DAFA is moving towards greater internationalization and project maturity, which requires visibility, flexibility, and overview. CANEA ONE has been a great support on this journey. With many employees in different parts of the world, there is an increased demand for project management and a general overview of the project portfolio.
The Jutland-based production company DAFA manufactures specialty products that seal, cushion, and protect equipment. With 350 employees on three continents and in eight countries, and with frequent acquisitions, it is a fast-growing company.
"In the last 2-3 years, we have become more international due to having acquired production plants in different countries. We now have manufacturing facilities in Denmark, Poland, China, and Italy. Therefore, our need for a common communication tool has increased – it is critical to be able to work efficiently and utilize all resources", says Henrik Pedersen, Project Manager and responsible for developing and implementing project management at DAFA.
A common platform that everyone can access
That's why the hunt for a standalone and specialized project management tool started. For an operational organization, it would be obvious to build on the systems already used for orders and production. "But when we buy a factory, it may not use the same software. Then it's difficult to get the integration going. And what do you do then?" asks Henrik Pedersen. The answer was a new, common platform that everyone can access, regardless of the software they use, without heavy installations. The choice fell on CANEA ONE, which is web-based, intuitive, and dynamic.
A customized system with all project and resource data
Another important parameter was flexibility. "CANEA ONE has allowed us to configure the system to fit our project model exactly", explains Henrik Pedersen. This makes it easier to ensure consistency across the business as the system is used in the same way by the entire organization.
On a day-to-day basis, the system enables a much clearer overview of progress and resources: "All our project management is done in the system. We create tasks and deliverables, and the resources for a specific task are assigned to the employee responsible for the task. The employee then reports their time spent. In this way, the project manager can monitor progress, and it is possible to view resources, see forecasts, et cetera.", continues Henrik Pedersen.
Respect the organization's workload – and don't be a burden
In addition, there are many possibilities for filtering and using different "views". For example, management filtering provides a consolidated view of all ongoing projects. "Specifically, management can now quickly and accurately see if there is unutilized capacity in the production flow, or not – and this means that new projects can be initiated with respect to the organization's current workload." And while no system performs better than the data you feed into it, CANEA ONE makes transformation easy: "The system is extremely intuitive. And that was a parameter to be considered from the start: we're in the process of transitioning to a more project-mature culture, so a system that posed a risk of being a burden could easily have slowed us down. But fortunately, this has not been the case, but rather the opposite!" concludes Henrik Pedersen.
About DAFA A/S:
DAFA is a family-owned company founded in 1939 by Børge Norby. The original production and assembly of bronze sealing strips have evolved into the production of foam, rubber, and plastic materials for construction, industry, and wind power, such as gaskets, sealing tapes, and sound and vibration-damping solutions. Following the establishment and acquisition of subsidiaries abroad, the DAFA group employs some 350 people on three continents and in eight countries, with production in Denmark, Italy, Poland, and China.
DAFA's headquarters are located in Aarhus, Denmark. DAFA develops sustainable solutions that seal, cushion, and protect. Our goal is that our customers will always receive increased value from their cooperation with DAFA.
"CANEA ONE is extremely intuitive. This was an important parameter for us from the very beginning."
Henrik Pedersen, Project Manager and Head of Development, DAFA
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