| "It takes a big departure from the way things are done... There has to be a commitment at the top to make employees see that the change is credible." |
Two years ago, Humane Manufacturing in Baraboo was looking at various ways to improve its products and processes. Owner Ed Sauey knew it would involve change, but just how much still surprises him. Working with James C. Houge (College of Engineering Associate Scientist) and the resources of the Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership (WMEP), Humane is making a transition that affects all aspects of the company.
"There are a lot of elements to this picture," Sauey said. "We had a top-to-bottom supervisory system. We didn't get the line employees involved in decision making in any formal way. Now we do. It's something we have been implementing. The whole company has to adjust. It was a foreign concept and difficult to switch to. It's easy to forget in the day-to-day challenges of running the business and go back to the way you were."
WMEP is a partnership of industry, labor, education and government dedicated to promoting the competitiveness, strength, productivity, growth and innovative capabilities of companies like Humane Manufacturing. The program reaches out to Wisconsin's nearly 10,000 small and medium-sized manufacturers. As many as 50 regional manufacturing extension agents, like Houge, help clients diagnose and better understand problems and needs, and then identify appropriate technical or business solutions using the higher education resources of Wisconsin as well as private consultants.
"By and large, if a company wants to get better, WMEP can help them get better," Houge said. "Companies that don't think they have to change to find solutions don't change and more often than not, don't find the right solutions. It takes a big departure from the way things are done--that's a gut-wrenching, time consuming thing. There has to be a commitment at the top to make employees see that the change is credible."
Houge and a team from Humane and WMEP assessed Humane's facilities and benchmarked what the company was doing against the best practices of other businesses. The company then did some strategic planning and undertook focused projects. One involved the company's management information system. It appeared the system was not working properly. It reported $600,000 in inventory when actually more than $1,000,000 might be in stock. A new system was under consideration, but upon closer analysis, it was determined that the existing system was not being used correctly. Through training and better communication, the system is now 99.7 percent correct.
Another project involved Humane's powder coating process. The system coats steel with a baked finish for use in animal confinement and other applications. The system involves electrically charging powder and spraying it onto grounded metal to create a dry coating. A heat tunnel melts the coating and bakes it on to produce the finish.
Dale Kjensrud (left), Jim Houge (center) and Ed Sauey improved quality at Humane Manufacturing with help from the Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership.
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Some customers were complaining about the quality of the finish the process produced. Working with its new management techniques and employee input, Humane determined it needed to install filtering systems and new washing equipment. As a result, production manager Dale Kjensrud said quality of the powder coat line has never been better.
Humane Manufacturing's main product is a mat made from tire buffings produced in retreading tires. The buffings are processed into a condition that allows them to be molded. The finished product is used on roofs to protect roofing membranes, as sports matting, antifatigue matting for industry and as animal matting for the horse and dairy industries.
Humane could not produce as many mats as it needed and so formed a group to brainstorm how to increase throughput and quality. The group consisted of engineers, floor supervisors and hourly employees. It was a new approach for the company.
"Slowly we came up with a better way to automate," said Kjensrud. "Suggestions from the group, including hourly employees, resulted in a new mold set. That set now produces 25 percent more than other sets with the same manpower. It produces our highest quality mats."
Despite the difficulties of ushering in change, Sauey said working with WMEP has been a good experience and a relationship that Humane will continue.
The U.S. Commerce Department National Institute of Standards and Technology awarded a major grant late in 1995 to establish WMEP and operate the program for several years. The grant is the result of an effort to attract federal funding to the state program that began with Dean John G. Bollinger creating the statewide, non-profit corporation and the initial partnerships in 1990.
The current WMEP president is Richard Wilkey, an alumnus of the college and member of its Industrial Liaison Council. Assistant Dean Lawrence A. Casper serves on the board of directors.
--By Jim Beal--
| For further information, please contact: |
James C. Houge, 608/263-3892
houge@engr.wisc.edu
Copyright 1997 The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
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Date last modified: Wednesday, 19-Mar-1997 12:00:00 CST
Date created: 19-Mar-1997
