Simplifying the journey to Oracle EBS

TBA Group is a premier manufacturer of automotive interior systems, which includes the seat, door trim, headliner, substrate, and carpet in addition to air and oil filters for a variety of customers such as Toyota Motor Corporation and General Motors.

Like any large manufacturer TBA has a highly complex production system and at one point used as many as 14 different accounting systems. The reliance on manually
maintained Excel spreadsheets for scheduling and long-term planning, coupled with an inefficient picking system, led to many delays and errors. For example, time to close could take up to 45 days.

TBA needed to reduce its dependency on manual spreadsheets as well as streamline and automate the Outside Processing (OSP) and receiving process to make picking
faster and more accurate. The company chose Oracle E-Business Suite (EBS) to enable better decision-making at scale, increase performance, and reduce costs. But lacking specialized knowledge, TBA needed an experienced implementation partner.

“We went through a series of different discussions with vendors,” explains Steve Mosquera, Senior Manager, TBA. “And when we came to Fujitsu, the answer was clear. They spoke our language. They really understood where we were coming from. We already had a relationship with them in Japan so there was accountability and there was a sense of teamwork that we had with them right out of the gate.”

Fujitsu successfully rolled out the Financial and Supply Chain Management (SCM) modules of Oracle EBS, introducing a tailored solution for enhancing the accuracy of the picking process. This solution involves the scanning of internal totes and customer labels to ensure item matches, alongside performing quantity verifications through Oracle Mobile Supply Chain Applications to reduce errors in picking and shipping.

Furthermore, Fujitsu developed a streamlined automation process for managing Outside Processing Shipments. This process includes the scanning of totes and generation of Bill of Lading (BOL) documents, which are critical legal documents specifying the goods’ type, quantity, and destination. Now, tasks related to part movements, purchase order (PO) creation, and the printing of shipping documents are automated, significantly saving time for the TBA employees.

“Now we have one source of truth”, explains Steve Mosquera. “Our data is centralized in one area where we can understand what is happening in the company at any given moment. Everybody can understand what the current conditions are and therefore make better decisions and improve performance.”

Customized programs and reports now leverage Material Requirements Planning data to refine scheduling and planning, taking into account resource capacities and availabilities, thus improving efficiency at the resource level. Enhancements in customer satisfaction are realized by reducing instances of mislabeling and shipping errors, while cost savings stem from a decrease in the need for expedited shipments. Additionally, employee engagement has improved as the system now automates data generation, eliminating the need for manual maintenance by users.