Celestica, a wholly owned subsidiary of Onex Corporation, is one of the three leading worldwide players in the electronics manufacturing industry.Celestica makes electronic components such as memory boards and power systems for computer and telecommunications systems. And Celestica is among Canada`s largest exporters of manufactured goods, providing a full range of services to its worldwide customer base - from design, manufacturing and testing through to after-sales service.The $2,6bn, 5 500-employee company operates a one-million square-foot manufacturing complex in Toronto and additional sites in New York State, California and the UK.So where do they get their edge? "We are distinguished by our current and developing technologies," says Trent Owen, manager, materials logistics. "We offer customers a turnkey solution with complete support services, including electronic interface for quick response."But back in 1993 Celestica faced a major roadblock. Since 1951, Celestica had been the manufacturing facility of IBM Canada, but in the early 1990s IBM was looking to divest itself of manufacturing. The problem was, the Toronto manufacturing operation was intricately linked with IBM`s host-based corporate computer infrastructure and couldn`t operate as a separate company."As part of the IBM family, we were completely dependent on their materials requirements planning (MRP). If all our business was internal the system worked great," says Owen. "But trying to manage our own general ledger for external customers - including customer credit and contracts - was impossible. Unless we could find a way to extricate ourselves, we couldn`t stand alone."The key: independenceSo the search was on for a platform and product that would let Celestica chart its own course. "We were looking for a system to replace our legacy software that would allow us to run a very big manufacturing company across the total range of customers and requirements," says Owen. Where did Celestica turn?During 1993 a cross-functional team of employees assembled to analyse products based on their own application requirements. They chose BPCS from SSA.BPCS gives Celestica an integrated, enterprise-wide manufacturing solution. It comprises finance, procurement, engineering, manufacturing, materials and distribution running on IBM AS/400 models 310 and 320."BPCS is all-encompassing, touching all functions in the company," Owen explains, adding that Celestica is now the biggest, single-site installation of BPCS in the world. "It met all our criteria and offered a full complement of function for the various disciplines."The AS/400 platform was also a deciding factor," he continues. "We felt it was a platform that could support our needs into the future. It was a sound, tested, proven set of hardware."During 1994 and 1995, Celestica carefully phased in the installation of BPCS which involved everything from custom tailoring the software to adding complementary PC support tools such as UserVision to simplify data management. User reaction varied according to individual business requirements and comfort level with the product.Despite some of the hurdles, Owen calls SSA support "exemplary". "They brought the talent and the business and technical experience to the table that we needed.Driving productivity through changeWith BPCS, Celestica "made that major step from interwoven, interplant operation to a self-contained, standalone company," Owen says. "It`s allowed us to extricate ourselves from IBM. And there aren`t many products that could have done that."Because of its transaction-based focus, BPCS highlights process issues, which are ripe for change, resulting in improved productivity. For example, bill of materials problems are highlighted so that materials consumption can be corrected. Stocking problems are instantly pinpointed thanks to improved cycle counting. Overall, it allows them to support customer requirements with improved flexibility.Purchasing is another area where BPCS really shines according to Owen. A powerful module called Repetitive Supplier Scheduling (RSS) lets them take output directly from the materials requirement system and broadcast schedules directly to suppliers within minutes of running the MRP. The advantages? RSS reduces the historically significant costs associated with managing 60 to 100-day supplier purchase order turns and allows more flexibility in responding to suppliers; meanwhile, suppliers save money because they don`t have to alter orders moving back and forth.With BPCS, information is available with the touch of a button. Thanks to the totality of the information in the database and sophisticated tools within the finance modules, executives can instantly and easily review financial performance.The future: fuelled by technologyToday, rapidly growing Celestica has expanded into a worldwide presence by acquiring a Hewlett-Packard manufacturing facility in Fort Collins, Colorado plus UK company D2D (Design to Distribution) which also has a small facility in Irvine, California.Celestica plans to continue with acquisitions making BPCS Client/Server a perfect fit since it runs on multiple platforms. This multiple platform capability was a key consideration in the selection process as it is essential for future systems integration. As for Celestica`s own solution, says Owen: "We believe BPCS and AS/400 give us a powerful, worldwide technology advantage because SSA and IBM are partners we can grow with."By entering into a long-term enterprise agreement with SSA, Celestica has access to worldwide support as well as input into future BPCS base code through a partner development programme. Upgrading to the latest release of BPCS and AS/400 Advanced Series in 1998 will propel them into the technology of the 21st century. Owen believes: "The partnership we have established with SSA will provide significant mutual benefits in the long term."Going down the road we were on we simply couldn`t have divested from IBM," Owen continues. "Given that IBM wanted to divest we had to be in a position to stand on our own two feet. BPCS was the route to get there.`
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