ERP Implementation for Fan Component Manufacturing
Moving from manual records to a connected, data
Garula Industries is a mid-scale manufacturer of injection-moulded fan components, including canopies, caps, and housings. The plant supplies clients such as Finolex, Maric Enterprises, and Amtech Industries. Production runs across two shifts on multiple injection moulding lines, supported by a dedicated tool room.
The plant generates a steady volume of operational data every day. Most of it still moves through paper registers, handover books, and disconnected spreadsheets. This case study reviews the current operating environment, identifies gaps across production, quality, logistics, and compliance, and outlines an ERP blueprint built around how the plant actually works.
The plant manages the full production lifecycle internally, from raw material receipt to finished goods dispatch.
Floor roles cover production operators, injection moulding supervisors, helpers, the QC team, and tool room technicians. Management includes the Vice President overseeing the plant, finance and logistics, purchasing, and security. The ERP and IT function is part of what is being proposed.
The plant runs on paper registers, manual logbooks, and verbal handovers. The data being captured is detailed and consistent. The issue is not the data. It sits in silos, is prone to entry errors, and rarely surfaces in time for anyone to act on it.
Shift handovers are recorded by hand, and operator-to-machine assignments sit in a handover register. Supervisors log hourly machine readings on paper. Downtime and rejection causes go into separate registers, with no alerts. In one sample shift, the team produced 3,588 units against a plan of 3,447. Loss time is coded (for example, LH-02 for Barrel Heatup) but is not aggregated for trend analysis.
Rejected pieces are logged with weight, defect type, and a link to the parent production order. Masterbatch colour codes are tracked across vendors with OK or Not OK status. Standard inspection for colour, logo, and font accuracy is not consistently performed. Post-rejection sampling against the customer-approved reference is part of the protocol but is applied irregularly. Around 20% of rejected material can be reclaimed and 50% of cartons salvaged, but the tracking remains manual.
Inward goods are logged by supplier, material type, and quantity, with receipts ranging from 1 kg to 2,500 kg. The material balance ledger is kept by hand. The Masterbatch formulation directory exists as a physical spec sheet, not linked to production orders. The component bag issue tracker shows sequential stock drops, with no digital reorder alerts. The grinding log records scrap recycled back into the line (for example, 37.30 kg Maroon and 43.10 kg Brown in one shift).
The dispatch register is maintained manually, with products logged by colour, quantity, and client. Several critical fields are missing, including transporter name, Bilty number, transportation cost, and delivery timestamps. Errors already flagged include wrong purchase orders shipped and missing tax invoices. There is no structured return protocol when a batch fails a post-dispatch check. E-way Bill generation is not linked to the dispatch workflow.
The plant runs 5S audits across 27 zones. In recent records, machines 1 and 2 were flagged as Not OK due to oil leakage and dirt. Electrical panel parameters are logged per shift with safe ranges defined. Mold wear is tracked informally; there is no issue-ticketing system for mold lifecycle management. Machine calibration data is incomplete, with no service-window alerts.
Each pain point maps to a recommended ERP module.
| Domain | Pain Point | Recommended ERP Module |
|---|---|---|
| Production | Manual shift handovers prone to information loss | Digital Shift Management and MES |
| Production | No real-time downtime tracking or alerts | Downtime Tracking Module with SMS and email alerts |
| Quality | Colour, logo, and font inspection not standardised | In-Process QC Checklists with digital approval |
| Quality | Rejected batch return protocol undefined | RMA workflow |
| Inventory | No digital reorder alerts | Inventory Management with MSL triggers |
| Inventory | MB formulation spec not linked to production orders | Bill of Materials integration |
| Dispatch | Missing transporter, Bilty, and cost data | Logistics and Dispatch Management Module |
| Dispatch | Wrong PO and quantity errors in shipments | Pre-Dispatch Verification and PO matching |
| Maintenance | No mold lifecycle or wear tracking | Asset and Mold Management Module |
| Maintenance | Machine calibration data gaps | Preventive Maintenance Scheduler |
| Compliance | 27-zone audit done manually on paper | Digital 5S Audit and Corrective Action Tracker |
| Finance | Transportation cost not tracked | Integrated Freight and Finance Module |
| HR | Attendance exceptions not flagged | HR and Attendance Module with exception alerts |
The recommended ERP is a modular, manufacturing-first platform built around the plant’s actual operating sequences. Every module maps to a documented pain point.
Digital shift handover forms cover operator, machine, and job assignment. A real-time hourly production counter compares output against plan and triggers variance alerts. Downtime logging uses predefined loss codes and aggregates into weekly loss reports. Runner wait time is linked to production order timelines for root-cause review.
In-process QC checklists cover colour, logo, and font accuracy, with mandatory sign-off at each checkpoint. A digital Masterbatch approval workflow ties OK and Not OK status to the production batch, and rejection codes (15, 16, 21, 22, 28) block further processing until cleared. The defect log captures defect type, piece weight, root cause, and operator on duty. Reference images support post-rejection verification, and a full RMA protocol provides traceability from dispatch back to the production batch.
A live inventory ledger generates automatic Minimum Stock Level alerts for PP granules, MB colourants, and packaging. BOM integration links MB formulation specs (ratios, codes, vendor) to each production order. The supplier-wise inward register replaces the paper log and reconciles against open POs. The scrap and grinding log is digitised, with reclaim percentage calculated against the 20% material and 50% carton rule. Barcode scanning for tool issue and return removes the manual entry errors that currently slip through.
A dispatch checklist covers PO verification, quantity match, and colour confirmation before loading. Transporter name, Bilty number, vehicle number, and transportation cost auto-populate from upstream records. E-way Bill generation triggers from the dispatch record. Delivery timestamps are captured digitally, with quality check sign-off linked to the receiving record. A finance exception flow handles in-house vehicle use, routing to a manual finance register with a zero-amount entry.
A mold lifecycle tracker covers shot counter, wear status, and the issue log per mold serial number. The preventive maintenance scheduler sends email alerts when service windows open. Electrical panel parameters are monitored automatically, flagging drift outside safe ranges (392 to 411 A; 224 to 239 V). Machine calibration records link to serial number, and missing calibration blocks production order sign-off.
A digital attendance register flags late arrivals, early departures, and absences. Shift pattern management covers day and night shifts with supervisor approval for leave. Gate pass and visitor records move to digital, with security alerts for flagged movements.
A digital workflow runs through Sample Plate Creation, multi-vendor colour matching, the review meeting, and PO issue. A vendor comparison module supports M-Sample review with a colour deviation score. Approval status is tracked with timestamps, and blocked POs cannot move into scheduling.
The most critical gaps identified during the review, with the matching ERP corrective actions:
The raw material and procurement layer is one of the most operationally critical areas at Garula Industries, and currently one of the least digitised. The operational review surfaced specific field-level and workflow-level requirements for the ERP.
Every raw material is registered with standardised fields.
| Field | Definition / ERP Rule |
|---|---|
| Material Name | Tracked consistently across modules; no free-text variants. |
| Material Code | Unique system-generated identifier; immutable once assigned. |
| Unit of Measure | Restricted to kg or Bag at material master level. |
| Material Type | PP Granule, Masterbatch, Packaging, Consumable. |
| Storage Location | Designated warehouse zone mapped to physical rack or bin. |
| Reorder Level | Auto-trigger threshold; raises a PR when stock crosses the floor. |
A core operational rule shapes how raw material is ordered against how it is consumed: ordering happens in kg, consumption in bags. The ERP supports dual-unit tracking, so POs are raised in kg while floor consumption is punched in bags. Reconciliation happens inside the system.
The flow runs through four stages:
The system tracks raw material type, purchase metrics, current stock level, and end-to-end material weights per batch. The rejection rule is strict: if a vendor batch fails quality testing, the entire lot is rejected. No partial acceptance, no rework. Rejected lots are flagged and the vendor scorecard updates automatically.
Two gaps require immediate attention. Inventory management is missing from the current system, resolved through a real-time inventory ledger with MSL-triggered auto-PR generation. Warehouse management is also absent, resolved through location-based storage mapping (zone, rack, bin) with movement logs.
A strategic review session, captured in the Nehra Ji review notes, identified non-negotiable design principles and inventory governance rules. These need to sit at the foundation of the ERP architecture, not be retrofitted later.
The ERP must support full end-to-end customization, with no locked templates or fixed workflows. Demand and market forecasting capabilities are required, projecting material needs from production schedules and historical order patterns. Inventory management is the immediate development priority. A floor stock rule applies: if material is already available on the shop floor, the Inventory Head will not approve further issue requests. The system applies a floor-stock check before any issue is approved.
The following pipeline is the backbone of all production and inventory transactions. Each stage is a gated checkpoint; no stage can be skipped or moved out of sequence:
Shop Floor Punching is the critical checkpoint flagged in the review. Material consumption must be punched at the machine level, not estimated after the shift ends. This is the reconciliation point between BOM quantity and actual floor usage.
Garula Industries has built strong operational discipline through rigorous manual documentation. The detailed registers, rejection logs, masterbatch spec sheets, and compliance audits already in place are evidence that the plant is ready for digital transformation. The data exists. The gap is in how it flows, connects, and translates into action.
The proposed ERP is not a replacement for that discipline. It is its natural next step. By digitising every register, linking every module, and automating every alert, Garula can move from reactive record-keeping to proactive plant management. Rejections get caught before they leave the machine. Stockouts are prevented before they halt the line. Every dispatch is verified before the vehicle moves.
The ERP shifts Garula from a paper-driven plant into a data-driven manufacturer, positioned for scale, quality consistency, and client confidence.
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