Honeywell off to a flying start with ERP software

Customer Story

With ERP service costs rising, Honeywell Aerospace decided it needed to do something. They turned to IBS for help.

Company background

Honeywell Aerospace is a leader in diversified technology and manufacturing of aerospace products and related services. The company's aerospace business focuses on unique developments in sophisticated avionics, flight safety products and systems, propulsion engines, auxiliary power units and wheels and brakes. Those capabilities, along with Honeywell's strong aftermarket service and support, enhance customer value by making air travel safer, more reliable and more cost-effective. In the air and on the ground, from the nose to the tail, the company's aerospace products can be found on virtually every type of aircraft in use, in nearly every region of the world.

In the UK, Honeywell Aerospace manufactures parts for both the civilian and military aviation industry. Its main products include environmental control systems, life-support breathing equipment and hydraulic systems. Honeywell Aerospace employs 900 people across two sites in the UK and had a turnover of EUR 134 million in 2002.

Business issues

Honeywell Aerospace has in excess of 400 customers. Orders are often placed up to a staggering five years in advance. The company’s demand-driven manufacturing processes mean that parts are often unique and need to be made to order. As a result, the complex manufacturing process can involve up to seven levels of bill of material as well as lead-times of up to 18 months. A robust, functional Enterprise Resource Planning software is a necessity to ensure smooth operations.

For the past 20 years, Honeywell Aerospace had been using a highly customized ERP system. The ERP software was run on a mainframe computer and had a department of over 20 analyst/ programmers devoted solely to maintenance and modification. This was both time consuming and costly.

Another debilitating factor that faced the company was the global decline of the airline industry, which seriously reduced the demand for parts. Honeywell Aerospace needed to trim the fat by cutting overheads and reducing time to market. Simultaneously, the company's entire business process was put under the microscope as part of the critical need to rationalise operations.

Honeywell Aerospace needed an ERP solution to an ageing problem. It was necessary to replace the heavily modified, archaic ERP system. The company required a less labor-intensive, modern ERP software, the implementation of which would result in the minimum of disruption for the users.

Solution and capabilities

The company decided not to waste further time and resources on an already antiquated, cumbersome and inflexible mainframe system and to move forward with a modern, integrated solution. The decision to choose IBS ERP software was driven by three key factors: cutting-edge technology, functionality and acceptable cost. No other vendor could match the IBS offering. Today, Honeywell Aerospace uses nearly every all ERP modules to run all aspects of its business - from manufacturing software to financial accounting software and company analysis.

A long history and focus on distribution software was another reason for Honeywell Aerospace choosing IBS, as the customer service process was an area in need of improvement.

The IBS ERP system consists of supply chain software, warehouse management systems, inventory management software, logistics software, manufacturing software, CRM, supplier relationship management, financial software, business intelligence software and e-business software. It speeds up sales and purchase processing, optimizes stock levels, minimizes errors and out-of-stock scenarios and enhances logistics planning.

Implementation

Implementation was a major challenge; however, feedback has been very positive and the 'slick and easy' interface, which forms part of the ERP system, made the switchover straight-forward for the users.

The keys to the successful implementation were to limit operational disruption and to ensure that the new ERP system was entirely functional when activated. IBS was running Material Requirements Planning (MRP) the day it went live. Invoices were being produced, goods were being shipped and purchase orders and job packs were being created within 24 hours. By the end of week one, the new integrated ERP solution was driving Honeywell Aerospace's business operations.

As a result of the successful UK implementation, Honeywell Aerospace decided to implement IBS ERP software at its French site to collaborate and integrate operations with those in the UK.

Benefits and value

One of the most important benefits for Honeywell Aerospace is the improvement in financial reporting, particularly with built-in integration tool for business intelligence. This easy-to-use and highly effective tool helps Honeywell Aerospace maximize profits and focus on KPIs. ROI on the investment is expected in two to three years. The benefits of improvement and modernization are equally important.

The French operation had an urgent need for a 'state of the art' ERP system and was able to take immediate and full advantage of the successful UK implementation of the IBS ERP solution.

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