The metal finishing industry is always evolving, so job shops need to continually look for new ways to improve their systems, add value to their company, and boost profits and sustainability for growth.
According to a recent study conducted by a group of registered event attendees, creating systems to make jobs easier and boosting profits and sustainability for growth are the most significant challenges facing job shops. With a resounding 92% of top management having been with their companies for over three years, implementing new systems to meet these challenges can be difficult to adopt.
Additionally, only 52% of respondents shared that they actively have a succession plan, which is critical in future-proofing any metal finishing job shop. With a focus on what respondents were particularly interested in learning to future-proof their plant, 45% wanted systems to make their jobs easier, and 50% thought boosting profits and sustainability for growth was more important.
Let's leverage these insights as industry benchmarks. Where does your job shop fit in? Regardless of where you are today, chances are you want to boost profitability and sustainability for the future in a constant state of change. After all, the famous Charles Darwin said, "It is not the strongest of the species that survive, not the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." To better manage systems, we have found five steps to build a future-proof plant, built to last. Here are five steps to building a future-proof metal finishing plant.
Step 1: Make a Plan
To build a future-proof plant, you need to design a plan that includes a business strategy, leadership plans, equipment and capital plans, talent development, culture, and systems and processes. These plans must be regularly updated to keep up with the changing needs of the industry.
Step 2: Digitize Current Systems
Companies should move their plants into the digital age by implementing a live job shop software that encompasses your entire business. This system will eliminate paper-based systems, provide a single source of truth, eliminate silos, provide superior traceability, and eliminate wasteful communication. With a live system and total plant visibility, companies can access information from anywhere and improve communication among all departments. Order visibility has also been shown to improve customer satisfaction and increase sales in recent studies.
Step 3: Automate
Automation of processes and systems, from the front office to the plant floor, and from shipping and receiving to the boardroom, will help companies save time, act faster, and improve productivity with instant, automated communication. Automating the metal finishing scheduling and capacity planning process can save over 10 hours each week with an intuitive job shop software. Fewer errors will result from eliminating tedious admin tasks, and systems can be set up for others to run.
Step 4: Optimize
Optimization of production processes will help companies make the right decision faster, tune pricing with actual production data, and identify operator training opportunities. You can develop new processes and offerings while investing the time saved into sales, marketing, hiring, and growth to take your plant to the next level of success and sustainability.
Step 5: Lead
"Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate, and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand." - General Colin Powell
Great leadership is key to driving action, and companies must be bold in their decision-making, get buy-in from the team, empower team members to lead areas of the business, establish key partnerships, and share success with the team, customers, and community. Empowering your team to feel accomplished and acknowledged can be done with systems, updated technology and by habitually celebrating wins, whether that is the number of days without an order issue, a quantity of parts processed per week, or more.
In conclusion, building a future-proof job shop requires a plan that includes a business strategy, leadership plans, equipment and capital plans, talent development, culture, and systems and processes. Job shops need to digitize their current systems, automate processes, optimize production, and lead their teams. By following these steps, metal finishers can stay competitive, profitable, and sustainable in the ever-changing industry.
For more information about Steelhead's job shop software, book a demo today.