Media Coverage
Supply chain: ARC Automotive implements collaborative inventory, supply management
Manufacturing News, Source: The Manufacturer US
2 November, 2006
San Mateo, CA, October 31, 2006—ARC Automotive, Inc., a global supplier of automotive airbag inflators, has signed an agreement to use TradeBeam’s Collaborative Inventory Management solution i-Supply, in an effort to improve the company’s inventory management and drive bottom line results. Moves like this are a bold and sweeping move for companies like ARC. As we reported in the November issue, collaborative and vendor-managed inventories are exciting ideas, but have largely remained just that—ideas—for about eight years. The usual complaints are hesitations about security; lack of interest on the part of the “spokes” surrounding the “hub,” that is, the suppliers to an OEM; the sheer sweep of such an implementation. All worth considering and overcoming, but if allowed to be dealbreakers, then inventories stay high and redundant.
ARC is rolling out i-Supply to ARC plants and its suppliers in the U.S., Mexico and China. “TradeBeam’s i-Supply product is a proven system, and we’re confident it will help us improve our supplier and inventory management and, ultimately, lead to bottom-line cost savings and enhanced customer service,” said Kenny Edwards, Vice President of Supply Chain Management at ARC Automotive. “TradeBeam’s solution and delivery model was appealing for a number of reasons. In addition to affording rapid implementation and superior functionality, the fact that the system can be accessed from anywhere provides a low cost option for communicating electronically with our supply base.”
Like many manufacturers, ARC Automotive needs to address changes in customer requirements and to communicate this information to suppliers as quickly as possible. The ARC team recognized the need to transition from a manual system of inventory management to the advanced system provided by TradeBeam in order to improve asset utilization, minimize excess inventory, avoid premium freight charges, and improve customer satisfaction. TradeBeam’s i-Supply will help ARC Automotive meet the challenge by bringing a high degree of automation to supplier management.
By leveraging and enhancing the key information locked within existing software systems, i-Supply makes value-added information visible to all participants in the supply chain. This accessibility leads to real-time execution of component replenishment and provides a collaborative environment where all parties can gain better control of their operations. Additionally, as ARC Automotive moves away from paper-based methods of supply chain management they will enjoy both increased efficiency and cost savings derived from electronic communication with its supply chain partners, and their customers will benefit from the dual advantage of improved on-time delivery and enhanced service.
“Effective supply chain management is increasingly vital to global manufacturers’ success, and automation is one of the keys to unlocking efficiencies,” said Graham R.F. Napier, CEO and President of TradeBeam. “ARC Automotive is a forward-thinking organization that is committed to taking the management of their supply chain to the next level.”
