Technigraph is a specialist Small to Medium size Enterprise (SME) with 18 years experience in providing lithographic processors to such high profile companies as Kodak, AGFA and Fuji. Assembling 80 to 100 machines per month using components sourced from over 20 key suppliers on a Make To Order (MTO) basis creates obvious capacity planning and scheduling issues.

The most significant variable however is an all too often neglected element, human resources. While Technigraph's scheduling requirements may be typical, the solution from Preactor has proved exceptional, with an estimated ROI in less than 1 week.

Like many other SMEs, Technigraph's migration from a fully manual system to its current IT system has been an ongoing process. John Catton, Materials Manager recalls how things used to be done when he joined the company in 1993. "Everything was done on paper, even the stock control - we had no IT at all. Consequently we had no effective monitoring, costing or materials allocation and had to work on a Full Stock basis." As well as the cost involved, this had a direct bearing on Technigraph's ability to fulfil order commitments. If stock was not available, or became unavailable mid-assembly, the order could not be completed. This in itself would incur more costs for Technigraph that would then have human resources being under-used.

The first step Technigraph took was to install a Pegasus stock control system which soon reduced stock levels by half from 0.5 million to 0.25 million units. Other key benefits that this liberated included accurate WIP calculations that could be instigated at any time, a genuine Bill of Materials and a movement towards a Just In Time philosophy. For the first time ever, Technigraph could now also monitor movement of components as spares, allowing much tighter control over materials allocation. It also highlighted the glaring absence of any capacity planning and resource management, which meant that order fulfilment times essentially remained guesswork.

Part of the problem lay in the nature of the actual manufacture/assembly. The company had to employ over 50 personnel who were generally split into teams of three and then allocated to manufacturing and assembling a specific machine. A considerable variation in human resource input per machine depending on the size and whether the machine in question was a standard item, a hybrid item, or a completely new machine design, made accurate forecasting and maximising of human resources a continual struggle. John Catton explains how the old system worked. "We literally used to have a sheet of paper with time lines and team lists. People were supplied parts for a specific task, so if one person was not there, the machine was not built. We overlaid 2 week blocks on the first sheet but there were no physical dates set per job, no flexibility in assembly or catering for stock and supply problems. Jobs not beginning on Mondays, and summer holidays were a major problem!" In essence, a purchase order would be received and there was no accurate way of knowing how long the order in question would take to build which meant customers were given little more than guestimates.

Technigraph knew it needed a computerised solution but like many SMEs, knew it did not need a hugely complex and costly system. John had experience at another company of a crude Excel based system but this took almost an entire day to perform a calculation and was by no means accurate. Growing frustration and an upgrade to Pegasus Operations that allowed the attachment of a planning document led John to the CIM show in 1999. Being largely unaware of standalone schedulers, John's first point of call was the Pegasus stand to see its new 32 bit system. "No one seemed to understand the product, let alone my requirements", said John, "so I decided to walk around and have a look."

After looking at a number of overly complex systems, John visited the Preactor stand where again he saw a complex simulation. However, Jeff Johnson of Kudos, one of Preactor's Solution Providers, spent time listening to his requirements and asked for some test data to do a more realistic and tailored demonstration. This was supplied and Jeff brought the new demonstration to Technigraph's office to show the board members how it worked, and what benefits it could deliver. The board was won over by the customised presentation and a decision was taken to purchase and implement Preactor 200 FCS which was soon delivering a host of benefits after going live within only a week of installation.

Foremost amongst these was a Return On Investment in a week. John could not believe it. "The biggest impression the software has left on us is that the expense was so small for the system compared to what we got out of it. It paid for itself within a matter of days because of the other benefits it brought to the company." These other benefits highlight the relationship between improved customer service and day to day efficiency gains.

Technigraph for the first time was now able to clearly see the next available slots in its schedule and therefore deliver a much more accurate completion date. This could be done while the customer was still on the phone. An increase in accuracy here brought further efficiencies in stock management by Technigraph being able to foresee the needs under various scenarios, for example the need for packing cases. This visual representation also determined the required level of human resource and took into consideration holidays and illnesses. Schedules could be amended as and when required, not as and when physically possible. In one instance alone, it helped Technigraph cope with an anticipated order increase of 140+ units per month from a major supplier that was suddenly reduced to 12.

The actual efficiency gains brought about by Preactor changed not only the way Technigraph worked, but also influenced the very heart of the company itself. John Catton again, "There's no doubt the efficiency savings led to new business. But more importantly, the increased confidence it gave me to do my job affected the entire board. This in turn led to an increased optimism and confidence within the entire company which in itself influences positively the way you deal with customers. It would be fair to say Preactor literally changed the company."

Mike Novels of Preactor International concludes. "Technigraph is a perfect example of how stand alone, scaleable scheduling technology can help an SME. Substantial scheduling benefits are not the preserve of the large companies. Preactor has always catered for the smaller end of the market as well as our larger organisations because of the inherent flexibility of the product. It is this vision, combined with a willingness to listen and prepare a customised demonstration by our reseller Kudos, which has delivered Technigraph a genuine solution which pays for itself every week."