Medical Device Manufacturer Trixell Improves Production Visibility, Traceability with Apriso FlexNet Solution

Apriso solution executes manufacturing operations processes, enhancing visibility and control to simplify production and increase responsiveness for Trixell’s family of X-ray flat panel digital detector devices

Long Beach on 21 December 2007

Apriso Corporation, a provider of adaptive software solutions for global manufacturers, today announced Trixell, the world’s leading manufacturer of digital detectors for medical radiology, has gone live with their Apriso FlexNet® implementation. The Apriso solution, in conjunction with a recent expansion at their Moirans facility in southeast France, has greatly expanded capacity by adding new machinery and upgrading systems, enabling a real-time approach to operations execution.

Trixell (www.trixell.com), a joint venture between Thales (51%), Philips Medical Systems (24.5%) and Siemens Medical Solutions (24.5%), is using Apriso’s software as a collaborative manufacturing operations execution system to improve production line efficiency and enhance access to real-time data. This greater visibility and control over production processes has helped this medical device manufacturer improve production performance through quicker, better decision making and enhanced traceability, enabling Trixell to address their regulatory compliance requirements.

“Our expectations have been exceeded with the deployment of Apriso FlexNet, continuing our commitment to improve customer responsiveness while providing easier access to production data,” explained Jean Philippe Pierre, IT project manager at Trixell. “Now, everything is stored in a centralized database, providing efficiency while simplifying production processes through the easy-to-use FlexNet system.”

The Trixell product line allows physicians and radiologists to quickly scan and save radiology images, rather than printing and storing on large films. Implementation of the Apriso system will amplify Trixell’s environmentally friendly processes, eliminating the 80-100 sheets of paper previously required to manufacture each device. Apriso’s new paperless system could save over half a million sheets of paper per year, further expanding Trixell’s positive impact on the environment.

While the selection to deploy Apriso was primarily justified on improved adaptability, responsiveness and real-time visibility to plant operations, another equally important factor was the ease of implementation and use of FlexNet. To start, FlexNet completely integrates with Trixell’s SAP ERP system, so no ERP modifications were needed as part of the deployment. Accustomed to complex programming requirements of typical manufacturing IT systems, the operations and IT staff are very pleased with the intuitive, directive FlexNet user interface, which resulted in shortening the implementation schedule due to less programming and fewer end user training requirements.

“Both pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers such as Trixell benefit from the ease of use in how Apriso FlexNet delivers real-time operations intelligence to enable highly adaptive production environments,” explains Rick Gallisa, industry director for life sciences at Apriso. “The FlexNet system directs operators which specific actions should be completed, in the order necessary to optimize production processes. At the same time, sufficient data is collected to enable complete traceability, greatly simplifying the process of achieving and maintaining regulatory compliance.”

Trixell’s FlexNet choice is in direct alignment with ARC Advisory Group’s approach to manufacturing operations management, as detailed within the recently published ARC report entitled “Operations Management Solution Requirements Guide.” The author, Greg Gorbach, states “Leading manufacturers are now putting a priority on plant floor IT investments, in some cases making the strategic decision that this will constitute the bulk of their IT spend over the next few years …They need to operate as a real-time enterprise … Leading manufacturers have achieved success by developing many characteristics of real-time enterprises.”

The Apriso solution now in use at Trixell doesn’t stop improving productivity once production is complete. As devices are shipped world wide to physicians and other end users, product returns will occasionally occur, whereby a previously shipped unit must be inspected, repaired or re-stocked. The Apriso FlexNet system is also being used to track this activity, creating an ‘as returned’ history, which is then available to production and design systems to further improve production performance, product quality and overall operations efficiency.

About Apriso

Apriso Corporation is a software company dedicated to providing competitive advantage for its customers. It does so by enabling manufacturing organizations to adapt quickly and easily to market changes and unexpected events. Apriso FlexNet applications provide visibility, adaptability and real-time control of manufacturing operations across the enterprise and supply chain network. Apriso leads the industry in multi-site, globally integrated Operations Execution Systems. Many of Apriso’s customers have chosen to integrate planning, execution and control to increase operational efficiency and eliminate errors in their production process. Apriso serves more than 160 customers in 40 countries across the Americas, Europe and Asia, powering more than 600 installations worldwide. A partial listing of customers includes General Motors, Lear, Honeywell, Microsoft, L’Oreal, Lockheed Martin, Becton Dickinson, Rubbermaid, Saint-Gobain, Novelis and Essilor. Learn more at www.apriso.com. Apriso and FlexNet are registered trademarks of Apriso Corporation. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.