Most ERP errors in metal plants come from the same place: data written on paper at the machine and typed into a system later. Automating capture at the source fixes that. Here are four places to start.
1. Weighbridges and scales
Weight is the unit of value in metal. When weighbridge and scale readings post straight to receipts, production and dispatch, weight gaps between stages become visible per coil or bundle instead of at month end.
2. Machines and furnaces
Connecting machines and furnaces through IoT captures running hours, line speed, temperatures and stoppages automatically. That makes downtime analysis and energy per tonne possible without manual logs.
3. Mobile entry at the line
Where a sensor isn't practical, a mobile screen at the line lets operators record run, setup and downtime as it happens, with reasons, instead of at the end of the shift.
4. Test results
Recording test results against the lot they belong to lets the system hold failed material automatically and build certificates from data.
What changes
When data is captured once at the source, every department works from the same live record. Stock, WIP, yield and quality stop being reconciled and start being simply known.
Read how clients made this shift in our case studies.
