Background

The company is a geographically diversified group, being the market leader in eight countries in central and northern Europe, where they have 700,000 customers and 4,000 employees.

In spite of good financial results during recent years, the group-management saw potential for improving both the productivity and the quality of work in their “back office” operations, specifically in the operational core processes – customer service, order entry, service production and database management.

The overall objective of the project was to create a better and more cost effective platform for the future development and competitiveness of the group. The company also wanted to develop an internal “efficiency expert group” to support their future internal productivity and quality-related development work.

Implementation

The process started with a pre-study conducted by Mantec. The potential for productivity improvements was identified and an implementation plan was developed in close cooperation with management. Operational and financial goals for the implementation programme – equal to a productivity improvement of 20% –were defined.

The implementation processes started simultaneously in all countries and local processes were supported by a Pan European benchmarking programme, which allowed comparison of performance between the back offices, and helped to identify and share best practices. Key measures implemented during the project were:

• a common company-wide management control system was defined and implemented. This included the tools and KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for first line managers to effectively monitor their back office resources;

• a common set of back office KPIs was defined and implemented — making all parts of the organisation able to benchmark performance and identify best practices;

• transparency of the back office activities was significantly increased, enabling effective and valuable cross organisational cooperation and knowledge sharing;

• a systematic process to review customer credits was implemented; and

• the first steps were taken towards establishing an internal productivity group (Efficiency Experts).

During the implementation process, Mantec were able to work closely with company management and personnel to establish a common platform for back offices managers and a “mindset” for continuous operational improvement.

Results

At the end of the ten month implementation process, the operational improvements were evident. The major results of the project were:

• productivity improvement of 20% in the back office areas;

• improvements/savings amounting to EUR 4 million which equate to a ROI of 400%; and

• a real behavioural change in the approach of managers to productivity and quality relating to back office issues

Background

The company is the leading general equipment rental company in the Nordic countries and in Central and Eastern Europe. A major part of its customer base is within the construction sector, but it also includes installation companies, industrial plants, shipyards, and national and local authorities. The company had experienced a rapid growth in turnover, and consequently increased employee numbers – but it did so without developing processes, procedures, management control systems, or key performance indicators (KPIs). There are approximately 300 employees in the business unit considered.

Implementation

During an initial analysis, Mantec evaluated business practices, carried out statistical and operational studies, and discovered that potentially significant improvements could be reached through:

• reorganising parts of the organisation, with focus on roles and responsibilities;
• reducing lead times and throughput times by improving coordination between departments;
• developing and implementing a management control system, to include KPIs and meetings structure;
• implementing Best Demonstrated Practice (BDP) and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in the workshops;
• improving workflow planning and inventory procedures in the workshops;
• improving sales focus, through clarifying roles and responsibilities, and improving the pricing structure and tools for follow–up;
• designing team structure and supervisory management training; and
• centralising the coordination of equipment between their different geographical regions, to increase utilisation of specialised equipment.

Results

Successful implementation of the project means that the client is now able to:

• achieve more with fewer employees, as a result of a better workflow planning, procedures, and clearly defined roles and responsibilities in the workshops;
• be clear about which decisions to take, as a result of implementing the new management control system, KPIs and follow-up meetings, all of which helped management to develop a common view upon the business; and
• build on a foundation for a planned future ISO certification, as a result of properly documenting the business processes.

By the end of the project the client was fit for the future, with an improved culture and a more structured approach to business. Overall, savings equated to EUR 1.3 million.

Background

The company is a leading manufacturer of prefabricated houses. The market is very favourable and in order to meet the expected demand, capacity will have to double within two years – but without any increase in manning.

The cooperation with Mantec started with a pre-study to assess prospects of doubling the capacity of the production facility. The study confirmed weaknesses such as:

• low industrialisation;
• ineffective use of the production layout;
• lack of material logistics; and
• lack of management and management tools in the workshop.

Implementation

To tackle these identified problems, the client entered into a full project with Mantec aimed at industrialisation of the business. It was divided into three different areas – improvements in production, purchase outsourcing, and improvements in construction.

Production

The existing layout was revised to an industrial flow with the potential to manufacture according to “lean production” and “right from the beginning”. Production data was updated to assist management in controlling the business. A scheme of paced workflow was implemented, so as to avoid production bottlenecks. This helped the whole organisation to work, plan and coordinate activities with a clear strategy to always deliver on time. New methods for controlling production materials were designed and implemented.

In addition, production management teams were trained to lead and control the business, and deal with daily interruptions In a structured way that enabled continuous improvement.

Purchasing and outsourcing

Part components with low added value were outsourced to sub-suppliers, giving them the responsibility for delivering directly to the construction site. Consequently, quality demands (and to some extent working content) increased for existing sub-suppliers.

Construction

More stable and partly simplified methods of construction were implemented. This led to some new types of material being used.

Results

The client received a nomination for their excellent work within the LEAN-field, at the Swedish Construction Industries own LEAN-awards. Mantec were mentioned in the nomination as having been a big factor in teaching the organisation a “real LEAN” mentality.

Other benefits to the client were:

• capacity increased from 11 to 18 modules per week, an improvement of over 60%
• paced workflow helped the organisation work to a clear strategy
• a revised production layout led the way to “lean production”
• methods of production were improved, and investments better targeted.