From weeks of guesswork to real-time control: An interview on production visibility
04.08.2026
Long production cycles, volatile material prices, constant rescheduling... For most manufacturing companies, this isn't a bad quarter - it's Tuesday.
We sat down with Noemi Ramirez, an IT consultant who works closely with production businesses, to talk about what actually separates manufacturers who feel in control from those who are constantly playing catch-up. Her answer, in short: it's all about seeing what's happening, as it happens.
Here's the conversation.
Breaking big jobs into small, visible steps
Q: In the Metal Industry, production cycles can be quite long. How do your customers typically manage that?
A: That's absolutely true - some of our projects can run for weeks. What really helps is breaking large orders down into smaller, clearly defined steps and production batches. This way, we always know exactly where things stand (whether it's cutting, welding or assembly) without having to wait until the entire job is finished. We also keep a close eye on any outsourced work. That means we always know how much material is with external partners and how long it will take to get it back. It's a simple shift, but it changes everything about how a delay gets handled. Instead of discovering a bottleneck at the end of a job, teams see it forming in real time and can react before it costs them a deadline.
Smarter quoting starts before the project exists
Q: That makes sense. And what about flexibility earlier in the process - especially during quoting?
A: That's where the Beas pre-calculation function really shines. It's actually one of our favorite tools for sales. We can create quotes for custom projects without fully setting everything up in the system first. It allows us to test different scenarios (like changing material prices or machine usage) and immediately see how that impacts profitability and delivery times. It gives us a lot more confidence before committing to a job. For sales teams under pressure to respond quickly, that's a meaningful edge - accurate numbers without the overhead of building a full project just to test an idea.
Two approaches to material planning, one balanced strategy
Q: Let's talk about material planning. What kinds of MRP strategies work best in the Metal Industry?
A: It usually comes down to two main approaches. For high-value or price-sensitive materials - like certain types of steel - we use special orders. We only purchase those once the customer confirms the job, which helps us avoid unnecessary risk. On the other hand, for standard items like screws or commonly used metal plates, we keep regular stock. That way, production never has to stop while waiting for materials. It's not one strategy or the other - it's knowing which one to apply, material by material, order by order.
Replacing paperwork with real-time shop floor data
Q: How do Boyum solutions support day-to-day production on the shop floor?
A: One of the biggest improvements is moving away from paperwork. With digital data capture, workers can report their time and material usage as they go. This gives us a live view of what's happening in the factory. If something goes wrong (like a machine breakdown or a delay) we see it immediately and can adjust the schedule right away. That immediacy is the whole point. A problem that's visible in minutes gets solved in minutes, not discovered at the next shift handover.
Cost control that happens during production, not after
Q: And how do you keep track of costs during production?
A: We compare planned versus actual costs at every production step. So instead of waiting until the end, we can see early on if we're using too much material or if certain operations are taking longer than expected. It helps us stay in control and continuously improve. This is the difference between reacting to a cost overrun and preventing one in the first place.
Billing that moves at the speed of the project
Q: What about billing - especially for longer projects?
A: We align billing with production milestones. For example, once a phase like design or structural work is completed, the system can automatically trigger the documentation for a progress invoice. This way, cash flow stays in sync with the actual work being done. For companies running long, multi-phase jobs, that alignment between production and finance can be the difference between healthy cash flow and constant strain.
One project, one number, full visibility
Q: How are these projects typically structured in the system?
A: Everything is organized under a single project number - work orders, designs, materials, external services, all of it. That gives us a clear overview of the entire project, including all costs. At the end, we can easily see how profitable the job was. Nothing gets lost, and nothing needs to be reconciled after the fact - the full picture is there from day one.
Visual scheduling to spot bottlenecks before they cost you
Q: Scheduling must be challenging with large machines and limited capacity. How do you handle that?
A: It can definitely get complex. That's why we rely on visual scheduling tools like Netronic and Gantt charts. They give us a clear picture of where bottlenecks are forming. If we see a "traffic jam," we can quickly rearrange orders or adjust workloads to keep things moving smoothly. Turning a scheduling puzzle into something visual is often the fastest way to make it manageable.
The production cockpit: everything in one place
Q: Many companies mention the Beas Production Cockpit. What's the biggest benefit there?
A: For me, it's having everything in one place. You can instantly see delayed orders, missing materials, and upcoming capacity. It saves a lot of time because you don't have to dig through multiple reports to understand what's going on. It's a small interface change with a big impact on how quickly decisions get made.
After-sales service, powered by product history
Q: What happens after production - how do you handle spare parts and service?
A: Every product we manufacture has a complete history, including serial numbers. So if a customer comes back years later needing a spare part, we can quickly identify exactly what they need and start a new order right away. It makes after-sales service much more efficient. Visibility doesn't end at delivery - and that's exactly why it doesn't need to.
AI as an early warning system for cost drift
Q: Have you started using the Beas AI Assistant introduced last year?
A: Yes, we have. We mainly use it to get quick summaries when something starts to drift - especially costs. It helps us spot deviations from the original budget early, which is incredibly useful. It's a good example of AI's most practical role in manufacturing right now - not automation for its own sake, but faster, earlier insight into problems that matter.
Turning scrap into a planning advantage
Q: Let's touch on material efficiency. How do you handle scrap?
A: Scrap is actually built into our planning. In the Bill of Materials, we include a waste percentage - so if we expect, say, 5% loss during cutting, the system accounts for it automatically. But not all scrap is waste. We often end up with usable leftover material, which we put back into stock with an assigned value. That actually reduces the overall cost of the project.
Q: And what about scrap that can't be reused?
A: We still track it carefully. Workers report it directly at their stations, and it's stored in a designated area in the warehouse as recovered material. That way, we always know what we have available for recycling or resale. Even the material that doesn't make it into a final product ends up accounted for, rather than becoming an unmeasured cost.
The real takeaway: visibility is the competitive advantage
Every theme in this conversation - batch-level tracking, live cost comparisons, milestone billing, centralized dashboards, AI-flagged deviations - points to the same underlying shift in manufacturing: companies no longer need to wait weeks for answers. They need, and increasingly expect, to see everything in real time. Manufacturers don't just need more data, but visibility, flexibility and control - delivered continuously, not retrospectively. That's where the real competitive advantage is being built today.
Want to see how these capabilities could work for your production environment? Get in touch with our team to talk through your specific challenges - from quoting and MRP to shop floor visibility and after-sales service.