One of the UK’s leading companies for decorative lighting for both interior and exterior use has transformed its factory operations following expert support from Made Smarter West Midlands.
One of the UK’s leading companies for decorative lighting for both interior and exterior use has transformed its factory operations following expert support from Made Smarter West Midlands.
Hector Finch launched his eponymous lighting company in the mid-1980s from a small antique centre in Preston.
Today, its 40 strong staff are based in its head office, warehouse and workshop at Easter's Court in Leominster, Herefordshire, which also houses a showroom, its USA sales team, and manufacturing and despatch operations.
The business, run by Hector and his wife, Emma, showcases the collection at their London showroom in the prestigious Design Centre Chelsea Harbour from where the company services its international clientele of high-end interior designers, architects and private customers who are sourcing products for residential projects, boutique hotels, restaurants and contract work.
The company collaborates with 14 multi line showrooms in the United States and one in Canada where Hector Finch fixtures are displayed and sold on commission. Approximately 65 per cent of their business is conducted in the USA.
The business wanted to upgrade its warehouse and despatch systems to improve its productivity which is where Made Smarter West Midlands stepped in.
Kevin Davies, Head of Operations at Hector Finch, said: “We wanted to keep a better track of our orders and have live data while reducing our use of paper.
“We have now installed the Access FactoryMaster system and although it is in its infancy, I’m already finding it beneficial and it will become even more valuable as we all learn more.”
Hector Finch used Sage50 and CIM50 software for managing its operations, but the system had become un-productive and there was a feeling that there needed to be a full review of its MRP and ERP requirements before making any changes.
The business was also reliant on paper in their operations and there was no barcoding or scanning in the warehouse and despatch operations.
Hector Finch said: “We were looking to expand the business, and we realised that the old computer system that ran the business was too small for us and not a proper manufacturing system.
“We started to research for a new system and our company secretary, Lisa Drake, was the first person on the case. She had spoken to Lawson Coombes from Innovate UK previously and he put her in touch with Made Smarter which led to also working with the MTC.”
Barry Jones, Digital Transformation Specialist for Made Smarter West Midlands in Herefordshire, said: “Essentially, it has been a huge learning curve for Hector Finch to start their digital journey.
“There were some digital processes already in place, but we wanted to help them manage their processes more efficiently and look at how they could improve that through digital technology which we had identified through the MTC.
“Without doubt, it is going to have a massive impact. This project is very much a journey and not a race. Productivity times will increase, there will be less paper around the factory and it will improve knowledge and information around the products through the real-time data which are all big pluses.”
The company was successful in applying for a £20,000 grant from Made Smarter West Midlands which help them to purchase the Access FactoryMaster MRP system to improve its data flow, productivity and efficiency.
Hector said: “Made Smarter and the MTC proved to be an invaluable font of knowledge and helped us to fund and source a new system.
“There’s a vast choice out there and since we are not an IT company it’s a very daunting process to change systems. They were very helpful in enabling us to make the right decision.”
Kevin added: “We wanted to improve our inventory management as historically our bill of materials were not entirely accurate.
“All the separate components were put into the design software and created a bill of materials which identified every component to construct the fixture.
“We wanted a new system that would check we had all the components in stock, firstly to avoid over ordering, and secondly to reduce our lead times, so really, we were looking at the recipe of all the components.”
The difference having tables with up-to-date information and an MRP system which covers every different stage of the process means Hector Finch is beginning to see the benefits.
“We have only just embedded the system,” said Hector, “but there will be greater visibility of orders as they go through production. Everything from stock control and all the way through production will be more visible and help us to keep the right amount of stock which will help us to streamline the process, reduce lead times and provide a better service to our customers.
Kieran Mara, Senior Advisor, Digital Transformation at the MTC who are one of Made Smarter’s strategic partners, said: “We came to visit Hector Finch and listened to the problems in the business and we discovered that the biggest pain-point was not having a solution to fully manage their production which was losing a lot of time.
“We sat down with the various stakeholders in the company and identified over 200 features that they wanted out of a software solution.
“We held several workshops and went away to research their options. We came back with 15 systems that met their requirements which we narrowed down before contacting a number of vendors to arrange demonstrations.
“It was very structured because customer satisfaction is a key driver in any business and that was a main KPI to choose the best system which met their needs.”
Hector Finch has completed its training with staff on the new ERP system, and digital tablets have been introduced to the production line.
Kevin said: “Now that we have fully integrated this into our way of working, staff can’t believe the way we used to work.
“December was extremely busy with staff working overtime to process all the extra work and meet the Christmas deadlines. We felt more confident that we would achieve this having the new digital tool because it enabled us to work smarter and quicker.
“Our traditional craftsmanship and careful attention to detail are the embodiment of our company, but it is also important to introduce digital technology to improve our factory processes and futureproof the business.”
