Good Plants Are Easily Identified

Automotive Industries, Sept, 2001 by Ron Harbour

Automakers' initial steps have been the easy ones. The real test is going to come over the next 10 years.

How do the various automotive manufacturers operations really differ? They all build cars and trucks; how different can they really be? There certainly are a variety of internal and external measures, but what do they say?

Numbers only tell part of the story. An even bigger question is what makes one plant better than another? And that's why each year a critical part of Harbour and Associates' process is visiting dozens of assembly stamping and power-train operations.

So what exactly should you look for? Well, there is no secret checklist that should be followed. But at the same time, it doesn't take long to see if a plant has what it takes--an approach to lean manufacturing that encompasses not only the plant being visited, but the entire organization and company as well.

First and foremost, lean manufacturing must permeate the entire company because the over-whelming factor that impacts manufacturing continues to be product and process engineering, which occurs long before a product reaches a manufacturing site. The best manufacturers are designing products and processes with manufacturing in mind, thus making plants responsible for eliminating the remaining waste in their systems and processes while making the best quality products possible.

In a plant visit, you should look for implementation of processes and practices that improve manufacturing operations. Some of these include level production material pull systems, multi-process handling and one-piece flow. Other key processes that should be visible at almost any operation include small lot production and the reduction of lead and set-up times.

Processes and practices that can improve a plant's quality performance include error-proofing systems that detect and prevent defective parts from moving into subsequent stages of production. Also, Andon systems call immediate attention to a production abnormality or problem, and thus help lead to corrective action before a defect can leave the area where it was created.

With proper visual controls, employees and supervisors can grasp the state of production in and around their worksite at a glance. And 100 percent source inspection performs checks at the source of any defect; prompting immediate corrective action and eliminating rework and repair.

Each plant also must have "key enablers" that support a facility's ability to operate at maximum efficiency Key enablers include purchasing and supply departments, which coordinate the flow of materials into the plant and the flow of products out of the plant. And having the right equipment with the necessary capabilities is critical to everything from the speed and quality of production to the elimination of waste and non-value-added work

Any tour is not complete without checking a plant's support systems that include standardized work procedures, waste recognition and elimination, workplace organization, safety and continuous improvement programs. So efforts at lean manufacturing continue as a never-ending cycle.

Finally, systems must be in place to support plant workers. Are there programs that encourage employees to contribute ideas? Is there adequate job training, ergonomic job rotation and job performance monitoring? All of these factors are critical to a plant's continuing success.

In this day and age, every company knows the importance of lean manufacturing. And for the most part, results in The Harbour Report over the past 10 years show that dramatic progress has been made. But it also could be argued that these initial steps have been the easy ones. The real test is going to come over the next 10 years, when automakers have to work harder to improve their production systems.

What are they doing to improve? That's what the industry wants to know, and that's what we're looking for in our plant visits.

RON HARBOUR is president of Harbour and Associates, manufacturing consultants in Troy, Mich.