Streamline Bottleneck Process to Deliver Capacity and Cost Savings
Key Business Challenges and Project Objectives:
Our SME client (less than 10 people) is a leading supplier of Engineering Goods and Services to the Marine and Industrial markets in Ireland and into Europe. Given the nature of the service provided, the company responds to address unplanned events at the clients’ facility. A key challenge for the business is to continuously reduce costs while simultaneously responding to unplanned customer requirements. Crystal Lean Solutions developed the following program objectives in collaboration with the team:
- To provide employees with a foundation in Lean principles and its benefits.
- To reduce the Change Over Time of the Purification Process by 50%.
- To implement 5s at the Manufacturing Process.
CLS Approach and Changes Implemented:
With the cross functional team, the process was described at the actual workplace and then mapped. All sources of waste were identified and then prioritised by the team for elimination. Solutions to eliminate the “top 5” waste activities were then brainstormed and the following changes were implemented over 4-month period:
- All tooling, equipment and consumables required for the Purification changeover are at point of use in the correct quantity.
- Colour coding of critical connectors with a tag system to communicate status of use.
- 5s of the process (signage and labelling) was implemented to minimise search time.
- Utilisation by the team of the A3 Report to manage the project.
Results / Outcomes:
- Release of €40k Additional Capacity for the business
- Annual cost savings of €40k
- Reduced changeover time by 43%
- Certified Lean Yellow Belts for Lean training and project execution.
- “Improved the quality of the service provided to clients”