Manufacturing boost for the Ceramics sector
8th June 2005
Ceramics companies in North Staffordshire are being urged to take advantage of an innovative service aimed at improving processes and performance.
The Manufacturing Assessment, which usually costs £1000, is being offered free of charge by the Ceramic Industry Forum (CIF) as a means of helping local industry come to terms with decreasing margins and major competition from the Far East.
28 companies from across the UK have already taken advantage of this opportunity, many of whom have reported significant improvements in performance.
Sue Evans, Chief Executive of the CIF, issued a rallying call:
“The only way for Ceramics companies to compete against international rivals is to eliminate waste out of the chain and identify processes that can pass real added value on to the customer.”
She went on to add: “Management teams recognise this need, but often don’t have the time or resources to review exactly where they are at. The Manufacturing Assessments that we are offering will help bridge this gap!”
Delivered by CIF advisors, Colin Copeland and Paula Wilson, the onsite Assessment takes a full-day to complete and involves ‘Big Picture Mapping’ of the manufacturing facility, extensive discussions with employees, a written report of the findings and recommendations and. finally, a Q&A session.
By the end of the day, the company will be in a position to identify key strengths and areas for potential improvement. The CIF’s partnership with the West Midlands Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) then typically allows North Staffordshire SMEs to tap into an additional 5 days free of charge expertise, worth an estimated £5k, to assist with implementation.
“Our engineers often act as an impartial sounding board and, using best-in-class training, can highlight bottlenecks that the firm may be missing on a daily basis,” continued Sue.
Josiah Wedgwood & Sons is one company that has seen the benefits of the Manufacturing Assessment at first hand, with a number of positive changes made as a result of the exercise.
Michael Wilcock, Manufacturing and Technical Director, provided the insight:
“The depth of the assessment and its results surprised us and opened our eyes to simple things that we had missed. It proves the old adage that ‘sometimes you can’t see the wood for the trees’.
“Following the consolidation of our two earthenware sites into Barlaston the CIF advisors completed an assessment concentrating on key production lines, resulting in a remarkable improvement of 10% quality yield and a reduction in lead-time of 24 hours”.
Funded by the DTI, the Ceramic Industry Forum continues to be driven by the needs of the industry and its 800 members, which include companies from the brick, tile, sanitary and whiteware sectors.
Since its formation in August 2000, the organisation has assisted over 700 firms to implement manufacturing improvements, launch new products and showcase the sector’s expertise to the world.
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