Corus picks Tropos for latest strip mill project

Rotherham-based Brinsworth Strip Mills, part of Corus’ Special Strip, is to implement £300,000 worth of manufacturing enterprise software developer SSI’s Tropos ERP. The 70-user system is scheduled to go live this June. Brinsworth is a short lead-time make-to-order operation, and Corus business systems manager Joe Thomson says he expects Tropos to provide the “accurate and up to date information” the firm needs to improve its efficiency and quality of service. “Tropos will give us better visibility of our supply chain,” he says. “SSI’s people were the clinching factor; they understood the mills and metals sector, and that gave us great confidence.” In fact, for Corus’ needs, SSI is implementing two of its most recent and advanced Tropos facilities – shopfloor to management integration and attribute-based manufacturing.” “Attribute-based manufacturing is crucial,” says Thomson. “Much of our planning and costing is based around physical attributes – such as the changing dimensions of our products during rolling and finishing. So this functionality is central to our solution”