What are the most effective material handling practices for multi-site manufacturing?

1 Assess your material flow

The first step to improve your material handling is to assess how materials flow through your production processes, from raw materials to finished goods. You need to identify the sources, destinations, quantities, frequencies, and routes of material movement, and map them out visually. This will help you spot any bottlenecks, delays, redundancies, or inefficiencies in your material flow, and prioritize the areas that need improvement.

2 Implement lean principles

Lean manufacturing is a philosophy that eliminates waste and maximizes value in production. Lean principles can be applied to improve material handling by reducing unnecessary inventory, motion, transportation, waiting, overproduction, overprocessing, and defects. To do this, you can use tools and techniques such as 5S, Kanban, and Kaizen. 5S is a method of organizing the workplace to create a clean and safe environment for material handling. Kanban is a visual system that signals the need for replenishment of materials based on actual demand. Kaizen is a continuous improvement process that identifies and solves problems in your material handling system. By using these tools and techniques, you can monitor and measure your material handling performance to improve efficiency, quality, and customer satisfaction.

3 Use appropriate equipment and technology

To improve your material handling, you should use the right equipment and technology for your specific needs and goals. Depending on the type, size, weight, and shape of your materials, as well as the distance, speed, and frequency of your material movement, you may require conveyors, automated guided vehicles (AGVs), or radio frequency identification (RFID). Conveyors can help move materials quickly, safely, and consistently while reducing manual labor and human error. AGVs can increase flexibility, accuracy, and productivity, while also reducing accidents and injuries. RFID can improve visibility, traceability, and security of your materials while decreasing errors and losses.

4 Train and empower your staff

The last but not least practice to improve your material handling is to train and empower your staff. Your staff are the ones who handle the materials on a daily basis, and they play a vital role in ensuring the quality and safety of your production. You need to provide them with the necessary skills, knowledge, and tools to perform their tasks effectively and efficiently, and to follow the best practices and standards of material handling. You also need to encourage them to communicate, collaborate, and innovate, and to share their feedback and suggestions for improvement. By doing so, you will create a culture of excellence and continuous improvement in your material handling system.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?