Custom injection molding has always been a fast
moving, chaotic, and challenging business. It also has a high potential
for profit, even today, despite the international competition and tight
margins. You want to succeed, you see the possibilities, but the global
pricing and high expenses make it very difficult.
Plastic
injection molders are in the almost ideal business to benefit from the
lean manufacturing process. If you embrace the entire concept and do
not cherry pick the parts that are quick and easy, you will most
certainly experience improvements in your operation.
The lean
manufacturing process is an integrated approach to reducing waste. It
could be time or material or anything else; waste is waste and waste
equals money in business. It requires a shift in thinking to approach
efficiency from this vantage point, rather than always striving to do
more, do it faster, do it better.
Six Sigma
Implementing
six sigma requires that management is dedicated to making it work in
the long run. Employees are often cynical toward new programs because,
in the past, many programs amounted to little more than slogans and
banners.
Using a six sigma consulting firm is a good idea, once
you have educated yourself in the basic principles. The time and
expense of hiring an outside consultant will pay off handsomely over
time. If you have the personnel to mange your six sigma implementation
in-house that is even better; though they will certainly need some
additional training.
5S
5S training will give you a
huge boost in your lean manufacturing process. This is because the
results are so immediate and visible. Everyone likes having the tools
they need, the materials in the proper place with labels, and a general
atmosphere of everything in it's place.
It is relatively easy to
get your employees to go along with a 5S program. Within a week you
will see changes in your production area and the attitude of everyone.
Find the key people, train them, give them the authority and
communicate with the entire workforce in order to avoid grumbling and
confusion.
Kaizen
When you conduct a kaizen blitz,
or event, you pick an area or a process and focus exclusively on it.
This is a great way to make progress and get people involved because it
is by nature short and intense. It is a bit like cleaning up you
kitchen before your mother-in-law comes for a visit! You hyper-focus on
one area after another until the whole is done.
One drawback
though with a kaizen blitz is that it can be mistakenly understood to
be the entire process. It is just a component and it should be regarded
as such. If it becomes the program, you will not really change the
culture or become much more efficient in your operation.
How to get going
It
is a good idea to talk to successful shop owners who have benefited
from the lean manufacturing process. You will find them enthusiastic
and quite willing to open up, for the most part. You should also read
and gather information so you can make wise decisions rather than
totally rely on the opinion of a consultant. In the end, you will
certainly need outside help, but you also need a thorough understanding
of the process yourself.
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