Improve efficiencies, cut costs and save time by implementing innovative strategies and techniques.
Rewind the clock a few years and Ron Sparks worked at a precast plant that used at least 13 different software programs to run operations. These siloed, disparate technology systems served their own individual purposes, but none of them talked to one another. Sales, manufacturing and finance, for example, each used a different software program to run their respective parts of the business.
Today, Sparks is the general manager at a 3-year-old company that relies on a streamlined, centralized software system to run its entire operation. Using Titan II Precast Management Software, Columbia Precast Products of Washougal, Wash., can handle everything from job order processing to production scheduling and accounts receivable collections from a single platform.
Having all of that information at its fingertips helps Columbia Precast Products “mine” its data, said Sparks, to improve decision-making and strategize on important points like inventory levels and profitable product lines. Sparks and the company can now be very strategic about booking work. And when its new plant comes online later this year, the company will add a touch screen clock-in and clock-out system to manage its human resources function.
“We just put it in a month ago,” Sparks said. “Using the system, we’ll be able to isolate specific hours spent on certain jobs and use it to track custom work, run reports and see what projects are really costing us on the labor side.”
By adopting its enterprise-wide software, Columbia Precast Products has been able to go beyond submitting project quotes in an Excel spreadsheet or via a Word document. And while many precasters may use software to manage the process once an order is placed, Sparks said using the automated system from initial bid helps the company more effectively track orders, progress and profitability.
Getting better – one step at a time
The Great Recession may be in the rear view mirror, but new market forces and trends continue to push manufacturers to consider the efficiency, effectiveness and profitability of their operations. A tightening labor market, for example, has made it more difficult to find skilled employees. Concurrently, issues like high customer demands, the ongoing need to reduce costs and competitive forces can all impact a precaster’s bottom line. To offset some or all of these challenges, companies are innovating and coming up with ways to work better, smarter and faster in today’s competitive business arena.
“Regardless of economic conditions, every company should always be looking at ways to improve,” said Rebecca Morgan, president and CEO at Fulcrum ConsultingWorks. “And it’s not just about cost reductions. It’s also about getting faster, making quality improvements and doing other things that are important to your customers – and to the market as a whole.”
At Columbia Precast Products, innovation doesn’t end with the company’s investment in technology. Intent on operating in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner is also in the company’s interest. For example, the precaster recently participated in a district rebate program sponsored by its local public utility (PUD). For a $14,000 investment (of which the PUD paid $6,000), Sparks and the rest of the team updated all of the lighting in the plant. Sparks estimates that the return on investment for the project will take about 3 1/2 years, but said the immediate benefit was a brighter work environment.
“Now everyone can actually see what they’re doing instead of having to deal with circa-1970s lighting,” he said.
On the human resources side, Sparks said the precaster has gained efficiencies by cross-training a large number of its employees. Instead of being trained on how to do a job within a particular department, workers have hands-on experience working in multiple departments within the company.
“We have a small crew, and we’ve done this since day one,” he said. “Cross-training enhances our efficiency because everyone understands what the person next to them is doing, what the person on the other end of the building is doing and how all of that comes together to impact the company as a whole.”
Setting realistic expectations
For Pete Johnson, setting realistic and attainable expectations is the first step in gaining efficiencies and saving both money and time on the plant floor. As general manager at Knight’s Precast in Summerville, S.C., Johnson strives to maintain open lines of communication with the company’s plant manager and ownership. For example, before a new project starts he’ll sit down with the former and explain the financials and expectations around the new job.
“I want to make sure everyone knows what’s expected of them,” said Johnson, who has been using this strategy for about 25 years at the various companies he’s worked for.
And even if a new job isn’t in the pipeline, Johnson sets up regular monthly or biweekly meetings with the plant manager and owners to talk about new ways to gain efficiencies. He said good ideas often come out of these pow wows, and recalls a time when the group decided that it needed to take more action.
“As a result, we started taking a more active approach to communicating during our meetings and making sure that the changes were actually seen through to fruition, and not just talked about,” Johnson said.
Having recently purchased an existing plant in Georgia, Knight’s Precast is now in the unique position to be able to directly benchmark and compare itself against a similar operation within its industry. Johnson said one way the company has leveraged this opportunity is by comparing the cost of production. The company has been able to make changes – mainly at the acquired plant – to improve efficiencies and save money.
“We were already running a pretty tight ship at our main plant,” he said. “But we’ve been able to use our research and data to fine-tune a few things while also making some positive changes at the new location.”
Look beyond downsizing
According to Morgan, the most popular – and least effective – method to decrease factory floor costs is to eliminate people. And while labor costs do make up a good portion of the typical manufacturing firm’s overhead, there are better – and less painful – ways to improve efficiencies without having to lay off valued workers.
“Improving the flow of information and product, the real-time availability of accurate and valuable performance data, and fully developing people and the supply chain will free capacity and stoke highly profitable growth,” Morgan said.
Using information flow as an example, Morgan said that precasters who work to improve the way data and communication flow through the company – from the initial bid through to delivery and payment – can vastly improve their overall operations. When employees don’t have to chase information down from different departments or send a dozen emails to get the information they need, everything from workflow to production and morale will improve. This, in turn, leads to a more efficient and profitable operation.
“Unfortunately, workers wind up wasting a lot of time when they don’t know what to do or how to do it or when managers change their minds or withhold vital information,” Morgan said. “By opening up the lines of communication and creating solid flows of information, those wasted hours can be spent on much more productive tasks.”
Be persistent
To precasters that want to innovate and work more efficiently, Johnson said the best approach is to commit to ferreting out inefficiencies and finding new ways to save money, improve quality and keep customers happy.
“Be persistent and don’t give up,” he said. “Get everyone on the same page and your efforts will pay off as long as you take the necessary action and/or follow-up.”
what the person on the other end of the building is doing and how all of that comes together to impact the company as a whole.”
Setting realistic expectations
For Pete Johnson, setting realistic and attainable expectations is the first step in gaining efficiencies and saving both money and time on the plant floor. As general manager at Knight’s Precast in Summerville, S.C., Johnson strives to maintain open lines of communication with the company’s plant manager and ownership. For example, before a new project starts he’ll sit down with the former and explain the financials and expectations around the new job.
“I want to make sure everyone knows what’s expected of them,” said Johnson, who has been using this strategy for about 25 years at the various companies he’s worked for.
And even if a new job isn’t in the pipeline, Johnson sets up regular monthly or biweekly meetings with the plant manager and owners to talk about new ways to gain efficiencies. He said good ideas often come out of these pow wows, and recalls a time when the group decided that it needed to take more action.
“As a result, we started taking a more active approach to communicating during our meetings and making sure that the changes were actually seen through to fruition, and not just talked about,” Johnson said.
Having recently purchased an existing plant in Georgia, Knight’s Precast is now in the unique position to be able to directly benchmark and compare itself against a similar operation within its industry. Johnson said one way the company has leveraged this opportunity is by comparing the cost of production. The company has been able to make changes – mainly at the acquired plant – to improve efficiencies and save money.
“We were already running a pretty tight ship at our main plant,” he said. “But we’ve been able to use our research and data to fine-tune a few things while also making some positive changes at the new location.”
Bridget McCrea is a freelancer who covers manufacturing, industry and technology. She is a winner of the Florida Magazine Association’s Gold Award for best-technical feature statewide.
