your team will understand every job across the spectrum from productivity to profit, allowing leaders to fine-tune the outcome. Exactly where you want things to be.
Automated Production Intelligence for Unattended Operations
You’re probably considering lights-out or unattended operations to combat staff shortages and a growing backlog. The advanced analytics in Datanomix supports unattended operations by fully understanding what happened during every shift and delivering insights to determine the steps for improvement.
“Unattended operation is where we’re going with the technology. There are just not many people looking for jobs in manufacturing these days. The more we can automate our processes, the better. We can deliver more productivity with the same number of people, and our focus on technology helps with recruitment.”
— Aaron Springer, Vice President, TW Springer
Everyone Wants to Be Associated with a Winning Team
Excellent company culture goes a long way toward attracting and retaining employees, especially among younger individuals. Technology-driven manufacturers create a culture of communication and teamwork across the factory. It says something about your company, and your competitive message is similar to this: “We invest in data-driven automation to deliver a holistically new experience for customers and employees. This investment allows us to take on more work and develop our employees with new skills and experiences that no other company can offer”. People want to work with and work for a cutting-edge company. Everyone benefits.
Empower your factory through data and actionable insights, and watch your team perform better. Resources flow where needed, and everyone is on the same page—working to deliver quality parts within budget.
“When you rally around the data, everyone feels a part of something bigger.”
—Jack Russell, President, Rolar Products
While Automated Production Intelligence is not a magic pill for the manufacturing industry, it does offer distinct and easily-realizable advantages that help forward-thinking manufacturers deal with labor shortages through gains in efficiency and an up-leveling of systems and processes. And it does all of this at a fraction of the cost of a full-time employee.
Check Out Our ROI Calculator
Every week your team wastes time chasing data for analytics and reporting on production results. Use our ROI calculator to see the short time it takes for a return on your Datanomix investment and the potential revenue opportunity from using the platform.
