Shorter production cycle and more efficiency at FinaspanFinaspan manufactures customised veneer sheets. The possible combinations of wood types and finishes are huge, so a good ERP system is necessary for efficient monitoring. By using Microsoft Dynamics AX and UltimAX Wood from Ad Ultima, Finaspan was able to shorten the production cycle and increase efficiency. This means the company can respond flexibly to the growing number of small orders.

The ten office workers of Finaspan now work with the new software for monitoring orders, invoicing, accounting and managing customers and suppliers. The specific calculations and monitoring for quality labels (PEFC and FSC) also happen with the help of Ad Ultima’s specific software for the wood sector.

When a product is finished, it gets a barcode that can be scanned during loading and delivery. So the panels are continuously traceable. In the future, Finaspan may expand the use of barcodes to make the production process even more efficient.

ADULTIMAIMPROVING BUSINESS PRODUCTIVITY

Profile

Finaspan manufactures veneer sheets with all possible types of

wood. Customers include major distributors, timber merchants,

joiners and kitchen fitters in Belgium and abroad. There are

about 40 people working at Finaspan. The company also

manufactures a number of product ranges that it has developed

itself, such as Aranya veneer sheets, Wood-U-Feel and Waves.

www.finaspan.be

Challenge

Finaspan offers so many different combinations of wood types

and finishes that it is impossible to monitor the production

manually. The previous ERP system was custom-built and no

longer supported by the supplier. So Finaspan had to look for

a new system that could also efficiently manage the numerous

small orders.

Solution

With Ad Ultima and Microsoft Dynamics AX, Finaspan is

confident of long-term support. Ad Ultima also installed

UltimAX Wood, an add-on for Dynamics AX that it developed

itself, specifically for the wood sector. The ten office workers at

Finaspan switched to their new work environment without major

problems.

Benefits

• Also monitor small orders efficiently and flexibly• Respond quickly to customer enquiries• Shorter production cycle• Greater efficiency• Traceable products• Automatic production planning• Manage quality labels, unit prices and contract work• Customised work

•

« Our new ERP system also enables us to perfectly monitor orders with small numbers. So we are more flexible and can respond faster to customer enquiries. »Martin Hankar

ERP project manager at Finaspan

CUSTOMER CASE FINASPAN

Finaspan manufactures customised veneers sheets. The large number of possible combinations of dimensions, wood types and finishes means that a good ERP system is essential. That’s why Finaspan works with Microsoft Dynamics AX and UltimAX Wood, installed by IT partner Ad Ultima. UltimAX Wood is an add-on for Dynamics AX developed by Ad Ultima, specifically for the wood sector.

“Because of the economic crisis the orders are smaller, but our new ERP system also enables us to monitor orders with small numbers. So we are more flexible and can respond faster to customer enquiries,” explains project manager Martin Hankar. “In addition, we can complete orders more quickly because the production cycle is faster. This greater speed, efficiency and flexibility are important because our market is highly competitive.”

The ten office workers at Finaspan now work with Dynamics AX and UltimAX Wood for monitoring orders, invoicing, accounting and managing customers and suppliers. Even though they had to get used to the new work environment, there was little resistance to the change. “They were involved in the discussions about the customised modifications and they also received training. This probably explains the smooth transition,” says Martin Hankar.

Automatic planning

The customers mainly send in their orders by e-mail or fax. The staff at Finaspan convert these orders into product codes. UltimAX Allegro, the product configurator of Ad Ultima, puts together the product on the basis of these codes, after which the order is automatically integrated into the planning. “We used to make a weekly plan ourselves but now the system automatically updates the planning after every order,” says Martin Hankar.

The production manager still decides manually the sequence in which the orders will be carried out. The production consists of different steps, from adding the veneer to pressing the veneer onto a sheet and sanding down the panel.

Traceability thanks to barcodes

“We make 280,000 sheets a year,” says Martin Hankar. “An order can range from 1 to 200 sheets or more. Each day we make at least 1000 sheets but generally this includes 200 to 300 small orders. To monitor all these properly, we also use UltimAX Warehouse Scanning, the scanning solution of Ad Ultima. Each work order gets a barcode and after the final step in the production process the work order is signed off, and a barcode comes out the printer. The staff attach this barcode to the pallet, so that the sheets can always be traced.”

For the transport planning, Finaspan works with packs containing a maximum of 30 sheets, so that they remain manageable. “If an order contains more sheets, we divide these into several packs that each receive their own number,” says Martin Hankar. “With our transport module it is perfectly possible to go down to pack level, which is useful if the customer asks us not to deliver all the packs in one go.”

Calculating unit prices and monitoring quality labels

Ad Ultima modified Dynamics AX and UltimAX Wood according to the business processes at Finaspan. So they added additional options for cost price calculations. “We calculate our unit prices in euros per square metre, but the standard package works with unit prices per sheet” explains Martin Hankar.

With UltimAX Wood, Finaspan can now monitor the requirements for PEFC and FSC quality labels and make calculations for contract work. “Contract work determines the way in which we calculate the production time for invoicing,” says Martin Hankar. “We don’t sell products from a stock, but we manufacture them at the request of the customer. So every order is converted into an internal order. Ad Ultima has provided UltimAX Wood with all possibilities, combinations and product names.”

Export to Excel

The staff of Finaspan also use the standard features of Dynamics AX. This means they can easily export the information from AX to Excel. This is necessary, for instance, for calculating the return. Martin Hankar: “We buy raw veneer on pallets but there is always a proportion that is unusable because of natural defects in the wood, such as discoloration. For every pallet of veneer purchased, we calculate how much of it was usable. So we can monitor the quality of the supplier and determine the cost price of our veneer. For the reporting we use Atlas XL for Dynamics AX, which Ad Ultima installed for us.”

Long-term support

Finaspan used to have an ERP system in-house before, but this was custom-built. When the developers of this application left the software supplier, the knowledge to support Finaspan also disappeared. “That’s why we decided to change to a big company like Ad Ultima and a standard product from Microsoft,” says Martin Hankar. “This makes us confident of long-term support. In addition, Ad Ultima has extensive experience of automation for the wood industry.”

Even so, the ERP project at Finaspan did not always go smoothly. “We do not have our own IT department and also there was no project manager before I came to work at Finaspan,” explains Martin Hankar. “The manager had taken on this task himself but this created misunderstandings and false expectations. A manager speaks in business terms and not in IT language. This is how we discovered that it is important to clearly define the project structure and expectations of an ERP project beforehand. Ad Ultima continues to support our software. We already have some ideas for making even better use of the system and so getting even more return on our investment. For instance, we will try to make the monitoring of the production process even more efficient by using barcodes at each stage.”

AD ULTIMA

Beneluxpark 7

8500 Kortrijk

Tel: +32 (0)56 740 740

Fax: +32 (0)56 740 700

eMail: info@adultima.be

URL: www.adultima.beADULTIMAIMPROVING BUSINESS PRODUCTIVITY