Two of the best for JD

JohnsonDiversey’s manufacturing facility in Cotes Park, Derbyshire has won Best Process Plant and the Energy & Environment Award at the Best Factory Awards 2009, run by Cranfield School of Management in partnership with Works Management.

“This is significant for us because from over 100 entrants we were seen as ‘best process plant’,” said Sean Madden, manufacturing manager at Cotes Park. “The Energy & Environment Award is especially rewarding because we have carried out a tremendous amount of work to increase the sustainability of our operations.”

Cotes Park manufactures liquid/powder chemicals for use in JohnsonDiversey’s range of cleaning and hygiene products. The Best Factory Awards were established in 1992 and each year presents prizes in a number of categories. An initial submission by JohnsonDiversey was followed by a visit to the factory by a team of Cranfield School of Management assessors who met the management and workforce to validate and evaluate the plant’s competitive position and manufacturing performance.

Cotes Park has an established and ongoing performance improvement programme. For example, changes in production scheduling and sequencing have enabled it to reduce the number switches from one raw material to another. This shortens changeover times between production batches which can significantly increase overall productivity. These improvements helped the factory win the Best Process Plant award.

“One of the judges told us that our capability to receive raw materials in the morning and despatch finished product out later the same day was a fantastic achievement and a real benefit in today’s fast-paced environment, especially at levels of greater than 99% right- first-time,” continued Madden.

The Energy & Environment Award is recognition of the achievements made in sustainable operations at the factory. The sequencing changes, for example, have reduced the need for flushing equipment between production batches, which has reduced raw material wastage, water consumption and effluent volumes. The factory no longer sends any waste to landfill and has introduced new lighting, compressors and other equipment with lower energy consumption.

“One of main things that impressed the judges was the waste management systems where we have set new benchmarks,” said Madden. “We have reduced overall wastage on site by over two thirds and achieved zero per cent disposal to landfill.”

“A key part of our success can be attributed to our ‘Kill the Chaos’ initiatives,” said Neil Goddard, site manager at Cotes Park. “To kill the chaos you need a structured approach and that is what we have built through our site’s Masterplan linked with the strategy and target deployment process. We now have the right people working on the right things with much more focus on pro-activity, looking towards and building the future rather than re-activity dealing with the here and now.”

Like all participants in the awards, the factory received from Cranfield School of Management a highly valuable, confidential and detailed benchmarking report comparing aspects of its performance with the average for the sector.

“In a year when manufacturing has borne the brunt of the global recession, Britain's best factories have remained competitive by keeping quality a strategic priority,” said Dr Marek Szwejczewski of Cranfield School of Management and director of the Best Factory Awards. “In a challenging economy all of the Best Factory winners have demonstrated that to continuously improve it is critical to remain focused on the customer.”

www.johnsondiversey.co.uk