Cambridge MA - July 20, 2009 - OmniGuide, a Massachusetts manufacturer of fiber optic laser products, began their continuous improvement journey in 2007 by introducing all employees to the seven wastes and several lean countermeasures that help organizations identify and reduce/eliminate waste in their work processes.   Employees received 5S (workplace organization) training, Value Stream Mapping training, and training in Problem Solving techniques.
 
With the support of management, the employees at OmniGuide used their newly acquired skills to begin examining many of their work processes.  As improvement teams began directly observing the processes required to make OmniGuide laser products, it became apparent that a statistical approach to solving problems was necessary.  At that point 16 employees from several different disciplines began Six Sigma Green Belt training with the Greater Boston Manufacturing Partnership (GBMP, Inc.), a nonprofit organization located at U. Mass, Boston. OmniGuide received a grant from the Massachusetts work force training fund to pay for the training. The company's match for the grant funds was the time their employees spent in training.
 
Employee Chia-Chun Chung has taken on the role of Manager of the continuous improvement process at OmniGuide and keeps everyone energized through frequent meetings and implementation of a reward and recognition system.  The company has developed and summarized return on investment data on several different improvement projects that employees have undertaken since being trained in improvement methods.  Savings obtained range from reductions in inventory dollars to improved worker productivity to decreases in fiber sterilization costs. 
 
The company has accumulated savings of over $4 million dollars and a return on their investment (ROI) exceeding 4000% from the 17 days of training conducted. 

OmniGuide, Inc., is the worldwide leader in precision optical scalpels for minimally invasive surgery. OmniGuide CO2 laser fiber products are clinically targeted disposable optical scalpels optimized for specific surgical procedures. The Company has recently introduced a line of fiberenabled, portable, low-cost CO2 laser systems for use in operating rooms and surgical suites. The Company designs and manufactures its fiber products in Cambridge, Mass. based on multimaterial photonic bandgap fiber technology exclusively licensed from MIT. The company distributes its products in the U.S. and Europe. OmniGuide is committed to developing products that improve and expand surgical treatment options, enhance clinical outcomes, and reduce treatment complexity and cost. Since being cleared by the FDA in 2006, BeamPath fibers have been used in close to 5,000 surgical procedures for otology, laryngology, airway and head and neck procedures. OmniGuide has several leading-edge flexible laser fibers for use in both hospital and office settings; leading brands include the BeamPath™ ENT for laryngology, airway and head and neck procedures and BeamPath OTO for Otology procedures. www.omni-guide.com/  
 

Based at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, GBMP is a non-profit corporation that has worked with hundreds of companies, providing suggestions and solutions resulting in millions in cost savings and increased sales. Each year GBMP trains over 7000 people on Continuous Improvement principles in customized, on-site classroom and shop-floor training sessions and educates over 1000 more in public workshops, plant tours and the Manufacturing Roundtable. www.gbmp.org/