Improvements to Material Yield, Line Uptime, Labor Variance
The Challenge:
The Canadian, supply managed, chicken market makes it tough for processors to get ahead when retailers squeeze prices. Carpedia was engaged to improve both material and labor costs in order for Maple Lodge farms to continue to dominate the Canadian chicken market. The project involved an end to end assessment of the operation from the live haul trucks bringing chicken to the plant through the production process all the way to the fleet that delivers finished goods direct to customers.
The Results:
- Giveaway was improved by 60%.
- Yard Time (Yard Shrink) was improved by 10%.
- Labor variance was improved by 45%.
- Shipping labor cost was reduced by 20%.
- Product rework decreased by 10% and new syrup yield measurements were introduced to strengthen visibility.
Specific actions taken to achieve the results included:
Yield
- Focus on placing Run through breaks on key lines.
- Changeover’s compressed through “pit-crew” mentality and use of checklists.
- Appropriate in-process checks by operators and supervisors.
- Improved scheduling to reduce changeovers.
- Balanced the number of lines run between day and night shift improving flexibility and reducing ad-hoc overtime.
Warehouse and Shipping expense
- Reorganized warehouse using bin locations and fixed product locations.
- Improved pre-staging of materials in Warehouse.
The Client Experience:
“We have now expanded COOP and incorporated a sustainability plan and additional saving initiatives and are on our way to further success…We owe a great deal of our success to the team at Carpedia, we would not have been able to do this without the leadership and guidance of your team”
Chief Operating Office, Maple Lodge Farms