To meet evolving market demands, hand hardware manufacturer Rogan Corp turned to a Lean Manufacturing initiative to increase productivity, reduce labor, and free up floor space in their Northbrook, IL facility. Taking advantage of their building''s ceiling height, Rogan utilized five Remstar Shuttle™ Vertical Lift Modules (VLMs) in three departments to regain 5,000 sq ft of valuable floor space, increase productivity by 22%, and reduce inventory.
With over 4,000 customers, Rogan manufactures and distributes 13,000 different types of products, providing OEMs with instrument knobs, clamping knobs, and dials that can be found on various products such as valves, exercise machines, marine equipment, office furniture, and sports equipment. Like most manufacturers, Rogan''s market was quickly changing, with some markets cooling off and others skyrocketing. To meet evolving market demands, the company set out to review and improve the manufacturing process.
Three storage areas were targeted for improvement: First was a 1,000 sq ft area of 6 ft high racks buffering mold bases. The second area was a 4,000 sq ft footprint in the center of the plant supporting 25 ft high pallet racks containing semi-finished inventory and lastly, a 1,000 sq ft area of 6 ft high shelving system storing sample stock.
The Remstar Shuttle VLM met Rogan''s long-term plan to utilize a Lean Manufacturing initiative to provide their customers with shorter lead times and an overall cost reduction while increasing current manufacturing capacity. Replacing the pallet rack are two 21 ft high Remstar Shuttle VLMs for mold bases, two additional Shuttle VLMs for the semi-finished inventory, and one more Shuttle VLM for sample parts.
"I''d say we''ve gained a net 5,000 sq ft of floor space by going up," Rogan''s plant manager, Jim Ritzema, reported. "With the space freed up from the elimination of the pallet racking, we were able to set up manufacturing cells using both existing and new equipment. This has given us greater control over in-process inspection and greater throughput without increased labor costs."
Mold Base Area
A two-shot molding process is used to manufacture Rogan''s soft grip Pure TouchTM line of control and clamping hardware. The plant''s 150 mold bases, which are inserted into plastic injection molding machines, weigh up to 500 lb apiece and are difficult to move and store. Previously, molds not in use were stored in heavy duty racks with steel diamond plate shelving that made it easier for workers to slide molds around. They were lifted on and off the shelves and moved to the assembly table with a powered-lift walker.
"All mold bases are now assigned to two 21 ft tall Remstar Shuttle VLMs, with two bases on each 1500 lb rated shelf," the plant manager reported. "Assembly technicians store and retrieve 500 lb mold bases by simply pushing a button . . . Remstar was the only VLM manufacturer that could accommodate the weight of the mold bases; each tray is able to hold up to 1,500 lb," Ritzema stated. Combined, the two Shuttle VLMs contain 31,500 lb of mold bases.
"We realized that we needed an ergonomic solution so assemblers no longer had to slide the 500-600 mold bases around," Ritzema stated. "A counterbalanced pneumatic manipulator grips and lifts the bases and swings them between the Shuttles'' extraction tables and the assembly table."
Space was at a premium in the mold assembly area, so the Shuttle VLMs were installed in the tooling room next to the molding room. Holes were cut in the wall to allow access to the Shuttle VLMs from the molding room without occupying any floor space in that area. This procedure was possible because the toolroom was expanded after installation of the semi-finished inventory''s lift modules.
Semi-Finished Inventory
Not only was floor space reduced, but totes of semi-finished parts are no longer picked using forklifts or by hand via portable stairs. Instead, the parts are protected on trays within two enclosed Shuttle VLMs and are retrieved simply by entering a shelf location via a keypad. The selected shelf is automatically brought down, delivered onto an extraction table, and presented to the operator at waist height. Having all semi-finished inventory brought to the worker reduces forklift costs as well as walk and search time, enhancing the production department''s productivity.
"The storage of semi-finished inventory is more common with clamping knobs because these products don''t tend to be as customized as instrument knobs," Ritzema said. "We generally can make longer molding runs, place the parts in stock, and then pull and finish them as orders are received."
Samples and Prototype Stock
Rogan has made thousands of custom and semi-custom knobs over the years. From each run, a few fully assembled knobs are saved for future use. Storing these samples in bins on shelving had occupied 1,000 sq ft of floor space. Currently some 13,000 sample knobs and R & D prototypes are on hand.
All of this stock has been transferred to a 25 ft high VLM, which saves space and protects the samples from dust, dirt, and light exposure. All samples are now accessible at the touch of a button, stored neatly within a single Shuttle VLM occupying only 70 sq ft. Rogan thus regained 930 sq ft of floor space, enabling them to expand their toolroom and add additional assembly machines.
Located in front of the Shuttle VLM is an assembly table with hand-operated machines for producing prototype knobs for customer review and test. "Building samples is more art than science and depends on the knowledge, memory, and skills of the assembler," Ritzema emphasized. New knob designs are often created by mixing and matching parts from different BOMs stored in this Shuttle VLM.