There are a lot of acronyms when you work in manufacturing and a surprising amount of jargon that is often used to talk about best practice. But as Lee Worley, Operations Director at CorrBoard says, the gap between “knowing what to do” and actually “doing it” is where most businesses stumble.
The challenge is often that a company will have robust processes and procedures in place, but they may not necessarily be right. Changing those practices and updating systems requires an entire shift to a new way of working, which is rarely welcomed by teams that have ‘done things that way’ for years.
The next barrier is that people can’t see the problems. On the surface, everything could be running smoothly, but once you delve a bit deeper, it becomes apparent that there are inefficiencies that need to be addressed.
Lee comments:
“At CorrBoard, we’re closing the gap by taking our SMART approach – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound – and plugging it into a digital world.
“It’s about real-time visibility and focusing on the ‘M’ in SMART.
“In the old days, you’d find out about an inefficiency at the end of a shift when someone filled out a paper report but the problem here is that if you can’t see the problem, you can’t fix it.
“By going digital, Measurable becomes instantaneous. Instead of waiting for a post-mortem, our dashboards show us OTIF (on time, in full) and at Quality in real-time. This allows us to spot a dip in performance the second it happens, meaning we solve problems based on live facts.”
The importance of people
You might think automation makes people less important, but Lee sees it differently.
He commends:
“Digital tools actually give our team more “why” behind the “how”. When we train our team on the science of starch, for example, we now back that up with digital sensors. “Instead of an operator guessing if the bond is right, they can see the data on a screen. This digital logic allows them to apply their training more effectively, moving from just running a machine to optimising a process.
“In reality, when people have the data, they have the authority to make better decisions”
Predictive, not just preventative
CorrBoard has worked hard to keep downtime under 2%, and digital tools have played a significant part in this.
Lee comments:
“While we’ve always used PPM (Planned Preventative Maintenance), a digital SMART approach makes our maintenance Time-bound in a much more sophisticated way.
“Sensors now tell us when a part is about to fail before it actually does. This predictive maintenance means we can schedule repairs at the perfect moment, ensuring our multi-million-pound equipment remains running. It’s the ultimate version of prevention is better than the cure.”
Ownership through connectivity
Finally, Lee’s focus on culture and accountability is amplified by a digital setup. After all, when everyone from the shop floor to the front office is looking at the same data, there’s no room for excuses.
Lee concludes:
“By involving the team in the digital transition and giving them tablets or interfaces to log their checks, we’re not just being through with our processes; we’re giving the team ownership.
“They can see their own impact on the factory’s efficiency in real-time. It turns “doing what you’re told” into a team sport where everyone is playing to win.”
Running a SMART operation in a digital age means that CorrBoard is more Specific with data and more precise with Time. For Lee, the result is simple: a more efficient factory, a more empowered team, and a much happier customer.
