Tool Tracking Article

Track Tools In-Use & In-the-Crib

If you track your tools then, this information could be available for every tool you use in the shop

Tracking tools on the manufacturing floor doesn't need to be complex. In fact, simple is generally more effective than complex especially from the tool crib's point of view. The tool crib is the point of issue for tools and tool packages (kits/assemblies) to the machines on the manufacturing floor. The crib's specific job is to get the tools to the machine. Any thing that complicates this function is generally disruptive to the tool crib and may not allow the tooling to be issued properly.

What's needed in the tool crib and on the manufacturing floor is a simple way to record the movement of tools to and from the manufacturing work center. If you simply adjust tool inventories, accordingly as tools are issued to locations on the manufacturing floor you would have both the tool inventory storage quantity and the tool's location on the shop floor. This can be accomplished without making tool management hard to understand or overly complicated.

If you only adjust the inventory and DON'T track where it went you have only controlled what is still in the tool crib. You have only done half the job. The tools that you have just set FREE are out on the shop floor saying, "Hey, we are free, they will never find us again."

However, many organizations and manufacturing engineers believe there's got to be more to it than there is. I can only offer this statement for you to consider, 'if you know who, what, where, and when a tool has been issued, returned, scrapped, reworked, ordered and delivered; you could answer any question asked concerning the use of tools'.

Think about it from the manufacturing point of view, not as an office function and you will see how simple it is. I have said for over 23 years that tool management, to be effective and simple to implement, must be controlled from the bottom up (the issue point) before upper management can use the information about tool consumption. If you don't know the tool left the storage cabinet you can't account for it, charge it to anything, plan the use of any that are left or reorder it if more are needed. One of the simplest facts (and most misunderstood) of tool management is, "if you don't know where your tools are, you don't know anything about them".

Tracking tools can be done from the tool crib or directly from cell locations on the shop floor, like the cell above.
Yes, you can even use BarCode Laser wands.

Tool Tracking

Click here for another article covering the Basics of tool crib control and tool tracking. Warning - it is not very kind to some personnel in the beginning of the article.