Page 34 - MetalForming March 2020

Seven Ways Contract Metal Formers Can Compete on
Contract precision metal forming/fabricating companies can reshape the manufacturing landscape by effectively competing on time-to- market, pricing, quality and customization. Quality, in particular, will take on even greater importance in 2020 as Tier One manufacturing companies battle for market share and customer loyalty by raising their quality standards— and requiring their suppliers to do the same.
BY LOUIS COLUMBUS
Entering 2020, many brand man- ufacturers seek to mitigate the effects of uncertainty around international tariffs, an uneven global economy and national elections. This puts increased pressure on contract metal formers to:
• Demonstrate compliance expert- ise. Regulatory reporting requirements changed in 2020 across several manu-
Louis Columbus is principal, IQMS: www.iqms.com/products/erp.
facturing sectors, particularly in highly regulated industries such
as aerospace and defense,
medical products, and pharmaceuticals. However,
brand manufacturers often lack the staff to establish a dedicated team for staying on top of compliance- reporting requirements. Therefore, contract preci- sion metal formers would be wise to develop expertise in regulatory compliance.
• Offer skilled, certified
experts. Acute labor short-
ages continue to impede
the ability of OEMs and Tier
One manufacturers to take
on new accounts. Contract
metal formers can market
the benefits of alleviating these labor shortages by developing their own skilled teams, often combining this with unique expertise. For example, one contract metal former has developed an inhouse team of certified techni- cians that can be assigned to its cus- tomer within a week to help meet secu- rity-device production forecasts, which could take 6 mo. for the customer to complete.
• Improve logistics, supply chain and quality services. Of the manufac- turers I’ve spoken with that outsource production, 80 percent say that con- tract metal formers must improve in the areas of track-and-trace, supply- chain integration and visibility, and need to provide significantly more quality data for every production run. They believe that quality data are invaluable in improving work instruc-
tions and production workflows, lead- ing to higher yields.
Seven Ways to Take the Lead on Quality and Compliance
Instead of simply following cus- tomer requirements, contract metal formers can grow their businesses in 2020 by taking the helm in expanding their compliance and quality-manage- ment initiatives, particularly as they relate to logistics. Seven metrics form the foundation of an agile framework to enable solid, reliable and consistent reporting of compliance, quality and yield rates. This can translate to increased efficiency and reduced costs.
1. Corrective/preventive action (CAPA)—Also known as corrective-action requests, CAPAs help to eliminate anomalies and nonconformances in products that often are discovered dur-
“Partnerships between
contract manufacturers
and their customers
should begin with clearly
defined goals for costs
and pricing. However, do not allow costs and pricing to dominate these partnerships. Be sure to focus on what matters most: achieving a high percentage of perfect order manufac- turing performance; reducing cycle times; improving on-time delivery per- centages; and increasing quality.” —Louis Columbus, principal, IQMS
32 MetalForming/March 2020
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Quality