Invensys Process Systems

Looking for a champion┬áContinuous improvement is a concept thatÔÇÖs easy to talk about, but as Alan T Swaby learns, the will to make it happen is often more difficult to find. The Invensys Foxboro facility in Massachusetts, a world leader in automation and process controls, is a living example of how easy it is to lead a horse to water, but guaranteeing that it will drink is a different story.The internationally famous Foxboro brandÔÇönow a key part of Invensys Process Systems (IPS)ÔÇöis named after the town where it all started before the Great War of 1914 was even thought of. ItÔÇÖs the type of company where employees spend their whole life and then move over for the next generation coming through. Even now, in todayÔÇÖs more mobile world, Kevin Dailida, manager of product and process development, estimates that shop-floor workers probably have an average of 25 years service with the company. And in that time theyÔÇÖve seen multiple initiatives come and go, along with their champions. So while there isnÔÇÖt really shop-floor resistance to taking on new ideas, there is a world-weary skepticism born from first-hand experience.In a nutshell, DailidaÔÇÖs job is to develop continuous improvement expertise to ensure that manufacturing continues in the town of Foxboro. For decades, the brandÔÇÖs quality and reputation were enough to see orders continue to roll in, but that guarantee no longer holds. IPS has to fight it out with other global suppliers that have built equally prestigious brands that have eaten into FoxboroÔÇÖs market share.ÔÇ£Foxboro is no different from thousands of other North American businesses,ÔÇØ says Dailida. ÔÇ£ThereÔÇÖs an appreciation that we must continually strive for improvement in order to stay competitive, but it needs commitment and ownership at every level in order to make it work.ÔÇØIt seems that┬áit also needs a tangible and meaningful reason in order to make change happen. After World War II, Japan had little or nothing in the way of resources. It couldnÔÇÖt afford to waste a thing. Out of this bleak environment came the manufacturing techniques that have resulted in Japan having unmatched levels of quality and productivity. In other words, the Japanese learned to be lean because they had little other choice.North America has traditionally been the land of plenty and has not regarded waste elimination as a critical business initiative. So while a decade ago there were various efforts with Just in Time, QIP and SPC at Foxboro, they were regarded as flavor-of-the-month initiatives and quickly lost traction and momentum.Perhaps now, though, the driving force exists. The very real prospect that 100 years of manufacturing in the town could fall by the wayside is focusing the minds and hearts of everyone who works for Invensys Foxboro. The lean drive has been reinvigorated. And Dailida, whose job it is to drive productivity improvements not only at Foxboro but throughout IPSÔÇÖs seven worldwide factories, is using that lever shamelessly to drive through the changes that help improve operations and keep them competitive.HeÔÇÖs building on work that started several years ago, thanks to funding from the Massachusetts Workforce Training Grant. Each of the 300-plus employees at Foxboro has been through what is called Lean 101ÔÇöa one-day training and simulation program to learn the language and discover some of the benefits of lean.┬á Operators have learned how good housekeeping habits and visual efforts make life easier and work flow through quicker and with less mistakes. TheyÔÇÖve been inspired by a former general manager who rolled up his sleeves and helped to clean workbenches and sweep floors. All concerned have developed pride in the cleaner, brighter working environment theyÔÇÖve helped to create and maintain.To increase the pool of champions, individuals from each plant have been chosen to take part in a three-week program during which two weeks of classroom lessons are followed by a group kaizen event and then an individual project in order to gain CI (continuous improvement) Expert status. These individuals are then expected to spread the word and spearhead improvements where they work.Dailida is well aware, though, that to be truly effective, initiatives will only work long-term if there is support from the highest levels. Within the Invensys group as a whole there has been a considerable amount of effort in trying to improve productivity and quality, but it wasnÔÇÖt always well coordinated, and in the past there were various factions favoring a six sigma or lean approach. Currently, the Invensys Continuous Improvement Council is educating the organization to apply the DMAIC (define, measure, analyze, improve & control) approach, which encourages the use of various improvement tools based on the circumstances of the improvement, which now falls under the general heading of CI.For example, value stream mapping and waste identification has proved its worth by eliminating the need for hundreds of thousands of dollarsÔÇÖ worth of new capital investment in FoxboroÔÇÖs Pressure Transmitter characterization process. Sales forecasts identified an increased demand for pressure instrumentation that, if the way they were manufactured remained the same, would have created a severe bottleneck. However, by analyzing the process, identifying non-value-added steps and utilizing a team-based approach, manufacturing cycle times have been halved, thereby doubling capacity without the need for major expenditure.ÔÇ£Lean has traditionally been associated with manufacturing-related activities,ÔÇØ says Dailida, ÔÇ£but weÔÇÖre demonstrating that it has broader applications. In fact, we can apply the techniques to every part of a business where thereÔÇÖs a need. For example, we identified a need to convert orders being held for review into cash more effectively. The same analysis of where waste and value are being added to the business process enables us to do exactly that, freeing up over $1 million in revenue.ÔÇØDailida is also aware that the current economic climate is a double-edged sword. ÔÇ£When businesses are thriving,ÔÇØ he says, ÔÇ£itÔÇÖs easier to demonstrate improvements and to justify changes. When things are tough, itÔÇÖs paradoxically the time when improvements are needed most but given the least support. ItÔÇÖs incumbent on all concerned to keep faith with what is being implemented and to avoid making any short-term decisions that will put you in a weaker position when conditions improve.ÔÇØ ÔÇô Editorial research by Tim Conlon┬á