JP2003108211A - System for managing consumable items, device and method for same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system that enables a user to reduce the inventory of consumable items and to order them beyond an enterprise framework the user belongs to and attains a cost reduction and a stable supply for the consumable items. SOLUTION: A supply management center 111 obtains data to show the inventory status of consumable items from a plurality of makers 101 to 105, which manufacture the consumable items, and each semiconductor maker 121 to 123 that consume the items via a network 131. The supply management center 111 instructs the consumable item makers to increase or decrease in the consumable item production based upon the inventory status of the consumable items via the network 131. Furthermore, the management center 111 processes orders for each semiconductor maker to purchase the consumable items according to the inventory status of the consumable items.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a consumables management system and apparatus for procuring consumables in semiconductor manufacturing, etc.
M). More specifically, the present invention relates to a consumables management system and apparatus using a network such as the Internet, and their methods.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, consumables used in a semiconductor manufacturing factory or the like are managed in inventory at each factory and individually ordered to a consumables manufacturer. Each factory or each device maker, for example, uses a CIM system (Computer
Integrated Manufacturing) has been established and optimization is being carried out on a factory or corporate group basis.

[0003]

However, while the production of semiconductors is increasing due to the recent spread of personal computers, portable information terminals, and digital home appliances, demands for further cost reduction and stable supply are increasing. . As semiconductor production increases, inventory control of consumables in semiconductor manufacturing is becoming difficult. In other words, it has become necessary to reduce the management cost by compressing the inventory while avoiding the risk of stock-out.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and by constructing a system for managing the inventory of consumables beyond the frame of one company, for example, a level exceeding the frame of the company, Furthermore, it is possible to reduce the amount of inventory or place an order in the entire industry including the competitor group, and to reduce the cost and supply of consumables stably.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a consumables management system according to the present invention is a manufacturer's inventory showing the status of the inventory of the consumables from a plurality of manufacturers who manufacture the consumables. First to obtain information via a network
Acquisition means, second acquisition means for acquiring consumer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables from a plurality of consumers consuming the consumables via a network, and the first and second
An instructing means for instructing each of the plurality of manufacturers to increase or decrease the production of the consumables based on the manufacturer inventory information and the consumer inventory information acquired by the acquisition means; Equipped with.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, the consumable goods management system according to the present invention provides a network of manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumable goods from a plurality of manufacturers who manufacture the consumable goods. A first acquisition means for acquiring via a network, a second acquisition means for acquiring, through a network, consumer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables from a plurality of consumers consuming the consumables; Management means for managing orders from the plurality of consumers to the plurality of manufacturers based on the manufacturer inventory information and the consumer inventory information acquired by the first and second acquisition means.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a consumable item management device and a consumable item management method used in the consumable item management system.

[0008]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<First Embodiment> In the embodiment described below, the stock status of consumables of each semiconductor manufacturer (or factory), which is a consumer of consumables, and the manufacturer of consumables. Establish a supply management center that collectively manages the inventory status of each consumable manufacturer (or factory). This supply management center manages inventory through networks such as the Internet, and manages inventory so that the inventory of each semiconductor manufacturer (or factory) becomes appropriate.
We undertake order processing and logistics. By constructing a system that transcends the boundaries of companies in this way, we will provide a system that enables further cost reduction and stable supply by reducing the inventory volume and placing large orders for the industry as a whole.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a consumables management system in semiconductor manufacturing according to the first embodiment. 101-1
Reference numeral 05 is a consumables manufacturer (or factory) that manufactures consumables such as wafers, resists, and gases in semiconductor manufacturing. (Of course, consumables in semiconductor manufacturing are raw materials,
Although there are many equipment maintenance parts and the like, here, for the sake of explanation, a wafer, a resist, and a gas are described). 1
21 to 123 are semiconductor manufacturers (or factories).
Reference numeral 111 denotes a supply management center, which manages the inventory status of consumables at each semiconductor manufacturer and consumables manufacturer.

All of the above-mentioned configurations are connected by the Internet 131, and the consumables makers 101 to 105 and the semiconductor makers 121 to 123 are the supply management center 1.
11, the stock status is open to the public. The supply management center 111 monitors the inventory status of each semiconductor maker and the certificate maker, and manages the inventory so that the inventory amount is appropriate in the entire system.

The supply management center 111 is (1)
It consists of five systems: inventory monitor system, (2) ordering system, (3) physical distribution system, (4) evaluation system, and (5) charging system. Hereinafter, these systems will be described.

(1) The inventory monitor system supply management center 111 is used by each semiconductor manufacturer 121.
2 to 123 and the consumable goods inventory status of each of the consumable goods manufacturers 101 to 105 are collected via the Internet 131, and FIG.
And centrally manage as shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the management status of the stock status of the consumables manufacturer at the supply management center 111. Further, FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the management status of the consumables inventory status of the semiconductor manufacturer in the supply management center 111. Note that security is provided so that the inventory status of other semiconductor manufacturers and consumables manufacturers cannot be seen from other than the supply management center 111.

The supply management center 111 provides information on the quantity of production to each consumables manufacturer based on the inventory status and production status of each semiconductor manufacturer and the inventory status of each consumables manufacturer. For example, if each semiconductor manufacturer has a large inventory, it will promote production reduction, and if inventory is insufficient, it will promote production increase. This will reduce the inventory and stabilize the price in the entire distribution.

(2) Ordering system A proper inventory amount (for example, the number of days) is determined for each semiconductor maker, and the supply management center 111 monitors how many days the inventory is currently in stock. . The appropriate inventory amount is set independently by each semiconductor manufacturer in consideration of the trade-off relationship between the risk of stockout and the inventory management cost, and each semiconductor manufacturer notifies the supply management center 111. .

The supply management center 111 has two thresholds for the stock amount. For example, 70% or less of the proper inventory amount is a caution level, and 30% or less is a warning level. In FIG. 3, since the wafers of the semiconductor manufacturer A and the resists of the semiconductor manufacturer B are below the warning level, the order is placed immediately. The inventory of the gas of the semiconductor maker A and the wafers of the semiconductor maker C are below the caution level, so an order is placed when something goes wrong. The next order will be described in the section of the physical distribution system described later. As for other products, since proper inventory is maintained, no processing such as ordering is performed.

(3) Physical Distribution System The physical distribution system described below aims to reduce transportation costs by shortening the moving distance and improving the loading rate of trucks.

FIG. 4 shows an example of locations of each consumables manufacturer, each semiconductor manufacturer, and a truck for transportation. Here, for the sake of simplicity, the areas 1, 2,
It is classified as 3. The distance between the respective areas (for example, the distance between the centers of the respective areas) is as shown in FIG. Further, FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which consumables to be transported in the future and their destinations are arranged and managed in the order of urgency. Urgency is 10, as defined in Figure 3,
9 and 8 are warning levels, and 7, 6, 5, and 4 are caution levels. It is assumed that the data shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 described above are held in the supply management center 111.

In the list of FIG. 5, the resist of Job No. 1 has an urgency of 9 and a warning level, so that the order and the transportation are immediately performed. Here, for its transportation, truck A
Is specified and the transportation of the resist of Job No. 1 is instructed. At that time, the inventory status is at the caution level, the place of departure and the place of arrival are in the same area as the registration of Job No. 1, and the transportation means (truck A in this case).
Those that can be transported (for example, the loadable weight) are searched. Here, since the wafers of Job No. 4 are determined to be the same destination and can be loaded, the supply management center 111 gives an instruction to load and transport them on the same truck A. .

The path of track A is shown in FIG.
Since Track A was in Area 1, this time Job No. 1 and 4
Was selected as the means of transportation, but the method of selecting the truck will be described in detail later. In the track A, first, the wafer is loaded by the wafer maker A, the resist is loaded by the resist maker A, and the resist is delivered to the semiconductor maker B in the area 2 200 km away. At this time, of course, the transportation of Job No. 1 with urgency level 9 (warning level) is performed first. After that, Job No. 4 with urgency level 5 (attention level) is transported. In this way, by combining jobs with high urgency and jobs with low urgency, transportation efficiency is improved. If there is another consumable item at the warning level that can be delivered using the truck A, this may be prioritized.

On the other hand, Job No. 2 with urgency level 8 (warning level)
With regard to (2), wafers must be transported from the wafer maker B in area 1 to the semiconductor maker A in area 3 as soon as possible. However, there is no track in area 1, so track B in area 3 is selected. Such empty transportation must be avoided as much as possible, but due to the high degree of urgency, transportation efficiency will be sacrificed.

Next, how to select a track will be described. When selecting a track by a certain Job, an evaluation function J shown in the following expression (1) is defined in order to select a track that meets the condition. That is, J = W1 × E + W2 × D + W3 × (C−W) (1) Wn: Weighting coefficient (n = 1,2,3) E: Maximum urgency D of already loaded articles : Distance between the present location and the departure place C: Loadable amount Loadable amount C = Maximum load amount A-Load amount B W: Item amount (however, C-W ≧ 0) However, the loadable amount exceeds the item amount For trucks only.

The track having the lowest evaluation function J is selected. The evaluation function J is such that the loaded articles have a low urgency, the current location of the truck is close to the starting location, and the loadable capacity is small, that is, the loading rate (= loading capacity / maximum loading capacity) is high. Things are defined to be chosen. Then, a weighting function Wn is set in order to adjust the importance of these three elements.

Hereinafter, how the track is specifically selected will be described. As a situation, in FIG. 4, after truck A has passed the resist at semiconductor maker B in area 2 and after truck B has loaded wafers at wafer maker B in area 1, the urgency level of Job No. 3 is Suppose that 7 to 8, that is, a case where the job is to be assigned to the track when the warning level is reached is assumed. Figure 7
In such a case, is the evaluation function J of each track.
The following shows how to calculate. Note that, here, the track C is added to the list for the sake of explanation.

Job No. 3 has 600 kg of gas, and trucks having a loadable capacity C of 600 kg or more are searched. For each of the trucks A to C listed based on the loadable capacity, the equation (1) and the weighting coefficient [W1,
The evaluation function J is calculated based on W2, W3 = [100, 10, 1]. Here, the track A having the smallest evaluation function J of 700 is selected. As can be seen by comparing Track A and Track C, in this example, the urgency level E
The weighting coefficient is such that the truck A having the smaller distance D is prioritized over the truck C having the smaller loadable capacity C. If you want to increase the loading rate, you can increase the coefficient of W3. If you want to save fuel, you can increase the coefficient of W2. If you want to avoid the risk of stock-out, It is sufficient to increase the coefficient W1 of.

(4) Evaluation system In order to improve the operation of the system, that is, in order to enhance the satisfaction of the semiconductor manufacturer, which is the customer, the consumables manufacturer and the distribution company are evaluated. Evaluation is based on the Internet 131
The information is sent from the supply management center 111 to each of the semiconductor makers 121 to 123 via the. When each of the semiconductor makers 121 to 123 returns the answered questionnaire page to the supply management center 111, the result is
Consumables manufacturer 101-via Internet 131
105 or feedback to the logistics company.

The evaluation items for the consumables manufacturer include:
Price, delivery date, quality, product lineup, supply volume, production stability, etc. Further, evaluation items for the logistics company include transportation amount, transportation cost, punctuality, and accident rate. By feeding back these evaluation values,
It is possible to understand what the consumables manufacturer and the logistics company should improve to make the customer more satisfied. It also encourages competition between contracting companies and improves the quality of service at the supply management center.

(5) Billing system The supply management center integrates the amount of deliveries to each semiconductor maker every month and bills via the Internet so that the settlement can be completed efficiently. On the other hand, for each consumables manufacturer, the shipping amount is accumulated and the usage fee is paid. Similarly, the transportation company also accumulates the transportation amount and pays the usage fee.

The supply management center 111 described above
The inventory management process by can be realized by using a computer connected to the network. The inventory monitoring system executed by the supply management center 111 will be described below.
The ordering system and the physical distribution system will be further described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The computer that implements the supply management center 111 is a general computer including a CPU, a memory, an external storage device, and an input / output device such as a display and a keyboard.

First, in step S101, the supply management center 111 starts the consumables manufacturers 101-105.
Inquires about the stock status of each terminal via the Internet 131, and acquires the stock status of each consumable item. Further, in step S102, the semiconductor manufacturers 121-
The terminal 123 is inquired about the stock status via the Internet 131, and the stock status of each consumable item is acquired.
It is assumed that the proper stock amount of each consumable item in each semiconductor manufacturer is registered in the supply management center 111 after receiving a notification from each semiconductor manufacturer in advance.

In step S103, it is determined whether the supply and demand balance of the consumables is good or bad based on the inventory quantities of the consumables manufacturer and the semiconductor manufacturer. Then, if it is determined that the consumables inventory is excessive, production is instructed to be reduced, and if it is determined that the consumables are insufficient, the production is instructed to be increased (step S104).

Then, in step S105, a consumables list as shown in FIG. 5 is generated from the stock status of each semiconductor manufacturer acquired in step S102. Then, in step S106, it is determined whether or not there is a consumable item at the warning level in the generated consumable item list.
If it exists, the process proceeds to step S107, the transportation means is determined, and the order is instructed. That is, a truck to be used for transportation is determined using the evaluation function J, and an instruction is issued to transport the consumable item to a semiconductor maker having a shortage of inventory on the truck. Note that the order quantity is the quantity required for the consumable item to become an appropriate inventory quantity.

Then, the process proceeds to step S108, and a consumable item on the warning level or the caution level which can be transported by the transportation means (truck) determined at step S107 is searched from the consumable item list. When a consumable item is retrieved by this search, an order is further issued to deliver the consumable item using the transportation means (truck). Note that the order quantity at this time is also the quantity necessary for the consumable item to be in the proper inventory quantity. And step S1
Returning to 06, it is determined whether there is a consumable item that has not been ordered and is at the warning level.

As described above, according to the above embodiment, the inventory status of the consumables manufacturer and the semiconductor manufacturer is managed by the supply management center via the Internet, thereby reducing the risk of out-of-stock and managing costs due to inventory compression. It is possible to achieve both reductions. In addition, by constructing a system that transcends the boundaries of companies in this way, it is possible to maintain appropriate inventory levels for the industry as a whole, and further reduce costs and ensure stable supply.

In the above embodiment, the data of the distance between areas as shown in FIG. 6 is provided as a table as a determining element of the transportation means, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, instead of the distance between areas, the distances of all combinations of each consumables manufacturer and each semiconductor manufacturer may be set.
By doing so, a more accurate evaluation function can be obtained. In addition, if there is an expressway on the route, the distance may be corrected to be shortened, or the intelligent transportation system ITS may be used to reverse the distance if the route is congested. Furthermore, an evaluation function that is actually suitable can be obtained.

In the above embodiment, the operation schedule of the truck is stored, the current position of each truck is obtained based on the schedule data, and the truck to be used for transportation is determined, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the supply management center 111 grasps the exact position of a truck by using a navigation system that uses a satellite-based positioning system GPS and a position information service that uses a PHS, which have become popular recently. It is also possible to track position and make appropriate track selections based on this data.

Naturally, there are consumables from a remote place that cannot be transported by truck. In that case,
Aircraft and ships can also be incorporated by incorporating this system. Further, even if the consumables manufacturer itself has a local distribution base even in a remote place, it can be handled by regarding it as the location of the consumables manufacturer.

In the above embodiment, the supply management center 111 is provided independently, but as shown in FIG. 9, the consumables manufacturer may also have the function of the supply management center 111. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 10, the semiconductor manufacturer may also have the function of the supply management center 111.

The object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium having a program code of software for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus, and to supply the computer (or CPU) of the system or apparatus.
It is needless to say that it is also achieved by reading and executing the program code stored in the storage medium.

In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, CD
-R, magnetic tape, non-volatile memory card, ROM, etc. can be used.

Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized, but also the OS (operating system) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It is needless to say that this also includes a case where the above) performs a part or all of the actual processing and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments.

Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written in the memory provided in the function expansion board inserted into the computer or the function expansion unit connected to the computer, based on the instruction of the program code, It goes without saying that a case where the CPU or the like included in the function expansion board or the function expansion unit performs some or all of the actual processing and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is also included. Further, although the present embodiment has been described by taking the semiconductor having a strong price pressure as an example, it is needless to say that it can be applied to other manufacturing fields.

[0044]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to reduce inventory levels or place orders for levels that exceed the boundaries of companies, and even for the industry as a whole, including competitor groups, and achieve cost reduction and stable supply of consumables.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a consumables management system in semiconductor manufacturing according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a management state of an inventory status of a consumables manufacturer at a supply management center.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a management state of consumables inventory status of a semiconductor manufacturer in a supply management center.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of locations of consumables manufacturers, semiconductor manufacturers, and transportation trucks.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which consumables to be transported in the future and their transportation destinations are arranged and managed in the order of urgency.

6 is a diagram showing a registration state of a distance between areas shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing how the evaluation function J of each track is calculated.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a process executed by a supply management center.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a consumables management system when a consumables manufacturer also serves as a supply management center.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a consumables management system when a semiconductor manufacturer also serves as a supply management center.

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Shinya Ogura             3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo             Non non corporation F term (reference) 3C100 AA08 BB36 BB38 BB39 CC03                       CC05

Claims (20)

[Claims] 1. A first acquisition unit that acquires manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables from a plurality of manufacturers who manufacture the consumables via a network, and a plurality of the plurality of consumables consuming consumers. Second acquisition means for acquiring consumer inventory information indicating the status of the inventory of the consumables from a consumer via a network; and the manufacturer inventory information and consumption acquired by the first and second acquisition means. A consumables management system, comprising: an instruction unit for instructing each of the plurality of manufacturers to increase or decrease the production of the consumables based on the inventory information of the consumer. 2. A first acquisition unit that acquires manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables from a plurality of manufacturers who manufacture the consumables via a network, and a plurality of the plurality of consumables consuming consumers. Second acquisition means for acquiring consumer inventory information indicating the status of the inventory of the consumables from a consumer via a network; and the manufacturer inventory information and consumption acquired by the first and second acquisition means. A consumables management system, comprising: a management unit that manages orders from the plurality of consumers to the plurality of manufacturers based on personal inventory information. 3. The managing means acquires an appropriate inventory amount from each of the plurality of consumers for each consumable item, and orders the expendable item based on a comparison between the appropriate inventory amount and the inventory amount of the expendable item. The consumables management system according to claim 2, wherein it is determined whether or not to use. 4. The management means sets, for each consumer, first and second threshold values for each consumable item based on an appropriate inventory amount, and the consumable item has an inventory amount that falls below the first threshold value. Regarding the consumables whose inventory quantity is between the first threshold value and the second threshold value, it is determined whether or not to order based on the transportation status of the ordered consumables. The consumables management system according to claim 3, which is characterized in that. 5. The security according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each of the plurality of manufacturers and the plurality of consumers is provided with security so as to hide the inventory status of each other.
Consumables management system described in. 6. The consumables management according to claim 2, wherein the management unit further includes a determination unit that determines a transportation means for transporting the consumables to be ordered from the manufacturer to the consumer. system. 7. The transportation means is based on an evaluation value obtained by digitizing and calculating the urgency of the consumable item to be ordered, the distance between the transportation means and the destination at that time, and the loadable capacity. The consumables management system according to claim 6, wherein 8. The consumables management system according to claim 6, further comprising an evaluation unit for each of the plurality of manufacturers and the transportation unit. 9. A consumables management apparatus for managing the inventory of consumables, wherein a plurality of manufacturers of consumables provide manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables via a network. A first acquisition means for acquiring via a network, a first acquisition means for acquiring via a network, consumer inventory information indicating the status of the inventory of the consumable goods from a plurality of consumers consuming the consumable goods; An instruction for instructing each of the plurality of manufacturers to increase or decrease the production of the consumables based on the manufacturer inventory information and the consumer inventory information acquired by the first and second acquisition means, via a network. And a means for managing consumables. 10. A consumables management device for managing the inventory of consumables, wherein a plurality of manufacturers of consumables supply manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables to a network. A first acquisition means for acquiring via a network, a first acquisition means for acquiring via a network, consumer inventory information indicating the status of the inventory of the consumable goods from a plurality of consumers consuming the consumable goods; Management means for managing orders from the plurality of consumers to the plurality of manufacturers based on the manufacturer inventory information and the consumer inventory information acquired by the first and second acquisition means. Consumables management device. 11. A plurality of manufacturers of consumables,
A first acquisition step of acquiring manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables via a network, and a consumer inventory indicating the inventory status of the consumables from a plurality of consumers who consume the consumables. A second acquisition step of acquiring information via a network, and for each of the plurality of manufacturers based on the manufacturer inventory information and the consumer inventory information acquired in the first and second acquisition steps. And an instruction step for instructing increase or decrease in production of the consumables via a network. 12. A plurality of manufacturers of consumables,
A first acquisition step of acquiring manufacturer inventory information indicating the inventory status of the consumables via a network, and a consumer inventory indicating the inventory status of the consumables from a plurality of consumers who consume the consumables. A second acquisition step of acquiring information via a network; and a plurality of consumers from the plurality of consumers based on the manufacturer inventory information and the consumer inventory information acquired in the first and second acquisition steps. A consumables management method, comprising: a management process for managing an order to a manufacturer. 13. The management process comprises:
13. The proper inventory amount is obtained from each of the plurality of consumers, and whether or not to order the consumable item is determined based on a comparison between the proper inventory amount and the inventory amount of the consumable item. Consumables Management Method. 14. The managing step relates to each consumable item,
First and second thresholds are set for each consumer based on the appropriate inventory amount, and an ordering process is immediately performed for consumable items having an inventory amount that falls below the first threshold value, and the inventory amount is the first threshold value. And the second
14. The consumable supply management method according to claim 13, wherein it is determined whether or not to place an order for a consumable product that is within the threshold value of 1. based on the transportation status of the ordered consumable product. 15. The method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein each of the plurality of manufacturers and the plurality of consumers is provided with security so as to hide the inventory status of each other. Consumables management method. 16. The consumable item to be ordered in the management step,
The consumables management method according to claim 12, further comprising a determining step of determining a transportation step for transportation from the manufacturer to the consumer. 17. The management process is based on an evaluation value obtained by digitizing and calculating the urgency of the consumable item to be ordered, the distance between the transport process and the destination at that time, and the loadable capacity. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein
6. The consumables management method described in 6. 18. The consumables management method according to claim 16, further comprising an evaluation step for each of the plurality of manufacturers and the transportation step. 19. A control program for realizing the consumable item management method according to claim 11 by a computer. 20. A computer-readable medium storing a control program for realizing the consumable item management method according to claim 11 by a computer.