This comprehensive walkthrough will help you set up your company within the Start Proto system and efficiently get your business up to speed. Below, you will find information and links laying out steps to get started. The links provided with each step will go into further detail on the specified module.
Before diving into the functionalities of StartProto, there are some essential business setup steps:
Setup Work Centers:
Work Centers are specific areas or machines where work is performed.
Examples include CNC machines, tooling stations, assembly stations, and shipping areas.
Each machine or area should be set up as an individual Work Center.
Define Work Center Groups:
Work Center Groups group similar Work Centers together.
For instance, if you have multiple milling machines, they can be grouped under a common Work Center Group.
Configure Processes:
Processes are the actions performed by Work Center Groups.
These can be as simple as labeling a machine or as detailed as a specific operation.
Processes help in organizing and scheduling work efficiently.
User Management:
Add Users:
Users can be added directly or invited via email.
Assign roles such as Operator or Financials to users.
System Settings:
Shop Configuration:
Customize shop information, including logo, contact details, and addresses.
Set up shop hours, default hourly rate, and currency.
Define custom fields to record additional data within modules.
Quoting, Sales, and Jobs:
Customize quoting and sales settings.
Set numbering schemes, terms of service, discounts, and sales tax.
Shipping, Receiving, and Finance:
Configure shipping and receiving settings, including couriers.
Set up payment methods and net terms.
Demand Generation:
Define how demand is generated, either from jobs, sales orders, or both.
Once your account is set and tailored to your business, you can now begin using StartProto.
Item Creation:
Creating Items:
Make Items: Items produced within your facility.
Buy Items: Goods or services purchased from outside.
Routing Setup:
Define operations, processes, setup time, run time, and input items for the routing step.
Quoting and Sales:
Creating Quotes:
Add items, set quantity, price, and lead time, then confirm.
Converting Quotes to Orders:
Mark quotes as sent and then as won or lost.
Convert won quotes to sales orders.
Managing Sales Orders and Jobs:
View and manage sales orders under the Orders page.
Assign items to jobs for production.
Production and Scheduling:
Creating Jobs:
Select items from sales orders to create jobs.
Specify scheduling method: rigid flow, batch flow, or continuous flow.
Work Management:
View available and running work.
Start and stop sessions, monitor the shop floor, and generate labor reports.
Purchasing and Receiving:
Create purchase orders based on demand.
Receive materials and update inventory.
Scheduling and Production:
Master View:
View all active jobs and generated work.
Rearrange priorities based on needs.
Scheduling Work:
Schedule work centers and operators.
Begin work from the Op Homepage.
Shipping and Invoicing:
Shipping Items:
Create shipments based on job requirements.
Select courier and create a shipment.
Invoicing:
Invoice sales orders after shipment.
Take Charge During Your Journey
Here are Some Tips And Tricks To Help Make Onboarding Even Easier. Having A Strong Plan Is Key To A Successful Adoption.
Share your plans and why you are implementing the new system. This helps your team and ours understand the purpose and goals of the change.
Share the potential business impacts of the new system. This can help motivate your team and get them excited about the change.
Explicitly ask for buy-in from your team. This can help ensure everyone is on board and committed to making the change successful.
Know your resistors up front. This can help you anticipate challenges and address them proactively.
Be upfront about what it means to change. This can help manage expectations and reduce resistance.
Openly discuss potential risks associated with the change. This can help prevent issues from arising later on.
Appoint a leader and give that person the power to make decisions. Having a clear leader can help keep things moving forward.
Take the time to familiarize yourself with the StartProto and get hands-on experience. This can help you better support your team and address any questions or concerns that may arise.
Be Prepared For Challenges
Making Large-scale Changes for your organization is a massive undertaking, no matter what size. Here Are Some Critical Points To Review.
Prioritizing Adoption: It's crucial to prioritize adoption and allocate the necessary resources to ensure its success. Also, recognize adoption doesn’t have to be a race. Your Success team is more than happy to prepare a pace that works for you and your organization.
Appointing Ownership: Appoint a clear leader and give that person the power to make decisions. Having a leader can help keep things moving forward.
Communication: Avoid barriers and encourage open communication to ensure everyone is on board and committed to making the change successful.
Adoption Is A Team Effort: it requires collaboration and shared commitment from everyone involved. A single person or department could prevent your organization from reaching its goals. identify these risk areas and address them, remember your Success Team is here to help.