| "This broad-based use of higher education resources is at the heart of effective technology transfer." Assistant Dean Lawrence Casper |
In the early hours of Sunday morning, a worker toils alone in the Columbus, Wis., plant of Lycos Manufacturing. The worker loads sheets of steel onto a conveyor, cuts various patterns for multiple products, and then unloads before moving on to the next piece. The "worker" is a $1 million-plus loader and laser cutting system that can run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, virtually unattended. If it runs out of material or runs into a problem, the machine is programmed to dial the phone and call for help.
The laser cutting system is one of the answers that Lycos managers found after scrutinizing all aspects of their company with the help of the college's Manufacturing Extension Agent James C. Houge, who works with the Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership (WMEP). Houge didn't suggest installing the laser system, but he assisted managers in identifying critical processes and bottlenecks.
Lycos Vice President Larry Baker (left) and WMEP Agent James C. Houge discuss the company's new laser cutting system.
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WMEP is a partnership of state industry, labor, education and government dedicated to promoting the competitiveness, strength, productivity, growth and innovative capabilities of companies like Lycos Manufacturing. The program reaches out to Wisconsin's nearly 10,000 small and medium-sized manufacturers. As many as two dozen 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.
"We helped them by doing comprehensive assessment and strategic/operations planning," says Houge. "We did process mapping of their information and material flow to find areas for improving lead time and reducing errors. They used a variety of outside resources which we identified for them, including Madison Area Technical College, which did training in business letter writing to help them present a more professional image. They also had help from a UW-Madison School of Business graduate student in developing an international marketing plan. They joined our Center for Quick Response Manufacturing. Lycos sponsored a CQRM student whose project was to reduce lead time and inventory."
"This broad-based use of higher education resources is at the heart of effective technology transfer," says Lawrence A. Casper, assistant dean of engineering and a member of WMEP's board of directors since 1990. "Wisconsin invests heavily in the UW and the technical college system. Working together as partners to make our industry more competitive is something we must do."
Lycos' main business is in manufacturing stainless steel capital goods products for the food industry. A significant portion of its business is in precision steel fabrications and weldments. Houge started working with Lycos approximately four years ago. Since then, the company has gone from $5 million in revenue and 46 shop floor associates to $10 million in revenue and 40 shop floor associates. Projections are for growth to $20 million within five years.
Having served on the board of directors of the WMEP predecessor organization, Wisconsin Center for Industrial Competitiveness (WISCIC), Lycos Vice President Larry Baker knew exactly what needed to be done at his company. He also knew WMEP could help Lycos do it.
"To make this kind of change, you need support and confirmation of what needs to be done," says Baker. "Consultants rarely come up with anything new, but often find the pain and basically confirm the areas of focus and assist in providing resources which bring together the things that all along people have been saying need to be done. It was an excellent experience for us.
"Houge was great at analyzing the structure and organization and in pointing out the key areas that needed to be worked on. The execution and completion of the plans belonged to the Lycos team, but being a small business, we could not possibly have fully funded the range and depth of WMEP services."
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.
--By Jim Beal--
| For further information, please contact: |
James C. Houge, 608/263-3892
houge@engr.wisc.edu
Copyright 1999 The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
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Date last modified: Wednesday, 03-Mar-1999 12:00:00 CST
Date created: 03-Mar-1999
