Productivity is the efficiency in which your manufacturing unit can transform resources into goods, ultimately creating more from less. Therefore, higher productivity means achieving more output from the same amount of input, but achieving this is never easy for manufacturers. If your unit’s productivity is low, or feel that there is a possibility of improving the current levels, here are some special tips to consider.
Review the Current Workflow
Before you can start working on improving productivity, it is important to understand your manufacturing unit’s current status by reviewing the workflow. Here, you need to focus on three key things:
- People: Does your workforce have the right skills? Are the objectives guiding their operations clearly defined and realistic?
- Processes: Here, you need to establish the main bottlenecks and pain points in your organization.
- Equipment and technology: Are all your equipment serviced and working optimally? How easy is it to install changes in your production system?
Keep Your Equipment Working in Top Conditions
If your production unit’s poor performance is caused by inefficient equipment, you need to ensure they are maintained well. One of the best methods of achieving this is following the recommended maintenance schedule for every machine. In addition, you should do regular checkups to ensure that the issues are identified early enough and repaired before they can become serious problems.
Adopt Lean Manufacturing Principles
One of the most popular and highly effective manufacturing strategies is lean manufacturing. This method focuses on cutting waste, reducing inventory, and optimizing operational efficiency. To achieve this, here is what you need to do:
- Make sure the production instructions are easy to understand.
- Maintain the working area as clean as possible.
- Develop a schedule for regular maintenance for your system.
Train Employees Progressively
In addition to using the latest technologies, it is also paramount that you have highly trained employees to use the system. Because technology is evolving so fast, it is prudent to ensure you train the staff progressively to optimize productivity. HR development also comes with the following benefits:
- It becomes easy to identify and address minor issues in productivity.
- HR development is a great way to reduce human errors in production
- Helps to reduce staff turnover.
To increase your production unit’s productivity, you should focus on optimizing individual systems, from the machines to people. More importantly, you should progressively review the system to ensure your system is working well and address emerging bottlenecks.
