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Operational Improvement

Being busy doesn't necessarily mean being productive.

HMS helps manufacturing businesses understand how their operations are actually performing, identify wasted time, effort and capacity, and make practical improvements that support better performance.

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The focus isn't on making people work harder.

It's on understanding how the work is being done — and whether the process is helping people do it effectively.

Productivity starts with understanding the operation.

Operational problems are often described in simple terms.

We need more people.

We need more capacity.

We need people to work faster.

We need a new system.

We need to improve productivity.

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But before deciding what needs to change, it is worth understanding what is actually happening.

Where is time being lost?

Where are people waiting?

Where is equipment constrained?

How much work is being repeated?

How often does the plan change?

How much time is spent reacting rather than doing?

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You can't improve what you don't understand.

Busy isn't the same as productive.

A busy operation can still contain considerable waste.

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People can be fully occupied while spending time:

  • Waiting for materials

  • Looking for information

  • Moving materials unnecessarily

  • Reworking problems

  • Managing changing priorities

  • Correcting data

  • Expediting shortages

  • Repeating tasks

  • Working around inefficient processes

 

None of this necessarily means people aren't working hard.

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It means the process may be consuming effort without creating the value the business needs.

 

The objective isn't simply to increase activity.

It's to improve what the activity achieves.

Look at the whole process.

Productivity problems rarely belong neatly to one department.

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A production operator waiting for materials may appear to have a production problem.

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But the cause could be:

  • Purchasing

  • Inventory policy

  • MRP

  • Planning

  • Supplier lead times

  • Warehouse processes

  • Master data

  • Forecasting

 

Similarly, a planner constantly changing the production schedule may appear to have a planning problem.

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The underlying issue could be:

  • Demand

  • Capacity

  • Material availability

  • Customer priorities

  • Production rates

  • Poor information

 

This is why operational improvement needs to consider the end-to-end process, not just the point where the problem becomes visible.

Productivity isn't just about available hours.

Manufacturing capacity is often described as the number of hours available.

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But available hours don't automatically translate into productive output.

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Actual performance can be affected by:

  • Equipment constraints

  • Labour availability

  • Changeovers

  • Material availability

  • Production rates

  • Lost time

  • Maintenance

  • Product mix

  • Scheduling decisions

  • Unplanned disruption

 

I've developed capacity-constrained production planning solutions to provide forward visibility of labour and equipment constraints and support productivity.

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I've also developed operational data capture and management KPI solutions to help understand demonstrated output and lost time and support planning rates.

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The first step is making the constraints and losses visible.

Measure what matters.

Measurement is useful when it helps the business understand what is happening and make a better decision.

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It becomes less useful when people are simply collecting numbers because the system allows them to.

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Operational measures might include:

  • Output

  • Production rates

  • Lost time

  • Capacity utilisation

  • Schedule adherence

  • Customer service

  • Inventory

  • Material availability

  • Productivity

  • Quality

  • Waste

 

The right measures depend on the operation.

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The important question is:

What do we need to understand in order to improve the operation?

Improvement doesn't always require a major project.

Some improvements require significant change.

Others don't.

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Sometimes the opportunity is in:

  • Clarifying responsibilities

  • Removing an unnecessary step

  • Improving information flow

  • Changing a planning process

  • Improving material control

  • Making constraints visible

  • Standardising a process

  • Improving data accuracy

  • Changing how priorities are communicated

 

I've worked with businesses where the improvement has involved developing systems and processes, but also with situations where relatively practical changes to existing processes, warehouse controls and ways of working have made a difference.

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The size of the solution should reflect the size of the problem.

Practical improvement, not improvement theatre.

There is no shortage of improvement terminology.

Lean.

Kaizen.

5S.

Continuous improvement.

Operational excellence.

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These approaches can all have their place.

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I've worked with 5S and 8 Waste principles as part of operational improvement activity.

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But improvement shouldn't become an exercise in applying terminology to problems.

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The objective is simpler:

Find the waste.
Understand the cause.
Change the process.
Measure the result.

Making improvement sustainable.

One of the risks with improvement projects is that the initial improvement doesn't last.

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A new process is introduced.

People are trained.

The project is completed.

Then, gradually, the old way of working returns.

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Sustainable improvement requires more than introducing a new process.

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It may require:

  • Clear responsibilities

  • Practical SOPs

  • Appropriate measures

  • Training

  • Management visibility

  • Reliable information

  • Processes that people can actually follow

  • Follow-up and review

 

My experience includes developing supply-chain processes, SOPs and training alongside planning and operational solutions.

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The aim is to leave the business more capable, not permanently dependent on the person who delivered the project.

Experience delivering practical improvement.

Recent and previous assignments have included:

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Improving customer service

A finite-capacity scheduling solution contributed to a 15 percentage-point improvement in customer service level, while improving customer communication.

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Improving planning productivity

A planning operation previously managed by three planners was consolidated into a process managed by one planner.

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Improving inventory control

Inventory control measures resulted in more than £100,000 of previously unrecorded inventory being identified and brought under control.

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Understanding operational performance

Operational data capture and KPI dashboards were developed to understand demonstrated output, lost time and operational performance.

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These are different examples, but they have something in common:

The improvement started with understanding what was actually happening.

What can HMS help with?

Operational Performance

Understanding how the operation is performing and where performance is being lost.

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Productivity

Identifying wasted time, effort and capacity and developing practical improvements.

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Process Improvement

Reviewing existing processes and identifying opportunities to simplify, standardise and improve them.

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Production Performance

Understanding output, rates, constraints, lost time and the relationship between planning and operational performance.

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Waste Reduction

Identifying operational waste and addressing the processes that create it.

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KPI & Management Information

Developing practical measures and dashboards that help management understand performance.

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SOPs & Training

Embedding improved processes through clear procedures, training and ownership.

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Continuous Improvement

Helping businesses develop the capability to continue improving after the initial project has finished.

When might your operation need attention?

You may recognise some of these:

  • Everyone is busy, but productivity isn't improving.

  • Production regularly misses the planned schedule.

  • People spend significant time firefighting.

  • Materials aren't available when production needs them.

  • The same problems keep coming back.

  • Management information tells you what happened but not why.

  • Capacity appears to be insufficient, but nobody is sure where the constraint actually sits.

  • Processes have developed over time without being reviewed.

  • People have created workarounds because the formal process doesn't work.

  • Improvement initiatives have started but haven't been sustained.

  • The business is considering adding people or equipment without first understanding current capacity and lost time.

 

The question isn't always:

“How can we make people more productive?”

 

Sometimes it is:

“What is preventing people from being productive?”

Better processes. Better performance. Less wasted effort.

Operational improvement isn't about making an operation look more efficient on paper.

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It's about making it work better in practice.

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Understand the operation.
Find the waste.
Improve the process.
Build the capability.

Have an operational challenge you'd like to understand?

Whether you're trying to improve productivity, understand lost capacity, simplify processes or address recurring operational problems, the first step is usually understanding what is actually happening.

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Let's have a conversation.

Get in Touch

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