What makes a manufacturer successful? The answer to that question is innovation. Now, that’s not new knowledge. The relationship between innovation and success in manufacturing is well understood. But many people limit this to mean only product innovation. But innovation in process can truly take your manufacturing enterprise to the next level.
The secret comes down to 1 second. By reducing 1 second from your manufacturing process, you can increase your profits exponentially. Say you increase the feed time on one of your machines by 1 second, then you use that machine to make 5,000 parts. You’ve completed those 5,000 parts 5,000 seconds sooner, which means you can start on the next part 5,000 seconds sooner. If you need to make 3,000 of that next part, by the time you finish you’re 8,000 seconds ahead of the game. Multiply that across the course of a year, across millions of parts. Then think about if you had ten of that same machine running. Now you’ve gained ten seconds, multiplied across the same parameters.
What’s remarkable about removing one second is that you get more out of a day. Your workers can work the same hours and put out more products. You can keep the price of your products the same but make more profit because you can supply more customers.
1 second can be saved in a variety of ways. It can be taken out of the downtime between switching tools. It can be achieved by investing in a $10 insert that’s better suited to the material you’re working with. It can simply be a matter of installing a better program on the same machine. And it can be achieved without touching any machines by making the importance of 1 second an integral part of your employees’ mindset. No matter what avenue you pursue, you have to continuously strive to find that second.
Many times the importance of 1 second is overlooked because people see it as inconsequential. But the power of 1 second is exponential. It means increased trust from your customers, and increased profit for your company. It can take your business to a new level, because suddenly you can get more out of the same exact ingredients. You can work the same hours and charge your customers the same amount, and suddenly make more than you were before. The secret to success in manufacturing comes down to 1 second.