Coloplast is a global medical device company headquartered in Humlebæk, Denmark.  Their mission is to “develop products and services that make life easier for people with very personal and private medical conditions”.  

On the manufacturing end of the business, their strategy is to increase the use of automation in product production – with one major exception: the Surgical Urology products manufactured in Minneapolis, MN.  Coloplast purchased this product line from Mentor – along with Mentor’s manufacturing facilities located on West River Road.  In 2007, Coloplast US set plans in motion to build their US Headquarters on this same site.  What resulted was a spectacularly beautiful “campus” housing both the manufacturing and sales and marketing functions.  The building is centered around a five-story executive office tower and provides a stunning view of the Mississippi River. The new building is Silver LEED certified and has already won the Best in Real Estate Award in 2009.

Today Coloplast’s Surgical Urology products are manufactured at their U.S. Headquarters.  They employ approximately 60 production employees on two shifts.  Because these products are implanted invasively, the manufacturing process takes place in a highly regulated clean room environment.   Its production is completely vertically integrated from injection molding of raw materials, to microscopic assembly, to “coating” the finished product to sealing them in ready-to-use kits.  These kits are then distributed worldwide through Coloplast’s global distribution network. 

Joyce Ringwelski oversees Coloplast’s surgical manufacturing operations in Minneapolis – as she had done for Mentor.  The construction of Coloplast’s “campus” was a rare Lean opportunity – made more valuable because of her continuity.  “When I was with Mentor, they began a ‘Lean’ campaign so we were doing some Lean but Coloplast’s Lean initiatives were very structured and a part of expectations at all sites. Construction on the new headquarters began about the same time we were starting to seriously apply Lean principles in surgical manufacturing. So, we took advantage of construction activities and turned them into opportunities to improve those areas directly impacted by construction.  For instance, we needed to move our materials warehouse three different times so we tried different layouts in the temporary locations which gave us insight for what would ultimately work best.  In terms of metrics, our material movement flow has been reduced by 70% and our overall material storage footprint has been reduced 30% over what it was prior to construction. Another opportunity we took while under construction was the relocation of hard fixtures like water line in our manufacturing area. This helped to get us to a continuous flow layout for one of our primary product lines.”

In Joyce’s world, achieving a single-piece-flow would be the ultimate Lean achievement.  She says: “I don’t see us getting there in the near future.”  Still, she’s close.  One really interesting evolution of her own Lean journey was the embracing of GEMBA which stands for the concept of “Going to where the truth can be found.”  In practical terms, it means that each morning a “team” basically made up of management (Joyce, Lean manager, engineering, maintenance, and supervisors) goes to each cell and each department (assembly, molding, dipping, packaging, post-packaging, and raw materials) and asks: “Do you have everything you need to be successful today?”  What’s intriguing about this process is its comprehensiveness.  The “team” might see a tool missing from a tool-board, or a line-worker might be out ill that day.  And, the point is not lost that it is management engaging in the manufacturing process at its most fundamental level.  

Implementing GEMBA was itself a learning process.   As Joyce explains, “Initially, the time commitment felt like a real drain.  Slowly that feeling changed to one of momentum.  We knew going in that the logic was to prevent problems – rather than to react to them.  But, that’s a very subtle mind set.  And, it took time.  Now we’re 100% committed – and persuaded.  It works!  A side benefit is that it really shows a true commitment from management to the work force that we are here to make them successful.” 

Coloplast’s Lean Journey does not begin and end with GEMBA.  Friday afternoon is reserved for “mini-rapid improvement events” or as they call it: “Friday afternoon blitz or Moving Furniture” day.  “Friday afternoons are used to bring workstations together for continuous flow. Moving people’s work stations can be a little worrisome so we tried to make it fun for them. I encouraged them to try the new location and think of it like moving your couch at home, if you don’t like where you moved it after a week, we can revisit and find a location that does work. As a result, our work-in-progress travel has been reduced by as much as 90% in some areas.  

And, there’s the Manufacturers Alliance.  Joyce sums it up by saying, “given the ‘real’ pressure of global competition, we need to learn how to work ‘smarter-not-harder.’  And, the MA’s ‘tours’ are a terrific learning experience.  I like seeing how others use metric boards and track visual management.  Often these are simple but ingenious.  Speaking for Coloplast, we feel like there is a genuine ‘community’ of sharing through the MA – which is fantastic!  As we continue our Lean Journey into 6 Sigma data collection and refinement – we are grateful that the MA is there as a resource.”

Justin Dorsey, Director of Sales & Marketing, Advanced Capital Group located at 50 South Sixth Street, #975 Minneapolis, MN 55402. call (612) 230-3009, email jdorsey@acgbiz.com, or visit www.acgbiz.com.

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Intek plastics, Inc., is a Hastings based company of 175 employees. For over 40 years Intek has provided custom solutions in plastic extrusion, fabricated sub-assemblies, and value added services. Intek’s core customer base includes fenestration, point of purchase, & emi wrapped foam. Intek began its lean journey in 2003.

Where did you receive your Lean training/experience?

In 2003 Intek Plastics aggressively began our lean journey; from that time until now, it would have been very difficult to not gain experience (gray hair).

I have led 26 kaizen events, although recently my focus has turned toward managing for daily improvement or (MDI). At first, working with an awesome team, I used TPM methodologies to improve the maintenance/reliability process. Since then I’ve worked to create a new 5S training module, an SQDC meeting format focused on MDI, and more recently have used a P-D-C-A (Plan-Do-Check-Act) format in creating an energy conservation process.

My formal Lean training has come from the Manufacturers Alliance, The University of St. Thomas, and Pella Corp. I have also gained a fair amount of informal training through reading, and copies of these books are never far from my desk.

• Creating a Lean Culture – Mann
• The Toyota Way – Liker
• Out of the Crisis – Deming
• TPM in Process Industries – Suzuki

What were the lessons learned from leading or training your team on a Lean project?  

I learned early to delegate and lead by example; you cannot do it all by yourself that is why you form a team! 

• Align your scope with the organization's strategic goals, and provide true north for the team
• Perform pre-work, allowing the group to create a realistic future state, and define measures that will indicate success or failure
• Provide relevant training at the beginning of the project
• Provide accountability
• Provide any other reasonable resources your team needs to succeed

What would you say to describe training the Manufacturers Alliance offers?

There are great learning opportunities not only from instructors, but other attendees as well. In meeting people all at different points in their company's lean journey, there are many great stories and real life experiences to learn from.

In fact, after meeting while working towards Lean Leader certification, I partnered with Linda Hansen from Immedia PoP (Point of Purchase) to co-lead an event at Intek. It was a very cool experience, and we both learned a ton! I doubt there are many places outside of the Manufacturers Alliance offering peer-to peer learning opportunities like that.

Dave Swenson is the Maintenance Manager at Intek Plastics Located in Hastings MN.

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For the month of January 2010, reported February 1, 2010. Minnesota's leading economic indicator, based on a survey of supply managers, slipped for January.

The Business Conditions Index sank to 51.4 from December’s 53.5 and November’s 57.1.  This was the sixth straight month that Minnesota's index was above growth neutral, pointing to expanding economic conditions for the first half of 2010.  Components of the overall index for January were new orders at 55.8, production, or sales, at 55.3, delivery lead time at 51.3, inventories at 43.3, and employment at 51.3.  “According to government data, Minnesota added almost 5,000 temporary jobs via employment agencies over the past six months of 2009.  This compares to 3,000 temporary jobs lost for the same period of 2008. This and our monthly survey point to a state economy on the mend with permanent job gains for the first quarter of 2010.  Even so, I expect the employment gains to be very modest,” said Goss.

Dr. Ernest Goss of Creighton University, used the same methodology as The National Association of Purchasing Management to compile this information. The overall index ranges between 0 percent and 100 percent. An index number greater than 50 percent indicates an expansionary economy, and an index under 50 percent forecast a sluggish economy, for the next three to six months.

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