Case Study: Western Tile Inventory Management System
Part 1: Problem
Western Tile, a marble and tile company near Seattle, faced significant challenges managing their inventory of thousands of slabs. They lacked:
- Visibility: Difficulty identifying slab locations, quantities, and usage history.
- Transparency: Inability to attribute slab usage to specific jobs for accurate billing.
- Reporting: Absence of reports on manufacturing activities, hindering production efficiency.
- Efficiency: Manual processes slowed down slab location, cutting, and delivery procedures.
- Organization: Remnant categorization lacked structure, making it difficult to find suitable pieces for new projects.
These issues led to lost time, inaccurate billing, and difficulties fulfilling customer demands.
Part 2: Solution
Nobious designed and implemented a robust inventory management system seamlessly integrated with Western Tile's existing Viewpoint Spectrum construction management software. This solution addressed the identified problems through:
- Barcode Scanning: Automated data entry for incoming slabs and materials, streamlining receiving and reducing errors.
- Real-time Tracking: Continuous monitoring of every slab's location within the warehouse using scanners and a web interface.
- Seamless Integration: Automatic data transfer between inventory and Spectrum, ensuring consistency and eliminating manual effort.
- Fabrication Management: Streamlined slab consumption for projects with quick scanning and integration into Spectrum.
- Remnant Management: Categorization and picture-based search of remnant inventory by color, shape, and size for efficient reuse.
Part 3: Implementation
Nobious worked closely with Western Tile to ensure a smooth implementation:
- System Customization: Tailored the system to Western Tile's specific needs and existing workflows.
- Employee Training: Provided comprehensive training to staff on using the new system and scanners.
- Real Time Integration: Assisted with seamless data migration from existing Viewpoint Spectrum systems to the new platform.
- Ongoing Support: Offered ongoing support and troubleshooting to ensure successful adoption and use.
Part 4: Results
Western Tile achieved significant improvements with the new inventory management system:
- Increased Efficiency: Reduced headcount and time spent managing inventory.
- Improved Accuracy: Eliminated manual errors and ensured accurate slab tracking and billing.
- Enhanced Visibility: Gained complete transparency into inventory levels, location, and usage.
- Streamlined Processes: Simplified slab location, cutting, and delivery procedures.
- Reduced Costs: Minimized waste and optimized remnant utilization, leading to cost savings.
- Improved Customer Satisfaction: Enhanced ability to meet customer demands accurately and efficiently.
Nobious’ project with Western Tile resulted in a successful inventory management overhaul. By implementing a robust and integrated system, they achieved improved efficiency, accuracy, and customer service, ultimately gaining a competitive edge in the market.
what western tile says
"Our internal processes were filled with manual entry and paperwork. The new Nobious system now allows us to track everything we need using barcode scanners and automated processes. We can take pictures of our marble slabs, scan vendor barcodes directly into the system and charge items directly to a job. And everything is integrated in real time with Spectrum.
We chose Nobious because of their Viewpoint product knowledge and we couldn’t be happier with the integration. There was plenty of communication and we felt they spent a lot of time to understand our processes."
Ronnie Simone
CEO, Western Tile
