York Shares (CONT’D FROM PAGE 20)
When it comes to priorities, York said that employees are more important than customers, but just slightly. Hour- ly workforces are more valuable because they are more predictable, while an unstable workforce is not depend- able to suppliers and customers, York said. It was also important to learn the difference between bottlenecks and hot orders. York says that hot orders hap- pen all the time and have to be managed to take care of a customer’s immediate need. But in terms of strategy, he said that a leader must spend the majority of his time rec- ognizing and elevating the productivity of bottlenecks. “I’m a lot more interested in bottle necks than I am in hot orders in terms of strategy,” York said, concluding that there’s only four types of bottlenecks at a box plant: Four Types Of Bottlenecks The Market: Insufficient volume to operate 40 hours a week. Leaders must confront pricing realities compared to market; transfer business from a sister plant that may be oversold; purchase new capabilities to broad- en scope of service.
“I concluded that a box plant leader is in a unique co- nundrum. You have to be able to satisfy two groups of people with diametrically opposing wants and needs,” he said. “One is hourly employees at the plant and the other is the customers. And they don’t exist to satisfy me as a leader, I have to satisfy both of them.” Consider this, York says: Employees typically want weekends off; customers like deliveries on weekends. Employees want good pay; customers want lower prices. Predictable schedules versus shorter lead times. Longer runs versus short runs. Well-maintanined equipment ver- sus rigid delivery requirements. York says the manager is left in the middle and must find a way manage a safe operation, make quality prod- ucts, keep costs low, be profitable, and withstand compe- tition.
Good Corrugator MSF/hour: Has the mar- ket but cannot produce enough sheets to meet demand. Leaders must challenge corru- gator operating speeds and/or eliminate the non-capital causes for lower speed operation;
eliminate restrictions of stacker and/or knife curve; upgrade or purchase new, wider and faster corrugator; purchase sheets from sister plants; be cautious of accepting new business that restricts corrugator productivity and ability to supply converting equipment. Good Converting MSF/hour: Market and suf- CONTINUED ON PAGE 24
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September 26, 2022
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