James started working at Square D about 20 years ago and has grown with the company. He began on the assembly line and has worked in many of the groups at the Knightdale plant. James uses mathematics everyday. The skills he uses include statistics, percents, rates, graphing, and formulas. James routinely uses a variety of technology in his work, especially computers and spreadsheets.
Manufacturing companies keep an inventory of items needed in production.
The cost of keeping a large inventory is high, not only because of the dollar value of the actual inventory, but also because of the inventory occupies precious space. The people who manage this system must understand some basic concepts of linear functions to make good decisions for their company. The kanban system allows a company to order materials for the manufacturing of its products so that the components are received just when they are needed in the production process. The kanban system relies heavily on the collection of accurate data on the parts and materials used in the past. This data is then analyzed to predict how much parts and materials are going to be needed in the future.