fbtechreview.comOCT - NOV 20238in myviewA GRASS ROOTS APPROACH TO CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENTFar too often management professionals are caught by the temptation to stay the course, relying on the motto `if it ain't broke, don't fix it.' But how often do we stand back and ask ourselves `it's not broken, but is it working the way we want it to?'In this era of competitive marketing, rising costs and changing consumer expectations, continuous improvement is a critical component in any food manufacturers tool kit. Improvement of processes and products seems like a relatively easy concept, and it can be, if you approach it correctly. One may even argue that to start out on an improvement journey, to fail, and to try again is the spirit of continuously improving. I have participated in many continuous improvement initiatives during my career, from lean six sigma projects involving statistical analysis of data, prediction modelling of process outcomes, to cross functional projects across departments. In my opinion, none are as powerful or garner the same level of excitement and passion on the production floor as the kaizen event will.The fundamental principle of Kaizen is that small, frequent improvement opportunities will create and maintain a positive continuous improvement culture in your processes. Start by going to the place where the work is being done and talk to the team members who are involved, after all, they are the experts. The people performing the work offer a wealth of knowledge in how the process operates, and more importantly to your kaizen goal, they also know those `little things' that contribute to your quality defects, waste generation, downtime, causes for rework, and so on. Imagine a production line, where the product is being packaged and travelling down a conveyor line to pass through x-ray detection units. You have a suspicion that there is a throughput issue and increased costs of packaging over the last quarter. Rally together the team members who work on the packaging line, as well as the members who operate the packaging equipment and detectors. This gives you one-step forward, one-step backward scope to best find the root cause and improvements. After the team has watched the process and discussed it there appears to be a sporadic issue with the leading edge of the packages catching on the guiding rails of the conveyor belt. When this happens it causes broken seals and jam ups. The operators of the detectors, not knowing about the issue BY CHRISTOPHER J. SCOTT, FOOD SAFETY & QUALITY ASSURANCE MANAGER, CLEARWATER SEAFOODSChristopher J. Scott
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