I've been one of the first users of kanbanbox many years ago. Our production was previously pulled by physical kanban card system. Just from the beginning I felt that something good happened in the company. From that day many things happened: We connected kanbanbox to our ERP we synchronized our drawings database We extended the kanban system also to multi-supplier item categories We connected our last laser cutting machine in order to start cutting new batches just after the customer asks for them with no time loss or in-office information process In few words kanbanbox was by our side during last years while our company was doubling its size

Easiness and plug-and-play are the features that you feel at first glance, however pro user features will enable you to use kanban pull system in ways you didn't even wonder. And if a particular feature isn't available yet... try to ask for it at the managing team!

I never find major remarks about this software yet

Our company, Lago Spa, was using the pull system when it appers essential to adopt a new tool to manage easier the old paper kanban. We looked for a software that could offer a visual and a simply management of the kanban for our warehouse workers and, at the same time, that could share the kanban logic with suppliers, to make smarter also the puchasing office. The electonic kanban permitted us to strenghten the relationships with our suppliers, thanks to these main functions: the sharing of the blackboard, the traceability of the large packages and the rigour in observing the lead time.

What I like most about Kanbanbox is the idea through which it has been designed and implemented, that offers a possibility of a clear communication and a smart interaction between suppliers and clients. The main goals in using this software are both the reduction of non-value time for our purchasing office and the growth of the efficiency of the supply chain. Another positive aspect of Kanbanbok is its ductility: thanks to its logic and simply language we had the possibility to apply this system also in the carpentry, which is a strategic and multifaceted sector in our company. The electronic kanban permits to manage different types and quantity of products during all the different phases of the production, keeping the stocks at a minimun level and previewing the future needs. In my opinion Kanbanbox can been considered not only a tool for the supply chain but also an instrument to support the planning of the inner production.

Since Kanbanbox receives inputs from the financial markets and the buyers as well, there are some areas that can be implemented thanks to the suggestions of the users. For instance, we asked Kanbanbox to develop dashbords that can be personalized to show kpi. This function, at the beginning, was for us less high-performance than now.

Easy way to manage my daily operations, from purchase to production , the network is working efficiently, my suppliers ( internal or external) can every time check the situation of kanban stocks. Since we have introduced kanbanbox in our business , we reduce delays with our customers and supplier . Another plus is the statistic record report that you have about all the operations made.

Honestly what I didn't like in the past has been improved

A problem in supply chain management in our market sector is the high seasonality of products: this is the reason why initially implemented traditional kanban didn’t work. It demanded an hard maintenance, a stock increasing instead of decreasing, and stock out was a problem. So we tested the electronic kanban with Kanbanbox combined with a weekly maintenance based on past (historical consumption) and future data (order backlog): in this way we reached a “pull” management of materials with the control of seasonality. This result was also presented and exported in all Ideagroup’s companies: now we are able to manage 2700 items and 8000 kanban in 4 hours a week (with a staff saving of 5 days a month). Passing from a material management with MRP to electronic kanban, we have reached a 50% stock reduction, an improving in consumption and suppliers data analysis (it’s easy to integrate Kanbanbox with a software of Business Intelligence), a decreasing of stock out, an increasing of suppliers reliability: Kanban system needs punctuality (the buffer stock is sized with a fixed delivery time) and this promote a partnership between the two parts.

The product is very easy to use, it’s not a problem to integrate the software with the ERP. Kanbanbox is a very specific solution for electronic kanban system but it has a high flexibility to implement it in all production processes. Recently Kanbanbox has presented an extension to integrate all the supply chain (to manage not only kanban items but also “closed orders” created with an ERP).

The “maintenance kanban” function could be improved (in our company we use an external platform to combine Kanbanbox and ERP data).

Switching, where possible, from MRP to visual management. Full control of stock, rotation increase, sqeueezing of the cahin between the plant and the supplier. It is a continuous way to check the status of art of the parts you're waiting for and, in the meantime, the supplier also can observe the plant behaviors and prepare to adjust his plans.

Quick to be implemented, both for the Plant and for Suppliers. User friendly interface, it is a tool for evverybody, from logistics directors to direct workers Suppliers accepted to use it just for its simplicity. Immediate barcodes printing which could be read by every smartphone

A little bit complicated to manage the differences among the relationships to be correctly created: planner, supplier, partner...