The Best Piece of Manufacturing Leadership Advice, I Have Ever Been Given.
I'm about to share mine but before I do please share yours, make a comment below.
It would be great to find out what advice others have been given.
Spring 1993, my Masters degree in Engineering Management was about to finish, as was my 2 year working as the Site Project Engineer for a large soft drinks bottling company. I'd worked for them in a year out from Uni and continued to work during holidays.
They'd given me some great challenges, including;
Overseeing the full overhaul of a high-speed bottling line from blow moulding, filling, capping, labelling to palletising machines
Moving, refurbishing and refitting a full production line from a factory 60 miles away
Designing and building a Reverse Osmosis Water Treatment Plant
Installing a charging point for an electric car
Fitting water dichlorination equipment due to the Gulf War (my first week in 1991)
I had a great time. Had several great mentors, willing to share and give guidance.
There were budgets to write up, projects to track, UK and Foreign suppliers to visit, all to keep an automated high speed production factory running 24/7, 365.
They gave me the challenge to work out how we could improve the outputs from one line which achieved 65% efficiency, whilst the others hit ~94% every hour.
The best piece of advice came from the MD of the bottling firm
"Mark, we use lots of technology, do the same things, every day. Go and find a small team, get experience with a team in a more manual process. Find teams making a range of products. Learn more about people, there is lots to learn"
He knew that we had a very automated plant, the products we made were very similar, mostly 2 litre bottles filled with various flavours of carbonated waters, 24/7, 365. It was very male and highly technical.
My next team couldn't have been further from a highly automated plant.
Finding out about people was definitely the correct thing to do.
It was great advice.
I'm still learning.
I post on #OperationsManagement #leadership & #productivity in
#manufacturing firms.
Want to learn more? follow me, like this post.
#ukmanufacturing #leanmanufacturing
Food Safety Manager at Krispy Kreme SA
6moLoko kuza Ku havaxeriwa akuna swinwani, hi lava hi endlaku ku hambana.