Metrics are key to manufacturing success
By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 12/1/2006
In the manufacturing business, metrics matter. The better a company's system for measuring and tracking financial and operational performance, the more finances and operations improve.
These are the conclusions of a study released by the Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association (MESA), an organization of manufacturers and manufacturing software providers.
According to the study, companies making significant financial improvements are most likely to do the following:
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Effectively link financial metrics with operations metrics
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Collect operations data automatically, often in real time
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Display performance results to their operations staff quickly, often in less than 24 hours
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Use manufacturing execution systems and operations dashboards
With so many possible metrics to track, companies should focus on those most critical to their success, according to the report.
"Industry leaders indicate the key is to focus employees on just a few metrics within their scope of control," the report says. "If those areas begin to improve reliably, it's time to identify new metrics. The few metrics that matter may also change as business strategies and conditions change."
Along with the research report, MESA released the "MESA Metrics Guidebook and Framework," a document available to its members that explains the process of designing and reviewing useful metrics.
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