Project Brief

Back to list

Manufacturing Cost and Quality Problem Solving

Order Entry and Shop Floor Document Creation Process Improvements

A global supplier and manufacturer of extruded metal tubing experienced higher than expected in-process manufacturing costs. The business unit leader believed order management and processing improvements were needed to correct the problem. Previous efforts to address the issues had come up short and stress among employees and management was rising. The fact that union contract negotiations were just around the corner added to the tension. Word on the floor was the union was planning on using management's inability to deliver accurate information to the floor to weaken management's position on key issues. SysteMental was called in to turn the situation around.

SysteMental partnered with the client's in-house cross-functional resources to lead problem solving and process improvement efforts. Corrective actions and improvements were designed, developed, tested and implemented. The solution includes a new streamlined and poke- yoked order entry / shop floor document process and supporting custom software tools. The solution resolved the cost and quality problems leading to hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings and smoother than anticipated contract negotiations. Both management and employee personnel were pleased with the outcome.

Summary

Client	International supplier and manufacturer of specialty steel tubing.
Manufacturing and Employee Relations Problem	Excessively high manufacturing costs and failure to fully resolve long standing quality problems cost the manufacturer hundreds of thousands of dollars and threatened the successful conclusion of upcoming union contract negotiations.
Solution	SysteMental completed an assessment and then led a combined client/SysteMental team through problem solving and process improvement efforts. Root causes were identified and permanent corrective actions developed. A new, more streamlined order entry and mfg. documentation process was designed and implemented with poke-yokes to prevent errors. Custom software tools were developed to support the more efficient process. Accurate order documentation now ensures products are not made with processing errors or costly defects.
Results	The new process and tools cut hundreds of man-hours from the order entry and shop order document process. Manufacturing errors are reduced. The combined benefits generate hundreds of thousands of dollars of improvement savings.
Contact	Toll free 866-434-2040