Engineer-to-Order, Make-to-Order, Assemble-to-Order
ETO, MTO, ATO. These types of custom design, manufacturing, and/or assembly are the hallmark of many automotive and aerospace contracts. Frontier ERP software excels at helping companies manage their “to-order” production while keeping the number of SKUs at a minimum. This helps companies save money by keeping inventory requirements at a minimum. Frontier is used by automotive and aerospace companies that are designing, manufacturing, and/or selling:- Vehicles
- Trailers
- Sub-assemblies
- Aftermarket parts
- Custom parts
- Services
The new reality for automotive and aerospace
The automotive and aerospace industries have been significantly impacted by COVID travel restrictions and the global pandemic, strengthening economies in Asia as well as fluctuations in energy costs and increased pressure for carbon offsetting and environmentally friendly modes of transportation. As a result, these industries are adapting by making adjustments to product designs, consolidating suppliers, and modifying their supply chain and distribution networks. To be competitive, automotive and aerospace manufacturers are extending lean and six sigma process improvements across the extended enterprise and throughout the product lifecycle. By increasing visibility and communications up and down the supply chain, companies can more easily adjust production to meet demand during the growth, product maturity, and decline phase for each product line. Finally, efficiently supporting dealerships as well as aftermarket providers is critical to the success and brand reputation of the manufacturer. Technologies that support the collaboration and synchronization of information result in more profitable operations. Friedman Frontier ERP software supports the engineer-to-order, make-to-order, and assemble-to-order requirements inherent in the automotive and aerospace industries.Frequently Asked Questions
What types of automotive and aerospace manufacturers does Frontier serve?
Frontier serves automotive and aerospace manufacturers and suppliers involved in engineer-to-order, make-to-order, and assemble-to-order production — companies designing, manufacturing, or assembling vehicles, trailers, sub-assemblies, aftermarket parts, custom components, and related services. These are operations where standard build-to-stock manufacturing doesn’t apply because product specifications vary by contract or customer order, and where managing the SKU count while accommodating customization is a constant operational challenge.
How does Frontier help automotive and aerospace manufacturers manage product complexity while controlling SKU proliferation?
Frontier’s parametric configurator encodes the engineering options and constraints for each product line, allowing manufacturers to offer a wide range of configurations without creating a separate SKU for every possible combination. By centralizing the configuration logic in the PCM knowledge base, manufacturers can manage product complexity through engineering rules rather than through an ever-growing catalog of fixed SKUs. This reduces inventory requirements — only components and sub-assemblies are stocked, not finished goods in every configuration — while still supporting a wide variety of customer specifications.
How does Frontier support the extended supply chain requirements of automotive and aerospace manufacturers?
Automotive and aerospace manufacturers increasingly rely on external suppliers for components and sub-assemblies that were previously produced in-house — a trend driven by globalization and lean manufacturing initiatives. Frontier’s supply chain management suite provides visibility and execution support across extended supply chains: supplier performance tracking, material requirements planning with long lead times, purchase order management, and inbound logistics integration. For manufacturers where component availability from global suppliers is a primary production risk, having supply chain visibility integrated with production planning and order management is essential for meeting customer delivery commitments.
How does Frontier support lean and six sigma initiatives in automotive and aerospace operations?
Frontier’s AME shop floor system supports lean manufacturing principles by removing non-value-added activities from production — paperless work instructions delivered to each work center eliminate manual document handling, real-time tracking eliminates status update meetings, and event notifications surface issues like material shortages or inspection holds immediately rather than at the end of a production run. Frontier’s production KPI tracking per work center provides the data infrastructure for continuous improvement initiatives — identifying bottlenecks, measuring throughput, and tracking quality metrics in the context of actual production activity.
