Building a sustainable manufacturing enterprise

Sustainable manufacturing is a business objective to support production efficiency and economic viability. The components of sustainability include economic stewardship, environmental responsibility, and being a good neighbor. Knowledgeable companies understand that their financial and operational goals directly benefit from sustainable operations through improved margins, reduced waste, improved employee morale, and community goodwill.

Efficient manufacturing is about getting optimal throughput of quality components with the least amount of waste. Benefits are demonstrated through improvements in energy and resource consumption, along with scrap, and waste product reduction. When your operations are efficient, plant employees are able to focus on completing production assignments and generating new ideas without the distractions of excessive downtime. A low-distraction workplace also reduces the probably of accidents and safety issues.

A company’s decision to adopt sustainable efforts typically is driven by company management, internal growth and performance needs, and external influences (see Figure 1).

Many of the pressures from customers, regulators, and employees can be addressed through sustainable practices. Sustainability supports agile practices, adaptable product offerings, and social responsibility. Stakeholders benefit from improved profitability, customers are more likely to be loyal if your product offering includes newer materials and consistent quality, and employees benefit from a more disciplined, creative, and safe workplace.

Several processes support financial, environmental, and community sustainability. These processes follow the common thread of building operational efficiency. An efficient operation will support greater profitability, use resources wisely, and demonstrate a positive influence on neighboring communities.

Quality Improvement – Quality improvement programs offer your best opportunities for satisfied customers, sales growth, efficient operation, and a productive and satisfied workforce. They define production activities and expectations, provide measures to identify potential issues, and should encourage a well-trained and well-managed workforce.

Environmental Health and Safety (H&S) – Adopting policies that eliminate industrial hazards is simply common sense. H&S practices include:

• Developing and enforcing employee safety procedures.
• Prioritizing accident and injury prevention during repair and maintenance planning.
• Enforcing policies for the use and handling of volatile organic compounds.
• Requiring H&S training for employees.
• Requiring emergency medical response training.

H&S practices can return your investment by providing an accident-free workplace, reducing your exposure to expensive downtime, demonstrating to your employees that their health and safety are important to you, and reducing your costs for employee liability. Your insurer also might lower your premiums if you demonstrate a successful program to reduce your exposure and liability. Insurers care about your history of workers’ compensation claims, civil liability damages, and litigation expenses.

Bill of Materials Management and Change Control – One of the biggest headaches in component design and manufacturing is in managing the bill of materials (BOM). Component designs and specifications often change, and it’s not always clear which design revision is current.

When designs are improperly managed, suppliers can bear the cost of expensive scrap rates and emergency retooling. Supply chain managers also can bear the cost of disrupted production runs. These issues and the poor relations that develop can be costly and threaten the continuity of the supply chain.

Figure 1 - A company’s decision to adopt sustainable efforts typically is driven by company management, internal growth and performance needs, and external influences.

Supply chain managers and suppliers must work closely to ensure that the right component is manufactured at the right time, and contracts should also define responsibility for the management and implementation of BOM.

Software for enterprise resource planning, product data management, and product lifecycle management can help you manage product and component design revisions to prevent these problems.

Lean Manufacturing – Lean manufacturing programs focus on improving the efficiency, profitability, and throughput of manufacturing operations. Most programs focus on eliminating waste in the system or improving production flow.

Lean programs can contribute greatly to sustainability because they focus on the efficient use of resources and the reduction of waste in materials, consumables, and effort.

Energy Efficiency – One of the results of lean production and effective management is reduced energy usage and cost. When manufacturing focuses on efficiency, energy use decreases as a result of less rework, greater efficiency in plant space requirements, and lower transportation costs.

Consumables Efficiency – The more you understand about your materials and stamping process, the more intelligent your resource usage becomes. As new materials enter the market, you must continually change how you manage friction and heat in the forming process.

It’s not unusual to apply excessive amounts of lubricant to blanks when trying to find the right level. Unfortunately, this results in excessive lubricant costs, excessive resources to clean lubricant from the blanks, and lubricant residue issues. Using the optimal amount of lubricant and ensuring proper application can significantly reduce consumables costs, disposal costs, and environmental impact.

These are just a few examples of how companies can develop programs that sustain their profitability and status as a responsible corporate neighbor. Sustainability is more than just a green initiative; it generates benefits for your company, your employees, your supply chain, and your neighbors.