How Kennedy Incorporated Achieved Rapid ROI and Accelerated Growth

Kennedy Incorporated has been manufacturing high-quality, die-struck jewelry, medallions and insignias from their North Kingstown, Rhode Island manufacturing floor for over forty years, employing approximately 25 people. The company is a trusted supplier of the Department of Defense as well as luxury brands such as BMW, Audi, Grey Goose Vodka and others.

Kennedy Incorporated has a reputation of producing premium quality products for world-class clients. Unfortunately, the company's trajectory has languished over the past several years due to a number of factors including: inconsistent demand, general economic conditions, and manufacturing bottlenecks. The company had stripped their staff down to bare bones. It was time to take a hard look at what it needed to do to bring the company back and launch to the next level.

Polaris MEP helped us get faster and more reliable than ever. In less than a year, we went from scaling down staff to hiring new employees to meet increased business needs.  —Steve Kennedy, President

Polaris MEP, part of the MEP National Network^TM, quickly recognized that there was no issue with product quality, but identified process inefficiencies and dove into a Continuous Improvement/Lean effort to address process inefficiencies and disorganization on the floor. Successful Continuous Improvement is not just a “one-off” exercise but a cultural change within a company.  Polaris MEP and Kennedy Incorporated staff committed to this ideal and have since moved from one end of the organization to the other to uncover areas that benefited from reorganization or elimination. They also pinpointed new opportunities for process improvements and automation. Polaris MEP prescribed a specific Continuous Improvement/Lean effort which: eliminated waste, reduced non-value added activity on the floor, repositioned inventory racks, and clearly delineated production and shipping resources to improve flow.

Results

• 78% increase in productivity per employee
• Over 400% production volume increase
• Hiring additional staff to fulfill new business

Could your company benefit from assistance with continuous improvement? Contact your local MEP Center for more information.

 

Polaris MEP is the official representative of the  MEP National Network™ in Rhode Island. The MEP National Network™ is a unique public-private partnership that delivers comprehensive, proven solutions to U.S. manufacturers, fueling growth and advancing U.S. manufacturing.