Breaking Barriers: Pamela Grady, operations consultant, Global Shop Solutions, talks with FFJournal about simplifying fabrication operations while navigating a male-dominated industry
 

January, 2025- Q: What is your primary focus as a manufacturing operations consultant?

A: With a background working for semiconductor, aerospace and defense manufacturers, as well as a machining and fabrication job shop, I now specialize in helping manufacturers simplify their production processes through enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Fabricators and other metalworking manufacturers in particular often make very complex parts and products. Yet, many of them don’t utilize ERP to its full capabilities, resulting in lower efficiency and costlier production. For example, I have worked with a variety of manufacturers who manually build large, complex bill of materials (BOMs) instead of using “exploded” BOMs—a process for expanding a master BOM to create a detailed list of all the individual components needed to produce the product.

My primary focus involves guiding manufacturers as they import the extensive amount of BOM information into the ERP system. This will allow them real-time access to the data needed to ensure precise material planning, accurate cost estimation and ecient procurement. Ultimately, it’s all about helping manufacturers use ERP to get the output they need faster, more eciently and with better accuracy, thereby simplifying the time-consuming and costly process of building multi-layer BOMs.

Q: How do you believe diversity hiring can positively impact manufacturing processes and innovation within companies?

A: Diversity is good for any industry, and I think women have a unique advantage. We tend to bring different ways of communicating and building relationships, and it’s my personal experience that women are often better than men at listening and hearing what the customer has to say. This allows us to be more open to new ideas and possibilities.

When you don’t listen with an open mind, whether you’re a man or a woman, you fail to innovate. When teams can communicate with each other in an open, trusting manner, it fosters a positive work atmosphere for innovation. Listening and hearing is the biggest asset for anyone trying to introduce innovation or simplify a manufacturing process.

Q: What is one piece of advice you would give women about breaking stereotypes in what’s traditionally been a male dominated field?

A: There were times early in my career as a female operations consultant when I encountered skepticism from men who doubted my capabilities. However, once I began asking questions and engaging in discussions about their operations, they realized I knew exactly how they operated as a business. So, my advice is two-fold: One, always listen and absorb what you hear because that’s how you gain experience. Two, when someone doubts your knowledge and expertise, listen to your gut, trust your instincts and move forward with condence. Once people realize you know what you’re talking about, you will gain their respect.

Q: What tools do you use to improve processes for manufacturers, and which have you found most effective?

A: I use different tools based on the production type of the business. With manufacturers that make complex products, my primary tool is the Shop Management application within the ERP system, which monitors and reports on all aspects of the shop floor. This tool helps identify processes needing improvement by providing real-time shop floor data in areas such as job costing, material review, variance reports and performance management. The Shop Management application enables faster, more accurate scheduling by providing insight into load details, eciency reports, backlogs, work order schedules and more. The data also helps determine how to incorporate external processes into the ERP so manufacturers can utilize the software more efficiently.

In my experience, value stream mapping (VSM) provides the most effective technique for simplifying manufacturing throughout a business. Based on lean manufacturing principles, mapping out what the company is doing in a detailed way provides a powerful visual tool for driving continuous improvement. VSM enables me to answer questions that guide manufacturers in simplifying their processes. How can I streamline what the manufacturer is doing? What specic areas need more improvement than others? Can I remove a step, activity or process that isn’t necessary? By mapping out processes from start to finish, manufacturers gain invaluable insight into bottlenecks, inefficiencies and opportunities for innovation while evolving their culture and mindset into one of continuous improvement.

Global Shop Solutions, 800/364-5958, globalshopsolutions.com.