Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1323994
26 SMT007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2021 Streamline Workflows "Working to constantly improve is the num- ber one way in which many businesses reduce operating overhead," writes Jon Terry. "For example, projects that involve shifting dead- lines, changing priorities and other complex- ities are usually filled with opportunities to improve. It's just that no one has acted on that opportunity. The gateway to stream- lined workflows is frontline worker involvement. Millard points out that changing habits is a diffi- cult thing to do, adding, "Know what makes it eas- ier? Rolling out changes that originated from the front lines. When people come up with the ideas to improve their own work, they intrin- sically see the value of t h e c h a n g e s. K n ow i n g that improvements come from their peers inspires faith in the necessity of the changes much more so than does a decree from senior leadership." Reduce Costs L a b o r i s a s i g n i f i c a n t expense, and easy to lose track of, especially at the microtask level. "For this reason," notes Terry, "most project management offices benefit from knowing the amount of time it takes to get certain types of work done." Labor waste, therefore, is a natu- ral area to practice continuous improvement. It doesn't take extensive studies and consul- tants to analyze whether a job function can reduce the number of repetitive walking steps an operator must take, or whether solder paste pot time can be optimized to increase mate- rial utilization as well as labor time loading in fresh solder paste. Frontline employees, in fact, are ideal sources for this type of optimi- zation. Millard says, "Employees tend to focus on small changes that can be accomplished without a lot of expense. In fact, many ideas from employees involve eliminating processes, rather than adding them." But frontline involvement is not always limited to small changes. I-Connect007 has recently shared customer stories in which management was planning to buy a new line to increase capacity, only to have front- line workers present a study showing that the existing line still had more than enough capacity to run the extra work, provided that the company make s o m e c h a n g e s t o t h e i r material flow processes. Small changes (relative to purchasing and installing an entire line) were made, and the needed capacity was achieved. This, of course, leads to increased profits. More Profits M o s t o f t e n , r e d u c e d costs (and increased capac- ity for sale) translate directly to improved margins a n d m o re p ro f i t . Whether the company keeps this profit or returns it to the customer in the form of reduced prices, is up to the company. Just keep in mind that, as the team at Rever Inc. says, "The pur- pose of every small change is to make the busi- ness more profitable." Employee Morale It is a general truth that we all just want to make a difference in our world. On this topic, Jane Goodall has often been quoted as saying, "What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make." When employees are encouraged to point out process problems, effect change, and then not only have the successes from those changes shared across the company, but perhaps also see the monetary value of that change to the