6. Deploy Appropriate Technology
A range of different technology systems can play an underlying role in supporting CI projects, including manufacturing execution, customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning  and supply chain management. However, if performance management and improvement are the ultimate goals of the CI project, manufacturers need to ensure, above all, that they have technology that yields the real-time, usable information the shop floor needs to improve performance decisively and immediately. This may be an additional system that makes it easy to synthesize and analyze information from multiple sources. 

7. Employ a Practical and Simple Implementation Framework
As appealing as it may be to think that a CI initiative can solve all of a manufacturer’s problems overnight, it is that kind of overreaching that can cause projects to fail, either because the expectations are unachievable or the scope is unmanageable. It is important to have a long-term vision, but also to break the CI project down into logical, attainable phases with clear milestones and realistic timelines at each stage. In this way, quick wins can be achieved first, validating the project and helping it gain momentum as it reaches for increasing heights.

Mark Sutcliffe  is the general manager of CDC Factory at CDC Software. For more information about the firm, visit www.cdcsoftware.com.