Every month-end at Kapoor Labels in Ludhiana was the same: the numbers didn't add up. Raw material going in, finished goods going out, but the difference was always higher than expected. The manager knew they were losing material somewhere, but couldn't say where.
What actually causes this, and what fixes it
"Auto reconciliation, this is the answer that stops being acceptable once you can see what it actually means."
The operators weren't stealing. The machines weren't broken. The problem was simpler: nobody was logging quantity in and quantity out at each stage. Wastage at lamination looked the same as wastage at die cutting. Everything was 'thoda wastage hua', some wastage happened.
Clicarity made quantity logging part of every stage update. Within a month, Kapoor Labels could see exactly where the losses were occurring, and how much. The lamination stage was responsible for 60% of their wastage. One process change, and monthly material costs dropped by 12%.