Company: Marley Plumbing & Drainage
Sector: Process Industries – Manufacturing and Packaging
Key Tools or Services; Implementation – Lean Factory, Stock Reduction, Warehouse & Distribution, Productivity Improvement.
Project Overview
The site lean implementation team were then tasked with developing a production system which would enable a significant reduction in working capital.
The first stage of this process was to simplify the warehousing and dispatch activity used to service both retail and trade based customers. Using Picme’s lean expertise, the team then developed a production system that scheduled production based on products dispatched from this central warehouse
In order to minimise downtime an optimum production campaign was developed which eventually gave the facility a standard production plan. This plan enabled volume products to be made weekly and products with limited customer requirements to be made fortnightly or monthly as demanded. The plan also enables time to be set aside for maintenance and operational improvements to be made on equipment which was traditionally highly utilised.
Initially the production system was set up using a traditional T-Card based system to visually display production loading. This has since been superseded by a visual computer system which displays production requirements at point of manufacture.
Since implementation of the pull system the company have;
- Reduced inventory by 80%
- Increased stock turns from 4 to 21
- Increased productivity by 22%
- Reduced distance travelled by 40%