Quick Response

Quick response is the principle strategy employed by the world's leading companies to improve operational performance. Through a systematic attack on response time, systems are simplified, wastes are eliminated, inventories and costs are reduced, lead times get shorter and service gets better. Everyone wins! OPTIM Improvement fast tracks the process by teaching how it is done through our Blitzing The Value Stream process which leads you straight to the areas of highest opportunity. Then we give your people the tools and skills to slash the time and rearrange themselves into customer-focused work groups.

Supply Chain Partnerships

The supply chain is only as strong as its weakest link. By putting supplier and customer process improvement teams together, truly formidable partnerships can be formed. The expertise of all parties in the chain is coupled to jointly devise product development, production and distribution strategies that are mutually profitable and long lasting. OPTIM Improvement has the expertise to assemble and project manage such high performance joint ventures with your external partners.

Toyota Production System & Lean Manufacturing

Toyota started it all when it devised the simplest and most efficient production system in the world. Now everyone's doing it - under the banner of Lean Manufacturing. The concepts behind the system are applicable to all manufacturers. Muda (operational waste) elimination, zero inventories, rapid response, perfect quality, 100% DIFOT and employee participation are the key concepts. OPTIM Improvement has vast experience in training and implementing of Lean Enterprise solutions

At the operational level, OPTIM Improvement can support a Lean Manufacturing implementation process with a complete range of educational programs and improvement processes. Our Customer Focused Manufacturing process is specifically designed to help manufacturing people understand Lean concepts as applied to the factory, including customer focus, push/pull, batch-and-queue, lead-time reduction, cellular design and the total impact of waste on business performance. Our Blitzing The Value Stream process applies similar principles to the administrative and support functions of a manufacturing company as part of the same strategy - to gain very high service levels at much lower costs to the business.

Layout & Flow Optimisation

Factory and warehouse layouts need frequent fine-tuning. Re designing your layout may not seem a priority but some World-Class companies actually measure their progress by how many times equipment is moved in a year. Poor flow and under-utilisation of floor space costs companies dearly. Poor layout is the root cause of many productivity, quality, OHS and communication problems. OPTIM Improvement can help you design a new plant layout. Also, through processes such as our Lead Time Blitz, Workplace Redesign and 5S And The Visual Workplace, we can help your people to change the scenery, accelerate material flow and improve customer service in an existing facility.

Changeover Reduction & Flexibility Improvement

Flexibility to meet the increasing diversity and variety of market demand is a challenge most companies are experiencing. The explosion of demand for new products is seriously eroding plant efficiencies. A key to remaining viable is to increase flexibility whilst reducing manufactured costs. This can be achieved through OPTIM Improvement’s highly successful changeover reduction programs. We use the creativity of your employees to reduce changeover/setup/make-ready times dramatically in conjunction with OPTIM Improvement’s unique low cost methodology. Added bonuses are guarantees of motivation, high people involvement and fast, tangible gains. See our Smart Changeovers and our Smart Changeovers Blitz processes.

Kanban Implementation

Kanban is one of the simplest visual systems ever devised to control production flow, inventory and manage the elimination of waste. However, good implementations are uncommon because essential issues are misunderstood or overlooked. OPTIM Improvement offers the best hands-on kanban training and support processes in Australia (see Kanban Basics and Kanban Masters). We educate employees in the principles, the functions, the theory and the practice and we can provide support through the implementation stages.

Mistake Proofing

Operator mistakes are facts of life but can be severely reduced both in number and in effect. Mistake proofing, or Poka-Yoke, is a simple process which draws on people ingenuity and experience to design simple and practical ideas to reduce the occurrence of errors. The process utilises visual controls and simple error avoidance concepts.

Process Variability Reduction & Capability Improvement

Variability is a fact of life and a fact of business. But customers hate variability! High product or process variability means poor quality, low yields and inflated costs. OPTIM Improvement can show your people simple ways to measure, control and reduce variability. Using programs such as our Statistics Sucks and Statistical Process Control, your people can learn by our methods which are designed to remove the mystique and boring nature of traditional statistical teaching.

Capability measures are a simple way to show how good or bad your process is at meeting specification. Our process called Process Capability & Variability Reduction will help your people to understand the capability concept, measure process capability and develop strategies to improve your process capability.

"All organisations are perfectly designed to get the results they get" Typically 95% of all office activity adds no value to your customers or to your business! Careful analysis of administrative processes reveals waste by the truck-load resulting in lengthy response times, excessive and unnecessary costs, work overload and customer frustration. We have the solution. OPTIM Improvement’s Blitzing The Value Stream process is brilliantly simple and works by inviting your people to solve their own problems in an environment which challenges every mindset and convention.

The final outcome may well be a reorganisation of the participants into customer-focused work groups dedicated to service and to solving customer problems. Further if you are after a solution that encompasses manufacturing our Value stream Analysis Process can also help.

Plant Performance Measurement

Shareholders are demanding improved returns from better utilisation of capital. The push is on to get every last minute of useable output from our equipment. OPTIM Improvement helps companies to set the scene by setting measures that determine the true performance of capital equipment. We then provide the understanding of what is achievable and how to make it happen.

Total Productive Maintenance

In a Just-in-Time environment, machine failure can be catastrophic. The TPM concept is designed to eliminate all causes of machine downtime and product variability resulting from poor machine performance. However, OPTIM Improvement has seen most TPM initiatives fail through unnecessary complexity. OPTIM Improvement’s approach cuts through the confusion in its Value Adding Machines program, which follows a simple step-by-step approach involving operators, fitters and their leaders in a direct and concerted attack on machine waste.

Team Leader/Supervisor Development

How often have we seen these people left till last or left out altogether from continuous improvement programs? Team Leaders need a whole new range of skills to excel in today's lean work place. OPTIM Improvement’s leadership programs shows leaders how to succeed in an environment where they are expected to make business decisions, to mentor and motivate and to transform the performance of their teams. Check out our New Roles for Supervisors, New Generation Problem Solving and Team Building programs.

People Skills Development

"Highly motivated employees that actually work together to improve their own performance. I'd like to see that!" Yes, it is quite feasible and we can prove it without question. We have numerous clients who have benefited from significant cultural change amongst their people. This is not rocket science stuff but simply a case of developing strong leadership skills, providing the opportunity to be involved and developing real change skills.

If required, we help them to work together by taking them through OPTIM Improvement’s extensive Team Building suite of programs. Then, through our many continuous improvement processes, everyone can focus their attention on getting rid of your operational wastes. These include:

Layout, Handling & Flow Optimisation

Do you know what's lurking in your warehouse and how long has it been there? How does your warehouse and distribution system stack up for the next decade? Warehouse operations require continual refinement. Poor layout and the under-utilisation of space and equipment cost dearly in terms of service and human effort. World Class companies measure improvement by how many times layout and operations are improved each year. Let OPTIM Improvement evaluate your facilities and show your people how to eliminate inefficiency and waste, accelerate flow and improve service response.

Kanban

Kanban is one of the smartest systems ever devised to control material flow and inventory levels. However, good kanban implementations are rare because essential issues are misunderstood or overlooked. OPTIM Improvement has some of Australia's best kanban practitioners. Our hands-on kanban programs, Kanban Basics teach the principles and the practices of kanban and we can support your organisation in the implementation of an entire kanban system from customer to tertiary supply.

Supply & Materials Management

Typically 60% of manufactured cost is raw material. The opportunity for cost reduction can only be fully exploited through effective supply negotiation and materials management.

Meanwhile, the annual burden of carrying inventory is conservatively estimated to be 35% of material value. Well-devised purchasing and inventory management strategies underpin the success of today's manufacturing business.

OPTIM Improvement offers many years of purchasing, supply management, materials management and logistics experience. Call on us to help you make sizeable cost savings quickly.