Our Client is a contract manufacturer and a personal care product packaging solution provider with product categories that include antiperspirant deodorants, skin care, sun care, facial care, lip care, oral care, hair care, hair color, aromatherapy, and bath products.
Their customers benefit from their purchasing leverage, and marketing and logistical experience. They employ over 550 employees all working at the same location.
Improving throughput to reduce costs in all areas according to each of their respective targets analyzed by PVA.
Focusing management on controllable opportunities during the change-overs and the scheduling of short production runs.
Other priority objectives were to make improvements to the processes in areas such as inventory management and material waste.
Assessment Findings
Ineffective communication and scheduling to ensure that the lines start-up in a timely manner and that crews were switched to other lines efficiently.
Untimely information flow feeding into inventory control which resulted in non-value added time for re-adjusting production schedules.
Obsolete stock levels require 35% of warehouse capacity.
No management of operating problems on the packaging lines due to lack of maintenance of the equipment and a lack of focus by the operators at their work positions.
Expectations of the rates at the filler machines were not communicated effectively.
Ineffective preparation and efficiency during line change-overs.
Insufficient coordination between the lab activities and production priorities.
Untimely follow-up on line efficiency levels by the Supervisors during the course of the shift.
When the Supervisors were on-the-floor they spent the majority of their time available for their employees (watching and waiting for employees to ask them questions).
Supervisors generally let the level of activity “follow its course”, leaving the employees to manage the process themselves.
There was no mechanism in place to resolve operational problems identified through the use of proper management tools and systems.
Work Time
Non-effective Time
PVA's Response
In response to the findings from our Assessment, PVA’s team installed customized Management Operating Systems (MOS) that could quickly and efficiently be used to better plan and follow-up on the work being completed. We also validated and developed standards for all products being run on the production lines.
Part of our MOS included clearly defining the roles and responsibilities for Supervisors and Managers and implementing a proactive problem resolution mechanism. The final piece was providing training and on-the-floor performance coaching to the Supervisors.
The Results
Hover over graphs for more information
Some significant results obtained by our Client included:
Improved resource planning was realized through optimizing line capacity and labor requirements based on products specifications.
Reorganization of the warehouse department’s physical layout.
Complete overhaul of the organization’s core work activity processes.
40% reduction in the number of days of inventory on-hand for finished products.
Improved customer service and ‘on-time delivery’ levels.
20% reduction in equipment downtime levels.
Implemented “best practices” methodology to enhance line change-over times.
Preventive Maintenance Programs were enhanced.
Improvement in Supervisory Activities
Increased levels of proactive supervisory behaviors from 0% to 40% by focusing on regular tours and communication with line crews by the Supervisors.
Packaging Personal Care Products Supervisory Activities
PRE-PROJECT
0%0%50%10%40%
POST-PROJECT
40%10%25%0%25%
Active Supervision
Training
Administration
Manual Work
Available
Packaging Performance Improvement
Over the course of 20 weeks, actual packaging performance improved by 20%.
Long Term Work Continuation
A Client Coordinator was trained and certified during the PVA engagement.
A quarterly audit program of the new Management Operating System was developed for the Coordinator.
PVA conducted audits over 18 months to ensure compliance to the continued utilization of the Management Operating Systems.
These Audits resulted in recommendations and action plans to further identify additional opportunities for improving operations.
