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The more effective and efficient the maintenance processes of your machinery, the better their performance and, ultimately, the better the profit for your company.
Fortunately, there is indeed a myriad of ways to streamline and improve the monitoring and maintenance of manufacturing machines, the top four methods of which are discussed below.
1. Implement a More Cellular Strategy
Essentially, the concept of cellular manufacturing is based on grouping individual manufacturing processes in one set, thus improving the speed at which they can be assessed and inspected, as well as fixed when necessary.
If you are interested in implementing a cellular strategy in your warehouse or factory, learning the specific methodology surrounding the concept and learning how best to divide your business processes is an excellent place to begin.
The benefits of cellular manufacturing strategies truly know no bounds, with one of the most effective being the significant reduction in the lead time of each order.
2. Focus on Effective Employee Engagement
The most overlooked piece of information that can benefit managers of any company within any industry, yet one that is frustratingly forgotten by many, is that the best person to tell you how a certain process can be improved is the worker who is responsible for the process themselves.
Too often, senior executives and even board members decree certain rule changes and other modifications to a certain way of doing things, with absolutely no knowledge, experience, or even interest in how the job is done.
Engaging with your employees, both in terms of providing additional training courses and development days, as well as working on how you converse and communicate, will not only make for a stronger and more inclusive company culture but also serve to streamline individual processes.
- Invest in Extra Training for Key Employees
The greater the field of knowledge each one of your employees has with regards to their specific role, the higher the chances of a smooth-running shift, free of incident, but when it comes to machinery maintenance, this is more essential than simply advisory.
For example, providing your employees with the tools to be able to read for themselves certain aspects of the systems, such as how to read the pumps performance curves, may not only mean a machine can be repaired in a shorter time frame, but could even prevent a malfunction from happening in the first place, which is a bonus.
- Quantify Everything
Assigning a specific number, or indeed series of numbers, to every element involved in the entire manufacturing process, otherwise known as quantification, could well be the best possible decision you make for your business if you are focused on improving efficiency across the board. There are plenty of benefits to choosing this course of action moving forward, not least the fact that, once everything is quantified, you will be able to quickly notice anything which requires investigation and attention, without holding up the production process longer than necessary.
