Welcome to IQMS!

At diginomica, we hold enterprises to the exacting standard and semi-holy grail of the frictionless enterprise. But when you apply the art of the possible to an industry setting, it gets really interesting.

Manufacturing is one area we've singled out. Why? Because the shop floor isn't the legacy sticking point after all. The shop floor turns out to be the engine that can change a company, via the impact of robotics, manufacturing data visibility, and connecting internal and external systems. Or, as IQMS put it simply to a gathering of analysts and customers in Boston:

The money is made on the shop floor.

So it's is a pleasure to introduce IQMS to the diginomica partner fold. In their debut article, Want to be a customer-focused manufacturer? You need these five quality metrics, IQMS Principal Louis Columbus cuts through the noise by warning that metrics aren't a magical pixie dust you can sprinkle on business-as-usual:

Every system, from ERP, Quality Management, Manufacturing Execution System (MES), to Supply Chain Management (SCM) and CRM have their own clock speed. For most manufacturers, business-as-usual is siloed.

Connecting systems is one problem that lands right in the IQMS wheelhouse; they are well-versed in the challenges of connecting customers' MES and ERP systems (and QMS and WMS to boot). But even connected systems pose problems. As Columbus warns, you have to measure and act on the right things. The good news? This isn't a vision beyond the reach of today's tech. Columbus:

At the opposite end of the quality spectrum are manufacturers who integrate these systems together, orchestrating them to excel at quality daily. And yes – some of them are doing this today.

Columbus goes on to share five metrics that move the needle for today's manufacturers, from Perfect Order Performance to Corrective Action/Preventative Action (CAPA) events.

As IQMS builds out its partner zone, you can expect articles fleshing out the impact of IoT and machine learning. You can also expect field views from customer projects in discrete and batch process manufacturing, explaining why OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) is a huge opportunity (if you want a head start, get their free e-book, Lessons Learned On How To Increase OEE Performance, with sign-up). The IQMS team will also show why "quality" isn't just a phrase on a corporate brochure, but a real-world growth driver.

We'll make sure to ask IQMS to hit on the challenges of real-time monitoring and how the shop floor is embracing mobility and augmented reality - topics that should resonate well beyond manufacturing.

At the Boston event, IQMS CMO Steve Bieszczat shared a cool catch phrase and rallying cry for their customers:

Stand a foot taller than your competition.

I get the sense my physical height is just about set in stone now, but IQMS wants us to think about manufacturing differently. Being a great supplier means more than just being a great manufacturer. It's about providing value-added expertise, information, and services. That should give IQMS plenty to write about. Welcome aboard.