Increasing your profits as a manufacturing business happens only in a couple of ways. One way, that seems simple at first, is to increase your selling price. But you can only charge customers so much before they choose a different business.
The most successful manufacturing businesses minimize waste to maximize profit. Lowering expenses by reducing waste means more efficiency and better output.
Learn how to do reduce waste in your factory layout below to earn more profits without raising prices.
5 Ways to Reduce Waste in a Manufacturing Factory Layout
Survey your entire manufacturing process from beginning to end. Still can’t see inefficiencies creating waste? Take a look at these 6 tips for reducing waste in your factory layout.
1. Consider How Ingredients and Materials Enter Your Factory
Companies following the lean manufacturing engineering trend first must consider how, where, and how often their ingredients and materials enter their facility. Are you losing product because of the current transportation method? For example, would you lose less material using tanks or tubs instead of sacks or bags?
Could you order more ingredients at one time? Or less, depending on the waste levels? Can you reuse any materials rather than throwing them away? Ask questions about where your ingredients come from, how they move, and where they go.
2. Create a Standard Operating Procedure Plan
If you do not already have a standard operating procedure plan in place, you need to create one. Environmental and quality assurance teams especially need to follow standard rules in every encounter with your product.
The procedures should cover things like how to segregate and organize different products, materials, and ingredients to avoid cross-contamination. They also help reduce waste since your facility design accounts for every item and where it goes.
3. Survey Your Production Line on a Regular Basis
Survey your facility layout and production line on a regular basis to check that it’s operating efficiently and correctly. Poor production lines lead to malformed or unsellable products that do not pass company quality standards.
4. Identify Your Business’s Main Priorities
Consider your company’s main priorities to figure out what’s driving your waste management system. Do you want to save as much money as possible? Are you focusing solely on growth and profits?
Maybe you want to become more sustainable to align with your company’s values? Knowing why will help you figure out how whatever your reason for minimizing waste.
5. Manage Waste Management as Soon as Possible
The earlier you consider your waste management process, the easier it is to implement. Everything from the waste facilities you can access from your chosen location to the distance your product must travel add to your costs.
Build an Efficient Factory from the Ground Up
Now you should better understand how to factory layout design could help reduce waste and improve your bottom line. However, every business works a little differently and sometimes you cannot see the weak points on your own.
That’s the time to get help from a professional factory layout consultant like Campbell Corporation. We look to your future to help you identify where your ideal process flow so you meet your goals quickly. Contact us today for a complete assessment of your current capabilities.