Success Stories

Tokai-Rika USA Improves Accuracy of Inventory Counts and
Shipments Through Nutech’s Data Collection Software

If there is one thing that is critical in a warehouse operation, it is efficiency. No organization knows that better than Tokai-Rika.

Headquartered in Japan, Tokai-Rika is an international organization that supplies automotive parts for all the major automobile manufacturers - 22 different companies, including Ford, GM, Daimler Chrysler, Mercedes, Volvo and Toyota. Tokai-Rika has offices and manufacturing facilities around the world, producing a variety of security devices, safety products, mirrors, switches, and exterior components.

For more than 15 years, Tokai-Rika USA (TRMI) has been producing automotive switches out of its 200,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Battle Creek, Michigan. As an Automotive Tier 1 supplier, the site produces 225 finished good assemblies.

Recently, TRMI began overhauling its manufacturing operation to improve production output and ensure accurate customer order fulfillment. One key step for TRMI was to automate its data collection process.

The objective was to improve the efficiency of TRMI's Michigan site and eliminate errors in data entry and subsequent order fulfillment. The site used a manual data entry process that was labor intensive and time-consuming. Production reporting required pulling screens and entering part numbers with corresponding quantity for each day - a process that involved five hours for each report and often meant production data was delayed by one day.

This cumbersome process resulted in inaccurate production data, incomplete inventory reports, and incorrect or delayed shipments. Essentially, TRMI was working blind.

They needed a more efficient approach.

Selection Process Discovers State-of-the-art Solution

TRMI began seeking a solution that could incorporate its BPCS application and support its Future Three EDI system. They explored a variety of data collection systems. They compared specifications. And they reviewed an existing data collection implementation.

They discovered Viewpoint for BPCS, a suite of applications from Nutech Systems. Viewpoint provides an innovative approach to barcode data collection. The Viewpoint software gathers the data through a handheld scanning device and enters it into the BPCS system automatically or with minimal human involvement. And Viewpoint works in real time, so transactions are visible immediately.

The first step in implementing the Viewpoint system was to develop a plan of action. Nutech Systems worked closely with TRMI to develop a Systems Requirements Definition.

The Viewpoint system, implemented at Tokai-Rika USA's Michigan site in March 2001, moved TRMI's manual system to a state-of-the-art data collection system that uses Intermec handheld scanners and sends the data across a wireless network to be mapped into the BPCS system using the Viewpoint Screen Mapper. The data, which instantly appears in the BPCS system, is current and accurate.

“The detail that Nutech put into the System Requirements document, prior to starting the project, was the best I've ever seen,” says John Hammond, Production Control Manager at Tokai-Rikai in Michigan. “In addition, the Nutech representatives were exceptional - from the sales team to the system programmers. The implementation process was smooth and painless.”

Nutech's Viewpoint software was able to show accurate on-hand inventory quantities. The Viewpoint system does production receipts, ASN receipts, and picking, using the Production Reporting (JIT600) and PO Receipts (PUR550) interfaces in BPCS.

After some experimentation, TRMI opted to batch the data from each shift, processing it at night. If they had scanned and uploaded each lot's item list, they would have been processing 260 transactions for each finished good - a total of 18,200 transactions per day per part number. That was more than TRMI wanted to handle.

Instead, at the end of each shift, using a totally streamlined process, TRMI posts production receipts by total quantity scanned. That keeps the system history file to a minimum - averaging around 800,000 records per day - and significantly reduces the processing time. However, if TRMI needs the data during the shift, they can manually override the automatic batch process to create a report at any time.

The Viewpoint system helps confirm that finished goods are accurately labeled and shipped. When the finished goods are completed, TRMI scans the kanban serial number on the tote, using the Intermec scanner, and sends it to the Viewpoint database for confirmation.

This ensures the item is put away in the correct location, reducing the problem of mislabeled parts. TRMI realized significant improvements in its labeling process - within the first eight months of using Viewpoint, they had only six parts mislabeled.

Once the product is on the storage rack, TRMI exchanges the kanban and finished good numbers for the customer order number. The process from production line to storage to shipping is completely efficient and eliminates errors.

Completed Implementation Yields ROI

TRMI has already realized significant return on investment from the Viewpoint implementation.

“The Viewpoint data collection product provided by Nutech Systems has greatly benefited our operation at Tokai-Rika- USA,” says John Hammond, production control manager at TRMI. “We had some very specific requirements for the barcode scanning system to meet our production reporting needs. The Viewpoint system has exceeded our expectations.”

Tokai-Rika USA has realized huge gains in accuracy, reducing or eliminating errors caused by inaccurate or incomplete data. In the first eight months of using the Viewpoint system, TRMI shipped only four incorrect orders - representing an 89% improvement over the previous year.

“The best part of the Viewpoint implementation is the built-in error-proofing function of the system,” says Mr. Hammond. “If there is a problem with the scan, the validation cycle - performed at the BPCS data entry screen by the Viewpoint Screen Mapper - will catch the problem, create an error report and then send it back for correction. It offers us a high level of confidence.”

TRMI is also realizing more accurate cycle counts on finished goods. Because data processing used to be delayed by at least 24 hours, the company would never have accurate data on inventory of components or finished goods. With the Viewpoint system, TRMI can accurately determine inventories at any time with an accuracy rate of more than 95%.

“Between the inventory accuracy increase and the reduction in the manual data entry, we have streamlined our operation, repositioning our associates workload into other areas,” continues Mr. Hammond.

As Tokai-Rika USA restructures its Michigan operation for better efficiency, Viewpoint plays an integral role in ensuring the information is available to support this process and accommodate future growth.