Demand Driven Materials Management

Materials management is a critical element in both Synchronous Flow Manufacturing and the EMS environment. We recognize that standard EMS materials management solutions do not support the responsiveness required in a Synchronous Flow system.

EPIC’s solution has been to create a Strategic Purchasing focus which recognizes:

  • Fixed quantities of parts at points in time will not support the flexibility required with Synchronous Flow.
  • Suppliers must manage production to forecast yet deliver to ‘pull signals’ vs. requiring firm release dates over an extended lead time.
  • Strong focus must be placed on developing and qualifying suppliers that embrace lean manufacturing principles of short cycle-times, flexible batch sizes and high quality.
  • Appropriate buffer sizes for current production rates must be established and maintained.
  • The pipeline “bonds” must be monitored over the medium to long term horizon to allow proactive resolution of constraints at lowest costs.
  • Material buffers should be maintained in close proximity to our manufacturing facility to allow frequent releases of small batches to the production floor and maximum flexibility in responding to changing customer demands.

 

The end result is a responsive process with exceptionally high inventory turns. EPIC’s system features:

  • “Pull” system based on Kanban principles
  • Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
  • MRP is used for forecasting only with weekly updates and daily EDI releases
  • Buffer size requirements are based upon part characteristics and lead times
  • Pipeline status or ‘bond’ reports are utilized with suppliers to identify constraints
  • Consignment, in-house stores and VMI programs with strategic suppliers
  • In-house automated, high speed programming with Kanban signaling
 

WHAT CUSTOMERS SAY ABOUT EPIC...


"There are several things they [EPIC] do in their plant that we want to adopt here."

"No one else is even close to as good as EPIC in Juarez. "

"I liked the simplicity of EPIC's manufacturing approach."

"They are lean, their material handling is outstanding and their overhead is not big."

"In 14 years never met a more dynamic management team."

"Engineering groups fight over who gets to work with EPIC."

"They set the benchmark for performance in our supply base."

"By far the best contract manufacturer in terms of quality and delivery."

"We talk about how lucky we are to have them [EPIC]."