| LeanDNA™ Product Questions |
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Q.What is LeanDNA ?
A. LeanDNA is a Software-as-a-Service (Saas) application for Lean Manufacturing Execution and Performance Management. The four main product modules are: Performance Management, Lean Business Intelligence, Lean Operations Modeling, and Lean Manufacturing Execution.
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Q. What platforms do I need to have in order to run LeanDNA ?
A. Since LeanDNA hosts
the application, all you need is a computer that can
run a Web browser. It doesn't matter what type of
hardware or operating system you are running.
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Q. How do I get upgrades from LeanDNA ?
A. Because LeanDNA is a hosted application, any
time we add a new feature you will have access to
it immediately.
There is no need to download any software or make
any adjustments.
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Q. What is the price of LeanDNA ?
A. This will vary depending on the size of your factory,
but the typical cost is approximately $2,500 per
month per plant. This price includes the online infrastructure,
the application and database servers, database licenses,
highly scalable hosting architecture, high data security,
redundant systems, high-speed access, etc.
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Q. Can I purchase On-Demand on a month-by-month basis?
A. Yes. The pricing is based on an annual subscription,
but contact LeanDNA
to discuss our pricing on a monthly basis.
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Q. What happens to my data if I cancel my subscription?
A. If at anytime you decide that you want to cancel
your subscription, LeanDNA will purge your data
from our system within 30 days of cancellation.
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Q. How do I purchase On-Demand?
A. You can subscribe
on-line for a trial usage or call LeanDNA at
1-(512) 305-0680.
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| Technical Questions |
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Q. What is the difference in how On-Demand calculates lot sizes versus traditional APS, ERP, MRP?
A. These traditional applications typically derive lot sizes and target
inventories using a simple EOQ calculation or other
similar approach. Actual customer demand is
considered, but since APS can not model the factory
run rules, its approach to capacity is rudimentary
at best. Typically, once the lot sizes and target inventory
levels are set they are not changed for years. The
approach used by On-Demand is different. On-Demand calculates
lot sizes and target inventories using
proven lean methodologies which consider product demand
as well as the physical factory production capabilities.
Factory information, such as alternate work center
routings, changeover matrices, sequencing, holidays,
operating hours,etc. are considered. By using the latest
demand and operating parameters, the
factory can always ensure that they are operating their business with the optimal lot sizes and target inventory
levels. On-Demand is flexible in how often it calculates
these parameters allowing you to perform these calculations
weekly, monthly or quarterly.
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Q. Can On-Demand help us incorporate and standardize on best practices for Lean Manufacturing?
A. On-Demand provides a best-practices platform to formalize how
lean manufacturing execution is managed across the organization. Without
a formal system, it is quite common for companies
to see ad-hock approaches for designing and managing
lean manufacturing operations. Prior to using On-Demand,, most companies
rely extensively on spreadsheets to help make their
day-to-day decisions. Unfortunately, spreadsheets
are limited in their power and lack scalability. In
addition, On-Demand was built by lean experts to already
incorporate the best practices for lean design and
management to help implement systems quicker.
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Q. I understand the power of On-Demand for periodic analytics and decision support, but what is its role on a continuous basis ?
A. The On-Demand Lean Decision Support platform enables
frequent dynamic lot sizing calculations based on
your current production capacity and changing product
demand. This is especially important in cases where demand
is not smooth. On-Demand can also support Strategy Deployment by linking the financial impact of lean
initiatives (i.e. changeover reduction, OEE improvements,
,etc). As physical improvements are made in the factory,
On-Demand can be quickly updated with the new
improvement data to drive
the factory to achieve lower inventory, higher productivity and higher
service levels. This has been shown to avoid the common issue of making
"Lean Stick".
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Q. Does On-Demand consider capacity constraints when designing and managing the factory ?
A. Yes. We consider capacity when establishing production
lot sizes and when generating a Demand-Driven production
schedule. We consider such constraints as alternate
workcenter routings, changeover matrices, sequencing,
holidays, and operating calendar. On-Demand contains
a demand-driven discrete scheduling engine that is
capable of supporting a wide variety of run-rules.
Examples of specific support are: sequencing to consider specific issues from SKU to
SKU, different changeover times from SKU to SKU, major sanitation requirements. In
addition the engine supports peak shaving to enable
those periods of excessive demand to be managed with
the most optimal inventory buildup strategy possible
while still maintaining a high service level.
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Q. What are the advantages of LeanDNA over a traditional push-based Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) software ?
A. A discrete scheduler will receive orders and schedule them with the fix lot sizes and frequency provided by the APS. This will not give you the optimal lot sizes and target inventory levels as defined by On-Demand using our proven lean methodologies. In addition, since APS often does not reflect the physical factory run rules, the amount of production assigned to a particular week is often not feasible. On-Demand combines Heijunka with a finite discrete scheduling system to optimally support day-to-day execution in a lean environment.
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Q. What is the advantage of using On-Demand versus just trying to modify our existing systems?
A. Modifying existing systems is possible with enough time and money. But
consider that On-Demand incorporates world-class best
practices for lean manufacturing, and is continually
being improved every day. The team of LeanDNA has
deep hands-on experience in helping organizations
make lean conversions as well as implement lean software
applications. Our experience is across a wide variety
of industries in many countries around the world.
On-Demand sells for approximately $2,500 per month per
factory. Modifying existing APS would be an expensive
rewrite that would have to involve a team of lean manufacturing
domain experts as well as enterprise software developers
who specialize in developing with each specific software
package. Typically consultants of this type cost
hundreds of dollars per hour which could easily results in project costs in the millions. It would also take time to assemble such a team and execute
on the project. In addition, there is also an inherent
risk that the project would fail leaving your company in
a situation where it has spent millions and is exactly
where it is today. The time-to-value and risk is much better with the On-Demand solution.
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| How to Get Started with On-Demand |
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Q. How do I get access to On-Demand ?
A. Because On-Demand is an online service, there is
no hardware or software to buy, install, or maintain.
Just point your browser Microsoft Internet Explorer
(version 5.0 or higher) to the login page at
http://www.leandna.com
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Q. What type of training is available?
A. On-Demand is designed to be easy to learn and user
friendly. We offer training for users and administrators.
More detailed training and consulting can also be provided
by our partners. Please contact
LeanDNA in order to schedule a session.
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Q. What involvement is required from my company's IT department?
A. Very limited. LeanDNA is accessed
through the Internet via a Web browser and require
no modifications or upgrades to your existing environment.
All you need is Microsoft Internet Explorer (version
5.0 or higher), text files for data uploads, and you
are ready to use On-Demand. Because there is not hardware,
software, or network equipment to purchase, and the
application is accessed through a standard Web browser,
your IT department will not need to implement or maintain
the On-Demand solution.
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Q. How quickly can my factory be up and running ?
A. With On-Demand you can typically be up and running
with 2-3 days.
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Q. What is the job of the
On-Demand Administrator ?
The Administrator is responsible for configuration
of data synchronization and managing the upload process.
This task will typically take 2-6 hours.
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| Reporting Questions |
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Q. Do I need a report writer to create and run reports ?
A. On-Demand includes a number of standard reports,
and we will be offering a report writer to
create customer reports.
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Q. Can I get my report
information out of On-Demand ?
A. All reports can be exported to Microsoft Excel by selecting the "Save to Excel" button in the display of every report.
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| Data Synchronization with ERP and Other Systems |
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Q. How do I import
my existing data into On-Demand ?
A. On-Demand provides a powerful Synchronization Wizard
to move your data from any ERP or SCM program that
can save its data in the CSV (comma separated value)
or similar file format. On-Demand can also bring in
data from Microsoft Excel or other data sources.
The Synchronization Wizard takes you step-by-step
through the import process, allowing you to specify
how your data will be organized once it is in On-Demand.
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Q. How often can my organization import data ?
A. The Synchronization Wizard is built into On-Demand
and can be used as often as needed.
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Q. How long does it take to import a file ?
A. The length of time required depends entirely on
the amount of data to be imported, but on average
it will take only a few minutes. To expedite the import
process we recommend you review the import directions
that are provided in the Help section. In addition,
we recommend you do your best to match your source
file with the default and custom fields available
in On-Demand prior to starting the Import Wizard.
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Q. Does LeanDNA offer services to help me import my data ?
A. Yes. On-Demand offers implementation services that
will help your team get up and running quickly. You
will receive a dedicated point-of-contact who coordinates
activities, establishes deadlines, and monitors progress.
In addition, you can receive private online training,
which is customized to the particular needs of your
organization.
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| Security and Scalability Questions |
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Q. How can I be sure my data is secure ?
A. When you log into On-Demand, you will see a small
lock icon at the bottom of your browser display, indicating
that a secure (SSL) connection has been established
to our server. In addition, the URLs used to access
your data on On-Demand are all preceded with https
instead of http, which also indicates that a secure
connection is being maintained for data access from
leandna.com
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Q. How can I be assured my data will be kept private ?
A. LeanDNA is committed to keeping your data
private and secure. To this end, LeanDNA has expressly
stated how we will handle your private data.
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Q. What happens when the
On-Demand database goes down ?
A. LeanDNA has built redundancy into all its systems
in order to minimize any system failures that could
be perceived as customer outages. All components of
the LeanDNA system are proactively monitored and
managed so that faults are detected before system
outages. LeanDNA realizes there may occasionally
be system outages due to issues beyond our control.
LeanDNA has established numerous escalation procedures
to notify the proper personnel in the event of any
system outage and remedy any issues as quickly as
possible.
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Q. How scaleable is On-Demand
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A. LeanDNA has the capacity to scale to the largest
of enterprises. The architecture behind the LeanDNA
solution was designed to handle thousands of users.
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