Todd Hartley, Managing Director Hilton Manufacturing, Melbourne, Australia

"How moving first helped move our industry"

For us staying ahead of the competition in a ruthless manufacturing landscape is crucial. That’s why any idea that provides a sustainable, cost effective competitive edge for our clients must be considered, evaluated then embraced.

In Australia where manufacturing in recent years has struggled, embracing 5S and Just in Time delivery and production has ensured a bright future for our company. Based on our initiatives we’ve moved beyond domestic growth to prove the value of our work in new and expanding export markets. With our roots in the local truck industry we’ve managed to gain export orders for Tata/Daewoo in Korea, Hino, Nissan and Isuzu in Japan, Scania in Sweden, and Westport in Canada.

We devote substantial resources to ensure that our Research & Development program remains the best in the industry. The payoff here is that we’ve been invited to compete in the Defense market, in the Health Industry, and even in the market for road and track side LED signs.

Potential identified
A few years back our pursuit of manufacturing excellence and lean manufacturing lead to the evaluation and implementation of Bossard’s Smart Factory Logistics SmartBin system. Mind you, we’re referred to as the “SmartBin pioneers of Australia“. Despite our modest beginnings, we identified potential early on, namely in the domains of cost reduction, improved stock turns and improvement in the Total Cost of Ownership. That’s not only good news for us. But also for our customers and our industry as a whole. Why?

Thanks to SmartBin we can focus on A and B items
Well, we’ve always seen SmartBin as a way how manufacturing in Australia can learn to embrace lean principles in a competitive manufacturing environment. By investing in SmartBin, any purchasing team can concentrate more on the high value A and B class items. What’s more you’re safe in the knowledge that C-part replenishment is being taken care of, stock outs can be reduced immensely, and stock on hand accuracy takes a leap. In the context of SmartBin it’s safe to say that by moving first we helped move our industry.

Our next step will be to go beyond C-parts and logistics and to embrace application engineering advice and support from our colleagues at Bossard. We’re confident to get out of the starting blocks as a first mover once again.

Ref. BAU-CL-FM-02615