CMS Consulting Group

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Process Improvements and Facility Design

 

PROBLEM:  

The headquarters of the eastern region of a national manufacturer of premium quality washroom equipment acts as a distribution center for the company’s other production facilities.  This manufacturer was located in Upstate New York in an old facility and had run out of capacity.  These constraints increased production costs and material handling.  Locations of production support groups caused communication gaps.  Outmoded manufacturing methods impacted the company's pricing flexibility, and most employees lacked the skills necessary to implement change.

APPROACH:

Company management and CMS developed a training strategy, and approximately 60 employees participated.  Cross-functional teams worked on increasingly complex problems requiring application of Lean manufacturing techniques.  They identified major opportunities for increasing plant capacity, optimizing space utilization, and reducing work-in-process and product cost.  They also mapped key processes and developed and implemented solutions for waste reduction.

RESULTS:

Process improvement teams implemented changes resulting in annual savings that were 8 times those previously achieved.  Changes in the inventory management process reduced indirect labor by more than 2,000 hours per year and warehouse space by 30%.  Scrap was significantly reduced by adjusting sizes of incoming raw materials.  The remaining teams  developed a new plant layout to support higher capacity, lower production costs, and improve productivity of salaried employees.  Their recommendations were included in the design and construction of the new facility. 

Following completion of their project, the company continued its Lean manufacturing initiative, increasing effective capacity for its two major product lines by 200% and 260%.  In addition, they reduced manufacturing space by an additional 10% with the same size work force.  Methods improvement teams continued to implement changes, including additional manufacturing cells, selective automation, improved tooling, materials improvements, and cross training of employees.

 Cost Reduction and Facility Design

What We Do

Process Improvement

Quality

Organizational Management

Systems Implementation

Industrial Engineering

Training Within Industry

President 

Vice President

120 Assembly Drive, PO Box 339 ~ Mendon, New York 14506-0339 phone: 585-624-7660 ~ fax: 585-624-7668