Datastream Keeps Production Wheels Turning at Automotive Company

Textron Automotive Company (TAC) is the leading independent automotive parts supplier of instrument panels and plastic fuel tanks. With 14,000 employees worldwide in 51 manufacturing facilities, TAC works closely with automobile manufacturers to create high-quality components for some of the world's most popular vehicles.

At its facility in Born, the Netherlands, TAC manufactures interior components and door panels for the Ford Mondeo, Chrysler Voyager, Jeep Cherokee, and the Mitsubishi Space Wagon. The plant produces 3,000 parts per day for these four vehicles.

The Born facility has a staff of 18 maintenance professionals who are responsible for maintaining and servicing all of the equipment in the facility. The maintenance staff consists of electrical and mechanical technicians, maintenance engineers, and coordinators.

The Challenges
The automotive industry requires a precise production schedule, as each manufacturer feeds parts to the next assembly or manufacturing plant. Any lost production time costs these manufacturers time—and money—while slowing the production time at the next level.

The maintenance department at the Born plant responds to over 800 work orders each month. Although a majority of this work is planned, routine maintenance, there is always the occasional "emergency" that requires immediate attention.

"If a machine breaks down, we have a problem," says Fred van de Bongard, maintenance coordinator at Born. "We have to make sure that the machine is running again quickly in order to meet production demands."

The maintenance department struggles to find the right balance between preventive maintenance (PM) and corrective maintenance. With nine technicians performing maintenance throughout the facility, scheduling is an important part of the management process.

"Scheduling of labor is a pressing concern for our staff," van de Bongard says. "We need accurate information at all times to ensure that our staff has the best data available. It would be almost impossible to operate this department without some computerized system."

The Solution
To meet its asset management needs, TAC's facility in Born purchased Datastream's award-winning software. Datastream's software acts as the single source for all maintenance details at the Born site. All relevant information about equipment performance, labor scheduling, required parts, and other asset-related information is in the Datastream system. The software also helps schedule equipment maintenance—both routine and emergency—and allows maintenance planners to assign tasks to the proper personnel.

"Datastream's asset management solution is a great tool for organizing the maintenance process," van de Bongard says. "Every week, we generate the scheduled tasks for that week. When the technicians complete the task, they record anything unusual on the work orders. We can then analyze that information to see what the problem is."

When the Born facility began to use Datastream software, they filled it with accurate equipment data about the performance and service history of each piece of equipment. After over nine years of service, the company's Datastream solution contains extensive information about the assets and their history.

"If you input good data into the database, you get very detailed and useful reports," van de Bongard says. "It's a beautiful system. At any point in time, you get a view on the capability of your equipment to keep on pace with production. That is very important in the automotive industry."

The Results
One of the most noticeable benefits of Datastream software is the information provided to make decisions. At Born, technicians record equipment data on the work orders. That information is then keyed into the equipment database. Using this information from routine inspections and PM tasks, van de Bongard and his staff are able to actually predict problems before they appear.

"When we receive some information that a piece of machinery is performing out-of-limits, we immediately send it to the engineers," van de Bongard says. "They can analyze the latest information versus the trends in the database. If there is a problem, it shows up easily. We can often catch problems before they occur."

Upper management also enjoys this information, using it to make decisions on equipment use and replacement. Datastream software's reporting functionality allows van de Bongard to use the information in the database in easy-to-use reports.

"Management realizes the value of all of the information Datastream software provides," van de Bongard says. "Each week, they target a different set of equipment to find the most effective use of those machines. They use the reports we generate in Datastream software to control equipment and make decisions."

With so much information available, van de Bongard admits that Datastream plays an integral part of the Born facility's maintenance operation. "Datastream lets us report to management and to our own staff. You can schedule everything for the employees, including holidays when they will be unavailable," confirms van de Bongard. "For me, Datastream software is a fantastic tool. With the push of a few buttons, I can see a detailed history of any piece of equipment. That type of information is indispensable."