Phifer

The customer

Phifer Inc. is the world’s biggest manufacturer of aluminium and fibreglass insect screening systems, with offices in the US, India, and Asia.

Needs

In order to manage its growth, the company had, in the early 2000s, developed a proprietary ERP and an MES system to bridge the gap between ERP and production.
Over the years, however, the company was no longer able to effectively manage reporting and data accessibility, and, therefore, was looking for software that would allow it to optimize the storage and management of product technical specifications and plant tooling in a more streamlined way. A fundamental requirement was to supply a system able to support Phifer’s commitment to the Lean Manufacturing model.

The project

After the initial analysis and consultancy phase, the project saw the development of a prototype using modules of the just MES suite: just PLM, just Planning and just Monitoring. After piloting in a specific company division, the MES and ERP systems were then fully integrated into the company’s existing systems to improve the management and distribution of data.

Advantages

• Simplification of machinery maintenance
• Operator autonomy in analysing historical production performance data and daily reports
• Production process improvements