The Scenario

Our Client manufactures some of the most recognisable board games in the world. As such, they place a major emphasis on their responsiveness to their customer base. Working within short lead times to react to market demands, the unpredictable nature of output from the factory was a cause of concern. WBS Group were tasked with reviewing the current state, understanding the reasons for the productivity issues and recommending potential improvements.

The Work

In order to gain a thorough understanding of the business issues, WBS Group performed an intense Company Assessment, focussing on all areas of the business that impacted on the ability of general assembly area to meet production demands. In effect this meant a complete supply chain review from forecast through to shipment of product.

The Assessment Findings

• No focus on reduction of changeover times despite the fact that the business was experiencing increasing numbers of changeovers
• Multiple handling of components with no value being added
• Inaccurate data recording leading to difficulties in problem resolution
• Overall product awareness poor for some operators
• Inconsistent methods of operating production lines resulting in confusion in completing production runs
• Planning at family product level as opposed to SKU level
• Conflicting measures and targets on functions and departments

The WBS Group were further commissioned to provide a detailed redesign of the factory layout.