Using Found Labor to enhance margins with a Contract Packager Performance System

Traditional MRPs focus on demand planning and managing operational finances, leaving production management as an afterthought. The StellarPack solution goes a step further with a focus on production performance. StellarPack excels in organizing production goals, tracking performance, and communicating key performance indicators (KPIs) with the production team in real time.

The benefits of a modern production management solution include increased throughputs, precise scheduling, more accurate labor forecasts, and a more controlled “hot build” schedule. The result of these benefits is “found labor”. Found labor is the increase in production achievable from the same workforce due to a management action. The increased utilization of current workforce can help a packager succeed in a scarce labor market.

This newly found labor can be reinvested into production and multiply the impacts of a solution. For example, better throughput could result in more display units produced in a day, which further reduces the hot build list. This labor optimization improves contract packager operational performance.

Found labor can impact the planning department, as well. StellarPack helps organizations to create best practices focused on world class processes. The Master Scheduler, relieved of “fire drill” duties, can spend more time on customer service and managing exceptions and expectations. This eases stress on planners, reduces training time, and expands coaching opportunities—which can improve employee retention.

Some of our customers measure and track their found labor through the built in widgets and reports in StellarPack. When used as a metric like this, they can better focus on maximizing the productivity of their current workforce. Successful copackers use reporting and real-time productivity data to make agile, informed decisions. Engaging ERP tools like this unleashes an evolutionary leap into proactive production planning and management of production schedule yielding significant results.

Utilizing StellarPack Production Performance Solution to realize found labor can allow a contract packager to scale back hiring. This relieves strain on the production team and improves quality which, in turn, can also help increase throughputs. The benefits build on themselves and magnify the resulting improvements across the entire organization.