MRP software tops list of essentials for metal fabricator

Situation

Founded in 2021 in a spare bedroom in Melbourne, Australia, Aston Precision specializes in custom sheet metal and structural metal fabrication, offering services from 3D CAD and drafting to CNC laser cutting, bending, TIG and MIG welding, and metal coating services.

After three years in business, the company now is an established partner for the Australian construction industry, industrial machinery manufacturers, architectural firms, and even retail giant Amazon.

“When I started the company, I was adamant that I wanted a system in place,” said CJ Prem, founder and director. He’s talking about a manufacturing resource planning system, or MRP. And that addition has been the ace up Aston Precision’s sleeve ever since.

Prem considered several options for MRP vendors, including ones he had worked with at previous jobs, but all missed the mark for what he needed.

Resolution

Prem ultimately chose MRPeasy, even before he got his first warehouse. What made the package stand out from others was its quote estimation capabilities. He could add all the parts, processing, and assembly going into the products; get an accurate price estimate for the order; and schedule production promptly.

“I couldn’t get those from any other system I tried,” Prem said.

In addition, MRPeasy offered strong inventory and bills of materials features, along with the traceability required by a growing number of Aston Precision’s clients. Moreover, Prem wanted the company to get ISO 9001 certified, which entails stringent traceability and document control measures.

“The system is so simple,” Prem said. “I did the trial and was hooked.”

The initial setup of the new software took just a couple of days. Even Aston Precision’s 19-year-old system administrator, who had no experience with manufacturing, took just a couple of months to learn the system to a level that she felt comfortable using it independently.

Today, the entire operation, from quoting to manufacturing to quality control to shipping, is managed in the software. Everything is documented, so Prem knows exactly what is happening in the company and can generate reports about various business functions.

The greatest benefit for the company has been the system’s ability to take the guesswork out of estimations and costing, even when dealing with highly intricate products and complicated assemblies with many subparts.

Second is the degree of control the company now has over its inventory. Whenever the team receives a new customer order, in just a few clicks they can create a manufacturing order, book the required materials from stock, and put in a purchase order for out-of-stock materials.

“We don’t have to create purchase orders manually,” Prem explained. “Whenever inventory levels drop below a certain point, we can generate a prefilled PO ready to be sent out.”

Third, the company takes full advantage of the dashboard functionality, which gives a quick overview of vitals like cash flow, current sales, work-in-process, and late orders without the need to generate separate reports.

To other growing manufacturers, Prem recommends taking the leap to MRP sooner rather than later. In his experience, hiring people into an already established system is much easier than having them adopt it later.

“Now we can focus on growth and innovation without the burden of remembering every detail as the system remembers and prompts every aspect of our operations.”