Innovative cable fastener and power tool manufacturer Grays Clip implemented manufacturing resource planning software even before their product hit the market.
Now the system helps ensure high product quality, efficient planning, and full traceability.
A new power tool for electricians
David Gray is an electrician-turned-entrepreneur from Northern Ireland who invented a new power tool that would change the lives of electricians worldwide. His inventions – the ViperClip and the ViperClip Gun – make fastening electrical cables during construction quicker, easier, and safer compared to traditionally used cable clips that are hammered in.
Business analyst experience drove to integrated software
As an experienced business analyst specialising in software selection and implementation, Julie Gray knew they needed a system in place that would integrate the whole operation.
“We wanted a system that would connect everything together, automatically exchange information between different departments, and reduce the amount of data duplication needed to keep everything up to date,” she says.
Julie got into evaluating different software offerings, but felt they were either too complex or too simplistic for their operation. Then, an acquaintance recommended MRPeasy and it clicked right away.
“MRPeasy is sat right in the middle in terms of ease of use and functionality,” she says.
Implementing the software before taking orders
Julie wanted the system to be up and running before they started accepting orders as she felt implementing while they were already fully operational would have been much harder.
Implementing the software was a joint effort between Julie, their Operations Manager Alex, and their product development consultant, Oliver. As the software implementation was done concurrently with the manufacturing process development, it took longer than usual for the solution to go live.
New system ensures quality and traceability
Now that the system is implemented and products are being shipped, Grays Clip uses MRPeasy to track each item’s journey from procurement through production to final delivery.
“Quality is very important to us,” Julie says. “We keep an eye on both our subcontractor’s quality data and perform extra quality inspections in-house. Serial numbers allow us to track the details of each product.”
The company also uses MRPeasy to manage customer returns. Having a digital trail associated with each product helps the team trace back quality inconsistencies from customer complaint to the root cause of the issue.
Accurate planning and seamless processes
The new software has also introduced meticulous planning into the company. After determining their projected demand, they can create manufacturing orders for whatever quantities of the product are needed. The software then looks at current inventory levels and production capacity and automatically calculates what needs to be ordered, when production can start, and how long it will take.
Julie also likes the fact that MRPeasy integrates with many other systems vital for their business such as ShipStation, Shopify, and Xero.
Price lists and labeling make day-to-day easier
As Grays Clip sells its products through various channels and to different types of customers, they also hugely benefit from MRPeasy’s price list functionality enabling the creation of different pricing systems, e.g., for bulk orders by distributors versus single items ordered through Shopify. Invoicing is also done via MRPeasy, which then synchronises the info with their accounting system and provides a convenient overview of pending invoices, cash flow, and other financial metrics.
The company also benefits from MRPeasy’s labeling system which automatically generates labels with barcodes and other product info.
Summing up Jule explains, MRPeasy is just easy to wrap your head around,” she says. “It’s a nice, simple, and clearly laid out system.”
