How We Adjust the Manufacturing Process to Improve Outcomes and Empower Employees
The old saying is that everybody makes mistakes, right?
Our answer to that at The Industrial Controls Company, Inc. is a resounding NO!
The employees at The Industrial Controls Company, Inc. truly are that good.
We strive to develop systems and processes that are so perfect, so foolproof, that mistakes often made by others, have been eliminated.
Our team continuously strives to be the very best and when anyone finds a problem or a flaw, we work together to improve the process and eliminate the issue forever.
We don’t point fingers, we solve problems.
“The first step in the process is to create a Corrective Action Report (CAR). 94% of all issues have roots in the process being flawed. It makes the most sense to start there.” Says Don Lavrenz, President of The Industrial Companies, Inc.
The CAR starts with the “5 Why” process. This root cause analysis allows us to find the source of the issue, and then we modify the process in order to make the employee’s job easier and prevent the issue from ever reoccurring.
According to Nikki Stromberg, Account Manager and participant of a recent CAR discussion,
“It is nice not worrying about who to blame, instead we can focus on the process issue and solve the problem. What seemed to be a small human error actually required a lot more thought. We ended up talking to additional people from other departments and found a solution which will prevent the problem and is better for everyone.”
This proactive focus on the manufacturing process not only enhances our outcomes, it also empowers employees and increases morale. No more frustrating issues that keep reoccurring!
The BizTimes picked up on this company DNA in their recent Made in Milwaukee segment featuring us.
A strong culture of process first and continuous improvement is what brought us to where we are today. Diligently sticking to this culture will keep pushing us to be the best company possible for both our employees and our customers.
