Should you focus on process improvement or technology investments?
It is easy to take a look at an production environment and the technologies that drive an organization’s most expensive asset, their manufacturing floor. Many companies have taken the path of implementing technologies without considering their processes. On the other hand, organizations may have very old technologies, and can gain some quick wins by easy technology upgrades to improve the flow of information and be able to make better decisions.
It is the classic chicken and egg scenario. This blog post provides some insights into how to manage balancing technology and process improvement projects.
Elements of Focusing on Processes
Cost-Effectiveness
Process improvement efforts can provide some quick wins from a cost reduction perspective. Process improvements typically involve optimizing existing resources, making it an attractive option for budget-conscious manufacturers. Technology investment can provide some quick wins but may can have significant fees from and stretch already thin IT budgets. Depending on the scope, these improvements can then highlight the technology issues that need to be addressed.
Improved Employee Morale
Eliminating bottlenecks and waste results in faster production cycles, reduced lead times, and increased output, enhancing employee morale and engagement. Typically process improvement projects involve training and getting input from the front line staff. This improves morale and also improves the financial aspects of any production operations.
Improved Quality and Consistency
Process improvements enhance product quality and consistency by standardizing procedures and implementing best practices, reducing variability, and ensuring uniformity, which boosts customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Elements of Focusing on Technology
Assessing Current Performance
You can’t fix what you can’t measure. If you don’t have systemic benchmarks or key performance indicators (KPIs) like cycle time, defect rates, and throughput, it will be difficult to determine where to focus your process improvement efforts. Investing in technologies can help drive these decisions.
Information Lag
In many cases, operations and information flow significantly lag production information, causing bottlenecks, and unnecessary inventory build ups. Having real time or near real time information allows a manufacturer to identify these issues faster, and then focus
Considering Long-Term Goals
Sometimes you just have to begin the technology journey regardless of the state of processes. These journeys can certainly yield both short and long term benefits, enabling investments in process improvement efforts. Aligning all of these goals (process and technologies) is critical to these efforts.
Conclusion – Begin With People
While process improvement and technology investments are critical , involving your team is where you begin. Stakeholders provide insights into pain points and opportunities. Involving employees fosters a culture of continuous improvement and ownership, ensuring the chosen approach resonates with the organization.
What can MTG do to help you improve your operations?
