Transferring Existing Jobs

With global competition increasing, and online reverse auction houses like FreeMarkets becoming more popular, existing jobs are commonly transferred from one molder to another. FreeMarkets has made finding less expensive molders extremely easy, but there are always consequences to transferring a job. In many cases, even though the new molder might bid to manufacture the part at a lower price, they may not anticipate the problems that can occur when taking in existing business. The new molder, submitting the lowest bid, might not have experience in the type of part he/she is bidding on, and may not be able to meet the Critical to Quality (CTQ) Parameters.

Critical to Quality Parameters – The needs of the customer. The term ‘customer’ includes everyone who comes in contact with the product throughout its life cycle. CTQ’s are measurable and quantifiable parameters sufficient to describe customer requirements and expectations.

This section will discuss some of the problems associated with transferring jobs, and the steps to take to minimize problems and added cost.

History of the Tooling

Before the tooling is pulled from the current supplier, a lot of information should be gathered while the supplier is still willing to give it out.

1) Obtain updated tooling and part prints. Make sure that the revision levels of the prints are up-to-date, and that the actual part matches the print. Make sure all tooling modifications are also on the tooling prints. Many times, parts are changed but the prints are not updated. Accurate prints are critical to obtaining reliable quotes from potential suppliers.

2) Try to find out any problems the existing supplier is having with the part. This would include tooling maintenance, meeting part tolerances, scrap percentage, etc. Three important values to look at are utilization, productivity, and efficiency.

3) Try to find out all of the processing and manufacturing parameters. The supplier may not be willing to give up this information, but it is very helpful for quoting purposes. Some important values are:

a. Cycle time

b. Type and size of manufacturing machine

c. Type of packaging

d. Type of material

e. Average amount of scrap produced

f. Secondary operations (painting, decorating, trimming, flash removal, assembly, etc.)

g. All of the equipment associated with the secondary operations

4) Find out how the parts are measured, and which dimensions are measured and monitored. Find out if there are special gages or fixtures used to measure the part.

Evaluate the New Supplier

The most important part of this process is evaluating the new supplier(s) to make sure they are capable of meeting the critical to quality parameters. It is critical to provide the new supplier with enough information for them to provide an accurate quote. Take the following points into consideration.

1) Make sure the new supplier understands the current tooling situation, along with any maintenance costs. If they are bidding on a job with just a part print to look at, they will not consider tooling maintenance. Maybe the tool needs to have $2000 core pins replaced every two weeks… the new supplier should have this information.

2) Provide the new supplier with all of the information obtained concerning the history of the tooling. This includes the up-to-date part and tool print, processing information, and measuring procedures.

3) If possible, provide the new supplier with an actual part. This can make quoting a lot easier, quicker, and more accurate. Solid parts are always easier to visualize than two-dimensional drawings.

4) Someone who is familiar with the new supplier’s type of manufacturing should tour the facility where the part is to be manufactured. This will help decide whether or not the supplier is capable of making the part to specification.