Instrument maker follows the rules to ease complex configurations
Staff -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 3/1/2005 12:00:00 AM
The challenge for the sales staff at JEOL USA, a Peabody, Mass.-based maker of microscopes and other instruments, is a particularly common one among manufacturers of engineer- and make-to-order products. They must quickly calculate price and delivery times of multiple product configurations, while at the same time ensuring that requested configurations follow the appropriate engineering rules and production constraints.
For an automated assist, JEOL went to CodeLab Technology Groupfor its Rules-Based Quotation System (RBQS). This software utility interfaces with many ERP and CRM systems, and supports both Oracle and SQL databases.
David Ritchie, CEO, CodeLab, explains that what JEOL needed was "software that provides sales agents and customers with real-time information that is accessible during the course of the customer interaction."
RBQS—which has remote wireless access capability—interfaces with JEOL's Glovia ERP package, and lets sales agents enter, save, and modify multiple quotes. Customers get instant feedback on whether requested modifications are possible, and how they will affect pricing and delivery dates.
With the tool, JEOL reduced overhead and increased efficiency, eliminating redundant data entry, manual entry errors, and hard-copy documents. Sales cycles also are reduced because the system prompts for all the necessary information and ensures complete documentation.
RBQS removes bottlenecks in quoting because use of engineering rules leaves the sales staff less reliant on senior engineers for answers to configuration questions.
"The real improvement for JEOL has been tied to people more than money," says Ritchie. "Due to the complex nature of JEOL's products, it was a real art to put a quote together. RBQS has simplified that and speeded the process."
RBQS is one of a number of configurator products from vendors in the rules-driven product management (RPM) arena, including RuleStream, Cardonet, Cadence, and RulesPower. RPM solutions allow customers, sales partners, and sales engineers to configure products that best fit customer needs.
The goal of RPM applications, says Jim Brown, president of research at consulting firm Tech-Clarity,Media, Pa., is to help manufacturers of engineer- and make-to-order products avoid the penalties—high cost, long lead times, and disrupted production schedules—traditionally associated with customization.
