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Material supply
- Supply
- Material flow
- Picking
What is material supply?
In simple terms, material supply means the procurement of materials. It includes the design and placement of containers and shelves on the material area in assembly, production and also in picking and storage areas. Material provision therefore extends from goods receipt and storage to the assembly site (installation site).
Depending on which principle is followed, there are different requirements for procurement. The following staging principles can be followed:
- Kanban or synchronized procurement: With the Kanban principle, supply is consumption-oriented. Minimal stocks, lean control (JIT).
- Inventory management: Larger inventories at the respective material zones.
The planning of material provision should ensure that all goods are placed in the best possible place at the best possible time.
Another aspect when considering material provision is the consumption sequence procedure. This refers to the order in which resources are consumed. The following principles, for example, can be distinguished:
- FIFO: First in first out
- LIFO: Last in first out
Objectives of material supply
The aim of optimal material provision in the context of production control is to provide the material in such a way that space shortages, process times and walking distances are minimized. The following must be taken into account:
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Space availability and space requirements
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Storage systems (e.g. flow racks)
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Area availability
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Ergonomics
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Type of material
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Delivery concept
Analysis options: Material supply and employee routes
Various methods are available to evaluate the provision:
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Worker-Gantt chart
The Worker-Gantt chart shows overloads of individual assembly employees or also during order picking in certain work processes. It also shows which employees still have capacity at which cycle.
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Simulation of employee movement
As part of the simulation of employee movement, pick-up and put-down processes for tools can be simulated.
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Time-distance diagram
A time-distance diagram can display the relationship between the time and distance covered by the workers. Productive assembly routes (blue) or unproductive material routes (green) are shown.
Example of a Worker-Gantt chart.
Example of an employee movement simulation.
Example of a time-distance diagram.
Are you not yet optimizing your material provision as standard? Would you like to optimize your processes holistically? We will show you how you can get a grip on your provisioning with our ipolog software!
Three reasons for planning the supply of materials
Poor material supply costs time and money. In today’s industrial environment, no factory can afford to waste these resources. In particular, the trend towards batch size 1, variant diversity and shorter product cycles are putting pressure on production systems. With an efficient material supply, companies can meet the following challenges and tackle their optimization:
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Lack of space
Space costs money. Shelves and containers are often not optimally positioned and valuable space is wasted. Capital commitment has several sides to it.
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Long & unnecessary routes
Time is expensive. Employees get in each other’s way or often have to walk unnecessary distances.
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Time-intensive planning
Individualization, product range changes and a wide range of products make manual material requirements planning very complicated and time-consuming.
Procedure: Plan & optimize material supply in 5 steps
The material supply in the factory holds a lot of potential. Material supply can be recorded and analyzed in the following steps:
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1. Inventory: Layout
Create layout with material areas and sections
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2. Inventory: containers and tools
Determine information about processes, required components and assemblies, their containers and racks as well as other tools.
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3. As-is analysis: capture 3D geometries and environmental data
3D information and detailed illustrations are important for optimized routes and targeted provision.
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4. Placement
Place parts and containers in 3D space.
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5. Plan quantities and routes
Quantities can now be planned and routes simulated on the basis of a product program.
The more complex your factory’s production systems are, the further away efficiency in material supply is.
What are the benefits of software-supported material supply?
Good software reduces complexity and also supports daily factory planning and ensures efficient control. The material flow required for provision can also be illuminated. Curious to find out more? Then discover here what treasures you can in principle uncover with software support.
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Optimize & simulate routes
Running paths are simulated in suitable tools and visualized in 3D. It is immediately apparent where there are weak points in the design. Whether FIFO or LIFO.
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Rapid rescheduling & analysis
Digital support makes it possible to react quickly to changes in the product range. New key figures are generated at the touch of a button.
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Planning shelves and containers
Shelves and containers can be planned and positioned precisely in 3D. Material zones in assembly and picking can be reassigned using drag & drop.
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Detailed process times
Software can be used to determine process times for any assembly process (and extended to include material flow). With this level of detail, scenarios can be simulated before being tested in the live system. Support for production control and reduced control effort.
Good software reduces complexity and also supports daily factory planning and control. Curious to find out more? Then read here how easy it is to improve provisioning with software support.
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