Drafting Operations Blueprint for Industrial Packaging Manufacturer.

21 October 2024

21 October 2024

In a rapidly changing market, especially within the high-tech and traditional manufacturing industries, it is crucial for manufacturers to continuously align their capacity and processes with expected growth. For an industrial packaging manufacturer that is a supplier to major players such as ASML, among others, the need for growth and optimization was clear. The size of the high-tech market was expected to double between 2022 and 2025. To effectively support this growth, creating a detailed Operations Blueprint was essential.

Customer characteristic

The packaging manufacturer specializes in designing and manufacturing industrial packaging for both high-tech and traditional sectors. With the expected doubling of demand in the high-tech market, the organization needed to develop a clear roadmap to achieve this growth without sacrificing quality or efficiency. It was also important that the production sites be well prepared for this new capacity demand.

Activities

The following activities formed the core of the process of creating the Operations Blueprint:

1. Translating Market Development into Forecasts

The first step was to convert market demand into concrete forecasts for the growth of industrial packaging. This provided a clear picture of what would change in the coming years and enabled the organization to plan ahead rather than act reactively.

2. Capacity Impact Analysis.

Based on the forecasts, the impact on capacity at each production site was mapped in detail. This involved determining what the projected shortages of people, machines, and physical space (m²) would be for each workplace and location.

3. Determination of Deficits

Once the capacity impact was clear, the overall resource shortfall (people, machinery and space) was determined. This gave a complete picture of the challenges the production sites would face in achieving the expected growth.

4. Identify improvement potential

Multi-moment recordings (observation of activities and processes) were used to identify improvement potential. This helped identify inefficiencies and opportunities to streamline existing processes.

5. Calculating Scenarios for Solutions.

Based on the data collected, several scenarios were calculated to determine which solutions would work best to solve the capacity and resource shortages. This included both operational and financial considerations.

6. Preparation of a Roadmap

Based on the analyses, an Opex (operational expenses) and Capex (capital investments) roadmap was created, along with an action plan for HR and steering data. This plan laid the foundation for the necessary investments in personnel and machinery, as well as the requirements for using data for more efficient decision-making.

Results

The project resulted in a clear and feasible plan to accommodate the expected growth of industrial packaging. The main results were:

  • Concrete Action Plan: A concrete action plan was established to address the capacity shortage to effectively support market growth.
  • Resources Mapped: The required people, machinery and investments were mapped in detail so that management could make clear decisions.
  • Project initiation: Projects were also initiated to further improve the efficiency of the organization, including improving data-driven operations, providing insight into financial performance by product group, and streamlining the customer base.

Conclusion

Creating the Operations Blueprint has helped the packaging manufacturer not only be prepared for the growth of the high-tech market, but also improve internal processes and increase overall efficiency. By investing in both people and machinery, and by making smart use of data, the company is now well positioned to successfully navigate this challenging growth phase. With a detailed roadmap and action plan in place, the organization can continue to grow in the coming years, while adapting to changing market demands and making the most of new opportunities in the market.