Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM) selects aPriori for product cost management

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-TIEM will leverage software to reduce cost on existing parts and provide cost visibility during product design-

 aPriori, a provider of product cost management software solutions, has announced that Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM) has selected the aPriori software platform to reduce current product part costs and enable its design engineers to manage product costs more effectively in the design process. aPriori will provide TIEM’s design and cost engineers with real-time, detailled cost analysis both pre- and post production to help avoid unnecessary costs throughout the product lifecycle.

Toyota offers a full line of high-quality lift trucks and has been the number-one selling lift truck brand in North America since 2002. The majority of Toyota forklifts sold in the U.S. and Canada are manufactured at TIEM in Columbus, Indiana and are popular due to their quality, reliability and durability. aPriori’s Product Cost Management software platform provides TIEM with the ability to instantly and precisely determine the cost of a part or product from a CAD model, based on the materials to be used and the volume of parts to be manufactured. Engineers can get a real-time cost assessment at any time during the design process and immediately understand the impact of any design alternative.

Using this new level of cost knowledge, the company can make more informed design decisions and significantly reduce product costs earlier in the product lifecycle.

“With access to detailled cost information, our design engineers can now better understand the cost implications of different product designs as they work,” said Dave Land, manager of design engineering for TIEM. “At the same time, our purchasing teams can leverage aPriori to identify existing product parts where we might be paying too much and source them more cost effectively. This will enable us to produce existing products and launch new products at or below target costs. We also expect to eliminate expensive rework and cost-reengineering cycles and get products to market faster.”

“aPriori empowers all parts of an organisation to effectively impact product cost,” said Stephanie Feraday, aPriori’s president and chief executive officer. “Purchasing is always concerned with cost, but other personnel may not have the right tools to effectively indentify the best opportunities for cost savings. On the other hand, product cost is generally not a primary concern of design engineers. They need easy to use tools to help them understand the cost implications of their designs. With aPriori, TIEM engineering and purchasing teams both have the ability to access precise cost assessments in real-time as they design and source. This enables them to identify and realise product cost savings quickly and easily.”

Quality is the hallmark of the Toyota Production System practiced at all Toyota manufacturing facilities, including TIEM, a zero-landfill facility that manufactures the majority of lift trucks sold in North America. TIEM is a member of the National Safety Council and complies with the ISO 14001 standard from the International Organization for Standardization.

In addition to the full line of high-quality lift trucks sold under the Toyota brand, the company’s extended industrial equipment solutions include: Aichi aerial work lifts—scissor lifts, crawler and wheeled boom lifts—Automated Guided Vehicles, and electric and diesel tow tractors.

Toyota’s commitment to excellence in customer service extends throughout the U.S. and Canada. Seventy-three authorised Toyota Industrial Equipment dealers, with a total of 224 dealership locations throughout North America, offer comprehensive customer service and support, including one-stop shopping for both new and used lift trucks, rentals, parts and service, fleet servicing and financing. For more information on Toyota forklifts, please visit www.toyotaforklift.com, www.facebook.com/ToyotaForklift or twitter.com/ToyotaForklift.

FACTFILE:
aPriori software and services generate hard-cash product cost savings for discrete manufacturing and product innovation companies. Using aPriori’s real-time product cost assessments, employees in engineering, sourcing and manufacturing make more-informed decisions that drive costs out of products pre- and post-production. With aPriori, manufacturers launch products at cost targets, maximise savings in re-work projects and never overpay for sourced parts.

To learn more about aPriori and its product cost management solutions and services, visit www.apriori.com. To see an overview demonstration of aPriori, click here.

aPriori and aPriori Technologies are registered trademarks of aPriori Technologies Inc. All other trademarks, registered trademarks or service marks belong to their respective holders.