Linear Saw Optimization to Turn Costs into Benefits Ed Serrano Before buying a linear saw, several common questions will be asked. What is the price? Speed? Accuracy? Most potential customers enquire about support and on-going maintenance. Occasionally, the topic of spare parts and availability is broached, and sporadically someone may throw in a question... Read More July 2019 Issue #11240 Page 66
How Does a Fabricator Gain From a 3rd Party Audit? Glenn Traylor When a 3rd party inspector inspects a licensed plant, what exactly are the auditors looking for? And what can the fabricator get from the experience? What the inspection is NOT, and why that matters: The part 1 audit of the in-house paperwork is not a grade on neatness. It’s an... Read More February 2019 Issue #11235 Page 34
Taking Steps Toward Manufacturing & Distribution Efficiency Ben Hershey As we start the New Year, a focus of many operations will be setting goals to remain competitive. Today’s companies in the LBM/Component/Modular market are looking for ways to drive efficiencies throughout their manufacturing processes. Extending Lean Manufacturing principles and practices... Read More January 2019 Issue #11234 Page 17
Constructing a Roadmap to Operational Excellence, Part 2 Ben Hershey Part 2: Continuing the Journey of 7 Steps As discused in "Part 1: Beginning a Journey of 7 Steps," we all aspire to have a state of operational excellence in our organizations, which is easier said than done. Operational excellence is about more than simply adjusting the... Read More October 2018 Issue #10231 Page 20
The Power of SMED and 5S Keith Parker As a follow up to our 9-part “Ready for Change” article series, our next step down the “Lean” path is to introduce other tools and methods to reduce waste and time. The first in this new bi-monthly series focuses on SMED, Single Minute Exchange of Die, and how this... Read More August 2018 Issue #10229 Page 40
Advertiser Forum: Spring Cleaning Anna Stamm Spring is a great time of year to get motivated about things again. We can be excited that the seasons are changing, our winter woes are in the rearview mirror, and our days’ activities will be heating up, literally and figuratively. And because spring is a time of change, it can present... Read More April 2018 Issue #10225 Page 4
How the DMAIC Lean Method Can Be Applied to the Sales Process Keith Parker Last month’s article, Using the DMAIC Lean Method to Accomplish Improvement and Take the First Steps to New Goals, used a case study to explore the DMAIC Lean method. This month another case study will be used to demonstrate how this process can be implemented in your... Read More April 2018 Issue #10225 Page 66
Using the DMAIC Lean Method to Accomplish Improvement and Take the First Steps to New Goals Keith Parker We’re now at the point where everyone is on board with the idea of change. Management and staff have indicated a willingness to take steps to improve. So how do we proceed? What processes learned from Lean Manufacturing can we use to make progress? As discussed last month in the 5th... Read More March 2018 Issue #10224 Page 80
So You and Your Company are Ready to Accomplish New Goals and Take the First Steps to Improve Keith Parker As the owner of your company, you have outlined new goals to improve and grow your company. You have reached consensus; each staff member understands your vision and that change will bring mutual benefits. Key management has committed to the changes required to move forward. You have committed... Read More February 2018 Issue #10223 Page 82
Continuous Improvement Culture Ben Hershey While speaking at a recent conference, I was asked a really good question from one of the executives of a Component/LBM company. His question prompted me to think about how I would start 2018 off in my articles. The question was: “Our company does not have an incentive program in... Read More January 2018 Issue #10222 Page 46