Schaller Group Gains Visibility by Migrating to Plex, by Rockwell Automation

Metal former selects Plex ERP to digitize operations and gain end-to-end facility visibility

March 3, 2024 - Plex by Rockwell Automation, a leader in cloud-delivered smart manufacturing solutions, today announced that the precision metal forming and assembly company, Schaller Group, has chosen the Plex Smart Manufacturing Platform as an integrated, state-of-the-art manufacturing and business solution to run its Michigan-based aerospace and prototype facility. Schaller selected the full suite of Plex solutions, including Plex Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Plex Manufacturing Execution System (MES), and Plex Quality Management System (QMS).

The decision to migrate to a new solution was driven by challenges Schaller faced across its current systems and increasingly stringent cybersecurity requirements from their customers. Across the board, processes were multi-platform and manual. The company did not operate off a single source of truth, but rather, various spreadsheets, a legacy ERP system, and numerous paper documents—all in a siloed manner. This lack of integrated systems created a significant challenge to meeting their customers’ cybersecurity requirements. Another major pain point for Schaller was production scheduling—where production often bottlenecked, produced limited reporting and capacity visibility, and a lack of automation. The company also recognized a need to improve quality management, hoping for better traceability and production control. Schaller leadership, along with its committed employees, ultimately agreed a new ERP system was essential to continue to serve its customers and grow its operations.

As Schaller continues its Plex journey, the company looks forward to seeing both immediate and long-term improvements where Plex not only addresses the issues listed above—automating inventory for better production scheduling and providing digitized quality management abilities—but also provides even more benefits:

• Access to real-time KPI visibility
• Cross-functional automated, digital system
• Elimination of paper-based processes across most department
• Increased financial visibility into production

The implementation of Plex is underway and both companies are eager for a successful go-live, along with exciting results.

"The ability to move from manual entry to digital systems that streamline operations, connect the plant floor to other areas of the business, and provide access to operational data is invaluable,” shares David Schaller, Director of Advanced Manufacturing, Schaller Group. “We know Plex ERP will change Schaller’s day-to-day for the better, as our employees gain insights previously unavailable, comply with quality requirements with ease, and tap into the potential of automation. As our industry continues to face enhanced cybersecurity requirements, Plex ERP’s cloud-based architecture will provide the added benefit of helping us maintain industry standards for cybersecurity.”

“We’re pleased that Schaller Group put its trust and confidence in Plex,” says James Madden, enterprise software sales executive, Rockwell Automation. “Plex’s comprehensive ERP functionality will soon provide Schaller with complete visibility from the shop floor to the top floor, giving them real-time insights into operations, quality, engineering, and finance. With Plex, Schaller will have the pulse of the entire enterprise at their fingertips, enabling smarter decision-making and enhanced efficiency.”

Schaller Group is a trusted partner to leading manufacturers in the aerospace & automotive industries for 70+ years. We offer metal stamped parts on 50 to 1800 ton hydraulic & mechanical presses, robotic RSW & MIG welded assemblies, roll-forming, 5 axis machining and water jet. Located in Chesterfield, Mi, we have more than 500,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing. Certifications include AS-9100, IATF 16949, ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 17025, NADCAP welding and laser.