Brakebush Brothers, Westfield: less startup downtime on the main line

Scott Massengale on the Brakebush work · 1:54

• “They realized that they had more control over things out there on the floor than what they thought they did.”
• “The really interesting and unique part about what you did was the focus on the maintenance side of things.”

Problem

The main line averaged 7 to 7.5 hours of downtime a week, most of it in the first two hours after startup. Maintenance and production each worked their own side of it.

Cost

Every hour down was a staffed line producing nothing: 7 to 7.5 hours a week.

Action

Got maintenance and production working the startup problem together, with shared work management and a clear line on who owns what.

Result

About half the startup downtime recovered: roughly 3.5 hours of runtime back every week, worth about $15,000 a week. That is roughly $780,000 a year annualized, an estimate rather than audited savings. The plant's worst days now beat what it was doing six to eight months earlier.

“Be prepared to buy in, but also be prepared to invest in the team.”

Scott Massengale, Plant Manager, Brakebush Brothers