COE PRESS EQUIPMENT: Making Its Mark After Implementing Lean Processes
The team at The Center has proven experience successfully implementing Lean strategies in real-world applications. The changes resulting from our Kaizen project have been very impressive.
-- Linda Rosati, Chief Operating Officer
Since 1976, COE Press Equipment (www.cpec.com) has been providing North American stampers, fabricators and manufacturers with best-in-class coil feeding equipment, on-site manufacturing, 24/7 support and unparalleled service. Headquartered in Sterling Heights, Mich., COE is a family-owned company with 101 employees. Whether their clients need individual coil reels, roll feed, straightener, shears, stackers or a completely integrated press feed or cut-to-length line, each job they deliver is engineered for their customer’s needs and backed up by quality service.
Challenge
COE had several employees that were trained in the area of lean concepts, but they never fully implemented lean activities to utilize these skills and achieve the desired results. COE was looking to improve efficiency, make better use of their manufacturing space and enhance workflow.
Solution
After analyzing the results of a small business operations planning assessment, the team at the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center (The Center) determined that creating a Kaizen improvement project implementing lean principles would be the most effective method. During a period of five months, 40 members of COE’s team participated in several different areas of Kaizen training—a unique opportunity for the group to see results while they were learning. In the machine shop, employees learned how to maximize efficiency.
With The Center’s guidance, they were able to handle a bigger book of business using the same square footage (which generated impressive improvements with cycle time and changeovers). The assembly shop was converted—helping to reduce equipment moves and bring positive changes to the final run-off. In the assembly area, work bays increased from two to five and unnecessary steps were deleted, streamlining the assembly process. Additionally, COE was able to fully employ a second shift in both the machine and assembly shops. As a result, material stockout was reduced and gains in on-time delivery for assembled parts were achieved.
Results
- New Jobs Created: 4
- Retained Employees: 97
- Improved Productivity by 85%
- Reduced Stockouts from 30% to 5% or less
- Increased Work Bays in Assembly Area by 150%, which Maximized Efficiency