Design of an integrated database for a multiplant cable manufacturer

The need to manage business operations effectively on an international scale is becoming critically important. Around the world firms are mobilizing to meet increasing global competition rapidly by redirecting, reorganizing, expanding, and relocating operations, or through joint ventures with other companies. One area that faces these challenges is the cables industry, wherein the need for integrated information systems covering various platforms of operations and adequate communication, is necessary for survival in the global market. An integrated information systems network has been designed for a large cable manufacturing facility, consisting of four plants, namely power cables plant, telecommunication cables plant, metal and plastics plant, and reel plant. This network covers the manufacturing, material management, customer orders, marketing and finance processes for each of the above named plants. Various processes have been integrated employing computer-aided systems engineering (CASE) tools and ORACLE relational database. The unified integrated information systems network has been realized employing optical rings, local area networks, and client-server architectures distributed across the various plants.