Donato BlandolinoIf you want to optimise material flow, you do not need a project or software, just two hours and a factory floor plan. Because the biggest cost problem in most plants does not appear in any metric: the time material spends waiting rather than being processed.
If you want to optimise material flow, you do not need a project or software, just two hours and a factory floor plan. Because the biggest cost problem in most plants does not appear in any metric: the time material spends waiting rather than being processed.
An example from a plant we visited recently: everyone was talking about CNC utilisation. Nobody was talking about the fact that, before reaching it, the part had spent eleven days in three intermediate storage areas. The machine costs 400,000 euros. The waiting time costs more. It just is not recorded anywhere.
Why waiting time does not appear in any metric
Because we optimise what we measure, and measure what looks expensive.
A machine has a purchase price, an hourly rate and a utilisation metric. It looks like money, so it gets attention. Material that is waiting looks like nothing. It simply sits there, neatly stacked, often even clearly labelled. No report raises the alarm, no meeting addresses it.
Yet the calculation is simple: a part that sits waiting for eleven days ties up capital for eleven days, occupies space for eleven days, is handled, repacked and searched for several times, and extends the lead time that the customer ultimately experiences. CNC utilisation does not change any of that. A plant can have highly utilised machines and a disastrous material flow at the same time, and precisely this combination is the norm.
The single-part method: Analysis without consultants or a project
What you can do tomorrow, with no budget or preparation:
Take a part. Just one. And follow it, from goods receipt to dispatch. On foot.
Count two things as you go. First: how often is the part handled? Every time it is picked up, repacked and put down counts, including restacking to let the forklift through. Second: how many metres does it travel? Plot the route on a factory floor plan, including every intermediate stop.
A few practical tips:
- Choose a part of moderate complexity that follows the normal production process, not a rush order or an unusual item, as these show exceptions rather than day-to-day reality.
- If you cannot follow it in real time because the part sits waiting for days, reconstruct the route using transaction records and conversations with people at the workstations, and you will still get the full picture.
- Ask the people at the workstations why the part is waiting here and how long it usually waits. The answers are often more revealing than the distances.
Three rules of thumb from practice
Every instance of handling that adds no value costs money
Not because the individual action is expensive, but because every instance of handling takes time, creates a risk of damage and signals that the workflow at this point has not been thought through. Ten instances of handling between two processing steps are not just handling, they are a hidden process design.
Every intermediate storage area is a symptom, not a storage location
Intermediate storage areas arise because two process steps do not align: different batch sizes, different cycle times, unclear priorities. The storage compensates for this and, in doing so, conceals it. The right question is never how to organise intermediate storage better, but why it exists.
Every journey of more than fifty metres between two processing steps has a reason that usually nobody remembers
The machine used to be somewhere else. The factory building was extended. An area was relocated, but the material flow was not adapted. Routes like these are history frozen in place, and nobody ever decided that they should be this way.
What the lines on the factory floor plan reveal
After two hours, you have a plan with lines on it, and it tells you more about costs than management accounting does in two months. Three patterns almost always emerge.
Backtracking
The part moves against the direction of flow, back into areas it has already been through. Every instance of backtracking is a candidate for a change in layout or sequence.
Intersections
Routes taken by different material flows intersect at the same bottlenecks. This creates waiting times, time spent searching and the small daily traffic jams that everyone complains about and nobody addresses.
Concentrations
An area where lines and intermediate stops cluster. This is almost always the point where two different process approaches meet, and the best starting point for the first action.
Important at the outset: not everything at once. Start with the one cluster or instance of backtracking where a change will have the greatest impact, and implement it visibly. A visible first success opens the door to the rest, a thirty-point action list closes it.
How we support you
We do not do this on a screen. We walk the factory floor, working hands-on, not from a distance. In larger assignments, material flow usually involves more: production planning, batch-sizing logic, layout and how these are represented in the system, because a flow that works physically must also work in planning, otherwise it reverts.
Nevertheless, the starting point is always the same, with or without us: follow a part.
When did you last follow your material yourself?
Frequently asked questions
How long does a material flow analysis take?
The single-part method takes between two hours and a day and already reveals the most significant issues. A full analysis across several material flows, including volume data and a layout assessment, takes a few days to a few weeks, depending on the size of the plant.
Does it require software?
Not to get started. A factory floor plan, a pen and a part are enough. Software only becomes worthwhile when you need to assess many flows simultaneously or simulate alternatives, and even then it does not replace walking the factory floor.
What specific benefits does material flow optimisation deliver?
Shorter lead times, less capital tied up in intermediate stock, less searching and repacking, and space freed up for value-adding work. The scale of the impact depends on the initial situation, but it almost always becomes visible after the first action has been implemented.
About SMART iNTERIM
SMART iNTERIM Management is a transformation partner for manufacturing: Operational Transformation, SAP and Enterprise Transformation, Program & Project Management, as well as Interim Management and Executive Search. We bring hands-on experience, not a detached perspective. Headquartered in Switzerland, with an office in Dubai.
