Tracking Production Scheduling

[Ron tollett]

Thanks. Do you have a copy of this you could send?

[djbeatsent]

Unfortunately I can't send you a copy of the entire system but I can tell you how I made it.

1. Make a shipping log for each part you have. Include due dates and a spot for your shipping department to put in all the information they use for shipping including tracking numbers, amount shipped, and date shipped. In each shipping log you will need to use a formula so that if the ship date is late it will place a "1" value into a separate box.

2. Make a plant shipping overview file. Have this file take all the "1" values and add them up. I organised it by month and customer. This way when the shipping log gets a new late, the plant shipping overview file gets an added late as well.

It is pretty easy if you do a few prototype trys and look up issues on google as they arise. Took me about a week and a half to finish and another week to switch all the shipping logs from paper to computer.

[Ron tollett]

Thanks!!! Would you have a page you might be able to send? I understand but it would be advantageous to have a sample.

[Ron tollett]

We are having problems with over/under shipments. We currently have a Load sheet where a forklift driver will check off what is going onto a truck. It seems we always get a over/under shipment. Does anyone have a better system out there to track shipments going onto a truck?

[wmarhel]

In Reply to Parent Post by Ron tollett

Is there a system to track production throughout the plant to ensure shipments are going to go out on time? We are in the process of implementing Lean Manufacturing but seem to have trouble flagging a late shipment.

Without knowing what kind of products manufactured or the processes used in your facility, this is a bit of a hard question to nail down. If you manufacture parts or products, then the really isn't in the tracking, but the fact that order takes too long to complete the process. You can readily find this issues where batch processing of parts occurs.

Look for opportunities to flow or at least single-piece flow products through the process and the tracking becomes much easier. Granted, there are some industries where traceability is highly critical, but the issue still becomes "speed" through the overall processes.

Wayne

[mooreke3]

Even before knowing anything about your process, is the root cause the actual gathering of material to be loaded, or is the problem caused by an inaccurate loading sheet?

[ab001]

Are you familiar with the concept of DIFOT – delivery in full, on time?

Typically, at the start of a job, your planning will include an expected delivery date. You might make an explicit promise to your customer.
At the end of your job, you know your actual delivery date. Did you keep your promise?

Compare the two (promises kept / promises made) as a percentage for a period of time.
This is just a lag indicator, telling you if there is a problem. It doesn’t tell you where the problem is. Another part of your Lean implementation should give you the tools to discover that.

The “system” can be anything from whiteboards or spreadsheets, up to a full-blown ERP system.

[Brannon125]

We use a production scheduling software system called Orchestrate to do just about all our production tracking. Very simple, everyone who needs access to it understands it and it keeps all our processes under control and in one place rather than spreadsheets all over our hard drives! There are a load of similar systems out there with downloadable demo versions so you can test them out and find one that suits your process best. Hope this helps.