Stories of Leadership, Lean, and Learning
I was the Lean Champion for Armstrong World Industries for six years. My responsibility was to guide the organization to a continuous improvement mindset in all of their activities. I had no direct reports and reported to the Executive Vice President of Global Technology. When we kicked off our Lean transformation, most in the organization felt we were implementing the “flavor of the week” and weren’t ready to commit to changing their habits.
Read MoreOnce upon a time in 1998, I helped a team in Macon Georgia improve the reliability and safety of one of their production lines. The work was exciting, the team was enthusiastic, and we were making breakthroughs beyond what I ever imagined could happen. Something was missing, however. For some reason our sponsor, the Business Unit Manager, never came out to the line to see what we were doing. Although the team didn’t seem to mind, it really bothered me. After all, we were doing things so quickly and effectively, and solving so many problems that others weren’t able to solve, I wondered why he didn’t appear to be interested in our progress. If you know me, you could predict I would do something about it. And, I wouldn’t be subtle about it.
Read MoreFor those unfamiliar with the term, Gemba means “the real place, the place where the work is done.” A Gemba walk therefore means that you are going to walk through the real place and assess the work being done there. I tweak it a bit to mean, “assess the health of the operating system.” This sounds like an audit, and it is. For many companies, the idea of the Gemba walk is to take people out of their offices and walk through the process with their people. It’s not always the most comfortable thing for people to do. If done well, it can be extremely impactful. If not done well, it becomes a big waste of time.
Read MoreA global consumer goods manufacturer was experiencing high levels of downtime, jams, and long changeovers on a critical production line. They invited Process Improvement Partners to their plant to observe and discuss the problem and identify opportunities for improvement. After reviewing performance, we took a walk to the line. The line was running, and after a description of line components, it became apparent there were quick opportunities to improve performance of the line.
Read MoreMy focus in continuous improvement has always been to help teams solve problems in a sustainable way. Early on in my career, I learned many facilitation techniques through trial and error, mostly error. One of the biggest errors I ever made during a Kaizen event was to be too directive with a team. When one of the team members said, “Adam wants us to do this…,” I knew I was in trouble.
Read MoreIn 2010, a private equity firm took a minority stake in Armstrong World Industries. They brought in many leaders at executive levels and committed to a strategy of Lean transformation. Their initial focus was manufacturing, and then when ready, they would expand efforts to the supporting organizations. From 2010 through 2012 in the manufacturing organization, emphasis was placed on Lean training and conducting hundreds of Kaizen events. In many cases, outside consultants were brought in. But, where there was experience, internal resources worked with teams and facilitated Kaizen events.
Read MoreEarly this year, Process Improvement Partners was invited to conduct a site assessment for a packaging company in western Pennsylvania. The facility was operating a new technology that wasn’t performing to expectations. They wanted to identify opportunities to improve their situation using the engagement and empowerment of their employees.
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In 2019, Process Improvement Partners was asked to run a reliability Kaizen for a factory in Missouri. A month in advance of the event, I conducted a site visit and took a walk to the line to be improved. Cluttered, dirty, and lacking organization, the line was operating at extremely low levels of efficiency. There was an hourly production board and it was filled with red numbers, meaning production output was below target levels most of the time. Working with the sponsor, we aligned around efforts to improve safety and productivity of the operation using reliability and Lean principles.
Read MoreAfter a three-year stint as Operations Manager in a plant in Oregon, I was offered the opportunity to return to the Innovation Group in the global technology group for Armstrong World Industries, a ceiling tile manufacturer. I was to support a group of scientists, technicians, and innovators improve their processes and speed up the time to launch new product ideas.
Read MoreIn 1994, I was responsible for quality control for a ceiling grid joint venture between Armstrong World Industries and Worthington Industries. At the time, we had two domestic plants, but plans were in place to build a new plant in a town in the northern part of France, Valenciennes.
As an Industrial Engineer, I was very interested in the overall design and layout of the plant, and wanted to help maximize the flow of materials throughout the plant. I was invited to participate in the early development of design options.
Read MoreIn 1991, I was offered a position as a shift supervisor at a ceiling grid plant in Franklin Park Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. I received supervisor training the prior year and this was my first opportunity to use what I learned in the real world. From my second-floor office, I was able to see both ends of the plant, including the eleven operating lines and the warehouse. What immediately struck me was the lack of focus on the quality of the product we were producing.
Read MoreI worked more than 30 years for a multi-national company. During that time, I had the opportunity to help teams and solve problems all over the world, from the US to Europe to Asia. I worked in five distinct industries and had many roles, from engineering to operations to continuous improvement. I enjoyed most of what I did, but realized something was missing.
Read MoreIn June 2019, Process Improvement Partners was asked to help a leading consumer brands company execute its first Kaizen event in the history of its New Jersey factory. I came to the factory for a site assessment and determined there were many good candidates for their first Kaizen. After further discussions, we identified the first area for Kaizen.
Read MoreIn 2010, I was helping a team in Hilliard Ohio simplify the method they used for changing over a production line from one product to another.
The team came up with many ideas to simplify things and make things safer and more efficient around the line, and it looked like they were well on their way to reducing the changeover time by more than 50 percent, which was one of the key objectives.
Read MoreProcess Improvement Partners was brought in to help a consumer goods manufacturer cut their changeover time (the time it takes to switch tooling and equipment over from one product to another) in half. By doing so, they would be able to reduce inventory and improve process performance.
Read MoreProcess Improvement Partners was asked to develop and deliver a global cost reduction ideation session for a leading consumer products manufacturer. In early phone conversations with the client, we discovered that prior attempts at this effort had less than desirable results. The next logical step was to visit the client and discuss the approach for the session.
Read MoreThe Corporate Quality Manager of a suspended ceiling manufacturer had a problem. When he wanted to check for defects on ceiling tiles, he had them shipped from the manufacturing plant and installed in ceiling grid in the corporate testing facility. This 12’ x 24’ ceiling grid configuration was adjacent to a large bank of windows. He then waited for the weather to cooperate. You see, he wanted the proper angle of sunlight to shine across the face of the tiles, and depending on the time of year and weather conditions, he might have to wait weeks to assess the quality of the tiles. The windows were often obstructed with testing materials, which made access and viewing even more difficult.
Read MoreProcess Improvement Partners (PIP) recently conducted a free site assessment for a small electronic targeting systems company in Glen Rock, PA.
Read MoreIn 2011, I was asked to assist a team in Pensacola, FL who wanted to improve processes in their distribution center. We were given four days to accomplish our task – reduce shipping damage by 50%. This was a tall order, but the team was up for the challenge.
Read MoreA global consumer goods manufacturer was experiencing high levels of downtime, jams, and long changeovers on a critical production line. They invited Process Improvement Partners to their plant to observe and discuss the problem and identify opportunities for improvement. After reviewing performance, we took a walk to the line. The line was running, and after a description of line components, it became apparent there were quick opportunities to improve performance of the line. The techniques we would use were quite basic: leveling, squaring, aligning, and centering of products with the process. It seemed so simple, and the customers were skeptical. We suggested a five-day Kaizen to improve line reliability, scheduled for January 2019.
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