The system ensures that the company has visibility into the location of every tool when it is needed for product manufacturing, thereby preventing production delays that could otherwise result from having to manually search for the large tools.
Voestalpine Polynorm produces auto parts for new custom car body orders, as well as replacement parts for existing vehicles. For instance, the company manufactures vehicle hoods from large sheets of metal. Up to six actions are undertaken for a single car hood, including drawing, cutting and pressing. The outer and inner portions of the hood each require five or more operations. The support parts for that hood - of which there are about six - also require large tools to press and cut them. Altogether, the factory may use 20 different tools, each weighing up to 30 tons, to make a single hood.
