How to make your factory processes more efficient

Efficient factory processes can have a direct impact on everything from total output to customer satisfaction, but it takes ongoing effort to make real gains. Here are some of the ways you can boost process efficiency and realise the benefits.

Using data to find inefficiencies

Use the Data

Comprehensive data can allow you to see where processes currently break down or help you to see what conditions can be altered for maximum efficiency. You should identify a specific issue, such as a cost-intensive process, and accurately measure all aspects of this process.

Tackling bottlenecks as a team

You can then determine what improvements can be made, such as increasing staff training or upgrading equipment. This could include investing in new CNC punching machines from specialists such as Cotswold Machinery www.cotswold-machinery-sales.co.uk/euromac-bending-machines/punching-machines or whatever your business needs.

Team Approach to Bottlenecks

Identify where bottlenecks occur. This is a step or machine that uses the majority of its capacity and is usually the one directly before the machine with the biggest wait times. Then, assign employees to work towards reducing these issues as a team. You may choose to use an Engage and Create strategy, encouraging team leaders to seek contributions and suggestions from team members with the goal of working as a cohesive unit.

Employee Engagement

Where automation can help

This is key to premium process efficiency. People who do not feel engaged are less productive and less likely to work as part of a team. You may also need to focus on staff training to maximise capabilities. You can read more about employee engagement and efficiency on the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development website here.

Explore RPA

Robotic Process Automation, or RPA, is all about using software in order to make manual tasks automated and remove employee repetition. Good fits for RPA include regulatory compliance tasks, transport management and order processing.

Summary

Sets out ways to make factory processes more efficient, from using data to identify and measure cost-intensive bottlenecks and deciding where to invest in staff training or new equipment such as CNC punching machines, to encouraging team-based problem-solving, boosting employee engagement, and exploring robotic process automation for repetitive tasks like order processing.

Questions this article raises

• How do you identify which process is the real bottleneck in a factory?
• What tasks are best suited to robotic process automation versus human staff?
• How much investment does a typical efficiency upgrade like new machinery require?