Situation
- The client was a $130M manufacturer of building product windows and doors
- The company had purchased a new facility from a sole proprietor and recognized the need for investment
- The organization was in the midst of updating manufacturing equipment and had experienced significant delays
- High turnover had led to an increasing number of quality defects as well as diminishing output
- Manufacturing outputs had begun to stress customer relationships and the site’s local market share had fallen from a peak of 70% to 40% in a period of five quarters
Bespoke Solutions
- SLKone was engaged to review the in-process manufacturing line improvement project and add Project Management rigor
- Reporting of manufacturing results was institutionalized, with data gathering, visual performance boards, and a review process with the manufacturing team was implemented
- Unit flow analysis was performed to identify key bottlenecks and re-establish order release to prevent WIP build up
Leading With Results
- Increased overall facility output within a 3 month period from 800 windows and 150 doors to 1,100 windows and 250 doors (with additional growth capacity)
- Installed control points and established a quality organization resulting in scrap reduction by over $100k per month
- Reduced order lead times by 40% (2 days from 5 days) through process controls and inventory management processes
- Reduced WIP inventory by 40% by controlling processes, establishing min/max levels, and implementing Lean concepts