CONCORD, MA – aPriori, a provider of product cost management software solutions, today announced that NACCO Materials Handling Group (NMHG) has expanded its deployment of aPriori. The software platform has been deployed as a key tool in NMHG’s efforts to reduce product costs and accelerate the time it takes to design and deliver profitable new products and parts to market.
NMHG’s design engineers use the aPriori software to quickly and easily compare the cost of different product design alternatives and understand the cost impact of different design options. As changes are made, or new product specs are introduced, aPriori automatically re-assesses and provides an updated product cost quickly and easily. This opens up a whole new set of cost optimization alternatives for NMHG and enables engineers to evaluate more design options without delaying time to market. Engineers can attack cost earlier in the product lifecycle and make more informed design and production decisions to reduce product costs from the start. It also creates more accountability for cost earlier in the product development process.
“Like many things, success in product cost management comes down to leadership and execution,” said Rick Goldsmith, manager of corporate manufacturing engineering and tooling for NMHG. “aPriori is vital in that regard. It provides the tools the design team needs to take responsibility for product cost and highlights the need to do something about it – in black and white detail. Prior to aPriori, our team simply did not have the insight into cost analytics. There was no focus or awareness and therefore no action. Today, that has all changed – and aPriori is playing an integral role in enabling and causing that change.”
aPriori’s Product Cost Management software platform enables design engineers to quickly and precisely determine the cost of a new part or product design by automatically pulling geometric and feature information from a computer-aided design (CAD) model. The software leverages intelligent cost models based on the manufacturing process, materials and the plant where a product or part will be produced. Using this new level of cost knowledge, manufacturers are able to make more informed new product design decisions and reduce new product costs without impacting product quality.
Today, NMHG uses aPriori across the globe and in all four of its product development centers. aPriori’s manufacturing process modules for Sheet Metal, Welding, Sand Casting, Bar & Tube and Machining provide NMHG engineers with accurate, industry-standard cost benchmarks for what new products and parts should cost. By providing this information early in the product design process, engineering and manufacturing are able to determine which design concepts and alternatives to pursue – compressing cycle times, reducing development costs and getting new products to market more quickly.
“aPriori is helping NMHG achieve its strategic product cost reduction goals while keeping projects on schedule,” commented Stephanie Feraday, president and CEO of aPriori. “Access to real-time ‘should cost’ assessments reduces the number of supplier quotes needed and allows NMHG to evaluate more cost-saving alternatives for each product concept. As a result, they are driving greater innovation while gaining valuable efficiencies in material utilization and manufacturability.”
