What is make-to-order (MTO) in metal fabrication?

Make-to-order (MTO) is a production approach where work starts after a customer order is confirmed. You are not building to forecast or stocking standard products; you are building to a specific customer specification and committed ship date. In metal fabrication, that usually means each order is a mini-project with its own drawings, deadlines and routing.

How is MTO different from make-to-stock (MTS)?

In make-to-stock (MTS), you produce standard items based on forecast and hold them in inventory until customers buy them. In make-to-order (MTO), production only starts after a confirmed order with defined scope and delivery date. MTO is better for custom steel work where every project is different, but it creates more pressure on quoting accuracy, material readiness, capacity planning and visibility because you cannot hide behind finished-goods stock.

Why is MTO so common in metal and custom steel fabrication?

Metal and custom steel fabrication often involves unique structures like stairs, platforms, frames, mezzanines and brackets that are designed for a specific site or project. That makes make-to-order (MTO) the natural operating mode: customers expect you to build exactly what is on the drawings, not pick from a catalogue. The upside is high customisation; the downside is that every order is a mini-project that needs careful quoting, planning and tracking to stay profitable.

What are the main challenges of running an MTO metal fabrication shop?

MTO shops face four recurring challenges: 1) quoting accuracy, because every job is a mini-project and small estimating errors can erase margin; 2) material readiness, because late purchasing or missing items quickly turn into late production; 3) capacity planning, because there are many promised ship dates but limited welding, fitting and painting hours; and 4) visibility, because you cannot smooth things out with inventory when a project slips. EZIIL is designed around these challenges by treating each order like a project with clear scope, deadlines and ownership.

How should MTO shops quote work with capacity in mind?

In an MTO shop, your backlog is a promise, not a wish list. Quoting with capacity in mind means checking whether you actually have the welding, fitting, machining and coating hours available around the requested dates before you commit. You might adjust lead times, prioritise higher-margin work or decline jobs that would overload a critical period. EZIIL helps by giving an overview of all active and upcoming projects, planned hours by department and deadlines, so you can see the impact of new quotes on real capacity instead of guessing.

What does it mean to gate the release of jobs in an MTO shop?

Gating the release means you do not send jobs to the shop floor until key prerequisites are in place: drawings are approved, materials are available and customer or internal approvals are complete. This avoids half-started jobs clogging WIP and reduces fire-fighting caused by missing information or parts. In EZIIL, you can track project status through engineering, purchasing and production, and only move a job to active fabrication when those gates are met.

Why are internal milestones important for MTO production?

Relying only on the final ship date makes it hard to spot risk early in an MTO shop. Using realistic internal milestones like 'fabrication complete', 'coating complete' and 'packing complete' gives you earlier checkpoints. If fabrication is already late, you still have a chance to recover before the truck date. EZIIL allows you to structure projects with phases and key steps, then see live progress against those milestones so you can act while there is still time.

Why must WIP be controlled carefully in MTO shops?

MTO shops tend to drown when everything is 'in progress'. Too much WIP means space problems, long lead times, constant reprioritising and many partially finished jobs that all feel urgent. Keeping WIP controlled lets you focus your team on finishing what matters instead of starting everything at once. Through EZIIL, you can see how many projects and operations are open in each department, set practical WIP limits and release new work when there is real capacity, not just because a customer is asking loudly.

How do quick post-job reviews help MTO shops improve over time?

Short post-job reviews take the gap between plan and reality and turn it into learning for the next quote. The basic questions are: What did we plan, what actually happened and what changes for the next similar job? Looking at hours by department, material usage and key issues helps you update your reference assumptions for stairs, frames or platforms. EZIIL’s plan-vs-actual views make this easy by showing where you over- or under-consumed hours and materials on each finished project.

How does EZIIL support make-to-order (MTO) production specifically?

EZIIL fits MTO because it treats each order like a managed project, not just a line item. You get one place to track project scope, deadlines and ownership across engineering, production and finishing. Live progress updates from the shop floor show when operations start, pause or finish, so you can spot risk early and take action before dates slip. Plan vs actual insights help you refine quoting and decide which jobs are truly good business for your shop.

How does EZIIL improve visibility and alignment across departments in an MTO shop?

In an MTO environment, visibility is everything because there is little buffer inventory to hide problems. EZIIL gives engineering, production and logistics a shared view of project status, priorities and deadlines. Engineering can see what is in fabrication, the shop can see which drawings and materials are ready, and shipping knows what is approaching packing. This clear alignment around live data reduces miscommunication, last-minute surprises and the disconnect between what was promised to the customer and what the floor believes is realistic.

Make to order shops (MTO)

What is make to order (MTO) in steel fabrication?

Make to order (MTO) is a production approach where work starts after a customer order is confirmed. You’re not building to forecast, you’re building to a real spec and ship date.

MTO is great for customization, but it puts pressure on:

Quoting accuracy (because every job is a mini-project)
Material readiness (late purchasing becomes late production)
Capacity planning (too many promised ship dates, not enough welding hours)
Visibility (you can’t hide behind inventory)

Best practices for make to order job shops

Quote with capacity in mind: your backlog is a promise, not a wish
Gate the release: don’t release to the floor until drawings, materials, and approvals are ready
Use realistic internal milestones (fab complete, coating complete, packing complete)
Keep WIP controlled: MTO shops drown when everything is “in progress”
Do quick post-job reviews: what was planned, what happened, what changes for next quote

How EZIIL helps Make to order steel shops

EZIIL was specifically built for Make to Order steel shops and fits the workflow because it treats each order like a managed project:

One place to track project scope, deadlines, and ownership across departments
Live progress updates so you can spot risk early and act while there’s still time
Plan vs actual insights that improve quoting and job selection over time
Clear alignment between engineering, production, and delivery dates

Related resources

Eziil

Make to order shops (MTO)

What is make to order (MTO) in steel fabrication?

Best practices for make to order job shops

How EZIIL helps Make to order steel shops

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