How MRAS managed to automate their Time Sensitive Material management

The traditional process of monitoring and managing material is mainly manual, where inaccuracies and human error are not uncommon. It often results in unused, expired, wasted materials, which obviously come at a cost for the manufacturer and have an impact on the environment (composite materials require special disposal methods). In today’s reality, where supply chain delays greatly impact on late arrival of new material and costs are up, it is even more crucial to avoid material waste as much as possible. Typically, when material is needed for production, an operator takes a roll from the freezer. In many cases, the operator chooses the closest item to the door and not necessarily the optimal one (in terms of length, expiration, and more). The operator may not choose a short roll because it’s easier to upload a new roll on a cutting machine. This leads to inefficiency and a bad remnant strategy. In addition, manual defrost time management also leads to wasted time that might lead to latency in delivery and bottlenecks. The operator manually records when the roll was removed from the freezer – a repetitive and time-consuming operation.