Supply Chain Management Services

Our Supply Chain Schedule Recovery services increase supplier on-time delivery (OTD) performance. Supply Chain Schedule Recovery service is applied to a focused portion of the customer’s supply chain that causes most shortage problems. Suppliers with unreliable delivery performance require visibility, problem-solving analysis, and improvement activities to correct the issues and ensure consistent future delivery performance.

Supply Chain Schedule Recovery services assess, measure, and improve supplier production while providing an accurate and timely status of parts on order. Many engineering and management techniques are utilized, including:

• Supplier Program Management
• Subcontract Management
• Lean principles
• Capability
• Capacity and Risk Assessments
• Root Cause Analysis and Corrective Action Management
• Production Control
• Supply Chain Analysis
• Sub-tier control
• Teamwork Facilitation

The aim of Supply Chain Schedule Recovery services is for suppliers to reach a performance level where on-site intervention is no longer necessary.

Depending on customer requirements as well as the complexity, maturity, and quantity of parts on order, suppliers typically receive Supply Chain Schedule Recovery services for a few months before transitioning to a lower level of supply chain management service such as Expediting services.

Production monitoring tracks all aspects of production in real time as parts are being made and applied to the shop orders with schedule details, finished product counts, and quality data. Production Monitoring provides rapid feedback on critical parameters such as Order entry, material receipt, production start date, production time, downtime, scrap, rejects, total parts created, and parts remaining to be produced.

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Expediting is taking the action necessary to ensure that deliveries are made on time and according to specifications. Expediting coordinates and accelerates the flow of work and materials within or between suppliers according to the production schedule, through the review of production schedules, order schedules, inventory levels, work in process (WIP), and shipment schedules.

Effective communication is critical with multiple supplier department supervisors on the progress of work, inventory levels, costs, and production problems. It is also critical for customers to report the progress of work, completion dates, and accurate shipping schedules.

Our Expediting Services provide monitoring and follow-up on the progress of critical path tasks. Our expediters provide visibility and the assurance that production will proceed as normal and minimize the risk of unexpected or undesirable delays, which could impact project deadlines.

A Supplier Capability Assessment is vital in determining the supplier’s true production capabilities for a specific product or contract. This assessment is ideal for complex products or critical path items and can be performed either pre-award or post-award.

The assessment is performed on-site at the supplier’s manufacturing location, utilizing industry-recognized best practices. Several areas are assessed, including:

• Manufacturing and Tooling Capabilities
• Facilities Capabilities
• Inspection and Metrology Capabilities
• Human Capital Capabilities
• Other areas may be added at the customer’s request

A Capability Assessment Report is provided to the customer, which includes:

1. Summary of the supplier’s capabilities
2. List of identified gaps and risks
3. Recommendations on best practice mitigation strategies

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A Capacity Assessment evaluates a supplier’s ability to meet current customer demand as well as any forecasted increase, assuring that quality product is delivered on time. The assessment is performed utilizing a risk evaluation approach derived from industry-recognized best practices in Quality and Supply Chain Schedule Recovery. The Capacity Assessment report provided to the customer includes a general overview of the suppliers and capacity, identifies any applicable risks and provides best practice mitigation strategies.

It includes, but is not limited to:

• Production Process Overview
• Production planning
• Machinery / Tooling
• Facilities
• Personnel
• Sub-tier suppliers
• Raw materials
• Past Quality performance
• Past Delivery performance

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We help customers develop a Supplier Program Plan from the ground up or make targeted improvements to underperforming areas of their existing Supplier Program Plan.

The journey begins by understanding the customer’s needs and establishing deliverables. From there, our team examines the customer’s current practices against the desired future state to uncover gaps and opportunities.

With actionable insights identified, we develop a tailored solution that meets the customer’s needs and approval. A project plan is created that defines client deliverables along with implementation actions, owners, and due dates. A responsibility matrix of the customer’s key process owners and stakeholders is also created to foster an inclusive approach.

Implementation is then accomplished using the Six Sigma approach of Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC). This approach is both rigorous and proven at ushering in organizational change from conception to validation that the solution had the desired results.

Customers are kept fully informed throughout the life cycle of the project. A program manager is assigned to meet regularly with the customer to report progress, review deliverables, and address any questions or concerns.

Our team helps customers improve the production costs, flow, and lead time for a specific product, production line, or an entire manufacturing facility. Key benefits include:

• Improving the quality of the final product
• Reducing cycle time to completion
• Eliminating waste
• Reducing costs
• Faster production lead times

A systematic and proven approach is utilized, drawing on tools and methods from Lean Six Sigma and Industrial Engineering disciplines. Using a 5-step framework, we work with customers to plan, implement, and capture benefits:

1. Establish Goals: The first step is to get clarity and alignment on the customer’s goals, pain points, and their symptoms. We then identify customer stakeholders and participants for an inclusive and collaborative approach.
2. Map the Current State: During this phase, the current state of the overarching production processes is identified and mapped to show inputs, outputs, and constraints of the process.
3. Identify Opportunities: Next, a physical walk of the production sequence helps visualize material movement, inventory buildup, and specialized processes/training. Optimization opportunities are identified, prioritized, and actionable recommendations are formulated.
4. Make Targeted Improvements: During this phase, the prioritized recommendations are implemented. A collaborative implementation plan is developed with the customer and identifies implementation actions, owners, and due dates.
5. Capture the Benefits: Once implementation actions have been completed, our team objectively validates the before and after results to ensure the expected effects have been realized.

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The supply chain has various risks that can disrupt your operations, increase costs, and erode customer confidence. As a result, the Aerospace and Defense industry has moved to increase the operational risk management requirements within the latest revisions of AS9100.

The expectation is that organizations will proactively identify risks and take action to reduce them to acceptable levels.

We can help by creating or improving your operational risk management program that delivers results while satisfying customer and regulatory (e.g., AS9100) requirements.

Using a 5-step framework, our supply chain management company works with customers to plan, implement, and control supply chain risks:

1. Determine responsibilities: Risk management starts with determining the parties responsible for tracking risks. This step is crucial in cross-functional teams, where different departments may have varying actions to complete.
2. Establish relevant criteria: The development of the assessment criteria will normalize evaluations consistently. Ultimately, this will assist in determining the level of acceptable risk and the risks that require addressing.
3. Maintain communication: Risk identification and severity analysis, once complete, need to be flowed to the appropriate functional stakeholders.
4. Develop a mitigation strategy: The highest-level risks may require mitigation strategies. Create a plan to deal with the risk and keep track of the mitigation actions you have taken for compliance. These records serve you by demonstrating your commitment to reducing risks and creating a reference for future use.
5. Plan for remaining risk: No supply chain risk analysis can eliminate every possible risk. Some mitigations require too much cost or effort. Accept and note these risks, then proceed with your operations.

We also offer a variety of on-site supplier risk assessments (i.e., capacity risks, capability risks, quality risks) that can be deployed pre-award or post-award as needed.

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Supplier performance management is an essential part of any procurement strategy, especially within complex supply chains. Our team takes the time to perform analytics and communicate results with suppliers worldwide so you can focus on other critical tasks. Our support gives you supplier visibility, helping to reduce risks and create a more reliable supply chain.

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