| Greetings!
We hope you enjoy this month's edition of our operational excellence newsletter. Please take a few minutes to read John Dyer's article on the Dangers of Disguising Cost Cutting as Improvement. He points out that it is critically important that everyone understands the reasons for the improvement initiative.
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Quantum Associates, Inc
Operational Excellence Newsletter
Delivering Swift and Significant Results
"Our groove is to help you improve."
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July 2016
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Unconvinced that Lean can be applied to administrative operations. Here are how some of our clients applied lean in the office to reduce lead time.
A client's value stream map indicated that out of a total lead time of 22 weeks only 1 week was spent doing true value-added work. This steel fabricator found that a large part of the non-value-added lead time was identified as "waiting for approval". Approvals were built into many stages of the order fulfillment process but were the responsibility of management staff that was often unavailable. The client standardized the work procedures to eliminate the need for many of the approvals and reduced their lead time by 2 weeks.
In reviewing the order entry process for a client we found that a significant amount of time was used to acknowledge the order. Whenever an order was entered, an acknowledgement was automatically printed and then manually sorted and mailed to each customer. The first question we asked was: "Who really wants these acknowledgements?" It turned out that only a few of their customers wanted an acknowledgement, and those that did said an e-mail response would be sufficient The client changed their order processing system to code any customer seeking an acknowledgement, then automatically acknowledging these customers via e-mail at the end of the order entry process. This resulted in freeing up an overworked office staff to allow them to spend more time on value-added activities.
A loudspeaker manufacturer discovered that much of its lead time was attributed to delays in obtaining customer approvals during the design and prototype cycle. There was no effective means of managing the customer approval process. It seemed that once the information was given to the customer, it disappeared into a "Black Hole". We suggested to the client that they develop a visual management system (a centrally located schedule board) that shows the status of every job in house. This provided visibility for every step of the process and reduced lead-time in the design and prototype process by 50 percent.
As you can see by these examples Lean solutions are surprisingly simple and do not require great expenditure of capital.
Lean is a proven, systematic approach for eliminating or minimizing waste that results in the production of goods or services at the lowest possible cost. It goes beyond the shop floor. Lean is every system, every process and every employee in the company.
Willie
Willie L. Carter is the president Quantum Associates, Inc., Highland Park, Illinois. Along with his nearly 40 years experience in operations, quality and consulting in various industries, Willie is a Certified Lean Sensei, Certified Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence, and a Certified ISO 9000 Lead Assessor. He can be reached at wcarter@quantumassocinc.com
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Fast, Nimble Approach Needed to Compete in Manufacturing
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Contributors: Jim Parsons and Pam Hunter McFarland
Speed and competitiveness are now common prerequisites for manufacturing projects. Lean manufacturing is the order of the day, with a growing range of owners taking steps to optimize operations and eliminate even the most minuscule sources of waste. ( Read More)
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Lean Manufacturing: Don't Run Your Business Without It
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Four lean tools that can save you a bundle
It's amazing that, in this day and age, some manufacturers have not yet heard of "lean." How are they surviving in today's competitive market without it? The issue is that, in many ways, the customer sets pricing. If manufacturers want to be profitable, they must find ways to become more efficient and effective with their internal manufacturing processes. ( Read More)
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The Dangers of Disguising Cost Cutting as Improvement
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What is the real reason your company is driving an improvement initiative (lean, Six Sigma, etc.)? Is the improvement effort part of a long-term (multiple-year) strategy that is focused on growing the business by dazzling your customers and exceeding their expectations? Or, is the focus to cut costs? Or, did the effort start as a long-term focus on improving the customer experience and, at some point, switched to short-term cost cutting? ( Read More)
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5 Things Supply Chain Managers Should Know About ISO 9001:2015
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Contributor: Christine Hannon
There are five key things to keep in mind as the 2015 edition is rolled out. First, relax. There is a three-year transition period during which your ISO 9001:2008 registration is valid. (Read More)
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Our Reason for Being
Quantum Associates was founded on the premise of bringing together like-minded associates with multiple years of industry experience reducing waste and improving processes in organizations. Our goal is to leverage the knowledge and experience of our seasoned associates to assist both service and manufacturing organizations train their employees to untangle intermingled processes in order to clearly see the specific process they manage or touch as it flows from start to finish and to improve the performance of those processes so that every stakeholder (customer, employee, supplier, investor) is better off. We serve as the nucleus for delighting your customers by preparing your people to improve their processes.
What We Look For in a Client
We look for companies/organizations who want to untangle their processes in order to clearly see how to improve the performance (efficiency, productivity, customer experience) of those processes so that every stakeholder (customer, employee, supplier, and investor) is better off.
We guarantee 100% customer satisfaction absolutely.
"Our groove is to help you improve."
Enjoy the Newsletter,
Willie L. Carter
President
"All improvement happens project by project and in no other way." ~ Joseph Juran
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