Passion for lean production processes is part of the WILD Group‘s DNA. In that regard lean management is not just a collection of methods and tools, it is a philosophy that permeates the Group‘s entire corporate culture.

Efficient production services have always taken centre stage at WILD. Many of the puzzle pieces needed to put together successful lean production have long been part and parcel of the company group. These include, for instance, a high degree of transparency and a variety of visible measures, such as shopfloor boards or visualisation elements.

”We recently delved to a greater depth, further aligning the culture and the roots of our actions to the non-visible elements of lean management“, explains Christian Rabitsch, Managing Director of WILD GmbH. The change process was a success because we managed to take everyone on this journey with us. Today, everyone in the team better understands why certain things are done in a specific way. ”In this intensive, direct interaction, we have succeeded in establishing a new mindset that is becoming increasingly automated,“ Rabitsch acknowledges.

But how do you actually turn efficiency into a routine? For Head of Assembly Matthias Ghetta, shopfloor management has been instrumental in improving the production processes. ”Each day, we go through a fixed agenda in production, always querying the same topics. We thus achieve two things: on the one hand, automation, which helps us analyse and solve challenges in a structured manner. On the other, a more in-depth involvement of the staff and a more agile information flow.“ These elements are of central significance, especially in the case of a technology partner like WILD,  where numerous devices and assemblies are manufactured over decades. Over time, each individual team member evolves into a seasoned expert who can best anticipate where an assembly process may sometimes ”get stuck“. Being able to methodically access this know-how creates enormous benefits for other customers as well.

HIGH LEVEL OF MOTIVATION
”Though lean management has a large toolbox at its disposal, our staff are still the best source when it comes to finding and eliminating wastage. We have acknowledged this and today we are being rewarded with a particularly high level of motivation from our staff. The teams are aware that their ideas are appreciated, they take on responsibility and remain persistent in implementation“, Ghetta emphasises.

This high level of motivation is best reflected, for instance, in the hundreds of improvement proposals submitted and implemented as part of the continuous  improvement process (CIP). The ideas contributed are quite diverse and they can make an enormous difference as a whole. This has led WILD to create different categories, product CIP being one of them. ”We present the customer with concrete implementation proposals so as to be able to intervene in the validated  and thus ‚frozen‘ product or production specification. As a result, we can manufacture the customer product in a less expensive, more stable, more sustainable, and safer manner“, says Rabitsch. ”A current example of implementation are proposals for specification changes toward a more functional dimensioning, which corresponds to the actual function of the components. We thus increase the stability of the production process, enhance quality levels and reduce process costs.“

Feedback from customers on this lean thinking has been consistently positive. In addition, the company rewards the best improvement proposals. Not in the form of financial premiums but, for instance, with the best parking spot in front of the company building, allocated for a period of four weeks to the month‘s best CIP idea contributor. This very clearly demonstrates that promoting optimisations is part of the job – not an extra service with special remuneration but one that is highly appreciated! A one pager on the month‘s CIP, circulated among staff and posted on the premises, further contributes to bringing hidden improvement potential into focus.

BEST-PRACTICE SHARING
Learning from each other is also at the centre of various knowledge exchange formats such as ”Lean Circle“. Lean experts from WILD meet every three months for a Best-Practice Sharing event with like-minded employees from 12 companies from different sectors and of different sizes. A similar programme exists within the company. For instance, reflection workshops from the various expert departments are organised once every quarter on a defined priority topic. During the ”Best Practice Days“, WILD staff can exchange three times a year on specific topics and get new ideas and inputs on so-called Gemba Walks.

INTENSIVE TRAINING PROGRAMME
The high level of commitment from upskilling candidates demonstrates that lean management falls on particularly fertile ground in the WILD Group. A total of 20 employees have already successfully completed the Yellow Belt training, with another 50 completing the Green Belt programme. Ten staff members are currently undergoing Black Belt training. The training provides them with the necessary tools to push for efficient processes in areas like manufacturing, assembly, strategic procurement, sales and engineering. This gives them greater freedom to implement optimisations but also means greater responsibility.

NEXT STEPS
Priorities for this year are more in-depth application and perfecting of the shopfloor meetings and improvement of the key figures. ”We will install a hybrid shopfloor board by the end of the year, displaying the relevant figures every day in a digital form. At the same time, we will maintain an analogue board to intentionally trigger interaction within the team. Moreover, we plan to roll out the standardised shopfloor concept in operative business for Quality Assurance and Logistics at all three manufacturing sites,“ Matthias Ghetta reveals. ”In 2025, we will be taking the administrative areas on board as well, bringing us a step closer to our objective of becoming a wastage-free, self-learning organisation.“