Planning between industrial companies in collaborative network

The development towards customisation and outsourcing means that Danish companies are using many resources on coordination with customers and suppliers.
This is the case in connection with placing of orders, changes in product specifications and/or changes in due dates. Internally in a company this gives a very complex planning, and many SME's have difficulties in setting up realistic schedules that reflect the actual order situation.
14 companies participated in the PLUS project organised in three production networks around the companies H.S. Hansens Fabrikker, Dolle and Pumac. The project focused on development in each company, development between the companies and seminars on topics relevant for the companies.
The aim in the project was to achieve better use of the resources in the production and the administration, better delivery precision and increased employee satisfaction. This was achieved through better external coordination between the companies and better internal coordination by the use of IT tools for exchange of information and planning.