Why Flow Matters Most in Highly Complex Manufacturing

As the industrial landscape continues to evolve, manufacturers of highly complex products—such as aerospace companies, shipbuilders, and producers of industrial equipment—face mounting pressures. Not only must they meet escalating demand for the latest advanced products, but they must also navigate the intricate challenges of increasingly complex manufacturing environments. Here’s why a relentless focus on flow is key to overcoming these hurdles and thriving in today’s market.

The Growing Challenge of Meeting Demand

Manufacturers are experiencing unprecedented demand from impatient customers. However, this demand surge comes with significant challenges:

• Increased Complexity: As designs evolve, new functionalities and requirements are added to legacy platforms, making manufacturing processes more intricate.
• Customization: High levels of customer configurability mean that few products are built exactly alike, further complicating production.
• Workforce Transition: Many experienced workers are retiring, and new workers face long learning curves and certification times, creating a gap in skilled labor.

To stay competitive, manufacturers must increase throughput to record levels while dealing with these complexities.

Traditional lean tools break down in complex environments ?

To make matters worse, the lean tools typically used to efficiently ramp up production are difficult to apply in complex manufacturing. In traditional

high-volume, less complex manufacturing environments, lean tools like takt time are effective for optimizing production. However, in complex manufacturing, these tools often fall short due to:

• Variable Cycle Times: Longer and more unpredictable cycle times are harder to measure and manage.
• Unique WIP Paths: Each piece of work-in-process (WIP) may have a unique path due to special configurations, reworks, or engineering work-arounds.
• Cross-Functional Coordination: Effective production requires synchronized efforts across multiple functions, leading to shifting bottlenecks and dispersed information.

A Relentless Focus on Flow Streamlines Complexity

To overcome these challenges, focusing on optimizing flow—the end-to-end cycle time for moving WIP through production—is crucial. This approach involves:

• Streamlined Information Flows: Implement digital tools like digital twins to dynamically identify constraints, allowing teams to prioritize and synchronize work effectively.
• Standardized Cross-Functional Performance: Use service-level agreements to enhance visibility and minimize delays, focusing on improving flow rather than internal performance metrics.
• Targeted Initiatives to Remove Barriers: Implement initiatives such as staging points to verify components before critical assembly steps, reducing delays caused by missing parts or defects.

Building Frontline Capabilities

Sustained improvement hinges on empowering frontline teams to identify new constraints and lead initiatives. A nimble and capable workforce is crucial for resilience against disruptions. For example, one aerospace company achieved a 45% increase in production speed within six weeks by addressing primary flow bottlenecks. Similarly, a shipbuilder doubled their throughput in less than a year by focusing on flow constraints, achieving these gains without additional capital investment.

The Path to Enhanced Performance

Focusing on flow not only boosts throughput but also enhances productivity, quality, and employee engagement. By addressing long-standing barriers and fostering a culture of continuous improvement, companies can accelerate their transformation efforts. This focus on flow is not a niche success but a broadly applicable strategy across complex manufacturing sectors.

In conclusion, manufacturers of advanced products can navigate the complexities of modern manufacturing by prioritizing flow. This strategic shift allows them to meet customer demands, improve productivity, and sustain long-term performance improvements in an increasingly complex industrial landscape.

Read more a comprehensive guide to digitize manufacturing workflow effectively: 5 Crucial Steps for Digitizing Manufacturing in 2024: A Comprehensive Guide - CMC Global

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Reach out to us today at Contact us and discover how we can support your journey towards manufacturing excellence.

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