Spacesaver Corp., storage provider, will use IFS Applications for shop-floor scheduling

IFS said Spacesaver Corp. will implement IFS Applications to simplify shop floor scheduling and streamline its business processes.

January 5, 2010

Spacesaver work in process storage

Spacesaver Corp. said it is the world’s leading manufacturer of high-density mobile storage and filing systems, as well as steel shelving and related accessories.

IFS (OMX STO: IFS), provider of enterprise applications, said Spacesaver Corp. of Fort Atkinson, WI, a division of KI, Green Bay, WI, will implement IFS Applications to simplify its complex shop floor scheduling and streamline its business processes. Spacesaver will be implementing IFS Financials, Distribution, Manufacturing, Engineering, Maintenance, and Sales & Support, IFS said.

Spacesaver manufactures in a variety of environments, including mixed-mode engineer-to-order (ETO) and configure-to-order (CTO) to produce highly-customized storage solutions. Products range from compacting shelving systems and storage cabinets to evidence lockers and weapons racks. Spacesaver products are manufactured to the specific storage needs of each customer to store almost anything – from preserving the rarest artifacts at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa to providing quick access to essential patient-care supplies at Thedacare’s Appleton Medical Center in Wisconsin.

"Our current enterprise solution didn’t fully support our various modes of manufacturing, so we decided it was time to look for a more effective enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution," Spacesaver Vice President of Finance Mary Schrimpf said. "We needed a new solution that had the flexibility to support our Project/ETO and CTO manufacturing with a strong solution for our complex shop floor scheduling needs. After much consideration, IFS proved they offered the best integrated enterprise solution for our complex business needs."

IFS, developer of applications for complex engineered products for more than 20 years, provides the "experience and the industry-specific tools to help engineer-to-order and mixed-mode manufacturers become leaner, more agile, and better equipped to deliver their products on budget, on time, every time," according to IFS North America President and CEO Cindy Jaudon.

Industrial manufacturing is one of IFS’ targeted markets. IFS has a broad customer base in the industry, focusing on medium to large-sized manufacturers that need support for complex order-driven and mixed-mode manufacturing across the extended enterprise. With strong support for project management, engineering, advanced scheduling, product configuration, and after-sales support, IFS said its component-based business solutions are designed to help companies improve quality, contain costs, and improve their competitive position in manufacturing industry segments such as machinery, defense, fabricated metal products, and plastics. Industrial manufacturing companies also benefit from IFS’ lifecycle management solution, which goes beyond product lifecycle management (PLM) to provide better integration and management of three critical business areas-products, customers, and resources-throughout their lifecycles. IFS Industrial Manufacturing customers include Aeromatic-Fielder, Colfax Corp., Star-Cutter, J&H Machine Tools, Chief Industries, Konskilde, Nolato Group, Bombardier, Partnertech AB, Hercules Sealing Products, Todd Pacific Shipyards and InkCycle.

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– Edited by Mark T. Hoske, online products editor, Manufacturing Business Technology, MBT , www.mbtmag.com.