In our daily jobs, we are in contact with hundreds of different manufacturing processes. We don't always have time to observe the process and use tools such as flow charts, FMEAs, and so on. If that's the case, how do we keep control more easily? … [Read more...]
3 Basic Process Improvement Tools: Flow Chart, FMEA, Control Plan
Do you wonder why you still suffer from quality issues, even though the process is quite mature and seems to be well understood? Or are you preparing to launch the production of a new product... or production of an existing product in a new factory? And you want to plan ahead to avoid missteps that might be quite costly? There are 3 basic process improvement tools that you can use: The Process flow chart The Process FMEA (Failure Mode & Effects Analysis) The control plan … [Read more...]
How to reduce costs in a factory? The lean approach.
The number one challenge of Chinese suppliers is price, as revealed by a recent survey. Their costs keep rising, but price competition is stronger and stronger. Factory owners spend a lot of time trying to reduce costs. Unfortunately, they tend to focus only on three levers to keep their costs under control: Negotiating down material prices; Limiting salary raises; Pushing the employees to work hard, for long hours. These are actually NOT the main drivers of cost though... … [Read more...]