Flexible plants keep Century competitive
Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, January 15, 2006
Hickory, N.C. — Century Furniture knows that remaining competitive isn't just about offering consumers choices.
It's also about having enough flexibility in its plants to make those choices possible.
To achieve that, the company has developed a mindset that's open to change and continuous improvement. In the company's upholstery plant here, seemingly simple changes have resulted in improved communications and logistics, and cost savings.
Plant manager Terry Jennings calls it customer-focused manufacturing excellence.
"We're focused on adding value for the customer," he said. "We're really using a lot of lean manufacturing tools to help us eliminate non-value operations and focus on what does the customer want."
A case in point: This summer, the company moved the plant's sewing machines and operators closer to where the fabric is cut. Employees don't have to walk back and forth as far, and communication between the departments improved, reducing the need for fabric to be recut.
"We're in the neighborhood of a 30% to 40% improvement in terms of internal quality issues" in that area of the plant, Jennings said. He said the change also reduced production delays and created more space for manufacturing.
These and other plant improvements are seen in before-and-after photos on display in a conference room where a 12-member group of employees and supervisors meet every other week to discuss current and upcoming improvement projects.
"As you make the improvements, you identify the next area of opportunity," said Jennings. "You can't rest on your laurels."
Some other key improvements in the upholstery plant: Moving the upholstery frame assembly area closer to the machining department where frame pieces are cut, cleaning and reorganizing the stock room, and reducing the inventory of cushions from a two-week supply to a one-day supply.
Century President and CEO Bob Maricich says the customer-focused drive to change is a sign that domestic manufacturing is alive and well.
"I think there is a general perception that American manufacturers have not invested in their business and are doing the same things they did 10 years ago and consequently, they are not competitive and should go out of business," he said. "We have changed enormously. Our position is that our employees are open to change."
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