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Printable Version
The Company
Since 1949, Ohio-based Steere Enterprises has been creating value-added
benefits for their customers with innovative plastics solutions. Their
patented Dual Process™ overmolding technology, dip molding and blow
molding capabilities have allowed Steere to maintain their standing as
a leading manufacturer.
In addition to being ISO certified, Steere
Enterprises is committed to comply with environmental legislation, regulations,
and is committed to preventing pollution and continually improving its
environmental performance and being a good community citizen.
Steere’s customers are made up of leaders
in the automotive, hand tool, lawn & garden, housewares, general industrial,
medical, sporting goods, fitness, hardware and electrical markets.
Software
EnterpriseIQ™ ERP software system, including: RealTime Production,
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), Preventative Maintenance, Payroll,
Project Manager, ShopData, Customer Relationship Management, Quality and
Warehouse Management modules.
Hardware
Oracle database with
windows-based server
platform.
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Information Drives Steere Enterprises' Success
A foremost international plastics supplier, Steere Enterprises
was founded in 1949 and has been on the leading edge of process development
ever since. The company produces a wide variety of products using three
main manufacturing processes: dip molding, blow molding and their patented
Dual Process™ overmolding technology.
In the 1950's Steere was the manufacturer behind the molded
plastic coin purse craze during which more than 20 million bendable coin
carriers were sold. In 1961, Steere pioneered the development of dip molded
automotive seat belts for General Motors.
One of the best results of Steere's technical expertise
is its Dual Process ™ patented overmolding process, which is used
exclusively for the company's automotive business. Combining blow molding
and injection overmolding, this connective technology reduces component
weight and cost while meeting stringent end-use requirements. This innovative
process has been the key driver of the Steere's growth in recent years.
In the past twenty years, Steere has focused its core efforts
on the automotive industry making under-the-hood air induction ducts and
assemblies which are used to precisely route air-flow within the engine
compartment. Automotive business now accounts for three-quarters of its
business. The company's consistent growth is the driving force behind
a new 54,000-square-foot dip mold facility at its headquarters in Tallmadge,
Ohio.
A recognized leader in the plastics molding industry, Steere
has received numerous honors from customers and the industry including:
- Chrysler Gold Pentastar Award
- Purodenso Supplier of the Year
- Fiskars Supplier of the Year
- O'Cedar Vining Supplier of the Year
- Governors Safety Award
As Steere Enterprises focused on growing its technical expertise
and innovative product offerings, the need for consistent quality information
regarding every aspect of the business became more than apparent. It became
a critical juncture in the company's progress. The company used a hodge-podge
of systems with a profusion of spreadsheets and pockets of data islands
throughout the company. With each department using a separate spreadsheet
package, the capacity to share data was very limited as well as inconvenient.
A fully integrated ERP system was necessary to overcome each department's
isolated data and establish a common system to unite operations.
Steere began an extensive evaluation process to find the
right system. This process included a needs analysis, an RFP with responses
from numerous vendors, detailed interviews with the top six vendors and
the final selection of Enterprise IQ from IQMS, based in Paso Robles,
Calif.
Designed to add business intelligence to the manufacturing
enterprise, EnterpriseIQ uses the latest technological advances to delivery
the industry's most comprehensive single-source single database ERP system.
EnterpriseIQ does not rely on third-party interfaces to achieve its broad
range of functionality. Instead, IQMS uses a single source database in
an easy-to-manage, cost-effective environment, powered by Oracle®,
the world's number one database. The single database solution provides
value in data visibility, virtually eliminates interface customization
and provides a smooth path for upgrading. In fact, IQMS provides free
upgrades for all seat licenses, making the system more economical over
the long term.
With a strong foundation in the plastics industry, EnterpriseIQ
provides plastics manufacturers like Steere with a solution that fits
well with their business and expands functionality with emergent requirements
More than any other system, EnterpriseIQ offered the most
complete data integration capabilities where accurate data from the production
process populates the entire system. This was most evident in the way
EnterpriseIQ integrates its RealTime module, which tracks machine production
in real time, and with the use of scanners in conjunction with the Wireless
Warehouse Management module. The ability to add modules as Steere grows
contributed to their interest in EnterpriseIQ.
System maintenance was another critical factor for Steere.
EnterpriseIQ's perpetual license, which provides all upgrades at no cost
with each seat license, adds financial value to the overall cost of ownership.
Steere had expected to add a full-time system administrator with its new
ERP system. IQMS' ease of administration and support made an additional
employee unnecessary, adding even more value to the overall EnterpriseIQ
system.
Within six months from the contract signing in June 2002,
Steere completed the EnterpriseIQ implementation including the core system
and additional modules such as RealTime, Wireless Warehouse Management,
EDI, Quality, CRM and Accounting.
Steere Enterprises currently has 31 concurrent EnterpriseIQ
licenses with approximately 50 users, 33 machines connected to and automatically
monitored by RealTime and multiple scanners in use with the Wireless Warehouse
Management module. Steere uses EnterpriseIQ at its two manufacturing facilities,
which operate 24/7, as well as its warehouse located on the company's
campus.
As the EnterpriseIQ system is continually updated with new
information, everyone in the company is working with the same up-to-the
minute data, which has a made significant difference in the way decisions
are made and the speed with which the company moves forward.
As an automotive supplier, Steere Enterprises relies on
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) to process business transactions with
their automotive manufacturing customers. The EnterpriseIQ EDI translator
assists and expedites the exchange of critical business data, enabling
Steere to meet their customers' demands for processing EDI transactions.
Since EnterpriseIQ's EDI is natively integrated with the
system, no cumbersome third party interfaces are necessary. EnterpriseIQ's
EDI translates incoming files directly and automatically generates outgoing
files for transfer back to customers and suppliers. EDI eliminates manual
data entry of incoming forecast and releases, and provides accurate generation
of outgoing messages such as Advanced Shipping Notices. The EDI interface
accommodates various industries including the AIAG supply chain recommended
business practices for EDI implementation. IQMS also offers programming
services to create templates for inbound and outbound files and can provide
training to customers who can then manage their own templates
Before EnterpriseIQ, Steere relied on faxed information
that was re-keyed into their system. As the number of company's trading
partners grew, so did the challenge of maintaining data integrity with
this approach.
The EnterpriseIQ EDI system has improved customer service, and allowed
the company to grow without adding to the data entry overhead while at
the same time improving data integrity.
For manufacturers like Steere, EnterpriseIQ's RealTime Production
Management system provides a true execution solution for implementing
lean strategies. RealTime gives manufacturers the substantial capacity
to reduce waste and optimize production with verifiable results.
Steere connects 32 machines at two plants to EnterpriseIQ's
RealTime system, which collects production data at the machine level and
feeds it into the system. Using RealTime, management and shop floor supervisors
can see exactly how each machine is performing at any given time.
On a job-by-job basis, Steere realizes significant production
gains from this detailed information. The company uses RealTime to:
- Monitor total cycle times for each job to track progress
and determine exact completion time.
- Use historical data, by job and by machine from monitored
cycled times, to maximize the scheduling of future jobs.
- Monitor rejects by machine and by tool to make improvements.
- Improve production reporting.
- Reduce manual data entry and improve data quality in
the system.
- Cross production information with preventative maintenance
module to schedule maintenance inspections and updates.
- Collect data by work order, part number to improve inventory.
- Print barcode labels for improved inventory tracking.
Clear visibility of data is one of the principal benefits
Steere receives from EnterpriseIQ, and this visibility has significant
bottom-line benefits. The company is able to close its financial books
more efficiently and whereas in the past it would take days to count inventory,
it now takes hours. Steere can grow without adding headcount, which has
significant financial savings for the company.
"We got more than we thought we were going to, "
said Curt Brown, CFO at Steere Enterprises.
With EnterpriseIQ, Steere can look at efficiencies and profitability
on a specific job, which is something the company was unable to do before
implementing EnterpriseIQ. According to Brown, EnterpriseIQ allows Steere
to analyze data to see where cost structure improvements can be made.
This is only possible with the data provided by EnterpriseIQ.
On a long-term basis, Brown believes Steere made the right
choice with EnterpriseIQ. According to his recent research, some of the
systems Steere evaluated in 2002 are no longer on the market whereas IQMS'
EnterpriseIQ is positioned to meet and exceed Steere's needs now and in
the future.
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