A competitive advantage that’s hard to beat.

“PIT CREWS” USE

CRITICAL CHAIN PROJECT MANAGEMENT

TO CUT CYCLE TIMES IN HALF GIVING

FMC TECHNOLOGIES “ THE RACER’S EDGE”.

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FMC Manufactures Multimillion Dollar Subsea Trees

Under-ocean structures that control the flow of oil

Very large, extremely complex devices with thousands of parts

Custom engineered for specific customers and applications

Many redundant systems required to ensure ongoing production & environmental safety

Manufacturing requires superb coordination and control

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FMC got very good results from the project.

“Mark Woeppel’s group (Pinnacle Strategies) came in , analyzed our problems and within just a few days, gave us a recommendation and started the process on the very next (subsea) tree (product) in our assembly line.

We cut almost 50% out of the cycle time of that tree assembly and we managed to hold onto that gain and continue to improve. That was impressive and we did it in just a matter of weeks.”

Robert Houlgrave, Director, FMC Technologies Houston

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FMC Reduced Cycle Time by 50%4

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We

ek

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Tree Number

Assembly Cycle Times

Average Before CCPM & Pit Crews

Average After CCPM & Pit Crews

Situation at the beginning… (1)

Record sales pushed assembly to its limits Demand outpaced capacity

Critical customer delivery performance jeopardized

High defect rates

Variable (unpredictable) completion times

Late deliveries

No standard process to build; high variation in output

Poor workspace organization

Engineering processes disconnected from build process

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Situation at the beginning… (2)

Assembly & Test took far to long

18 weeks

Not simply a production coordination problem

Required a new approach to project management

Frequent work stoppages

Workers waiting for decisions, designs & parts

Excessive product waiting

Lost productivity

Assemblers out of area chasing down parts, tools, fixtures, materials handling equipment

Assemblers waiting for approvals

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Implementation Strategy –Increase capacity by reducing assembly time

Reduce / eliminate waiting

Improve product quality

Change focus from keeping people moving to keeping product moving

Reallocate work

Segregate support from production

Implement quick response

Event-driven vs. date-driven

Network of specific tasks created

Optimum task sequences identified

Parallel work paths created

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“Pit Crew” Approach

Identify “laps” of the FMC assembly “race”

Careful identification and pre-staging of parts and equipment needed for each “lap”

“Pit Crew” analogy helped team understand the shift in thinking

Not keeping people busy

Keeping the project moving

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Strategy - Transform Culture

Create the “race team” organizational structure

“Pit crews” responsible for proactive and reactive functions Proactive

Planning and organization of scheduled work tasks

Ensure tools, equipment, service providers and procedures reviewed, tested and ready for use

Reactive

Problem solving using root-cause analysis to get to bottom of recurring dilemmas

Ensure tools, equipment, service providers and procedures reviewed, tested and ready for use

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Implement Critical Chain Project Management (1)

New scheduling processes

Planning & Execution Management

New measurement system implemented

Create organizational behaviors to support a seamless, continuous tree assembly process

Systematic process improvements put in place

Creation of a problem database

Reviewed in terms of impact on reduction of overall lead times

Providing handling of problems beyond the “pit crews”

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Implement Critical Chain Project Management (2)

Manufacturing line reconfigured providing a solid benchmark in performance improvement

Modified assembly bay functions to enable parallel assembly of components

Posting “dashboard” of critical measurements to the shop floor

Information posted based on workers’ needs to know to measure their performance

Forecasted scheduling vs. actual daily attainment posted

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Pinnacle Strategies Knowledge Transfer

Series of formal workshops Emphasis on behaviors to

support the system Treated as consensus events Different topics to suit job

roles & responsibility 3 days to 3 hours

Implementation led by informal & formal leaders Pinnacle staff behind the scenes Supporting leaders Providing individual coaching & “barrier busting”

“Games” to initiate new behaviors Extensive documentation of processes & policies

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Wow! Production Capacity Doubled

Workers could see what was coming up 3 to 5 days in advance

Preparations were made before the tree entered their segment of the assembly process

Like knowing and preparing for which lap a car is going to come into the pit

Before car gets there, put new tires on rims and make sure they are properly inflated

Ensure quick action on car to get it moving again

No need to hire more workers or invest in more equipment

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Improved Production Results

50% reduction in test duration and final assembly time within 60 days

15 to 30% increased labor productivity within 2 months No additional capital investment

$50,000 cost reduction per tree Fewer hours charged to each unit

Workers at the ready with the right parts at the right time

Use of “pit-stop” analogy reduced downtime associated with learning curve

Problems acted upon immediately

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Get Results Like That in Your Business

Contact

Pinnacle Strategies

972-492-7951

http://www.pinnacle-strategies.com

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