Context

The company aimed to reduce the working hours devoted to one particular type of bus from an average of 1,250 to 750, as well as achieving a 1% cut in the cost of materials (only related to engineering solutions), which represented 70% of the cost of the product. There was one dedicated assembly line for this type of bus.

Approach

The team took an approach based on five work streams: 1) Assembly line balancing; 2) A review of the QA process; 3) Logistics and material planning; 4) Design for Manufacturing; 5) Organizational development. A plan was drawn up to implement the changes over a 26-week period.

 Results

The programme successfully delivered against targets:

• 30% reduction in direct labour;
• > 1% reduction in COGS;
• 1.63% increase in EBIT;
• Total project ROI 2.08:1

• 30%

  reduction in direct labour

• > 1%

  reduction in COGS

• 1.63%

  increase in EBIT