GUI, which is the acronym for Graphical User Interface design is a tool used for central data collection.  The purpose of this tool is to make sure all aspects of a process are visible to everyone who needs to see it.  While all types of industries use GUI, we wanted to focus on one to provide a good example so this article is specific to Graphical User Interface design and manufacturing.

For manufacturing companies, to help increase productivity, the floor operations have to be highly efficient and effective.  This means that regardless of the type of manufacturing, there has to be a solid line of communication between those working in the plant to upper management.  Having a connection of real time information for management, dispatchers, routers, inventory workers, schedulers, shippers, and all other aspects of manufacturing, business will run seamlessly.

One means of making sure this happens is by using a Graphical User Interface design.  With this solution, local and off-site employees can gain access to the same information and again, in real time.  Obviously, this means that every aspect of the business is running on a tight system so achieving higher profit levels and creating happy employees becomes a reality.

As one can imagine, having this ability by using a Graphical User Interface design as a solution for data collection software, there is a long list of benefits, others that include:

• Log On/Off – One of the challenges often associated with manufacturing is wasting time by having to get logged on and off the system.  However, with a Graphical User Interface design, employees can go to one location for logging on and off, which allows the time worked to be stored and accessed by people processing payroll.
• Printing Capabilities – Another benefit of using a system with a Graphical User Interface design is that employees can choose from on-screen links to pull up important documents and/or images pertaining to a specific part, process, or job.  With the touch of a button, the documentation can be printed quickly and easily.
• Job Priorities – One of the most important things manufacturing personnel needs a good handle on is being able to review Work Order Details so they know job status as far as completed, in process, and those pending.  A system with a Graphical User Interface design can quickly see all jobs and identify those of highest priority.
• Tooling – Then, for a job to be started, there are certain tools and materials needed.  Instead of having employees looking throughout the warehouse to find what they need, thus wasting precious time, the GUI system has a tooling location option, making things much more productive.
• Quality Instructions – A Graphical User Interface design will also print off any type of quality instructions needed for a particular job.  This means as the work order is started special instructions can be viewed and analyzed so the appropriate action can be taken.
• Requisitions – By having a Graphical User Interface design system in a central location, employees have the opportunity to requisition parts and/or materials needed for the job, starting with inventory already in stock.  In some cases, a more robust system could be implemented in which the purchase of parts and/or materials from outside suppliers or vendors could be generated.
• Parts – Finally, employees of a manufacturing company would have the ability to add more than one job but also enter specific parts that are currently being worked.  Other information the GUI system would allow include scrapped production and number of parts being used.

In a manufacturing environment, a system with a Graphical User Interface design serves to analyze production data relating to the performance data of different locations or employees.  As a result, time management can be refined and used to create an even greater efficient work environment.  While a system running with a Graphical User Interface design is a single point system, it offers multiple solutions that can help boost the company’s bottom line.

As mentioned, a system with a Graphical User Interface Design works not only for manufacturing but virtually any business.  For companies needing a better handling on operations from employees to processes to parts to shipping, etc, GUI is an excellent solution to consider.  Known for being highly efficient, many refer to GUI as being a robust lean tool.

The variety of operational areas in which centralized information is beneficial is tremendous.  This tool provides employees a means of being more productive, which also helps to boost overall morale.  Therefore, the company begins to see better profit margins while employees see the results of their hard work, a great solution for everyone.