Improving Performance in the Charleston Copier Rehab Facility - Essay Example

A key part of this function will be to provide more even flow from the distributors who are generally sending the copiers to be rehabbed in at irregular periods. Develop a system that enables Purchasing and the Parts Ordering System to reduce its workload. - Bring service parts inventory under control in two key areas: - Improve parts availability in order to reduce out-of-parts service stoppages. - Reduce unnecessary inventory overages in order to reduce overall inventory costs. - Assist Personnel in developing a longer-term time horizon for finding, hiring, and retaining workers in the rehab facility. With these issues addressed, we can anticipate three additional advantages: - Lower personnel costs, as we should target better retention, higher levels of skill due to training, and better employee morale in the center, - Higher quality on our “good as new” systems, as verified by a quality audit, - Better satisfaction levels from our distributors who sell our rehabbed computers, based on improved quality and shorter delivery times.

First Step: Get a Handle on Forecasting DemandAt present, the Columbia facility is in a “reactive” mode, which means that we go into action depending on the number and type of computers that come through the Receiving dock.  Since we have at least five years of history, we can first develop a model based on 5-year historical data which predicts the number of copiers which will arrive in any week or quarter.  Out of this analysis, we can also derive the seasonality or other factors which can influence cyclicality in our incoming flow of used copiers.

  Since distributors determine their shipping schedule, we would suggest that the Sales Manager be given ultimate responsibility to establish and maintain a receiving schedule, and work with Production Planning to keep the forecast up-to-date. Second Step: Determine Actual Processing TimePresently the Columbia facility’s actual time to rehab computers is hidden in the data.  We need to do a study which poses the following question: “If all the spare parts were available to our service line, how long would it take, from start to finish, to repair each of our major lines of copiers?