Northern Digital Inc.
ERP helps spatial measurement system manufacturer improve productivity
Overview
Established in 1981 in Waterloo Ontario, Canada, Northern Digital Inc.
(NDI) is a leading supplier of 3D/6D measurement products used in
industries as diverse as image guided surgery, robotics, aeronautics and
biomechanics. The company employs 90 and generates over $20 million in
annual revenue.
The Challenge
NDI faced a challenge when rapid growth and aging technology threatened
to stand in the way of company goals.
Instead of enabling operational improvements, NDI’s existing systems
were impeding progress. Existing technology was causing missed deliveries
and creating a high number of back orders. With customer satisfaction at
risk and internal morale slipping, the management team at NDI decided it
was time to act.
The Solution
The decision to invest in a new system was not undertaken lightly. With
almost twenty years in business, NDI has firmly established a reputation
for high quality, high performance products. The company is a past winner
of the Canada Export Award and the Global Traders Award. They are also
ISO9001 registered.
NDI’s selection of Intuitive ERP™ from Intuitive Manufacturing Systems
was based on factors that directly supported corporate objectives.
Intuitive ERP provided a level of system functionality that could
immediately improve inventory management and the expandability and
flexibility to support NDI’s growth. Equally important was the system’s
level of ease of implementation and ease of use.
Northern Digital’s Results
After implementing Intuitive ERP, Northern Digital has experienced
continued success in improving inventory management and increasing
revenue. Prior to implementation, the company struggled to achieve even
two inventory turns per year. Inventory turns have now more than doubled
and expectations are that the company will better that in the near future.
Since implementation, Northern Digital’s revenue has increased from $10
million to over $20 million with little increase in inventory value. In
addition, the company has reduced their order cycle time for their
flagship product from four months to four weeks, an improvement of almost
80 percent.
Improvements in production control and inventory management have had a
direct impact on customer delivery. The Material Requirements Planning and
Forecasting capabilities of Intuitive ERP have allowed Northern Digital to
better service their customers.
With some customers expecting shipment in as much as nine months and
others expecting shipment in as little as nine days or even less, more
sophisticated and accurate planning has been critical. The addition of
better planning capabilities had an immediate impact on labor and
materials.
“We were able to better understand what was in stock, what we were
buying and what was needed,” said Tom Kane, Production Manager. “Improved
planning has made a huge difference in improving delivery.”
Ease of use and system scalability has been important in utilizing
Intuitive ERP to improve operations. When the system was first
implemented, only five user seats were required. As the company grew, that
number increased to twenty-five. Significantly increasing the number of
users, and doing so without a lot of training, allowed the company to
expand without worrying about putting constraints on their business
infrastructure.
“For ease of use and ease of learning, there is nothing better on the
market,” said Kane.
Northern Digital was interested in upgrading their operations by
leveraging Intuitive ERP’s standard functionality but also had some unique
conditions that required modification of the system. With a relatively
small IT staff, it was important that modification and customization could
be done with limited resources.
According to Robin Smith, Systems Administrator for Northern Digital,
Intuitive ERP’s “ability to customize easily” made the implementation
process go smoothly. “The system is easy to modify and customize to make
it work for your business,” added Production Manager Tom Kane.
Northern Digital’s Reaction
For Northern Digital, improving operations is more than just a way to
reduce expenses. With the implementation of Intuitive ERP, the company has
found a way to increase the value they provide to customers while also
improving financial performance.
“Intuitive ERP was instrumental in assisting NDI to achieve the growth
that we have seen over the past three years,” said Kane.
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Challenges