Participating in AME Lean Consortium activities nets current benefits and prospects for future learnings and sharing according to John Pile, operations excellence manager at the Dorman Products distribution facility in Warsaw, KY. The company joined the Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati Chapter, AME Consortium for Business Excellence consortium, several months ago.
“We’ve participated by hosting consortium members of the lean consortium for a plant tour and presentations at the end of April,” Pile said. During the event, Dorman Products employees shared information about the operation’s progress on its lean journey. “We talked about where we’ve been successful and then after a facility tour, we got feedback from other members,” he said.
Several ideas received from tour attendees dovetailed with Dorman Products’ improvement initiatives. Pile cited helpful comments about 5S issues and housekeeping, such as a suggestion about clearly marking a pedestrian pathway.
Find People Doing Similar Things in Other Companies
Networking is a key benefit from consortium participation. “It’s good to find people who do similar things for other companies,” Pile said. “We share best practices and contacts among other industries.”
Pile said he looks forward to participating in training sessions or other programs within the consortium. “We are looking to learn more about lean tools that we can incorporate into the operation, particularly in distribution,” he said. “I’m learning more about how much the consortium does and how many activities it has. It’s much more than just meeting every month. There’s a steady stream of events — a great thing. I’m eager to get my schedule arranged to attend more sessions.”
Dorman Products is a supplier of automotive replacement parts and fasteners, as well as service line products, primarily for the automotive and heavy vehicle aftermarkets. The company markets approximately 133,000 products that are sold under several sub-brands: OE Solutions™, HELP!®, renew™, AutoGrade™, FirstStop™, Conduct-Tite®, TECHoice™, HD Solutions™ and SYMMETRY™. Dorman’s products are sold primarily in the United States through automotive and heavy vehicle aftermarket retailers, national, regional and local warehouse distributors, specialty markets and salvage yards.
Editor’s note: To learn more about AME Consortia and how you can share, learn, coach and improve with fellow lean/continuous improvement practitioners in your area, visit ameconsortia.org.
You are invited to participate in informative, engaging consortium special activities during the AME Toronto 2013 Conference. On Tuesday, Oct. 22, consortium global companies will share best practices during 12 special sessions held during networking periods. All conference attendees are welcome to hear the storytelling presentations by practitioners throughout the day. Each presentation will be scored by a panel of lean experts; the three top-rated teams will present again during Lean Consortia Night. Well-known lean practitioners and consortium member companies will provide timely counsel and “lessons learned” during the evening session. Use these experiences and consortium connections as building blocks for discussion with your teams.
Lea Tonkin, president of Lea Tonkin Communications in Woodstock, IL, is the former editor in chief of Target and Target Online.
