“Total ETO has given us the tools to win bids successfully and become a worldwide competitor.”
Tom Hirschler, Purchasing & Logistics Manager, Metform International Ltd.
Metform International, situated in Mississauga, Ontario, has been providing roll forming machines and coil processing equipment to the metal processing industry, for over 45 years. Applying experience and lessons learned to every customer’s project, Metform has developed a solid worldwide presence.
Size of Company
50 employees
Industry
Roll Forming & Coil Processing Equipment
Location
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
CAD
SOLIDWORKS
EPLAN
Accounting
QuickBooks
Business Challenge
Metform needed an MRP software solution that would help them grow their business.
Solution
After seeing how closely Total ETO mimicked their business structure, Metform knew it was the right solution to help them achieve the next level of success.
Dynamic Benefits and Results
Back in 2001, Metform was on the hunt for a Engineer To Order software solution that would help their company win bids as well as make them a competitive force worldwide. Streaming all of their information and being able to track past and present data was important to ensure projects would be successful.
After seeing how closely Total ETO mimicked their business structure, Metform knew it was the right solution to launch them to the next level of success.
In the dynamic world of custom design manufacturing, Total ETO’s integrated system provides staff at Metform with easy access to the information they need to communicate effectively, share, analyze operations, and make better decisions. Executives have real-time viewing of project and job progress and costing versus estimate with drill down analysis capability.
Designed specifically for the Engineer To Order industry Total ETO’s intuitive design made training easy, and Metform has found the knowledgeable staff at Total ETO very helpful with ongoing support over the years.
Metform now has one central database where data is entered and evaluated. This eliminates duplicate entry and clerical mistakes, and ensures the data is pure and accurate.
Total ETO allows staff to search purchase orders with as little, or as much, detail as needed to trace data back to previous purchases.
Metform now has access to over 200 pre-designed reports on all aspects of their business, which can all be exported to Excel, Word, and email.
The shop at Metform uses the Report Center Costing Labor report daily and “would be lost without it” states Tom Hirschler, Purchasing & Logistics Manager. The Costing Summary Job Cost detailed report is also used daily by all departments.
Custom design firms are particularly dependent on highly skilled and experienced staff, who often end up spending a great deal of time performing clerical tasks. Reducing these tasks not only speeds up the design process but also allows the firm to handle more business with the same staff.
Total ETO features a fast track spare parts order system, available in a single working screen. Metform staff are able to track particular parts, by purchase order number or date, within several projects and cost centres, and see order costs. This has eliminated the reliance on designers and buyers, allowing them to focus on more value added duties.
With Total ETO Metform can identify material costs including non-BOM requisitions, stock pulls, material returns and non-conformances by project, job or assembly.
Tom Hirschler states that “the ease at which purchasing can add Non-BOM items to the procurement screen is very efficient”.
Time and attendance alternatives include simple timecard entry, data collection services and bar code readers. All manufacturing information is automatically integrated into accounting, costing, payroll and project files.
A single screen work area allows buyers to automatically see all material requests submitted, and to view, group, and sort all requests by part, quantity, distribution, availability, lead time, and any other detail required. Design changes that result in negative demand are displayed in red for immediate action.
Total ETO allows Metform to create RFQs quickly, evaluate bids, issue, modify, and revise PO’s, and assign inventory. Buyers can purchase parts for single or multiple projects and jobs on a single PO, purchase to inventory or to indirect accounts. “The ability to put out RFQs for the same item to many suppliers at the same time via one email is just stellar”, states Tom Hirschler.
Total ETO is a true Engineer To Order solution and mimics the unique way Metform runs their business. This ensures Metform has the tools necessary to help them run their processes as seamlessly as possible, and build their business.
