Proven Results

Case Studies

Real manufacturers. Real challenges. Measurable results. See how our Lean Six Sigma engagements deliver ROI that speaks for itself.

Tier 1 Automotive Plastics (TS16949) — Midwest US

Lean Plant Redesign & Value Stream Transformation

Scope: 4 plants, 450+ personnel, 37 injection molding presses (150–2,060 ton), 3 mixed-model paint lines, 60,000 sq ft warehouse, sequencing for GM & Chrysler assembly plants

A Tier 1 automotive plastics manufacturer supplying body-side moldings, ATV hoods, and airbag components to GM and Chrysler was in operational chaos. Previous management had hidden quality problems rather than solving them — 40 trailers of suspect finished goods inventory were parked outside the facility, out of sight from the VP.

$650K

Annual Savings

100%

On-Time Delivery

15%

Manning Reduction

7 Days

Inventory (from 14)

Additional Measurable Results

$52K/month in expedited freight eliminated
$375K of suspect inventory salvaged and sold from 40 inherited trailers
$32K/year saved by eliminating trailer rental expenses
$102K annual savings from eliminating external trucking company
$132K annual savings from closing 1 of 3 distribution centers

The Challenge

On-time delivery was 82%, and the company was spending thousands per month on expedited freight — using aircraft and third-party trucking for approximately 75% of shipments despite owning 3 trucks. Sales order quotes were too short given actual capacity and throughput times, creating a cycle of overpromising and expediting. Inventory levels sat at 14 days on hand across SWIP, finished goods, and raw materials — far above what demand required. The philosophy was simple: if leadership can't see it, it didn't happen.

Our Approach

Cross-functional value stream mapping event conducted as a 5-day sprint — assembly manager, injection molding machinist, distribution supervisor, material handlers, inside sales, and design engineer
VSM identified critical waste: excessive wait times between molding and paint, inefficient distribution/shipping, and misuse of external freight carriers while company-owned trucks sat idle
Plant layout redesigned for lean flow across 60,000 sq ft of warehouse space
Material staged 2 days prior to shipment instead of expedited at the last minute; company trucks replaced external carriers for majority of shipments
Facility-wide Kanban system implemented — standardized SWIP, finished goods, and raw material inventories with calculated quantities based on actual demand
40 trailers of suspect inventory systematically evaluated — salvageable product recovered and sold, rented trailers returned

“Instead of reworking the suspect material, previous management just put it on trailers — out of sight so the VP couldn't see it. We pulled it all back, salvaged $375K, and eliminated the trailer rentals. Then we redesigned the entire plant flow in a series of 5-day sprints. OTD went from 82% to 100%.”

Project Lead, Lean Transformation

Tier 1 Automotive Plastics Manufacturer

This client's supply chain optimization was supported by our sister brand — SupplySourceSync →

Global Consumer Electronics / Automotive Components — Southeast US

Multi-Kaizen Deployment — Pack Out, SMED & Core Cutting

Scope: 3 North American divisions, global operations including Asia, primary manufacturing facility capacity-constrained at 8M SQM/month

A global manufacturer of critical separators for consumer electronics and automotive applications was hit with a 44% demand spike — orders surged from 5.4M to 9.6M SQM/month. The primary plant was maxed out and revenue was being turned away.

+40%

Pack Out Productivity

$943K

Annual Savings

42%

SMED Reduction

3×

Core Cutting Output

Additional Measurable Results

Pack Out: 137,500 → 192,600 boxes packed annually, 6 fewer technicians required
Core Cutting: 300 → 900+ cores cut daily, $356K annual savings in core inventory
Sustained 97% OTD despite 44% demand surge above forecast
Best practices replicated in $100M new plant from Day 1

The Challenge

Weekly allocation meetings were held with the VP of Operations, planning, and sales to decide which customers would receive product and which would not. Revenue was being turned away. The organization needed to squeeze every possible unit out of the existing facility while simultaneously planning for a $100M greenfield plant build to address the long-term capacity gap.

Our Approach

Week 1 — Core Cutting Kaizen: Spaghetti diagrams revealed excessive travel distances. 5S implemented, Kanban pull systems established, standard work and takt time deployed, visual controls posted at every station
Week 2 — Pack Out Kaizen: Primary bottleneck identified. Spaghetti diagram showed confused material flow. Entire pack-out area reorganized with single-piece flow — single path in, single path out to warehouse
Week 3 — SMED Event: Slitter changeover took 1.75 hours. External setup tasks separated from internal tasks. Manual wrenching replaced with high-speed retracting cabled electric wrenches
Materials positioned near machines, standard work established for slitter operators, pack-out technicians, and setup personnel
6 displaced pack-out technicians redeployed to slitting to produce more product
Best practices from all 3 kaizens replicated in the $100M new plant layout

“The plant couldn't make all the material required to meet orders. So we started on the primary plant first — fix the production issues, then take the best practices from the kaizens to the new plant and implement them from Day 1.”

Project Lead, Multi-Kaizen Deployment

Global Manufacturer

The $100M greenfield plant program was managed by our sister brand — ConsultFactor →

Tier 1 Heavy Truck / Automotive (TS16949) — Midwest US

90-Day OTD Turnaround — Heavy Truck Manufacturer

Scope: 7 machine lines, 3 polish lines, $7.3M inventory, diesel wheel manufacturing for major OEM truck brands

A Tier 1 heavy truck manufacturer machining diesel wheels for every major truck OEM — including brands serving Freightliner, Mack, and Peterbilt platforms — was in a delivery crisis. On-time delivery had fallen to 58%, and customers were threatening to switch suppliers.

97%

OTD (from 58%)

90 Days

Time to Results

$336K

DC Closure Savings

$2M+

Inventory Savings

Additional Measurable Results

516-piece customer backlog completely eliminated
$286K annual savings from freight carrier consolidation across division
Barcode system implemented cross-functionally for improved inventory and production reporting
Secondary warehouse lease terminated — no longer needed after eliminating overproduction

The Challenge

A backlog of 516 pieces to a single major customer represented an immediate risk of losing the program. The critical chroming supplier was underperforming, internal scheduling and materials planning were misaligned, and previous management had over-produced certain SKUs while under-producing others — leading to a leased secondary warehouse full of inventory nobody needed while the parts customers actually wanted were perpetually late.

Our Approach

Week 1: War room established with whiteboards defining every shortage and root cause. Meetings held with chroming supplier to understand process constraints and build a recovery plan around what actually worked
Weeks 2–4: Scheduling realigned with supplier's actual capacity. CI engineer and quality team member embedded at the supplier to identify bottlenecks
Quality criteria reviewed jointly to determine if specifications were unnecessarily stringent. Two kaizen events conducted at the supplier
Packaging redesigned for material sent to chroming supplier. Customer visits to supplier enabled direct-shipment, reducing double-shipment costs
SMED implemented to reduce changeover time. 2 robot cells deployed for longer-term capacity. Mixed-model sequencing replaced overproduction of popular SKUs
Secondary warehouse lease terminated. Aftermarket finished goods negotiated into customer build schedules

“It was dramatic but simple. Whiteboards, a war room, and honest conversations with the supplier about what actually worked for their process. We sent our own CI engineer and quality team to sit in their plant. Within 90 days, we went from 58% to 97% OTD.”

Project Lead, OTD Recovery

Tier 1 Heavy Truck Manufacturer

Supply chain recovery and vendor management supported by our sister brand — SupplySourceSync →

Fortune 100 Aerospace & Defense (AS9100) — West Coast US

ISO/AS9100 Certification & Lean Cell Design — Aerospace

Scope: Advanced ceramic component manufacturing for B52, F22, Apache Longbow, DOE Solar, and DARPA programs

A Fortune 100 aerospace manufacturer producing advanced ceramic components for critical defense programs had no formal quality management system in place. The facility needed ISO 9002/QS9000/AS9100 certification to continue serving military and commercial aerospace customers.

AS9100

Full Certification

98%

Production OTD (+23%)

$700K+

B52/F22 Contracts

90%+

Ceramic Yield (from 40%)

Additional Measurable Results

Research OTD improved 62% to 92% through visual scheduling boards
Lean cell design: $62.8K annual savings in aerospace ceramic forming area
Supplies inventory Kanban: $12K annual savings
Tool sourcing initiative: $54K annual savings (cutting tools and grinding wheels)
Engine seal ring defect resolved via DMAIC — 18% scrap reduction, $15K annual savings
Plaster fabrication outsourced: 30% cost reduction, freeing skilled technicians for higher-value forming work

The Challenge

On-time delivery was poor — sales committed dates that didn't account for actual capacity, machining departments cherry-picked easy work orders to inflate throughput numbers, and heat treat ran batch cycles based on convenience rather than priority. The only department producing to the actual plan was forming. Nobody had visibility into where the real bottlenecks were, and the master scheduler spent more time explaining why orders were late than managing the schedule.

Our Approach

90+ procedures and work instructions developed across supply chain (planning, purchasing, shipping, receiving) and production processes (SEM analysis, density measurement, drying, forming, spray drying)
Visual scheduling boards developed and implemented throughout the facility — precursor to the war room methodology used across every subsequent engagement
Boards made it immediately visible which orders were late, where the bottleneck was, and who was responsible. Production could no longer cherry-pick work orders
Lean cell design implemented for aerospace ceramic forming area — equipment repositioned, Kanban for materials, standardized processes, visual controls for material batching, dry press, and slurry prep
Six Sigma DMAIC project on engine seal ring defect — parts distorting into elliptical shapes after machining due to uncontrolled heating and dull cutting tools causing micro-cracks
DOE analysis identified root causes: no temperature control on hot plate, excessive dwell time, friction from worn parting tools. New diamond-tipped tools sourced and temperature-controlled plate specified

“The visual whiteboards were where I first got the idea that I've used in every engagement since. Once you make it visible who's the bottleneck, production stops cherry-picking easy orders and starts producing what the customer actually needs.”

Project Lead, QMS & Lean Transformation

Fortune 100 Aerospace Manufacturer

AS9100 certification and compliance auditing supported by our sister brand — ComplianceFortress →

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