Material Management System (MMS) for Outfitting by Computer

Abstract

In MIS - Management Information System - in Sakaide Shipyard of Kawasaki Heavy Industries, a building schedule system takes a leading part. A procuring planning system for outfitting equipments and parts is the only one of the system of the outfitting sections. Although we had controlled a procuring planning system by hand in the past, we began to develop EDP applications since 1968 because of increasing of information and recent progress in computer thechnique, and executed the first step in April 1973. The objects of this system which we are to introduce here is to establish the constitution for timely supplying the outfitting sections with the articles in the first step, but in future we are to extend this system to a process control system for all outfitting sections. The essentials of this system is as follows: 1. We control all the targets and actual records of the 13 nodal points information including drawing procurement and delivery schedule which covers the time of the issuing of the purchasing order specification to the articles by means of computer at every outfitting equipment and part. 2. We adopt on-line, real time system which was never adopted before in our shipyard to immediately catch hold of the latest information at any time. Information is changeable in every minute for many variable factors because we order most of outfitting equipments and parts of the other company. To cope with this changeable information, we set up some on-line terminals in main sections. 3. All the simple mechanical works of the procurement activities by workers are replaced with computer. As a result the workers can spend more time for their brain works. In future, we are to extend this system to a scientific process control system and connect it with the other systems in MIS.