Direct materials sourcing technology a hub for manufacturers

Direct materials sourcing is a critical process in product design, engineering and manufacturing. That was never more apparent in 2017 when Tesla began to ship the Model 3, its first electric vehicle meant to be affordable for middle-income buyers. The company had set two ambitious and unprecedented goals: building an EV for a base price of $35,000 and completing the development cycle in three years, half the typical turnaround in the automotive industry. The compressed timeline put tremendous pressure on employees to source quality parts economically and on time while keeping up with the tight design and production schedules. But Tesla was working at a disadvantage. Much of its sourcing and procurement was still done manually, and an IT gap existed between the product lifecycle management system, where engineering and design were managed, and the ERP. In this episode, we explore the impact inefficient procurement can have on profit margins, how a direct materials sourcing platform can close the technology gap for manufacturers, and the role played by AI. Featuring: Spencer Penn, Co-founder and CEO, LightSource    In today's episode, we'll also cover: Why mastering the bill of materials is so important in sourcing's financial impact. How LightSource works, who uses it and where it fits in the product lifecycle. Lessons learned from Penn's experiences managing engineering finance at Tesla. References: LightSource on procurement's overreliance on email and spreadsheets Tesla misses Q3 goals due to "production bottlenecks" Automotive supply chains can benefit from sourcing alliances: Here's why. To learn more about enterprise applications, check out Search ERP.