Unlocking Organizational Alignment Through Data Accessibility: Building a Culture of Continuous Improvement

In today’s fast-paced market, manufacturing leaders are increasingly seeking transformational technology to drive operational improvement. They recognize the potential of solutions like MachineMetrics, which provides rich machine data and valuable, data-driven insights. But during conversations with these leaders, there is one topic that frequently makes its way to the forefront: workforce challenges. And for good reason.

According to a recent study by Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute, 77% of the 800 manufacturers surveyed anticipate having ongoing difficulties attracting and retaining workers.These manufacturers also reported that it is 36% harder to find the right talent today than it was in 2018, despite the supply of available workers doubling in that same time due to COVID-related unemployment.

To stem the tide of employee turnover, leaders now evaluate every business decision through the lens of how it will impact and be received by their employees. Therefore, it’s no surprise that many leaders who desperately want to pursue transformational shop floor technology are hesitant for fear of overwhelming or alienating their employees.

What factors are behind shop floor workers’ resistance to new technology? Common examples include:

• Fear of change or disruption
• Concerns that “Big Brother” will monitor their every move
• Resistant to adding additional tasks to their already overburdened workload

This begs the question: how can organizations balance their employees’ happiness with the need to adopt transformational technology? Savvy manufacturers are learning that adopting the right impactful solution can deliver huge results, generate enthusiasm amongst their staff, and build a culture of improvement that carries transformation initiatives into the future.

But don’t take it from me. Here are lessons learned from MachineMetrics customers who gracefully navigated their employees’ concerns and leveraged data-driven insights that not only deliver value to the organization, but improve the day-to-day lives of their employees:

Mayville Engineering Company

A leading U.S.-based contract manufacturer that provides a broad range of prototyping and tooling, fabrication, coating, assembly and aftermarket services, with a total of 20 facilities across seven states. As part of the high-growth company’s continuous improvement journey, Engineering Manager Michael Wisnefsy sought to develop a more accurate understanding of their machine performance in order to drive process improvements and assign dollar values to issues.

Read the full Mayville Engineering Company case study to learn more.

Morgan Olson

A leading U.S.-based contract manufacturer that provides a broad range of prototyping and tooling, production fabrication, coating, assembly and aftermarket services embarked on an Industry 4.0 journey that began with a need to better understand their machine asset capacity. Before MachineMetrics, Morgan Olson relied on a paper-based approach for tracking utilization which hindered decision-making and left them blind to various opportunities related to capacity utilization. Now, Continuous Improvement Manager Denis Mursoi and his team are finding benefits that extend from the organization to the individual as well:

Read the full Morgan Olson case study to learn more.

General Grind & Machine

A growing company that produces quality precision parts for industries including agriculture, marine, construction, and heavy equipment. The organization launched a continuous improvement program to gain complete control over their machine and operational data in order to reduce downtime, identify production bottlenecks, and improve reaction time to factory floor issues. Chief Operating Officer Blake Bieri shares how his team benefited from access to real-time machine data:

Read the full General Grind & Machine case study to learn more.

Satisfied and productive workers are the lifeblood of a strong manufacturing organization; prioritizing employee well-being is critically important. Nevertheless, companies that tread too cautiously and delay innovation are actually putting their entire business at risk of falling behind the competition.

While there is no question that the manufacturing industry will be navigating workforce challenges for years to come, successful companies are learning how to foster a culture of collaboration and improvement through technology that provides actionable, data-driven insights.

LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW DATA CAN EMPOWER YOUR FRONTLINE WORKERS.