Case study: A leading global
healthcare company, Brazil
A Latin American division of one of the world’s largest healthcare companies wanted to save $30,000 USD over a year by using CRIBWISE to manage its stocks of drill bits. Using the cloud-based inventory management software, the manufacturer achieved this target in just FIVE months.
CLIENT OBJECTIVE
The healthcare manufacturer produces critical surgical equipment at its plant in Brazil. Part of the production process involves drilling holes in the product, and the drill bits used are expensive and consumed in large quantities. Indeed, the plant spends over $1 million USD a year on their purchase.
Managing the inventory of drill bits was challenging for the team at the plant; it relied on printed worksheets on which the operators manually noted the removal of the tools from stock. There was a requirement to automate the control of the consumption of bits per operator, as bits are expensive
and need to be used correctly.
CRIBWISE was recommended to the Brazilian division by its sister plant in Mexico. The feedback from the Mexican engineers was extremely positive, so the decision was made to install an automated inventory-control system at the factory in Brazil too. The company looked at several suppliers of inventory-management software but found that they did not offer the same levels of customization, the detailed reports and the high-quality hardware offered by CRIBWISE.
The project team immediately understood the high potential and benefits of using the solution – combined with hardware and a simple user interface - CRIBWISE can be used directly on the shop floor. This had the additional benefits of simplifying the picking tool processand operations. Guaranteeing the right tool for the right machining process.
THE CRIBWISE SOLUTION
CRIBWISE proposed its modern, intelligent inventory-management software that, when coupled with an Autocrib TX750 vending cabinet, would give the healthcaremanufacturer complete control over its inventory of drill bits.
CRIBWISE automates the tool-ordering process and enables tools to be tracked from their point of delivery to their destination on the shop floor – significantly reducing administration costs. Expenditure can be controlled. Tooling can be marked as “in use” rather than “out of stock”, for instance, eliminating over ordering, and rules can be set that ensure that operators choose used and refurbished tools before they reach for new. Perhaps mostimportantly, the use of CRIBWISE guarantees that the righttool for a given job will be in stock when it is needed.
CRIBWISE is modular, customizable and easy to integrate and grants facilities of all sizes complete control over their tooling Inventories with minimal effort and expense. The software eliminates administrative hassles, eradicates production delays and cuts excessive – often hidden – expenditure.
The Autocrib TX750 vending cabinet holds the drill bits until they are needed by operatives and keeps track of its contents. The cabinet logs withdrawals automatically so that managers at the manufacturing plant can view and analyse records of items taken out, by whom, when and for what reason. As the cabinet runs low, it can send a restocking order to the supplier(s) of the drill bits, which ensures that operatives will have the equipment they require. Further, the vending cabinet enables the usage of drill bits to be monitored. It tracks who is using what on the shop floor and managers can use this information to assess demand for drill bits. Any anomalies in use can then be investigated further.
CRIBWISE’s Brazilian sales partner Adeptmec installed the CRIBWISE solution in February 2022. After a month of testing, in March 2022, the healthcare manufacturer started to use the solution in production.
Currently, 100 operators – divided over three shifts – are using CRIBWISE. All the operators were trained to use the software and vending machine by Adeptmec and, five months later, a new round of training is being prepared. This recurring training is important to ensure that CRIBWISE is being used correctly and that all the operators are comfortable with the new processes. The entire training process was customized to the manufacturer’s current requirements and was a key constituent to ensure their overall objectives were successfully met.
Pablo Castro, Director of Sales at Adeptmec says:” We are passionate about delivering outstanding training and being flexible to meet our customer’s needs. The healthcare manufacturer’s team in Brazil has been incredibly responsive and because of this they are seeing outstanding results very quickly.”
Edvilson Silva, Sales and Application Manager at Adeptmec says: “The high engagement from the team meant that the implementation process was much shorter and therefore the improvements and optimizations were realized much faster.”
The client´s project leader adds: “We are now working on optimizing the return process to ensure that the bits are returned correctly to the cabinet so they can easily be found again when needed by another operator. This brings more reliability to the data and provides confidence for operators.”
THE RESULTS
Through the installation of the CRIBWISE solution, the healthcare manufacturer's Brazil operations hoped to save $30,000 USD within the first year. These expectations have been exceeded already; the company has achieved a saving of $27,000 USD in the first five months alone (although it should be noted that a proportion of this can be attributed to improvements in two machines at the plant).
The ease with which drill bits can be taken from the conveniently located vending machine also saves time for the operators – a further cost saving from reduced lost hours.
Perhaps most importantly, managers at the manufacturing facility are now able to quantify their consumption of drill bits properly using the data gathered through CRIBWISE and through other parts of its operation. Silva says: “Their goal is to analyze, together with their team of engineers, the data on the consumption of drills per operator and per machine, enabling preventive maintenance and optimizing further the process and the consumption of drills.”
Further, the CRIBWISE solution has made the plant more environmentally sustainable.
Silva adds: “Before CRIBWISE, the healthcare manufacturer used paper to control the stock and so now they no longer have the need to print and discard paper on a daily basis. In addition, reducing the consumption of drill bits means less packaging, generating less waste.”
Silva concludes: “The customer is very satisfied with the results; it is far above their expectations and they believe the gains will be even greater.”
THE FUTURE
The Brazil based facility has been so impressed with the results from CRIBWISE that it now intends to use the software to manage its inventories of tools for the set-up of the machines used to produce its flagship surgical solution. The planning of this project is taking place now and will be implemented by mid-2023.
An engineer at the site concludes: “Adeptmec was fundamental in this process, offering support from the beginning. I thank the entire team for the training they provided, the deadlines they met and the accurate information they gave us. We had all the support we needed, and we are very satisfied with the partnership. We are looking forward to completing our new project with Adeptmec and CRIBWISE.”
