Contractor goes for the 'glass factory' approach

ProCore Labs, a leading US contract manufacturer to the personal care industry, is about to open a series of five production facilities that include a comprehensive investment in real-time streaming video in an effort to make the whole manufacturing process more transparent.

The company says that the investment in the new technology stems from its belief in the 'glass factory', a concept that allows cosmetic companies to track the manufacturing of their products from start to finish.

In line with this aim the company has recently opened the doors to the first of five manufacturing facilities, situated just North of Dallas , Texas .

The new facilities all include a significant investment in tracking technology, in an effort to make the whole process more accountable and easier to trace back irregularities.

These measures include every aspect of the manufacturing process, from sc anne d receiving documents, through to real-time inventory and production data, to cameras on the factory floor that provide streamlining video of products being filled.

"Our customers tell us one of their biggest problems is not knowing when their products will be manufactured," said Hendrix Bodden, VP of sales and marketing.

He went on to say that the investment in the new facilities allows the company to 'tightly manage' all aspects of the manufacturing process, from purchase and confirmation, to release and delivery.

"

We deliver that information to our customers via a secure Web portal that they can access 24x7," he added.

The new factory has been developed to include 20 cameras strategically placed around the 100,000 square foot facility, with the image being made available to customers on both a real-time and time-shifted basis.

The security monitoring technology was provided by a leading global provider and taps into the growing trend for greater accountability and traceability, which also fall in lines with increasingly stringent regulations made by the FDA and other international bodies.