Optimus dash for Packaging allows users to easily create rapid quotations regardless of complexity, through its highly configurable question-driven front end. The system was highlighted at the recent Africa Print expo.
Dash provides the ability to create quotes in seconds irrespective of print process or substrate. Quotes are easily converted into fully specified production jobs with all materials required, estimated costs and final invoice values automatically created, without the need to duplicate or re-key information.
The flexibility of the dash Sales Enquiry System has allowed Optimus to create an estimating system that is specifically targeted at folding carton production, incorporating support for all operations in the production of folding cartons, starting from design and CAD/CAM, pre-press, printing and coating plate production, printing with various options for in-line and off-line coating, to all required finishing processes. It now provides even more additional help and support to the increasing amount of companies that have diversified their product portfolio as they no longer need multiple MIS systems to manage multiple products.
In companies that produce folding cartons, the details of carton shapes, cutting knifes and final products form the basis for creating both quotations and production jobs. Optimus dash for Packaging allows all this data to be stored in the Optimus database – including all the relationships between this data – to include the shape of a final product and the shapes that appear for a specific cutting knife. The information about the cutting knifes includes for example, the size of the knife, the minimum required board size, where the knife is stored. Information about shapes includes the size of the final product in three dimensions, but also the flat size and information on how boxes of the shape are packaged and shipped.
The final product contains information about the customer the product belongs to, the shape of the product and the colours and coatings the product is printed in. The colour information can be imported for pre-press and there is also a link to the high resolution production PDF. By just entering a product code or just the knife number, the dash MIS will also populate almost all the other inputs of the estimate from the shape, knife and product databases, resulting in fast, accurate and consistent quotations.
Ehen preparing the enquiry (estimate), users simply select the product to be produced, insert the quantities and this will automatically generate a quote based on the correct product information, in combination with the correct knife to be used. At the same time, an automatic detailed breakdown of the estimated production costs are produced which are instantly visible as the quote is being built.
Once a customer order is received, the process of creating a production job is reduced to entering the article number of the required products with the quantity required. From that point on Optimus dash MIS for Packaging completely automates the process, which includes automatically creating the imposition, by optimising the distribution and number up of the items over press sheets, taking into account the board, the product colours, the product coatings and of course the quantity to be produced.
Optimus dash for Packaging then automatically creates an estimate for each press sheet and converts this estimate into production jobs. Because information of the final product contains the link to the high resolution production PDF, Optimus for Packaging also automatically creates an imposed PDF. This imposed PDF contains all the required print and press marks and can directly be used for plate making.
The job that is then created in the Optimus job system, contains all information required for production planning and material procurement. Optimus dash for Packaging also includes an extensive sales ordering system for delivery on demand from the warehouse. Production jobs can be delivered directly to the customer or alternatively received into stock as production progresses. Once the customer calls-off a certain quantity of multiple products, a sales order can be raised, resulting in warehouse stock picking instructions, delivery instructions and delivery notes. Invoicing of deliveries is an automated process that is driven from the invoicing interval parameters that can be set on a customer by customer basis.
Optimus dash for Packaging is also integrated with a finite scheduling module for planning all jobs through production. This plan is viewable through the Electronic Planning Board, showing colour coded bars of time that reflect the ‘live’ status of each task for a job, through an on-screen list, or via the printable ‘work to’ report.
Finite Scheduling relies on remote data collection (RDC), which provides real time capture of in-house production time, production quantities and material usage.
