We are considering changing the scope of our blog from manufacturing and supply chain solutions to something more personal - say travel and photography. We really prefer that web traffic on manufacturing and supply chain go through our overall web site www.synchronousllc.com . What do you think? We will make this change during October until we here otherwise. Many thanks friends...
Rob Baldwin
Synchronous LLC
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Friday, October 2, 2009
Most organizations focus on execution, with less attention and emphasis on planning. These companies will benefit greatly from improved tools in the planning area. Other companies like to plan, but just don't seem to be able to "make it happen." This is a much more difficult challenge.
The days of inventing approaches and techniques in the field of planning and control are over. Most companies recognize this is not a realistic longer term plan. Today, a company can run its business using a single set of numbers that people believe and that are agreed on by all departments.
Please add your comments on production planning and how to address the very common belief that "...it wont work in my company..."
The days of inventing approaches and techniques in the field of planning and control are over. Most companies recognize this is not a realistic longer term plan. Today, a company can run its business using a single set of numbers that people believe and that are agreed on by all departments.
Please add your comments on production planning and how to address the very common belief that "...it wont work in my company..."
Monday, September 28, 2009
Synchronous Solutions Update, Refresh, and Restart
Welcome back! After a slight pause to give paid advice to clients vs very low cost advice on our blog, we will be back full time starting tomorrow. See you then. As always, for the most up- to-date information, place a reply to this posting.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
E-Business as part of Supply Chain Strategy
E-business is certainly a hot topic of discussion these days, and rightly so. E-business is essentially doing business over the internet, and can provide significant business advantages. However, E-business has significantly different applicability in different industries. It is easier to sell small high-value products like books, or delver electronic content like music over the Internet than, for example - industrial chemicals.
That does not mean that those of us in the process manufacturing industry cannot exploit E-business. If we just look at opportunities for top line growth - revenue enhancement, the process industry can exploit E-business to:
- Provide 24/7 customer service for customers from any location.
- Personalize and customize information to customers and suppliers.
- Implement flexible pricing schemes.
- Implement very efficient funds transfers.
- Aggregating information from various sources.
These are some ideas for enhancing revenues by implementing E-business. There are additional possibilities on the cost reduction side of the business. More to come later...
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
That does not mean that those of us in the process manufacturing industry cannot exploit E-business. If we just look at opportunities for top line growth - revenue enhancement, the process industry can exploit E-business to:
- Provide 24/7 customer service for customers from any location.
- Personalize and customize information to customers and suppliers.
- Implement flexible pricing schemes.
- Implement very efficient funds transfers.
- Aggregating information from various sources.
These are some ideas for enhancing revenues by implementing E-business. There are additional possibilities on the cost reduction side of the business. More to come later...
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Maintenance Stores - How Do We Optimize?
In the process industry, most manufacturing plants have a maintenance storeroom. In some plants this is a large centralized, highly planned and managed function. In smaller plants it can take the form of a smaller localized collection of "stuff" we think we may need in the near future. No matter the scale of your maintenance storeroom, there should be some basic and documented procedures developed jointly by maintenance, engineering, and purchasing to ensure consistency and quality of operations. Procedures like:
- Inventory classification, including provisions for obsolescence.
- Vendor managed inventory programs.
- Use and modification of the catalog system.
- Matching major spare parts with the plant critical equipment list.
- An effort to minimize the number of suppliers, and number of parts in inventory.
- An inventory record accuracy program.
Well planned maintenance stores can be a competitive advantage to process industry manufacturing plants. If stores is viewed as a "cost" or "bureaucracy" the advantages will not flow to the financial bottom line.
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
- Inventory classification, including provisions for obsolescence.
- Vendor managed inventory programs.
- Use and modification of the catalog system.
- Matching major spare parts with the plant critical equipment list.
- An effort to minimize the number of suppliers, and number of parts in inventory.
- An inventory record accuracy program.
Well planned maintenance stores can be a competitive advantage to process industry manufacturing plants. If stores is viewed as a "cost" or "bureaucracy" the advantages will not flow to the financial bottom line.
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Making Teams Effective
Virtually every organization uses teams to solve complex problems, or to implement large scale, complicated projects. With the integration and globalization of organizations, it is becomingly increasingly common for team members to live on different continents, and may never have met their teammates in person. With this environment, some suggestions for insuring that teams are effective can be as simple as:
- Make sure the objective is appropriate for a team solution. Teams are appropriate where creativity is required. Teams are less effective when a situation with tight "cast in stone" deadlines are necessary.
- Make sure a reasonable definition of consensus is agreed upon and applied.
- Not all of the team's activities need to be performed by the entire team; nothing works better for a team than the approach of "divide and conquer."
- Some time should be spent, especially early on, to socialize and harmonize the team. A good team needs strong relationships, and a keen understanding of the strengths and limitations of other team members.
- Apply 21st century collaboration tools; video conferences, document and drawing editing programs that can be used by multiple team members and manage all changes simultaneously.
- Match people and personalities to specific team roles. The leader guides the process and helps build consensus. An administrator updates the project schedule, maintains the action lists, keeps meeting minutes etc. The facilitator leads the team discussions and make sure they stay on track; many teams use the leader as the facilitator. A writer develops team reports, and presentations; many teams combine the writer and administrator roles. The remaining two roles are those of analyzer - somebody has to evaluate options and run the numbers; and at least one idea generator - someone creative and capable of stimulating the team's thought process.
Sometimes the human interaction side of establishing a team gets minimized or ignored so we can "get right to results." A little effort up front to ensure a team will be effective goes a long way to getting those results.
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
- Make sure the objective is appropriate for a team solution. Teams are appropriate where creativity is required. Teams are less effective when a situation with tight "cast in stone" deadlines are necessary.
- Make sure a reasonable definition of consensus is agreed upon and applied.
- Not all of the team's activities need to be performed by the entire team; nothing works better for a team than the approach of "divide and conquer."
- Some time should be spent, especially early on, to socialize and harmonize the team. A good team needs strong relationships, and a keen understanding of the strengths and limitations of other team members.
- Apply 21st century collaboration tools; video conferences, document and drawing editing programs that can be used by multiple team members and manage all changes simultaneously.
- Match people and personalities to specific team roles. The leader guides the process and helps build consensus. An administrator updates the project schedule, maintains the action lists, keeps meeting minutes etc. The facilitator leads the team discussions and make sure they stay on track; many teams use the leader as the facilitator. A writer develops team reports, and presentations; many teams combine the writer and administrator roles. The remaining two roles are those of analyzer - somebody has to evaluate options and run the numbers; and at least one idea generator - someone creative and capable of stimulating the team's thought process.
Sometimes the human interaction side of establishing a team gets minimized or ignored so we can "get right to results." A little effort up front to ensure a team will be effective goes a long way to getting those results.
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Lean Implementation - Maintaining Focus
Many manufacturing firms in the process industry have difficulty maintaining a long-term ongoing focus on lean improvement efforts. To keep a lean effort productive we suggest the following:
- Focus on the big picture.
- Develop goals that focus on long term throughput improvement.
- Exploit the constraints that limit throughput.
- Avoid wasting resources improving non-constraint areas.
- Focus on activities that increase value to the customer.
- Eliminate organizational barriers and policies that inhibit growth.
- Facilitate the creativity and enthusiasm of the workforce.
Improvements in throughput can, and should continue year after year, without proportional increases in costs.
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
- Focus on the big picture.
- Develop goals that focus on long term throughput improvement.
- Exploit the constraints that limit throughput.
- Avoid wasting resources improving non-constraint areas.
- Focus on activities that increase value to the customer.
- Eliminate organizational barriers and policies that inhibit growth.
- Facilitate the creativity and enthusiasm of the workforce.
Improvements in throughput can, and should continue year after year, without proportional increases in costs.
Synchronous LLC is committed to maintaining a continuing dialogue on operational excellence and best practices for the process manufacturing industry. To pose a question, contribute a best practice, or otherwise add to the dialogue, send a note to RobBaldwin@SynchronousLLC.com . To subscribe to our weekly newsletter send your preferred email contact address to Webmaster@SynchronousLLC.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
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