Information Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Information Management - Case Study Example USS's major problems were evident in its order taking process. The orders were manual, imprecise and filled with errors; there was no coherence among the different processors as they had their own tracking and order system. There fore USS was unable to follow each order as it was processed and delivered. The communication system employed between the different processors was a dialup system meaning that data processing wasted a lot of time, invariably forcing the company to hold large inventory, increasing its production cost. All such problems made USS uncompetitive in face of other producers such as POSCO, which was recently setup with the latest technologies. To fix these problems USS took rapid steps to improve their production system. First of all, they provided their customers to place theirs order online specifying the product, quantity, price, composition, size, thickness, and even delivery date for their orders. The software was developed so as to allow the customer to be able to see the cost as well as the delivery dates of their order, to allow them to plan accordingly for their business. It also allowed for messages from different processors to be translated much more quickly and more efficiently. USS also connected DecisionExpress software from LiveCapital for customers which reduced its uncollectible debts. To further improve the accuracy of the order USS incorporated several other soft wares such as order fulfillment and later i2 Technologies. They also introduced soft wares such as iTrac to keep track of their shipments and Mechanical Item Generation System to regenerate orders for repeat customers. USS also setup a subsidia ry USS Engineers and Consultants, to sell these soft wares to assist other companies. To maintain its competitive advantage they only provide soft wares which are a version older than their current software (Bratislava, 2003). Results and Business benefits In 1996, when USS faced a disastrous situation of losing Ford Motor, USS identified that, in face of future competition computerization of the production system was a necessity. This direction allowed USS to be more efficient and more profitable. After the implementation of the software system USS required 3 work hours to produce a ton of steel, as compared to 4 hours in Germany and 4.8 hours in POSCO. Hence, USS was able to greatly benefit from strong economic conditions by supplying steel to United States, China and other countries (Michael Erman - 2007). Conclusion The progress of U.S. Steel depends on the world demand for their products i.e. steel. As witness from the world wide economic shock, demand for steel and other essential construction material has plummet. Widespread closer of factories has significantly halted further investments, resulting in drastic drops of steel prices. USS has invested great sum of financial capital in refining their production cycle but in current times it will be very difficult to gain