Operational Problem

Our client was able to offer his market the best quality products, but was being beaten on price and lead time by chinese competitors. They risked shrinking by more that 50% if action wasn't taken.

Task

Work with the client to identify opportunities to eliminate process waste and reduce leadtime in the process.

Solution(s)

A current state value stream map of the end-to-end process was developed in collaboration with the work force. It identified a significant problem with flow, signified by a large degree of WIP between work stations and a very long lead time. It also exposed non-value added activity to the tune of 4 FTE.

A future state value stream map identified how the process could benefit from a pull system, showing that the lead time would be reduced from 56 days down to 13 days and the liberated resources could be redeployed on other projects. Improvements in component handling also reduced rework and scrap rates.

Result

a 16% reduction in unit cost, a 76% reduction in lead time and a 30% increase in productivity, making the client competitive from a Quality, Delivery AND Cost perspective.

OpSolved!