Optimizing your production processes with FILAB: the case of the luxury industry
Analyze the client's final need
More than a laboratory, FILAB offers support and consulting services to companies in all sectors, in order to help them with their industrial problems.
This is why some of our clients in the luxury industry call on FILAB to improve their production processes and adapt more effectively to changes in the sector. Indeed, the luxury sector must respond to significant time constraints, where “fashion” is very often a guarantee of a few months. Thus, the manufacturing lead times of a product will be an essential factor in the ability of a luxury company to respond to market demands.
Several reasons can interfere in the production and postpone the marketing of a product:
– Raw material deficiency
– Non-conforming raw materials
– Productivity problems at production sites
– High scrap rates
– etc.
FILAB’s primary objective is therefore to study the theoretical path of the parts that make up the product and to understand its malfunctions. To do this, FILAB works in close collaboration with its customers to analyze their problems and evaluate the different angles of attack to solve them.
A methodological approach associated with an analytical approach
Through visits and audits on the customer’s production sites, FILAB identifies possible anomalies in the supply of raw materials, manufacturing processes, the assembly of materials or even the storage and transport conditions of goods. The objective of this expertise is to propose concrete and feasible solutions in order to better rationalize the material/process pair and thus avoid potential product failure problems.
The use of the defect library is essential in this type of approach. Indeed, the aspect of the finished product is a very important criterion in the luxury industry and the production requirements are very high. As a result, scrap or rework rates are often higher than the industrial average, forcing companies to overestimate their production.
Through various laboratory investigations, FILAB characterizes defects and identifies their origins in the production process: quality of raw materials, chemical modification during the transformation process, adjustment of the machines used, etc.
Based on the results obtained, FILAB makes several proposals to customers for action to improve manufacturing quality and thus reduce product losses and rework:
– Define more demanding raw material specifications in terms of quality criteria
– To set up internal quality controls at the reception of the raw materials
– Modify the parameters of certain machines (temperature, cutting, etc.) to reduce the risk of failure
– Automate certain operations in order to reduce production variances
– Offer training to support service providers in these new approaches.
– And so on.
The control of the manufacturing process is an essential key factor of success in this industrial context. Analyzing and then optimizing it will allow to reduce the rate of failed products, and thus to limit the need for overproduction as well as the delivery times
FILAB: a tailor-made support service
By putting analysis at the service of the process, the support of a service laboratory allows you to combine the consulting approach with the implementation of concrete solutions, thanks to a tailor-made support that meets your needs.
With a reduced number of interlocutors and a centralization of actions, your projects are carried out in complete confidentiality and with a greater reactivity. Thanks to our experts with multi-sectoral skills, FILAB has the necessary expertise to handle your R&D projects: bibliographic study, site audit, training, new product development, etc.
For more information on our R&D support services, contact us here.
