Grant Success Stories
Florida Heat Pump - Marlo Electronics - Sonny's Enterprises
LEAN AND GREEN AT FLORIDA HEAT PUMP (FHP)
Applying lean principles has dramatically improved productivity at FHP Manufacturing Company, the market leader for water source and geothermal heat pumps. Todd Young and colleagues talked to Bernie Sheehan.
South Florida is not a heavy manufacturing area, and one of the biggest challenges for Fort Lauderdale–based FHP Manufacturing Company is obtaining skilled employees. However, thanks to $100,000 in state grants obtained by Human Resources Director Sandra Blake and the South Florida Manufacturing Association, FHP has been able to undertake ISO, 5S, and lean training in recent years. The state now uses the company as a model lean operation. To read the full story, click here.
MARLO ELECTRONICS INTENDS TO BE A SURVIVOR – GRANT HELPS
In many traditional manufacturing centers in this country it may be difficult – if not impossible - to find a printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturer. In little more than a blink of the eye, almost the entire PCB industry has moved operations out of America and into Asia in a mass exodus of this prized high tech industry.
Marlo Electronics continues to buck the trend, and remains firmly committed to staying in South Florida. It was this commitment amidst stiff competition that recently helped land Marlo a grant in the amount of $12,500. The grant was an Employed Worker Training Grant, and it was awarded to Marlo Electronics by WorkForce One of Broward County. The SFMA's assistance helped make the grant possible.
Marlo Electronics is a maker of high quality double sided and multi-layer boards for commercial and military customers. They’ve been a South Florida fixture since 1966. Burgeoning competition in the PCB industry has become cut throat driving margins to razor thin levels. In order to compete, PCB makers have had to make massive capital investments just to keep up with all the new technology being installed in new plants overseas. As a result, there has been little left over for the development of worker skills necessary to maximize the new technology.
For Marlo, the workforce grant couldn’t have come at a better time. Marlo was able to use the grant money to implement lean transformation within their operations. By taking advantage of this training, Marlo Electronics was able to directly train 46 of their 78 employees in lean operations, set-up, deployment, and management.
Marlo Electronics received the Employed Worker Training Grant in April of 2004. The training was planned and delivered by the end of June. Since that time, Marlo has begun to pursue improvement opportunities based on the training.
“We would not have pursued the grant if we didn’t think it would help make the company more competitive and profitable in the future,” said company President Mark Goddard. “Lean training has helped employees be more efficient and understand the overall picture.”
Goddard goes on to say that the lean training has helped transform the company. Without the training, Marlo would have been likely to continue to operate as it always has – which would have ultimately necessitated layoffs. Because of the lean training (in concert with a drive to become ISO certified), changes have been made that has allowed the company to keep all its employees. Additionally, there will be some promotions and increases in pay – all due to the training.
GRANT MAKES GROWTH POSSIBLE FOR SONNY’S
Growing rapidly and successfully expanding into new markets is a problem every company wishes they could have. Make no mistake, fast growth does present its share of issues, and making sure you get the right employees with the right skills in the right places is foremost among those issues.
Sonny’s Enterprises, makers and distributors of car wash equipment and supplies, is facing this circumstance.
Less than 4 years ago, Sonny’s moved into their new headquarters in Tamarac , consolidating 3 separate buildings into a new 100,000 square foot building. Their growth has been so dramatic that they have just finished adding an additional 30,000 square feet expansion. Changes in the car wash industry are leading to new opportunities and the adoption of new technologies.
Helping to make Sonny’s expansion more successful was a grant from WorkForce One of Broward County. With the assistance of the SFMA, WorkForce One supplied Sonny’s with an Employed Worker Training Grant in the amount of $15,200 to help raise the skill level of their employees in order to ensure a successful expansion. Sonny’s received the grant at the beginning of the year and completed training in June.
Sonny’s utilized the grant, which requires matching expenditures by the recipient company, to initiate a lean transformation for their entire manufacturing operations. Sonny’s trained approximately 60 of their 115 employees (including company President Paul Fazio and his executive team) on the principles of lean manufacturing. This was followed by workshops on Value Stream Mapping which was complimented by conducting a kaizen event.
The training has had an immediate impact on employees as they have helped institute new processes and procedures in organizing and implementing new and existing product lines. Employees have had plenty of opportunities to display their newfound skills and abilities, and have found ways to save the company time, money, and make expansion happen faster.
Fazio believed Sonny’s needed to have “stronger people” as part of its expansion plans, and the training helped provide that. “It’s created a huge level of excitement. Employees are more forthcoming with ideas. Improvements happen faster.”
In addition, the employees who participated in the training will see their opportunities for advancement and promotion increased as the company continues to grow its business.
To Fazio, one of the unstated goals of the grant will become a reality – “we’ll be able to improve our competitiveness, and will keep manufacturing jobs in this country.”
