Automated Information Systems for Production Management: CMMS
Abstract
For my WESIP I interned with Ford Motor Company. I was employed as a
scheduler, and in this position I was able to examine the new production
information system recently introduced by Ford. Although the Common
Manufacturing Management System (CMMS) has been developed for use
throughout all Ford manufacturing plants, Ford Rawsonville (where I was
working) is the pilot plant and therefore is currently suffering most acutely from
the problems which commonly plague most implementation efforts. However, it
is also the first to benefit from the use of such a new and sophisticated system.
Most of the information herein is the result of interviews with many Ford
employees and personal insights gained through working as a Ford employee
and CMMS user. Perhaps the most valuable source of information was the offhand
comments and spontaneous observations provided by Ford employees
who had worked with other systems, and had been involved with CMMS from
day one.
It is my objective in this paper to present the reader with an outline of the
capabilities and objectives of CMMS. Also, I shall include the problems that are
currently being faced and dealt with at Rawsonville. This paper is not intended
to provide the reader with an in-depth study or critique of CMMS. However, it
does represent the feelings of Ford employees currently working with CMMS,
and insights gained by myself through my experiences as a CMMS user.