May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Manufacturing Leadership Development A case study in leadership development Background Our client is one of the world’s largest suppliers of technologically advanced aerospace and defence products. They design, manufacture and service systems and components as well as providing integrated solutions for commercial, regional, business and military aircraft, helicopters and other platforms. They are also a major supplier to international space programmes. The site where our programme took place supplies electric and hydraulic powered actuators and advanced carbon-fibre products for commercial aerospace and defence applications. Products range from single actuators to complete flight control systems for the fixed wing, rotorcraft and missile segments. The Challenge The client was going through a period of organisational change and growth and the senior leadership team identified it was vital to develop the leadership capability of the first line leaders across the business to retain competitive advantage in the market place. As a result of business growth a recruitment drive was needed to fill the vacancies created and this identified a gap in the internal management expertise and experience so the additional challenge of building capability and capacity from within for a robust succession plan was identified. “I have had a very positive experience from the course. The personal benefits have been very rewarding and given me new direction in both my professional and personal life. I believe I can now pass on my learning and develop my team both rewarding them and the business. The course was very professional and comprehensive in its content and delivery.” The Objectives The initial objectives identified by the client were used to collaborate with Industry Forum in the design and development of a bespoke leadership development programme to meet the business challenges. The programme was linked to a formal nationally recognised leadership and management qualification and included assignment and project work. The remit for the project work was that each cohort of participants were split into teams and allocated projects to improve the business performance in terms of the Quality, Cost or Delivery targets. The critical outcomes were that all first line managers improved their leadership and managements skills and hence felt more confident and were more effective in their roles. The key measure for this programme over the long term continues to be the number of internal promotions compared to the number of vacant positions that have to be filled via external recruitment. “Industry Forum tailored the training to suit our needs and delivered it efficiently without it feeling a classroom-based exercise. I particularly enjoyed the interaction between colleagues that I don’t normally meet in formal situations”. The Industry Forum Solution To meet the client’s needs identified during the initial analysis and assessment phase, Industry Forum used an organisational development approach to design a bespoke modular training programme. Working closely with the customer and defining what was in and out of scope led to the comprehensive programme outlined below: This programme was delivered quarterly to groups of 8-10 managers from all areas across the business including, operations, engineering, design, purchasing and sales. Industry Forum used its established “learn by doing” approach by running practical workshop sessions with the teams and following up with individual coaching sessions to ensure new skills were embedded into the manager’s daily standard work tasks. Reference file: Download Case Study (pdf)
May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Total Productive Maintenance A case study in reducing costs through the application of Total Productive Maintenance (TPM). Background Philips (Uden) produces and delivers ceramic light components to internal Philips customers. The products go into two main Philips products, SON and MASTERColour lamps. These products are widely used in street lighting in greenhouses, for lighting of buildings and for lighting shops, showrooms, hotels and public spaces. Both discharge lamps have a high light output but are also energy efficient. The SON lamp uses half of the energy of high-pressure mercury lamps typically used in street lighting and the MASTERColour is an energy efficient replacement for halogen lamps. Philips (Uden) currently use injection molding, a technique which is already widely used in plastics, to create the intricate shaped ceramic components. Energy efficiency has become an important issue and global demand has risen for these products. This in turn has lead to rising demand for the ceramic components. The Challenge Philips (Uden) has been using Lean Improvement techniques to improve the productivity, delivery and quality of the factory for several years but they recognised the need to reduce costs even further to ensure that they remained competitive against emerging market competition. The Objectives The introduction of TPM was seen as a long term solution for the company which would allow the losses within the business to be identified and eliminated. This would allow them to achieve a production cost of €0.40 for a typical 70W ceramic component, a reduction of over 60% within a 4 year period. The Industry Forum Solution In 2010 Industry Forum and Philips (Uden) conducted initial management training and a pilot TPM project, focused primarily around Autonomous and Planned Maintenance on the Front and Mid End process. Following on from this a decision was taken by the Senior Leadership to use the Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM) Total Productive Maintenance Award as a structure to drive sustainable business improvement within the organisation. During early 2011, further TPM Pillar training was conducted with members of the leadership team, followed by a roadmap activity to help establish a TPM Pillar structure and align it to the Vision and Strategy of the Philips (Uden) factory. This improvement structure is known as ‘One Uden World Class Manufacture’. It includes the standard 8 TPM pillars that are assessed by JIPM together with 2 additional Philips Specific Pillars: Lean and Supply Chain. Activities to support the introduction and sustainability of TPM within Philps (Uden) were conducted throughout the following 3 years. Periodic assessments against the JIPM Award criteria have shown that the Philips (Uden) team is on track to be to apply for the first level TPM Award in 2014. Philips (Uden) already have examples of zero breakdown equipment and zero accidents, operators have ownership for their areas and OEE, delivery and quality has improved across all areas of the factory. Need some figures. The Customer’s View “With the implementation of TPM we have focus for our improvement process. The improvements are on all areas of the factory, and the co-operation between departments is significantly improved! IF has given us direction where to go to. In the beginning the support was explaining the concept and benefits of TPM, and later in the process IF regularly audited our progress and kept us on track.” Marijke Swaving, Manager Operational Excellence and Cost Eng. , Philips Lighting B.V. Reference file: Download Case Study (pdf)
May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Value Stream Mapping A Value Stream Mapping and O.E.E. improvement activity, supporting Albon’s investment in machinery and tooling, resulting in a 70% increase in line output Background Albon Plc. is a large, independent design and manufacturing company specialising in the machining and assembly of engine components for automotive and diesel manufacturers world-wide. Current activities consist of high volume connecting rod manufacture and bearing cap assemblies which are produced in UK, US and Serbian manufacturing plants. Albon’s UK facilities consist of 3 factories near to Southend, Essex. The Challenge Albon was facing increasing production demand from various customers. One in particular, a major global manufacturer of diesel engines, was predicting 70% growth in sales of one of its engine variants, which meant that Albon would be required to increase the output on one of its connecting rods lines to meet this demand. Albon’s challenge was to physically demonstrate its ability to “Run at rate”, within a 3 month period, without entailing excessive cost. The Objectives Albon’s objective for the project was to physically demonstrate the lines ability to increase output from the current level of 1052 rods per day to a maximum of 1788 per day (+70%) without recruiting additional manpower and without weekend working. Albon also wanted a sustainable, standardised process for replicating this on other lines, for the same and other customers. The Industry Forum Solution A multi-skilled team from Albon worked with an Industry Forum Senior Engineer to create a value stream map capturing all of the issues in the current production line. Albon identified that a new multi-spindle machine would be required, in addition to replacing a vertical machining centre and providing new fixturing, and a robotic finishing cell. The first step was to introduce the concept of Takt time and calculate it for the current and future demand. Three months Downtime and Quality data were analysed, and the OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) was calculated for each process. This information was used to create an effective cycle time (cycle time/OEE) v. Takt time chart to identify the priorities for improvement. This was key to the identification of priorities for improvement activities. The team took part in a “plug game” simulation and experienced the effect of introducing the lean principles to a production process. Using this knowledge and understanding, a future state map was created, together with an action plan to achieve it. Actions to stabilise the current state, by implementing 5S on 2 of the priority processes, resulted in the target OEE being achieved (and sustained through Standardised Work). Target OEE levels were set for each process and the effective cycle time v. Takt time chart was continually updated as improvements were verified and used as the driver for further improvements through a series of Rapid Improvement Workshops. Some of the improvements involved eliminating the 7 wastes and implementing revised Standard Work. Others involved technical solutions, with the help of the maintenance department, to reduce machine cycle times, or identifying where additional machines would be required. A visual management board was created and regular production team meetings were introduced to review actual performance against targets. Visual management was employed to maintain the standard in each work station. Albon needed a standard process for replicating improvements on other lines and so the Albon Lean Production System (ALPS) was developed. This was made a formal part of the company’s APQP process. A 10 step ALPS implementation checklist was created and the documented evidence of the improvement process was incorporated into the final element of the PPAP submission to the engine manufacturer. The improvements continued in line with the plan and on 10th July a full line “run at rate” demonstrated an output of 1790 rods per day. The final customer was delighted that, not only had the objectives for this line been met, but the same standardised and sustainable approach was being applied to other lines which manufactured rods for its engines, driven by the Albon change agent. The value stream transformation resulted in the average OEE for 5 of the key machines on the line being increased from a baseline of 73.8% (January through March) to 89.7% (average for July). The Customer’s View ‘The project has not only allowed Albon to prove that we are more than capable of meeting the projected demand of one of our customers, it has given us a standard structure to use on any new projects. Our other customers like what they are seeing and are asking for the approach to be applied to their product lines. We have replicated the process 4 times already.’ “The service and support that the Industry Forum senior engineer provided to Albon Engineering has been a great help to our production lines. We now have a much better understanding of Value Stream Mapping, Takt time, OEE, Standardised Work, 5S and “run at rate” trials. We also have set up visual management boards to display this work, and use it to help control our production lines. Our customers are delighted. Albon will continue using this work throughout our business.” Guy Hamilton, Albon Lean Production System manager, Albon Engineering and Manufacturing plc Reference file: Download Case Study (pdf) This case study has been produced with the kind permission of Albon Engineering and Manufacturing plc.
May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Total Productive Maintenance Global TPM Transformation Deployment in the Industrial Components sector Background This global manufacturer processes minerals to produce great volumes of product used all over the world supplying high specification material to the automotive, marine, energy and renewables sectors. A vital factor to stay ahead of competition is to maximise the return on capital associated with over twenty factories spread across all regions of the globe. Key to their success is the reliability and maintainability of the equipment as well as the commitment and motivation of its workforce. The Challenge The processing equipment operates in a high temperature and highly abrasive environment, so reliability and resilience is a key differentiator. There were additional challenges due to a range of technologies across the globe and also huge cultural differences, rates of acceptance and uptake by the workforce. The Objective The clear need was to develop a programme that maximised the performance and life of the equipment. It was recognised that this would need an approach that involved not only the equipment designers and maintainers but the whole organisation within plants and also to have consistent application across the regions. To meet this end a Total Productive Maintenance approach was deployed in line with the JIPM model for a proven effective implementation. The Industry Forum Solution Phase 1 In 2010 an approach was designed to develop pilot improvement areas in a well-considered and selection of pilot factories in just one of the regions. The model followed the JIPM approach with an initial assessment and awareness of TPM for the leadership teams, followed by the development of a master plan. This focussed on the first four pillars of Focussed Improvement, Autonomous Maintenance, Planned Maintenance and Training and Education. Pilot areas of equipment were selected on a chosen criteria based on chronic need, the opportunity to engage and learn, and also whether or not they could be completed in an appropriate time frame. Phase 2 Following the evaluation of the Phase 1 findings and the initial success of this phase the approach was expanded to engage all regions in similar programmes following the same approach. As the network grew there were additional work streams to develop Pillar specific expertise and knowledge sharing. At the same time the original pilot plants continued their deployment to include more areas, engage more people and learned how to implement the advance pillars. Phase 3 As the factories and regions developed traction the programme moved into a third phase where certain global strategic imperatives were pursued to move faster and deeper on areas of global concern. This included a series of technical and process areas that were of concern. Here a selected plant would develop the solution using Focussed Improvement, then deploy across other plants and regions. Also in this phase other global pillars were launched on additional global projects, these included Finance, Supply Chain and the building of new and refurbished factories around the world. The programme continues to develop and gain increased momentum, engaging more people and depth of application. Leadership now identify with TPM as “the way we run our business”. After three years of deployment the return on investment is over 4:1, and the initial first leading factories are getting ready for the first TPM award from JIPM. All information in this document is copyright of Industry Forum © 2013 Reference file: Download Case Study (pdf)
May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Total Productive Maintenance Reducing costs through the application of Total Productive Maintenance Background This electrical component provider produces and delivers key electrical components to a wide number of customers. The products go into two main categories and the manufacturing and supply chain process is developed to ensure this. These products are widely used in street lighting, in greenhouses and the lighting of buildings such as shops, showrooms, hotels and public spaces. Both categories of product have a high output but are also energy efficient. The first category product uses half of the energy of other similar designed components typically used and the second category product is an energy efficient replacement for modern automotive electrical components. The provider currently uses injection moulding, a technique which is already widely used in plastics, to create the intricate shaped ceramic components. Energy efficiency has become an important issue and global demand has risen for these products. This in turn has led to rising demand for the electrical components. The Challenge The factory has been using Lean improvement techniques to improve the productivity, delivery and quality of the factory for several years but they recognised the need to reduce costs even further to ensure that they remained competitive against emerging market competition. The Objectives The introduction of TPM was seen as a long term solution for the company which would allow the losses within the business to be identified and eliminated. This would allow them to achieve a production cost for a typical electrical component, a reduction of over 60% within a 4 year period. The Industry Forum Solution In 2010 Industry Forum and the factory conducted initial management training and a pilot TPM project, focussed primarily around Autonomous and Planned Maintenance on the front and mid end process. Following on from this a decision was taken by the Senior Leadership Team to use the Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM) Total Productive Maintenance Award as a structure to drive sustainable business improvement within the organisation. During early 2011, further TPM Pillar training was conducted with members of the leadership team, followed by a road map activity to help establish a TPM Pillar structure and align it to the vision and Ssrategy of the factory. This improvement structure includes the standard 8 TPM pillars that are assessed by JIPM together with 2 additional specific pillars: Lean and Supply Chain. Activities to support the introduction and sustainability of TPM within the factory were conducted throughout the following 3 years. Periodic assessments against the JIPM Award criteria have shown that the team is on track to be to apply for the first level TPM Award in 2014. The team already have examples of zero breakdown equipment and zero accidents, operators have ownership for their areas and OEE, delivery and quality has improved across all areas of the factory. All information in this document is copyright of Industry Forum © 2013 Reference file: Download Case Study (pdf)
May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Total Productive Maintenance Using TPM to enable an environment for change to happen Background This well recognised foods producer started their TPM journey in 2010. They had done some good work but their factory was spread over a large area in individual business units. Change Agent roles were in place but reporting to a central steering group meant that business unit leaders were not seeing it as core to their role. There was a noticeable lack of the activities linking back to the site’s strategy. The Challenge There was a belief in the TPM programme to carry out the activity and an acknowledgement that the benefits would be reflected in the company culture. However, there was no link with the strategy and delivery of the business plan which meant that deployment was, at best, random and unconnected. In 2012 there were major new workload and new equipment initiatives which led to the Management Team’s focus being taken away with the Change Agents struggling to keep realistic momentum. The Industry Forum Solution The factory has been restructured and a driven business unit TPM Team has been established so that each business unit manager needs to decide what activities need to be delivered to meet their business unit objectives. It is not insisted that TPM is the way by which it is done, however now the links have become clear they must consider how else will they meet their targets. This now gives a matrix structure – site steering group, business unit steering group and then pillar teams with site steering group pillar lead and then the pillar representative in each unit. Activities are now linked to the strategy in a top down structure, giving a much clearer focus and enabling an environment for Change Agents to make change happen. All information in this document is copyright of Industry Forum ©
May 15, 2014 Case Studies, Total Productive Maintenance Using TPM to help help develop business strategy Background This client started their TPM journey in 2009 with the implementation of some initial pillars but they were independent and were not working collectively or collaboratively. Completion between the pillars meant that standards were often imposed and not collectively agreed or developed. All pillars were launched together and critically they were not related or linked to the business or its strategy so they did not have a clear purpose. Measures were so numerous that it became impossible to understand and rationalise as they were all activity based. This resulted in quantity driven results and not quality driven results. The Challenge A corporate structure was in place but it existed primarily as a result of auditing processes and it was not directly linked with the factories. This meant that shaping of the programme was variable and each factory was reinventing what had been learnt elsewhere in the business. Internal reviews recognised that the approach was not sustainable and now the maxim of “if it doesn’t support the strategy then don’t do it”. The Industry Forum Solution The 2013 key management indicators objectives have been divided amongst the pillars and can then use loss analysis to identify activities and show a clear link back to the business objectives. The bottom up approach is now also being driven following some line management restructuring which enables the approach of daily management upwards, pillar strategy downwards and a meeting in the middle to complete tactical activities. There has been however, some significant improvement following the initial uncertainties mainly due to a change in the management team and an effort to direct the programme with more focus towards deliberate activities. A key decision by the management team to enable the pillar teams to focus on the priorities that will drive the business delivery has brought about a new dynamism and energy in the TPM deployment. All information in this document is copyright of Industry Forum ©
