Electronics manufacturing services
Implementation plan

EMS subcontractor · PCB assembly and box build for industrial customers · 1 site, 3 SMT lines · 180 employeesThis War Map shows how we turn an operational review into an implementation plan. The dates show a possible sequence; the scope and schedule of a real engagement are agreed with you.

Implementation plan

What changes, in which order, and who keeps each decision. 8 initiatives across 4 departments. €264-398K of illustrative annual value, with each assumption written out.

Priorities at a glance

  • 8 initiatives across 4 departments
  • €264K to €398K of illustrative annual value: capacity, quotes won, broker spend, expedites and returns
  • Sample target: RFQs answered within 5 working days by the end of month 2
  • Target: one look-up per component, shared by costing, purchasing and engineering

Automation Opportunity Map

The goal is not to add AI on top of chaos. The goal is to turn repeated fires into infrastructure: context assembled automatically, decisions routed to the right level, exceptions escalated only when human judgment is actually needed. The figures below show direct value by initiative. Broader operational value is modeled separately.

Matching and updates use deterministic rules. An agent can classify a free-text request, gather records or draft a response. Software-enforced access, validation, duplicate handling and named human approvals govern consequential actions.

The two estimates (direct value by initiative; projected annual value by operational effect) are alternative, overlapping views. Do not add them. Ranges are teaching assumptions without source measurements: volumes, time, loaded cost and error cost require validation. Investment, operation and adoption ramp remain to be deducted.

Low complexity
Med complexity
High complexity
Direct initiative value: €220-325K/yr
Sales + Costing2 items
€85-125K
BOM Intake: cleaning and matching customer BOMs
€30-40KMed
Current state
Each BOM arrives in a different format. Cleaning takes 1.5 to 4 hours per RFQ before costing starts.
Target state
An agent converts each BOM to one format, matches part numbers to Sage X3 items and the approved list, and lists unclear lines to send back to the customer. Mathieu reviews the result.
€30-40K/yrWeeks 2-6Med
RFQ Pricing Pack: price, stock and lifecycle per line
€55-85KMed
Current state
Each line priced by hand on several sites for 3 quantities. Lifecycle checked irregularly. Quotes leave after 9 days on average.
Target state
For each line, the pack shows prices for 3 quantity breaks, lead time, lifecycle status and long-lead flags, and prefills the costing sheet. Mathieu sets labour; Agnès sets the margin and sends the quote. Outcome and loss reason logged.
€55-85K/yrWeeks 4-9MedDepends on: BOM Intake: cleaning and matching customer BOMs
Purchasing + Supply3 items
€75-110K
Shortage Board: daily list with options
€35-50KLow
Current state
85 lines rebuilt every Monday from an export and a tour of distributor sites. Confirmed dates stay in Excel.
Target state
The list updates daily from Sage X3 and distributor stock. Each line shows its options: franchised stock, approved alternate or broker quote. Yann decides; broker buys above €2,000 need Claire's approval. Confirmed dates are written back to Sage X3.
€35-50K/yrWeeks 2-5Low
EOL Watch: notice sorting and where-used
€25-35KLow
Current state
About 60 notices a month sorted by hand. Where-used misses parts under distributor references.
Target state
An agent reads each notice, matches manufacturer and distributor references, lists the boards and customers affected and proposes a last-time-buy quantity from forecasts. Claire decides the buy.
€25-35K/yrWeeks 3-7Low
Alternate Approval Files: prepared and tracked
€15-25KMed
Current state
11 requests open with customers, the oldest at 71 days. Follow-up relies on reminders.
Target state
Each request gets a file with a datasheet comparison for Sébastien to check and send. Reminders go out on an agreed schedule. Approval stays with the customer's engineer and is recorded in the approved list once received.
€15-25K/yrWeeks 6-10MedDepends on: EOL Watch: notice sorting and where-used
Quality + Test2 items
€35-55K
Test Data Link: bench results by serial number
€15-25KHigh
Current state
Results stay on each bench PC. 2 of 5 benches not linked to serial numbers.
Target state
Results from all 5 benches are collected into one store keyed by serial number and linked to MES traceability. Bench programs stay under Antoine's control, with a second engineer trained on the collection.
€15-25K/yrWeeks 3-9High
RMA Assistant: history and trends per return
€20-30KMed
Current state
Report in 17 working days on average. Each return closed on its own.
Target state
When a board arrives, an agent assembles its test log, AOI results, reel lots and earlier returns of the same part, and drafts the report. Morgane completes the analysis and signs. A weekly view shows repeat failures across customers.
€20-30K/yrWeeks 8-12MedDepends on: Test Data Link: bench results by serial number
Planning + Customer Service1 item
€25-35K
Kit Release Check + Delivery Updates
€25-35KLow
Current state
23% of jobs start with an incomplete kit. Customers get new dates by individual emails.
Target state
Kit completeness is checked before release. A partial kit starts only with Delphine's approval and a fitting plan. Updated delivery dates are drafted from confirmed supplier dates; Gwenaëlle reviews and sends them.
€25-35K/yrWeeks 6-10LowDepends on: Shortage Board: daily list with options

Implementation Timeline

Weeks are relative to implementation start; months represent four four-week blocks. Dependent work can be prepared in parallel with test fixtures, but production release waits for sync acceptance. This is a scenario schedule.

  1. BOM Intake

    Weeks 2 to 6

  2. Shortage Board

    Weeks 2 to 5

  3. EOL Watch

    Weeks 3 to 7

  4. Test Data Link

    Weeks 3 to 9

  5. RFQ Pricing Pack

    Weeks 4 to 9

  6. Alternate Approval Files

    Weeks 6 to 10

  7. Kit Release Check

    Weeks 6 to 10

  8. RMA Assistant

    Weeks 8 to 12

  9. Sage X3 approved-list and lifecycle sync

    Weeks 13 to 16

Month 1: BOM intake and the shortage board go live. Confirmed dates flow back to Sage X3. Broker buys above €2,000 need a second approval. People review every agent output.

Month 2: EOL watch and the RFQ pricing pack in use. Target: RFQs answered within 5 working days. Test data collection running on the first benches.

Month 3: Alternate approval files and the kit release check live. Incomplete-kit starts and broker spend measured against the baseline.

Month 4: RMA assistant live on linked test data. Sage X3 sync scoped. Handover accepted once a second person runs each initiative and recovers it from a failure.

Projected Annual Value

Released capacity (46.5 h/week register × 46 weeks × €50-60/h loaded cost)€107-128K
Additional quotes won (4-8 wins/year × €60K first-year order × 20% contribution margin)€48-96K
Broker premium reduced (25-40% of the ~€185K paid above franchised prices)€46-74K
Expedite fees and late-delivery penalties (30-50% of €110K/yr)€33-55K
Returns and obsolescence (40-60% of €75K/yr in repeat repairs and unplanned last-time buys)€30-45K
€264-398K
projected annual value

Released hours go to costing judgement, alternate qualification and failure analysis. No headcount reduction is assumed. Extra wins depend on price and capacity as well as speed. Prices, purchases, alternate approvals and quality release stay with named people. All figures are illustrative.

Phase 1
War Map
Sample deliverable
Phase 2-3
Implementation
12-16 weeks
Phase 3+
Ongoing
Usage-based

How much time could this free up?

Choose one non-overlapping task category and the people who actually perform it. These inputs are scenario assumptions; replace them with a measured baseline.

180
52,000
40
31
40

2,232

Task hours per week

€2,901,600

Annual cost allocated to this work

892.8

Potentially released hours per week

€1,160,640

Annual gross value of that capacity

Hours = people × weekly hours × task share. Allocated cost = people × annual loaded cost × task share. Potential capacity multiplies each by the releasable share.

This is not net ROI or a payroll saving. Necessary manual work remains. Adoption and quality must be measured; actual uptake may be lower. Implementation investment, model and hosting costs, maintenance and supervision are excluded. Cash savings require a separate spending decision; otherwise the benefit is capacity available for other work.

How We Work

1
War Map Review
We walk through this deliverable together. You challenge the numbers, confirm the priorities, and tell us what we missed. This is your map. We built it, but you own it.
2
Remediation
Before we build anything, we fix what needs fixing. Data quality, missing SOPs, system access. Your team gets briefed on the plan. No surprises.
3
Build + Deploy
We work directly with your operations team. Systems go live one at a time, in priority order. Release gates cover representative cases, permissions, failures and escalation; consequential actions retain the agreed human authorization. This illustrative schedule targets first production results in month 1.
4
Transfer
We train your team. We document everything. We make sure the people who run your operations can run these systems without us. The capability is yours permanently.
5
Exit
Handover is accepted when your team can operate and recover the agreed systems. Any continuing support is separately scoped, with a named owner and a documented exit.

War Map

A real engagement is scoped in the Strategy Session and may begin with a War Map or a bounded Feasibility Sprint.

Request a Strategy Session

Direct accountability. Scope agreed before work begins.