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case study
Brick Kiln Composites
Javelin, A “Major Factor” In Brick
Kiln’s ISO Automotive Accreditation
The Javelin advanced production planning and control system played
a major role in a Formula 1 specialist gaining an automotive industry
ISO accreditation.
Brick Kiln Composites are a long-established manufacturer of carbon
fibre components for Formula 1 and a sports car team, with around
50 of their parts on a car in each race, ranging from electrical trays to
aerodynamic aids directing air past the vehicle.
About The Company:
Name:
Brick Kiln Composites
Business:
Manufacturer of carbon fibre
components.
The Oxfordshire-base company currently produce thousands of
different parts a year using three autoclaves, a 5-axis Haas vertical
mill and Bridgeport 3-axis machine, and are now looking to expand
into manufacturing components for road cars.
Web:
http://www.brickkilncomposites.com
“With fuel economy being a priority nowadays, high end vehicle
manufacturers are incorporating lightweight composite components
into their build, especially luxury cars such as Bentley, Rolls Royce,
McLaren, BMW and Jaguar Land Rover,” says General Manager
Ronnie Dean. “Everyone’s looking to make their vehicles lighter.”
•
Helped achieve ISO accreditation
•
Improved Invoicing System
•
Complete visibility at every stage
In order to add this new work to their existing portfolio, they are
planning a mezzanine floor across the entire 12,000 square foot
facility and building new workshops to double their manufacturing
capacity, along with employing additional staff and setting up a
training programme.
Comments:
Although they adopt one of the most advanced techniques for making
composite components – using prepreg carbon fibre reinforcement
cured under heat and pressure to produce quality parts with a high
structural performance – many companies will not even accept a
quotation without ISO accreditation. “So we needed the ISO 9001:2008
quality standard for the manufacture of parts and accessories for road
vehicles and their engines, in order to be considered.
“Thanks to Javelin, we were already operating to ISO standards, so
our audit only lasted two days. Javelin enabled us to demonstrate all
our systems onscreen in the office, proving our traceability, how we
know exactly what’s happening on the shop floor, and who’s working
on which parts.” He says Javelin was a major factor in achieving ISO
accreditation, and will grow with the company, keeping them in total
control of all their procedures. “Javelin is all set to play a vital role in
our automotive business – it can support a company with 500 staff
just as easily as it does a company like us, currently with around 20
employees.”
Vero Software Limited
Hadley House, Bayshill Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL50 3AW, UK
Tel : +44 (0) 1162 725700 Web : www.javelin-mrp.com
Benefits Achieved:
“Javelin is all set to play a vital
role in our automotive business
– it can support a company with
500 staff just as easily as it does
a company like us, currently with
around 20 employees”
Ronnie Dean
General Manager
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case study
Shop Floor Data Capture is used extensively throughout their
manufacturing process, with terminals sited in seven departments,
including clean room, inspection room and trim shop. Crystal Reports
also prove invaluable in giving live updates on a component’s progress
through the factory, especially for motorsport customers who have
short lead times. “We often receive the mould tool in the morning and
the customer wants the component the same day.”
As they develop their automotive business Production Manager Nick
Brew says they anticipate needing to make full use of Javelin’s powerful
production control functionality. “With the automotive industry’s longer
timescales, we’ll be using Javelin’s planning and scheduling modules
all the time.”
In particular he expects the ‘What if?’ finite and infinite integral
scheduling capabilities to come to the forefront. The same work load
can be tested using various scenarios and manufacturing rules, and
the results compared either graphically or tabular. Based on Brick
Kiln Composites’ own factory model, the system provides the key to
minimising Work-In-Progress, keeping lead times to a minimum, and
improving delivery performance, as well as reducing costs.
With the Works Order being a core element of Javelin, it controls
the progress of work through the entire process, with a full set of
monitoring and tracking routines ensuring complete visibility at every
stage.
Another massive plus for Brick Kiln Composites is how Javelin
improved their invoicing system, along with overall traceability.
Invoices are sent from the Group’s head office in Wantage, and were
previously typed by hand. Now Javelin generates them automatically,
and quickly.
And Nick Brew says any query about delivered parts is easily resolved.
“As soon as we need to find something we can trace it extremely
quickly with Javelin. And we’re able to look back and see what
materials went into everything, who made it, and when it was made.
“We’ve got the full material history. Everything about every component
is on the Javelin database, so we can go back and look at the date
of manufacture, how it was manufactured, and what material went
into it.”
The uncured prepreg carbon fibre used by Brick Kiln Composites is
ideal for the type of lightweight components which are becoming more
important to the automotive industry. It is easy to handle, and can be
cut and laid precisely into detailed and accurate moulds, making the
process ideal for the complex parts that are becoming increasingly
more important to the automotive industry. The ease and accuracy
with which the material can be templated and cut significantly reduces
waste compared to other manufacturing methods.
Vero Software Limited
Hadley House, Bayshill Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL50 3AW, UK
Tel : +44 (0) 1162 725700 Web : www.javelin-mrp.com