Online Sourcing System Helps NASA Match Suppliers to Needs
NASA Tech Briefs, Apr 2005
MfgQuote.com online technology sourcing system
MfgQuote, Inc.
Atlanta, GA
770-444-9686
At NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, TX, engineers continuously roll out new hardware, software, and methodologies, and are designing new or re-engineered components and assemblies. JSC has its own machine shop that handles precision machining, but when inundated with work, engineers requiring made-to-order parts may have to bid through another source. Each job must be bid out to a minimum of three suppliers, and often it takes nearly a month to ensure three quotes.
JSC now uses MfgQuote.com for online sourcing, which is the industry name for locating qualified suppliers who specialize in producing parts in a variety of manufacturing disciplines. The online, production-level sourcing system with Request for Quote (RFQ) wizards and management tools lets JSC engineers tap into a marketplace of over 1,200 contract manufacturers. Because JSC's work is CAD-based and engineering documents are in PDF format, the first JSC engineers to use the system moved into a streamlined, digital operation.
Victor Spencer, a JSC engineer in the Energy Systems Division, was the first to investigate the new sourcing system. To date, he has found five qualified suppliers across the country to produce his parts. For the Mars SCOUT project, Spencer needed an electronics box and enclosure built in one week. A supplier in Colorado won the award among a field of 12 other bids, and completed the sheetmetal fabrication/drilling job.
Four JSC engineers currently are sourcing online, and the group has benchmarked an advanced MfgQuote service called MfgQtiote CS(TM), a new service created exclusively for OEMs who source custom manufactured components.
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