Wealdpark’s long-term PSL Datatrack investment continues to pay back

Some 13 years after its initial investment in PSL Datatrack production control software, Wealdpark continues to benefit from the versatility of a system that has transformed the company's production control.

It was the looming 2008 financial crisis that was the catalyst for the decision to invest in a package that could control the day-to-day running of the business in a way that no amount of manual administration could ever achieve.

Wealdpark, based in St Helens, is a leading subcontract manufacturer of precision turned and machined components. At the time, the company's procedure for the generation of quotations, works orders and purchase orders required data to be input manually and repeatedly into Excel spreadsheets. This information then had to be entered into an accounts program for invoicing and financial recording. The whole process was long-winded, prone to error and was not giving the level of control that was needed to get through the recession.

The demonstration by PSL Datatrack was pivotal as director Phil Smith recalls: “Their demo mirrored our existing manual administration processes. It showed that the information that we had been laboriously putting into spreadsheets could be accomplished much more quickly and accurately with their software. This included generating quotations as well as works and purchase orders, which would then lead automatically into the customer invoicing process and the critical management of our quality assurance procedures.”

He continues: “The initial quotation is the key to everything. There are many variables that need to be considered for a quote including machining and cycle times, material types, quantities, costs and additional processes that may be required from different suppliers, such as heat treatment and plating, as well as swarf reclamation prices.”

The software automatically estimates the selling price based on all the cost variables and can then raise a professional quotation letter within seconds, ready to be emailed to the customer. Purchase orders for subcontractors and material suppliers are also handled accurately and based upon the requirements set out in the quotation.

After confirmation of a customer order, the paperwork required for the shopfloor to manufacture a part is a printed works order in the form of a process layout, an engineering drawing and inspection report sheets. A process layout sets out the machining requirements of any batch of components to be produced as well as the material type, quantity needed and stock availability.

The difference that PSL Datatrack has made to Wealdpark's multi-faceted production process has been proven year upon year. Subsequent investment in the Status Board system has brought further control to production as real-time order status information is displayed and available to everyone.

The display clearly shows which works orders are scheduled and due at any given time, allowing adjustments to production processes to be made as necessary. The company also invested in the Gauge Calibration module which has allowed the business to set recalibration requirements for any gauge based on its specific number of uses or a set time period.

Reporting shows the calibration status of every gauge in the system and any upcoming calibration requirements are easily identified. The module is particularly useful when BSI audits are due.

As a BS EN ISO 9001:2015 registered company, a major strength of Wealdpark is providing a high quality service that includes a commitment to supplying defect free products, manufactured with full traceability. Traceability information can be accessed by auditors at the click of a button rather than having to wade through reams of hard copy records. Audits are no longer a full-day visit.

“A lot of our business comes from recommendation and PSL Datatrack makes sure everything is right. Any of our three directors can log in and see exactly how we are performing. From a personal viewpoint, as a past president of the BTMA, PSL Datatrack's impact on the day-to-day running of the business freed up the time for me to focus on that important role too,” Mr Smith concludes.

PSL Datatrack
www.psldatatrack.com

Wealdpark
www.wealdpark.co.uk