FRAISA Annual Report 19/20

FRAISA goes LEAN LEAN Management exemplified by FRAISA ReTool ® Annual Report 2019/2020  I PROJECTS LEAN Management describes the approach concerning the continuous process improvement and efficient creation of the entire value chain with the goal to create a holistic produc- tion system without wasting. Central aspects of this approach are a high orientation towards customers and a long-term cost reduction by recognizing and eliminating waste potentials. For more than 30 years, the Willich production site is the cen- tral competence center of FRAISA Group for the industrial tool reconditioning with FRAISA ReTool ® . Currently, about 360,000 tools are reconditioned at this site each year – all processes are completely digitalized. Customers are ensured to have the reconditioned tools returned to them within 12 working days. In order to keep this promise, the cycle time of the individual tools is an essential factor. Profound changes by using LEAN Management The project started in fall 2019, which marked also the starting signal for the interdisciplinary teams analyze the internal ReTool processes on the basis of the LEAN Management approach. The resulting findings were addressed in detail and realized as quickly as possible in a «hands-on» manner. First results be- came already visible after a project term of three months. Inlet control for the area CNC 5 axis grinding Hitherto, the tools delivered were directly transferred to the grinding shop after registration, meaning also that occasionally too many tools piled up at the individual machines. Now, by introducing an inlet control, the tools are only sent to produc- tion as required. The new system prevents an uncontrolled ac- cumulation of tools, complies easier with the FIFO machining order (first in/first out) and reduces the search times – factors decreasing the cycle time and affecting the delivery reliability positively. Internal transport and status change Until now, the employees at the machines brought all tools completely reconditioned to a central collection point in groups. Thanks to the changeover, the collection point no longer exists: by means of daily runs («milkruns»), the finished tools are regularly picked up at the machines and from there, transferred directly to the Logistics Department. Thus, it is pos- sible for the employees at the machines to focus on their core task. Now, the continuous process flow of the tools occurs in considerably smaller and more regular steps, without overload- ing the subsequent processes. Both projects provide an example on how the production can be modified profoundly in small steps together with the em- ployees. Based on projects, LEAN Management is introduced to the company. The employee-centered optimization meth- od provides unlimited potential for further future projects at FRAISA Willich, which are already in the starting blocks. [ 27 ]