The
Company:
Robinson & Mornin Bookbinders (RMB) was established in
1979 as a traditional library and hard case bookbinding company.
As the company has grown over the years it has kept pace with
market trends and technology which has seen a substantial
growth in the paperback and magazine market. Books can be
different sizes, extents (page numbers) and numbers of sections.
On top of this, orders can be for large or small quantities.
This variety adds up to a time consuming process when it comes
to estimating set up, and run times, hence costs for jobs.
The Project:
Growth in the high volume paperback and magazine market has
resulted in a great increase in the number of estimates being
produced. The key requirements were to design a simple programme
that would take the variety of possibilities used in cost
calculations, and to then speed up the process.
Making it Happen:
An MTP Field Officer made contact with the
company and arranged a visit. After reviewing all the processes
and identifying all the parameters that could affect cost,
run-time and labour required with Trevor, a practical and
affordable means of applying a programme was needed. Prior
to this RMB was only using computers on machinery and for
office accounts. MTP‘s Field Officer then suggested
that a PC based spreadsheet could be utilised to apply Trevor’s
knowledge and process costing calculations.
The Result...
The costing model has been refined over a period of several
months and is still being improved. However it is estimated
that there have been significant benefits, for example, thirty
minutes of managerial time per day is now being saved. Estimates
are produced more efficiently which improve revenue and the
Net Present Value of savings over a six-year period is £17,500.
In addition the company has been introduced to a means of
using simple, everyday software products to control and plan
production.
Trevor
Robinson:
“RMB as a whole has benefited immeasurably from the
involvement of MTP in this project. Their staff are committed,
caring professionals with the flexibility to suit today’s
rapidly changing business environment.”
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