Edson Packaging Machinery Limited 
Hamilton, Ontario

Industry: Machinery and Equipment

Website: Edson Packaging Machinery Limited

"We've totally embraced the concept," declares Hattin, President. "We've had some downsides but we've also had some great successes. I firmly believe that unless all of North American manufacturing adapts some version of Lean as a management system, we face grave consequences. We have to become more disciplined in terms of processes and the reduction of waste or we will lose more business to offshore competitors."

Results

• By freeing up space previously used for inventory, Edson was able to shelve a plant extension it considered.
• Using Lean Methodology, Edson has driven its inventory down by 62 percent to a current $200 000 level by eliminating its "batch mentality" production and ordering methods. Cash flow is better and there's no longer a need to add extra production space.
• Inventory has been reduced by 50percent in the past 18 months.At one time inventory was 20 percent of sales, now it's 5 percent and the new goal is to get it down to 2 percent.

Contributing Techniques and Tools

• Hattin continues, "We are not an auto plant or a Tier 2 component supplier to that industry. This means we're not an assembly line production environment in the true sense of the word. We're basically a job shop. And applying Lean Principals to a job shop is difficult because your takt time — the time available to produce one unit of output — is basically all over the place. We build units as small as a table and some that fill a room. One may take two weeks to assemble, another eight months."
• Edson's kanban board, set up in its primary or metal-working subassembly, uses highly distinctive color tags that represent the flow and type of work planned. The best thing about it is that everyone can see what's going on in about 10 seconds and knows what the next job is.
• "We're just getting started on the lean route, but we're absolutely certain it's the only path to follow," Hattin states. "And I hope all Canadian manufacturers and enterprises who haven't done so already will soon start walking down this path as well."

Source: LEAN Advisors Inc..