Product category:
ERP and MRP systems and software
News Release from: Exel Computer Systems | Subject: EFACS system, ERP/MRP
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 06 January 2005
Destroyed ERP/MRP system replaced
quickly
Following a fire that destroyed a server and all MRP/ERP software, a spare server, PC network and loaded software had been installed and made ready just over one week later.
If theres one factory where a fire is absolutely the last thing you need, its Bartoline in Beverley in the East Riding of Yorkshire, UK Bartoline makes and packs solvents, adhesives, fillers and wood preservative treatments
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 26 Nov 2007 at 8.00am (UK)
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All of these materials are highly flammable and no matches or lighters are allowed beyond the front office.
However, the companys worst nightmare became reality in May 2003, at which time the factory was working at full capacity producing decorating products.
No-one is sure what started it, but early one morning plumes of black smoke were seen then flames began to appear and shortly afterwards there was a major explosion.
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Fire quickly spread throughout the entire complex as bulk storage containers and a tanker containing more than 32,000 litres of raw product ignited.
By this time, the fire was almost totally out of control, made worse by the fact that many oil-based products were free burning after the rupture of several bulk storage containers.
Says Managing Director Simon Barton: "Many of the products here are highly flammable.
We had white spirits and methylated spirits in huge tanks and as the fire ripped through the factory it literally blew the lids off those tanks and melted everything in sight".
Once the fire was under control, the full nightmare began to dawn.
Not only had the company lost all of its production and packaging equipment but it was also without its ERP system which had been installed by Exel Computer Systems, the UKs largest author of integrated business solutions for manufacturers.
Bartoline had installed the EFACS ERP system in January 2002 to enable it to cope with continued growth - the company has gone from GBP 4.5m to GBP 10.5m turnover in 10 years - and Bartoline was looking to increase efficiency, reduce costs and boost profitability by minimising stock and being able to make more informed decisions faster than before.
On the morning of the fire, Simon Barton contacted Exel and explained the problem.
The server had been destroyed and all software had gone, as well as all files since the last back-up two days earlier.
But when Bartoline returned to work the following week, Exel had completed the build of the spare server and loaded all the software.
The server arrived at the Bartoline factory the day after the company returned to work and was connected to a newly created seven-PC network.
"Wed come back to work on the Tuesday after the bank holiday", says Barton, "and by the Thursday we were operating again with a temporary network which gave us access to administration files, various Microsoft products and EFACS.
The full reinstatement of hardware and software was down to the hard work of everyone concerned".
Says Ray Bannister, Bartolines Material Control/IT Manager: "Exel had the expertise to ensure that it went right first time.
They directed resources to our problem quickly and in a way that caused minimum disruption from an IT retention perspective".
In the fire, Bartoline lost all of its manufacturing equipment, months worth of work and a significant number of products (except for some finished goods which were in an adjacent rented warehouse).
But the company lost just a days worth of data with the fire and any potential issues with stock levels were resolved by determining deliveries for that day by reinstating the transport departments delivery notes as sales orders for the previous day.
Once the files were reinstated, the company was able to account for exactly what it had lost in terms of stock by using warehouse locations.
This data was important when processing the insurance claim.
Today, Bartoline is operating out of a temporary building where liquid products such as white spirits and turpentine are filled and packed using four machines that have arrived during the last three months.
Up to this point work had been carried out off-site by contractors and even by competitors, with systems set up within EFACS to control raw material allocation to contract packers.
Currently, theres a temporary tank farm feeding the lines until the factory is relocated into a new building early next year.
A 20,000ft2 building has also been acquired by Bartoline to accommodate the fillers and adhesives side of the business While the fire was undoubtedly a disaster, its often the case that some good can come out of even the worst situations.
In Bartolines case, having everything destroyed gave the company the opportunity to become far more efficient and competitive in its market sector than had been possible with old plant and a 35-year-old building that presented so many restrictions.
Now, the company has state-of-the-art, purpose-built machinery that can produce to far greater capacities than before and enable the company to maximise its resources.
"We are putting back what we had but better", says Barton, adding that the company quickly came to realise that installing up-to-date machinery highlighted the fact that it was not making the most of what EFACS had to offer.
"We need state-of-the-art controls to handle production requirements more efficiently than before", he says, "and Ray is developing procedures to make more use of EFACS.
Now weve got super-fast machinery, it has become clear that we need quality IT systems to back it up".
Consequently, a great deal of development work has been carried out within EFACS, especially on MRP.
EFACS originally went live in January 2002 and before the fire Bartoline was using most of its basic modules except for MRP and capacity planning, which were always planned to go live in a second phase of implementation.
They eventually came on-stream in 2003 after the fire and the plan now is for most of EFACS to be operational when the company moves into its new building.
Says Barton: "We are very pleased indeed with what EFACS has had to offer.
How we ever got by without MRP well never know".
He adds: "The company has grown significantly in the last two or three years and there had to be some changes in our IT infrastructure to handle this growth.
Previously, there was no formal system that gave the buyer information on stock and what items to purchase other than looking at general stock levels and orders due the following week.
We could easily have been overstocking by not knowing what the forecast was.
MRP will eradicate all those inefficiencies and allow us to manage materials in a much more effective way - and this will have a positive impact on the bottom line".
Barton continues: "Because we now have fast equipment to make our core products more efficiently, we need control of the smaller runs that have caused us downtime in the past.
We need to maintain and hold stock of slow moving products rather than just fast moving products.
Thats a major difference that MRP will make".
Bartoline makes a diverse range of products that is seasonally affected, for example pre-packed paraffin sales will go up in the winter, creosote sales are affected by the rain and BBQ lighting fluid sales are affected by peoples ability to have barbecues.
This means that forecasting is essential if the company is to meet demand without having to maintain excessively high stock levels.
Forecasting will be much easier with MRP.
Before EFACS, Bartoline had a bespoke, home-grown and largely manual system which would have required substantial investment to upgrade but still wouldnt have been robust or reliable enough to cope with the companys changing requirements.
There was a clear need for a fully integrated system that managed stock, purchase orders, sales orders, MRP and more.
After an extensive selection process, the company chose EFACS.
"As well as the functionality of the software", says Barton, "we were impressed by the professionalism of the Exel team and their 'can-do' attitude.
We were making a substantial investment, which would have long-term impact on our business, so it was a question of which company we could work with.
We had confidence in the Exel team from day one".
Bartoline was particularly impressed that - unusually in this industry - Exel was the author of the EFACS system, able to adapt the software to create the best fit for Bartolines business and provide all necessary post-sales support.
"Weve always found when dealing with Exel that they are extremely helpful", says Bannister.
"EFACS is as good as anything on the market today and the people there have the expertise and willingness to deal with any concerns that we might have.
You cant ask for more than that.
And while you can never expect a system to match all your business requirements, I would say EFACS has fulfilled about 90% of them".
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