IMC has been working with Custom Container Solutions (CCS), an area manufacturer of industrial roll-offs, for several years. Past projects have included operational improvements, ERP selection, HR policies, hiring and selection practices and improved job training.
As CCS has grown, they transitioned to a larger facility and now have three production lines instead of one. Each line makes a certain type of unit.
One of the lines makes smaller roll-offs and has proved to be most challenging in terms of reaching desired throughput quotas. The company contacted IMC to provide support for their efforts to improve production results on the small roll-off production line.
IMC proposed a 3-day value stream mapping (VSM) initiative that also included the supporting fabrication area. The VSM involved workers and supervisors from both production and fabrication along with CCS management and IMC facilitators. The VSM effort started with a map of the current state of both the fabrication support and production operations including critical facts and data on task times, wait times, throughput history and layout, sequence and flow.
A direction and quantitative goals were established, and a future state map developed. Within the initiative, numerous opportunities for improvement were identified, prioritized and structured to ensure successful implementation. Included were multiple visits to the factory floor and many coaching opportunities by IMC’s VSM facilitator.
The result to date (2 months following the end of the initiative) is that the line has surpassed the production objectives and is now operating at a consistent level of 25-30% above pre-initiative throughputs. The improvements made in fabrication have also led to improved operations for the other production lines.
“IMC has played a crucial part in the success of CCS – it’s like the gift that keeps on giving. IMC has helped us recognize system failures and ask the right questions of our team members without fear. Jeff, Russ and Jen spent multiple days working with our team digging deeper then we could ever dig because we needed outside eyes to see the problems. By implementing workflow processes that are cyclical, we are able to pull the work down the line versus pushing it down the line, which creates a more efficient and happier workforce which, in turn, increases productivity and reduces absenteeism significantly. As we identify areas of improvement, we utilize IMC and its expertise to improve. We are grateful for the help and we look forward to working with IMC again in the future.” Chuck Williams, General Manager, Custom Container Solutions
This project was funded, in part, by a grant made available by PennTAP.
As part of their annual survey, NIST MEP asks clients from the 51 MEP Centers, including IMC, to identify the top three challenges their companies will face over the next three years.
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