Manufacturing Global - November 2017

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November 2017

A look into

TOP10

BIGGEST CAR MANUFACTURERS IN THE WORLD

epson’s

REPORT

INDUSTRY 4.0 IS CHANGING MANUFACTURING

innovation pipeline

Pivezo crystals and PrecisionCore

An interview with Rob Clark, Senior Vice President for Epson Europe

PCI

PRYSMIAN

MILBANK

The source of value

Procurement executives across the globe continue to see the potential they can unlock throughout the supply chain. They understand that business today is about engaging, collaborating, adapting instantly to evolving needs, and finding new sources of value. Getting that value, however, can prove a challenge.

FOREWORD HELLO AND WELCOME back to Manufacturing Global.

As we head towards the end of 2017, our magazine has made a triumphant return, packed with fresh content.

To kick us off, Dan Brightmore speaks to Rob Clark, Senior Vice President of Epson Europe, about the company’s state-of-the-art PrecisionCore inkjet technology and the ongoing path towards its ambitious future goals.

On top of this, Matt Isherwood, Managing Director of Pathfindr

describes in detail the necessity of asset management in manufacturing, and how vital it is for efficiency and insight into the production chain.

Plus, this month’s list is the top 10 biggest car manufacturers in the world. Hint: Toyota has finally been knocked off the number one spot.

Also featured this month are Prysmian Group, Milbank, PCI, and Stabilus.

Enjoy the magazine, and feel free to join in the conversation on Twitter: @ManufacturingGL

www.manufacturingglobal.com

www.bizclikmedia.com 3

vt

CONTENTS

F E AT U R E S

36

Prysmian Group

INSIGHT

06 Piezo crystals and PrecisionCore: A look into Epson’s innovation pipeline TECHNOLOGY

16 How Industry 4.0 is changing manufacturing TOP 10

24 Top 10 biggest car manufacturers in the world

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Milbank

C O M PA N Y PROFILES AUSTRALIA 36 Prysmian Group

USA 48 Milbank

ASIA 62 PCI

LATIN AMERICA 78 GM COLMOTORES

62 PCI

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GM COLOMOTORES

INTERVIEW

Piezo crystals and PrecisionCore: A look into Epson’s innovation pipeline Writ ten by DAN BRIGHTMORE

We spoke with Rob Clark, Senior Vice President for Epson Europe, about the company’s innovative PrecisionCore inkjet technology, its commitment to ecological product development and big goals for the future in the business market 6

November 2017

THINK EPSON AND you probably think consumer printers. When Business Review Europe spoke last year with the company’s Senior Vice President for Europe (and its UK Managing Director) Rob Clark, he admitted that Epson had marketed this area of its expertise almost too well.

Dig deeper and you’ll learn that Epson has been at the forefront of robotics for over 30 years while investing in everything from visual

communications and wearables to virtual reality. There’s more to Epson than the kind of products you buy in PC World, maintains Clark: “Actually half our revenue is already generated from products that are not in the consumer space at all.

Things like high-end presses, large format printers and sophisticated projectors. What we’re doing to change the understanding is to launch

INTERVIEW

“The challenge for us is to change our business, change our channels and sales resource to be targeting that office market” – Rob Clark, Senior Vice President for Europe and UK Managing Director, Epson innovative products into the workplace and establish that business brand back again.”

Clark is well-placed to balance the needs of steering a business making waves with its technological innovations in the inkjet market, whilst built on a strong ecological platform, while charting a course for ambitious growth. A tech savvy business 8

November 2017

A L O O K I N T O E P S O N ’ S I N N O V AT I O N P I P E L I N E

leader, he started his career with the MoD as an electrical and electronic engineer. “When I talk to our engineers I at least have some idea what they’re saying!” he jokes. It’s actually a false modesty, because Clark clearly oozes passion for the products and the ethos of a company he joined 25 years ago as Product Manager for its dot matrix printer division.

“Back then the inkjet market hadn’t started and Epson was pretty much a B2B company,” he remembers.

“Actually, I’ve gone full circle; I’ve seen Epson go through the inkjet growth into the consumer market and now we’re trying to build back that re-seller base and connect with those B2B customers for the mainstream of the product range.”

It’s a product range driven by Epson’s heavy investment in its PrecisionCore technology.

“We’ve made a significant investment of €350m in a print head factory and there’s another €150m to come over the next couple of

years,” promises Clark. PrecisionCore is key to Epson’s latest wave of inkjet devices and office market intentions, but how does it work?

“We’ve been developing our inkjet technology for over 70 years,” says Clark. “Most other manufacturers use a thermal based process that heats ink to 300 degrees Celsius, thus creating a bubble, and when that bursts it ejects the ink on to the paper. But ours is based on crystal technology (squeeze certain crystals, such as quartz, and you can make electricity flow through them), specifically piezo crystal.”

Epson has a deep knowledge base with crystal technology going back to its association with parent company and watch manufacturer Seiko. “The property of a piezo crystal allows you to put a charge across it which makes it change shape and when you take that charge away it changes back again. Switching this charge on and off creates a pump mechanism which allows the ink to flow,” explains Clark. “That’s a basic breakdown of how the crystal works, but now it’s becoming a very sophisticated device.” PrecisionCore is manufactured in clean room conditions and uses silicon wafer 9

INTERVIEW

with a piezo material placed on that before being etched to create the print head. The same technology found in Epson’s latest office products also features in its high-end label presses costing upwards of £300,000.”

Among the big product announcements Epson made last month at IFA in Berlin – including the game changing laser-based ultrashort-throw home cinema projector, the EH-LS100 – the company unveiled its latest Ecotank and Workforce printers featuring the PrecisionCore tech. “We launched Ecotank in Europe three years ago and were proud to 10

November 2017

unveil the next generation,” says Clark. “The principal with Ecotank is about turning the business model for consumer printers on its head. In the past, inkjet manufacturers would have made an investment by selling the hardware which it recouped over a period of time by selling cartridges.

This approach was unsustainable. In response, we developed an alternative with no ink cartridges that uses replaceable ink packs (for businesses) or bottles (for consumers). It costs slightly more up front but saves considerable sums of money in the medium term and provides at least

A L O O K I N T O E P S O N ’ S I N N O V AT I O N P I P E L I N E

two years’ worth of printing without the need to refill (depending on the printer model you can achieve a minimum of 6,000 printed pages), and the refills bottles are very cheap (as little as £8.99). At the same time, we’re offering our customers some real eco benefits – meaning far less waste, much lower energy consumption and an end to expensive cartridges.”

Meanwhile at the dedicated small business and home office end of the spectrum, Epson has improved its Workforce range of A3 printers.

“These RIPS (Replaceable Ink Pack System) products can give you 86,000

pages in the initial set up you get with the system,” Clark states. “The Workforce Enterprise, our top-ofthe-range office device, also comes in two flavours: 100ppm and 75ppm.

That’s using the PrecisionCore, but instead of a head that goes across the carriage it has multiple heads to build up an array which is the width of a page so it’s only the paper that moves while the head is fixed,” he adds.

From printers to home cinema equipment, all of Epson’s products are built with an ecological ethos to minimise impact to the environment.

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INTERVIEW

“Epson’s monozukuri philosophy to embrace the art and science of design and manufacture in house is helping deliver these benefits to the end user and has its roots in its parent company’s origins” – Rob Clark, Senior Vice President for Europe and UK Managing Director, Epson Epson’s global President Minor Usui set a challenge for the organisation when he declared the company would reduce its CO2 emissions by 90% by 2050. Clark explains this has sharpened the focus on delivering products to help achieve that saving. “I think our PaperLab project encapsulates that ethos

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and typifies what we’re trying to do.

It’s taken to task the elephant in the room: paper wastage. I’ve worked at Epson for 25 years and this product has captured the imagination more than any other during my time here.

“The tech is in its infancy and needs to be reduced down in size but the future of this device would see it

A L O O K I N T O E P S O N ’ S I N N O V AT I O N P I P E L I N E

Epson WorkForce Pro Cheetah Fast

sit next to a Workforce Enterprise.

Imagine a world-first paper recycling machine designed for the office…”

The PaperLab concept takes printed paper and turns it back into blank paper. So rather than sending waste paper off for shredding and recycling, you can feed it to PaperLab and out of the other end comes plain reusable paper. “The whole idea of PaperLab is a closed-loop ecosystem of printing and recycling within the office environment,” says Clark. “I expect the take up to be high, especially in Germany

and the Nordics, but it depends on how quickly the tech develops over the next three to five years.”

Clark believes it is this strong ecological message that sets Epson apart from its competitors and will help drive the take up of its business solutions. “We’ve got a 92% saving on waste and a 94% saving on CO2.

These are not just small changes in our environmental credentials, it’s a massive step change. And the reason we can do it is because inkjet technology is – and I’ll say these words even though it makes the engineers 13

INTERVIEW cringe – just firing ink at paper. There’s a little bit more to it than that I’m told!” he laughs. “But because we’re not heating the ink to fuse the toner to the paper and we’re not applying any pressure, the number of parts in a device is dramatically reduced. Our tests back up the ecology. If you print a million pages on one of our inkjet devices versus a laser multi-function device, on the laser you’ll need to replace 32 parts and on our inkjet you won’t replace any. It’s a significant difference in terms of the ecological impact that’s going to have.”

Epson’s monozukuri philosophy to embrace the art and science of design and manufacture in house is helping deliver these benefits to the end user and has its roots in its

parent company’s origins. Seiko was born when eight ambitious Japanese engineers set up shop to make watches by hand in a converted miso warehouse where everything was achieved under one roof. This is just as true today with Epson’s diverse range of hardware. And when it comes to software the company is keen to build links with like-minded partners that share the same values.

“The main partnerships are focused on the software we’re developing for our products,” says Clark. “We’re an open platform technology which means we have alliances with print management software like Papercut.

We’ve announced a relationship with Nuance (award-winning providers of speech and imaging software)

EPSON - 3LCD

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November 2017

A L O O K I N T O E P S O N ’ S I N N O V AT I O N P I P E L I N E

WorkForce Pro - They’re Still Warming Up

so that we can deliver security and follow-me print (a solution for large sites operating a common printer fleet). We’re working with vendors like these to enhance the compatibility with our systems.”

Epson is in a growth phase and has been investing heavily over the last few years in people, offices and marketing activities. “The challenge for us is to change our business, change our channels and sales resource to be targeting that office market,” asserts Clark, who maintains that

continued investment is key to the company achieving its goals. “Over the last three years we’ve put €75m of additional investment into the European market place,” he reveals.

“Predominantly to grow the business in the office market. The whole intention is to grow our revenues by €500m by 2020 to reach €2bn. That’s the target for the European business and we’re on our way to achieving that with a current total of €1.7bn.” Signs then, that not only is Epson back in business, but it’s aiming to stay.

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TECHNOLOGY

From Asset Tracking to Asset Intelligence How Industry 4.0 is changing manufacturing W r i t t e n b y M AT T I S H E R W O O D , M A N A G I N G D I R E C T O R O F PAT H F I N D R

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November 2017

FROM ASSET TRACKING TO ASSET INTELLIGENCE

For manufacturing, one of the most important areas is asset management, essential for creating efficiencies and providing insight into the whole manufacturing production chain…

IT WON’T HAVE escaped your notice that everyone’s rather excited about the Internet of Things (IoT), smart technology, disruptive innovation and machine learning. They’re just a few of the factors contributing to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a justifiably grand term given the effect it will have on manufacturing.

Advances in connectivity are at the heart of Industry 4.0, with wide-ranging benefits for the way businesses are run. For manufacturing, one of the most important areas is asset management, in particular, how to create efficiencies and provide insight into the whole production chain.

Asset tracking is well established for a range of mature products.

There has always been value in 17

TECHNOLOGY

“Asset Intelligence is made possible by embedding a range of sensors in the tracking and monitoring hardware” – Matt Isherwood, Managing Director of Pathfindr 18

November 2017

FROM ASSET TRACKING TO ASSET INTELLIGENCE

being able to locate individual assets, but older, passive systems using RFID and barcodes are not without their limitations. And the more recent addition of GPS is only good for outdoors.

More recently we’ve seen the emergence of Real Time Location Systems (RTLS) such as Pathfindr Locate, which take advantage of new technologies and standards such as Bluetooth. Moving from passive to active technologies such as Bluetooth improves asset visibility and provides more accurate and reliable location information.

RTLS means we can get a single view of work in progress and immediately locate any asset across multiple facilities; indoors and outdoors if the right combination of technologies is deployed.

Reducing waiting and motion waste improves efficiency as the time it takes to find parts, fixtures and tooling is decreased.

In addition, RTLS can dramatically reduce overall asset loss and scrappage due to missing paperwork, as products such 19

TECHNOLOGY as smart-folders can be added to the connected ecosystem.

While modern RTLS has taken asset tracking to the next level, location information should be the minimum functionality you expect from such a system. IoT connectivity and advances in chip and sensor technology has seen the emergence of Real Time Asset Intelligence Systems providing insight into much more than just location.

Asset Intelligence is made possible by embedding a range of sensors in the tracking and monitoring hardware, so, in addition to location you can also collect data on temperature, humidity, air quality, pressure, vibration, acidity and pretty much any environmental measure.

The benefits gained from this intelligence will differ from one business to the next, depending on their processes, materials and manufactured product. However, one common application is the optimisation and smoothing of asset utilisation, ensuring you have the correct number of any duplicate assets and tools and that they are receiving equal usage. It can also provide predictive maintenance alerts, 20

November 2017

enabling correct servicing before any failure or loss of efficiency.

But it’s not enough to just capture environmental data. It’s only useful if it’s accessible and used to make manufacturing decisions in real time. A criticism often levelled at ‘Big Data’ is that it’s just being stored and businesses don’t know how to make sense of it. Asset Intelligence becomes useful when it includes effective integrations, alerts and communications between devices, systems and humans. The ultimate aim for Asset Intelligence is to support fully automated real-time optimisation of processes, something that is not too far into the future.

One example of what is possible already is Predictive Asset Supply.

Advanced Asset Intelligence can use an upcoming MES schedule to ensure all assets and resources are assembled in the relevant location required for a certain task ahead of time. They may well be spread out across multiple units and stored off site, so this takes us beyond the efficiency benefits of asset tracking and reducing time to find, and truly optimise the process.

The predictive approach can also

“New networking to support Asset Intelligence can be costly, disruptive and make the system unviable. Choose systems that require minimal to zero infrastructure in order to work” – Matt Isherwood, Managing Director of Pathfindr

flag pressure points for the use of specific assets as well as alerts for supply levels, and also spot the most suitable time for maintenance.

Health and safety can also benefit from effective Asset Intelligence.

The same trackers used for location and environmental data could be attached to containers of chemicals and programmed to ensure potentially volatile materials don’t come within a minimum distance of each other. If

they do, then relevant warning alerts can be raised in facility systems.

Trackers can also monitor personal safety equipment to ensure it is being used correctly, thus minimising workplace accidents. For any tracking data associated with the location and movement of humans, you must ensure that all relevant privacy conditions are met and communicated to the workforce.

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TECHNOLOGY

Some key areas to consider when lowoking to implement an Asset Intelligence system 1. INFRASTRUCTURE New networking to support Asset Intelligence can be costly, disruptive and make the system unviable.

Choose systems that require minimal to zero infrastructure in order to work. These are easiest to retrofit into any facility.

4. FUTUREPROOFING Choose a system that is scalable and can monitor a large range of environmental, location and usage information. Ensure it has open integrations and will work well with your existing systems. Ask the supplier what is on their product roadmap

2. DATA Identify what insight you need in order to inform decisions and bring efficiencies, what frequency you need to monitor, and which alerts and actions apply to each scenario.

3. SECURITY Ensure suppliers have been penetration-tested and adhere to your internal data security policies.

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5. RETURN ON INVESTMENT How will you measure the impact of the system and know if it is having a demonstrably positive effect?

FROM ASSET TRACKING TO ASSET INTELLIGENCE

“The opportunity to optimise processes and efficiencies is huge, yet only a small proportion of manufacturing companies have implemented Asset Intelligence systems” – Matt Isherwood, Managing Director of Pathfindr The pace of change in IoT and connected factories is fast and will continue to accelerate. The opportunity to optimise processes and efficiencies is huge, yet only a small proportion of manufacturing

companies have implemented Asset Intelligence systems. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is well under way, but there’s still a lot more disruptive innovation and smart technology to come for manufacturing.

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TOP 10

BIGGEST CAR MANUFACTURERS IN THE WORLD Edited by OLIVIA MINNOCK

With demand constantly changing, which manufacturers are producing the most cars in 2017?

For the longest time, Toyota was at the top of the list. However, according to Forbes, as of June 2017, Toyota lost its top spot. Even during the first quarter of 2017, several manufacturers switched spots in the top 10, due to volatile changes in demand‌

TOP 10

10 PSA PEUGEOT CITROEN PSA Peugeot Citroen produced 682,174 units in the first quarter of 2017 and is set to move into ninth place soon, having produced 354,530 units in June 2017.

However, in terms of value, PSA Peugeot Citroen did not make Autoguide’s Top 10 Most Valuable Auto Brands list. This auto manufacturer is based in Paris, France and its subsidiaries include Peugeot, Citroen, Opel, Faurecia, and Dongfeng Peugeot-Citroen.

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T O P 1 0 B I G G E S T C A R M A N U FA C T U R E R S I N T H E W O R L D

SUZUKI Suzuki is based in Japan (its headquarters located in Hamamatsu) and it employs just under 63,000 people. Suzuki produced 739,326 units in the first quarter of 2017 but is set to drop off the list as of its June 2017 figures, which have decreased. It also failed to make the top 10 list for most valuable auto brands.

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TOP 10

“89% of Jeeps, including the Wrangler Unlimited and the Cherokee, are made in the US”

08 FIAT CHRYSLER AUTOMOBILES FCA produced 1,152,725 units in the first quarter of 2017 and is set to remain in eighth place in June 2017 with 431,666 units produced. 33% of Chrysler vehicles are made in the US – all of them are Chrysler 200 models. The Dodge, Jeep and RAM brands are also part of Chrysler. 89% of Jeeps, including the Wrangler Unlimited and the Cherokee, are made in the US.

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T O P 1 0 B I G G E S T C A R M A N U FA C T U R E R S I N T H E W O R L D

HONDA In the first quarter of 2017, Honda was in seventh place with 1,233,570 units produced and is set to stay in place with 434,935 units produced in June 2017. In 2017, the auto manufacturer was valued at $21.3bn compared to $19.3bn in 2016.

45% of Honda vehicles are made in the US.

07

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TOP 10

06

FORD During the first quarter of the year, Ford was in sixth place with 1,521,168 units sold. In June 2017, Ford showed promise of moving up to fifth place with 547,601 units sold. The auto manufacturer was worth $22.4bn in 2017, compared to $19.8bn in 2016. Ford makes 64% of its vehicles in the US, including the F150 and the Taurus.

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T O P 1 0 B I G G E S T C A R M A N U FA C T U R E R S I N T H E W O R L D

HYUNDAI-KIA The first quarter of 2017 saw 1,553,732 units produced by the Hyundai Motor Group which includes Kia motors. They are on track to drop to sixth place in June 2017 with 530,875 units produced that month. The headquarters for the Hyundai Motor Corp are in Seoul, South Korea, and it employs over 260,000 people.

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TOP 10

Chevrolet (division of GM) is worth $11.5mn

GENERAL MOTORS

04

In the first quarter of 2017, GM produced 2,252,956 units and held onto its fourth-place standing having produced 644,499 units in June 2017. The Chevrolet division of General Motors was valued at $11.5bn in 2017, up from $8.9bn in 2016. GM brands Cadillac, GMC, Chevrolet and Buick make most of their vehicles in the US.

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T O P 1 0 B I G G E S T C A R M A N U FA C T U R E R S I N T H E W O R L D

RENAULT-NISSAN In the first quarter of 2017, Renault-Nissan produced 2,336,692 units. They are set to bump Toyota out of second place with 855,043 units produced in June 2017. The Nissan part of Renault-Nissan is valued at $24.8bn this year, up from $17.8bn in 2016, putting it fifth on Autoguide’s Top 10 Most Valuable Auto Brands.

The Nissan part of Renault-Nissan produces 55% of its Nissan models in the US, including the Murano and Murano HEV.

03

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TOP 10

61% of Toyota vehicles are produced in the US

TOYOTA

02

Toyota steals second place with 2,338,146 units produced in the first quarter of 2017. The auto manufacturer is set to fall to third place next quarter, however, with 811,850 units produced in June 2017. Toyota beat out second-placed BMW and third-placed Mercedes-Benz on Autoguide’s Top 10 Most Valuable Auto Brands for 2017. Even though VW produced more vehicles, Toyota still beat the company in valuation. In 2017, Toyota was worth $46.3bn, up from $43bn in 2016. Toyota makes 61% of its vehicles in the US, including the Sienna and the Camry.

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T O P 1 0 B I G G E S T C A R M A N U FA C T U R E R S I N T H E W O R L D

VW GROUP VW Group is in first place with the most units produced in the first quarter of 2017 (2,532,744 units). While VW produced the most units, it came in fourth place on Autoguide’s Top 10 Most Valuable Auto Brands this year. VW was valued at $25bn – up 32% from 2016. Volkswagen’s headquarters is in Wolfsburg, Germany.

Volkswagen is currently worth $25bn.

01

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P RYS M I A N G R O U P :

Co n n e c t i n g A u s t ra l i a

Written by: Catherine Sturman Produced by: Josef Smith

P RY S M I A N G R O U P - A U S T R A L I A A N D N E W Z E A L A N D

Chief Executive Officer Frederick Persson discusses how Prysmian Group’s manufacturing capabilities continue to support the growing number of infrastructure projects across Australia

F

rom Brazil and Turkey, to Germany and China, Prysmian Group has become a leader provider of energy and telecoms cables, serving customers all over the world. With sales reaching over €7.5bn in 2016 alone, the Group continues to develop its existing products to support new and emerging markets. Its exponential

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growth, reflected in the high volume of infrastructure projects within Australia at present, has seen Prysmian Group house two factories within Sydney – one for its telecommunication cables, the other for its energy division.

“We are in a great location, and are a short distance from Sydney CBD, so this makes a big difference for customers who

AUSTRALIA

want to ensure that their cables are produced and delivered on time, sometimes at extra cost – I think that’s a big selling point,” explains Frederick Persson, the company’s Chief Executive Officer.

Significant investment has been placed in the development of the two factories within the last five years, with a long-term goal to deliver a personalised touch whilst providing a global presence.

Such is the Group’s success, it has been the sole supplier of not only Telstra’s telecommunication cables for the last 15 years, but it

is also the major cable supplier of the National Broadband Network’s (NBN) government-funded, fibre network project across Australia.

Set to complete in 2020, the Group is continually manufacturing all the required cables for successful deployment of the NBN rollout.

One stop shop Striving for customer satisfaction has seen Prysmian Group become well respected throughout Australia, something which Persson notes with pride.

Proactively responding to any

1st underwater optical fibre cable laid in Sydney Harbour 2015

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How do you help to reliably connect people?

You start with two industry leaders. Dow and Prysmian cables. We have been working together for over 15 years designing and delivering cables for power and telecommunications infrastructure that last for decades.

Our strategic collaboration and technology enable us to widely support Australia’s National Broadband Network (nbn). Approximately 70 percent of the cables that connect homes and businesses to high speed broadband are supplied by Prysmian Australia, using DOW AXELERON™ polyethylene compounds.

So, the next time you connect with your loved ones through the internet, you know your broadband connection and speed is of high quality because of the high-performance materials used.

Dow and Prysmian … Together, the elements of science and the human element can solve anything.

Read more about our solutions at:

dow.com/electrical prysmiancable.com.au

™®Trademark of The Dow Chemical Company (“Dow”) or an affiliated company of Dow

AUSTRALIA

spikes in demand, he explains that this has granted the Group an award at the NBN Supplier Summit for three consecutive years. “This is on the back of our very high ability to predict possible changes and flexibility to produce any cable at short notice,” he says.

The Group therefore embeds a high level of quality control, guaranteeing high standards across the board. “With some production lines, we have speeds of up to 900 meters per minute and these are monitored automatically,” comments Persson. “If we encounter any problems with the cables, we are immediately alerted and work to make sure that this doesn’t impact the customer in any way.

“We’re a global company, so I think our name carries some weight. We support customers on the cable management side, so we take care of the delivery and also give a lot of technical support when clients define their projects. I feel that we are quite competitive overall.”

• Sales reached over €7.5bn in 2016 • Two factories within Sydney – one for its telecommunication cables, the other for its energy division.

• The major supplier of cables to the National Broadband Network’s (NBN) government funded, fibre network project across Australia.

• Some production lines run at speeds of up to 900 meters per minute and these are monitored automatically

Increased competition The Group’s ongoing work has seen it garner positive relationships with suppliers – but even a good reputation has not removed it from common challenges within the Australian market. Utilising local suppliers has enabled reduction in any bottlenecks within its supply chain.

Proximity is a significant driver, delivering potential cost savings.

Consequently, the company

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P RY S M I A N G R O U P - A U S T R A L I A A N D N E W Z E A L A N D

$35 Million

Prysmian Group - Australia and New Zealand Annual Revenue

has strong local relationships with Dow Chemical and Metrod Holdings, amongst many others in the delivery of its cables.

“We have been able to position ourselves as a quality product manufacturer and I think we have very few problems with regards to the quality of the cables we are putting on the Australian market,” adds Persson. “Do people prefer to pay for this? Not always, but to a larger extent we are able to support those customers that can see the value on the products we are making.”

Additionally, despite ongoing growth potential, the Group also continues to tackle ongoing international challenges, especially with regards to importing products with varying levels of quality, and even compliance.

“Often we find we are competing against suppliers with a very different set of standards and we have had a couple of very high issues here in Australia. We are sometimes competing with products made under fewer regulations or fewer standards which we are obliged to apply under Australian laws.

Being a local manufacturer sometimes makes

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AUSTRALIA

Copper wire bins in the stranding machine

“If we encounter any problems with the cables, we are immediately alerted and work to make sure that this doesn’t impact the customer in any way” – Frederick Persson, Chief Executive Officer

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Delivering values beyond copper LEADING COPPER PRODUCER FROM MALAYSIA SERVICING OVER 15 COUNTRIES ACROSS ASIA PACIFIC.

MAGNET WIRE

CABLES

AUTOMOTIVE

TRANSFORMERS

Metrod’s high quality copper has wide range of use in magnetic coils inside motors, generators, alternators, transformers, ballast and automotive applications.

Metrod’s copper is extensively used for production of high, medium, low voltage cables, wire harnesses and solar wires.

Metrod’s oxygen free copper is being supplied in cutting edge technology – Electric Vehicles & Hybrid Electric Vehicles.

With Metrod’s extensive knowledge and experience, its insulated conductors are a preferred choice of large power and distribution transformer manufacturers.

Casting technology: DIPFORM, UPCAST® & SCR®

RECTANGULAR WIRE • COPPER ROD • COPPER WIRE • EARTHING STRIP • INSULATED STRIP

Metrod Holdings Berhad No. 3, Lengkuk Keluli 2, Bukit Raja Prime Industrial Park, 41720 Klang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.

Tel.: +603-3361 3422 Fax.: +603-3341 5318 Email: marketing@metrod.com www.metrod.com

AUSTRALIA

Frederick Persson Chief Executive Officer

Frederick Persson was appointed, CEO of Prysmian Australia & New Zealand on 1st March 2014. He commenced employment with Prysmian Group, as CEO to Sweden in 2010.

Frederick has a degree in Bachelor of Science in Logistics, studied in Vaxjoe Sweden, in 1996.

He started his career with a Swedish steel manufacturer, SSAB. Persson held various positions mainly in sales and progressed to CEO of SSAB, Canada.

He moved to the stainless steel industry becoming the MD of the French wholesaler company, IMS in Sweden.

this hard,” Persson says.

Wishing for a level playing field, Persson adds: “We work to make sure that we are efficient, and whatever we lose in terms of having a more expensive workforce here in Australia, we will therefore compensate by creating smarter solutions or advanced machines – in the end we have to be able to compete in a global arena.”

Future developments The use and subsequent loss of energy is something which Prysmian Group is working on reducing throughout the development of its cables in a bid to better serve its customers.

Increased energy prices in Australia and the need to become more sustainable are two key areas where the Group is allocating resources in order to provide efficient solutions and the design of cables efficiencies to the whole network.

Additionally, not content to just better its existing technologies, the Group is working at supplying connectorised cables, which will support the delivery of a complete system, rather than sole parts, in order to further extend its services.

“Our new invention, Prycam, is where customers will be able to monitor the cable whilst it is live and be alerted if there is a fault,”

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P RY S M I A N G R O U P - A U S T R A L I A A N D N E W Z E A L A N D

“We are a global supplier with the ability to supply high quality cables worldwide” – Frederick Persson, Chief Executive Officer

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Persson says. “This is something that people are asking for – to predict potential black outs.”

“We are slowly moving towards a smart grid, where energy is injected into the grid depending on peak usage times. It is becoming more intellectual. We are trying to move from just a transactional cable supplier to offering the complete solution.”

Delving into the renewable energy market will also open up further doors for Prysmian Group.

AUSTRALIA

Extruder machine A steady demand for wind and solar farms is emerging within Australia, where the Group aims to deliver the cables for such projects.

Adopting a proactive approach and responding to customer needs has enabled Prysmian Group to continue developing its services across Australia, whilst maintaining the focus on a personalised touch.

“We are a global supplier with the ability to supply high quality cables worldwide,” concludes Persson.

“Although being a corporate

organisation can sometimes be very hard for the customer to get through, I can confidently say that our customers can trust our ability to combine local capabilities and industry expertise with a global ability to source cables and solutions from any part of the world. All of it with one goal: maintaining our position as a supplier of choice.”

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A meter for success Written by: Dale Benton Produced by: Denitra Price

Milbank has been a market leader for 90 years and through strategic leadership will forge ahead with a lean, technologically sound manufacturing process

MILBANK

F

ounded in 1927, Milbank has established itself as a leading manufacturer of metering, electrical enclosures and enclosed controls across the US. Now celebrating its 90th year, the third-generation, family-owned company must embrace the future of manufacturing, while maintaining the long history of significant growth and unquestionable success of earlier generations.

What is the secret to almost a century of success?

An unrivalled commitment to quality, innovation, financial strength and community involvement.

“What I think has been truly instrumental for the company, particularly over the last 12 years, has been our move down the path of lean manufacturing,” says Brad Skinner, President of Milbank.

“In 2005, the company started to instil lean manufacturing within all our facilities, working to eliminate waste.”

This turn to lean manufacturing saw a significant shortening of lead times, improved inventory management and taking what Skinner describes as “unnecessary” steps out of the manufacturing process.

“Customers don’t want to pay for waste, they want the product as fast as possible.

Lean manufacturing has been an incredible success over the past decade” – Brad Skinner, President, Milbank 50

November 2017

USA

“Customers don’t want to pay for waste, they want the product as fast as possible. Lean manufacturing has been an incredible success over the past decade,” he says.

Before Skinner became president in 2016, he worked his way through the company for over 31 years from factory floor to the top.

Skinner now sits in a key position to oversee the company’s transition into the future of the manufacturing industry and maintain the marketleading reputation Milbank has earned.

Master Plan Through a series of strategic planning meetings in 2016, Skinner and senior executives, board members and family owners sat down to pull together a strategy for the company’s future. Here, Milbank agreed to develop a Manufacturing Technology Master Plan.

“This master plan serves as a tool to help us explore and develop a three-year timeline so we can prioritize the implementation of capital equipment, tools and technology,” says Douglas Ubel, Vice President

Brad Skinner President

of Purchasing. “We are looking for new capabilities to enhance quality, reduce costs, add capacity and improve safety. It’s not just to bring in new technology, but for a specific purpose to help with cost structure, improve products and enhance our capability in the marketplace.”

Ubel joined the company in 2015 and has worked on a number of manufacturing projects including supply planning, capital investment processes and process improvements, and is now leading the strategic technology initiative.

The master plan will see a series of subteams work through the company’s

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existing manufacturing plants and identify the current processes and technology that are in use, while also noting the age of current equipment.

“We spent a number of meetings brainstorming and making an exhaustive list,” says Ubel. “From there, we identified where we had a known solution in place and where we didn’t. From those with a known solution, we could look at the benefits of what those solutions would bring.”

The subteams are investigating to find potential solutions and will report back to the full team. This will generate a scope of work to be evaluated and prioritized. Milbank has targeted a completion date for this investigative work, and plans to begin implementation in early 2018.

The company is committed to this effort, with automated technology being introduced to the fabrication element of the manufacturing process.

“It’s a significant change, but already we are thinking about the next step in that process. You only know what you know. This technology scouting is helping us find new developments and possibilities we

Doug Ubel

Vice President of Purchasing

“This master plan serves as a tool to help us explore and develop a threeyear timeline so we can prioritize the implementation of capital equipment, tools and technology”

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didn’t know were out there,” says Ubel.

Staying ahead With technology and innovation transforming on a daily basis, Ubel is all too aware of the need to stay abreast of the pace of change.

“Technology scouting is not just a onetime occurrence; it’s an ongoing activity because developments are happening faster than ever before. We must keep up on those new possibilities.”

This need to stay ahead of the game is a feeling shared by Skinner, who looks at it from a different perspective – the employee.

“In order to retain high-preforming employees, we have to offer innovative technology. Adapting to,

Charlie Milbank

Founder of Milbank

and ultimately leading the technology shift, will allow us to develop our employees while simultaneously updating our product offerings.

Implementing new technology is not an overnight process. As much as Milbank is improving and updating its processes, it still operates with existing technology and employees who are used to it.

“When you look at the factory floor, some employees have worked at Milbank for more than 30 years. How do you take that employee, who’s used to working in a particular way and implement a piece of machinery or technology they aren’t used to?”

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“How are we going to adapt rapidlychanging technology? We have to work to be on the front side of that change to continue as an industry leader” – Brad Skinner, President, Milbank

Skinner says. “That has been a hurdle we are overcoming. We’ve had a number of business partners come in and effectively train our employees on new systems, machinery and software. We’ve also sent employees out to other manufacturers to get additional training, which has proved incredibly successful.”

Engaged As president, Skinner oversees every facet of the company, including the transformational initiatives. In addition to the Technology Master Plan, Skinner and the executive team have implemented a new form of employee engagement.

“The initiative team can go wherever they want inside and outside of the company, to figure out what

machinery or technology can help us grow,” he says. “We also wanted input from our employees. They’re the ones out on the floor everyday building our products. To gain insight on what we are doing right or how we can improve, we began visiting all our locations to conduct roundtable meetings where employees can voice their thoughts.”

Employees are encouraged to share ideas on the company’s successes, shortfalls and areas for improvement that are personally relevant to their individual work.

Skinner, speaking from his own

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experience, is a firm believer that the employees have the key vantage point to help the business to grow.

“I want to hear from people on the floor. For us to take their messages and turn them into actual initiatives has really paid off – they feel valued, and they have a say.”

As the company moves into the future, just shy of 100 years of operation, both Skinner and Ubel will play a huge role in the direction of Milbank through not only the Technology Master Plan,

but future initiatives that arise from both internal analysis and external market developments.

For Skinner, the company must continue to ask the question that matters – how is the product going to change?

“How are we going to adapt rapidly-changing technology? We have to work to be on the front side of that change to continue as an industry leader.”

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MILBANK

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S U P P LY C H A I N

But above all, Milbank looks forward, building upon its marketleading legacy and reputation. Skinner attributes the success of the company to the solid foundation established by the previous generations of ownership.

“We are very lucky to have had a founder, second and third generation family who invested so heavily in the quality and safety of our product. Their leadership is what worked to guide us and set us up for the future,” Skinner says. “We pride ourselves on being agile and proactive to respond to customer needs and industry demands.”

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PCI: Electronics manufacturing made simple W R I T T E N B Y DA L E B E N TO N P RO D U C E D B Y C H A R LOT T E C L A R K E

PCI’s cell manufacturi

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ing division

ASIA

Through a transformation programme taking things “back to basics”, PCI has positioned itself to ride the oncoming wave of digitisation

P

CI Limited (PCI) is an Electronics Manufacturing Serviced (EMS) company headquartered in Singapore. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services, extending to all points in the manufacturing outsourcing cycle. This comprises of design, manufacturing engineering, material sourcing and procurement, assembly, testing and logistics. From the launch of new products to improving the competitiveness of existing projects, PCI remains dedicated to enhancing value at every step of the supply chain.

“We are a customer centric EMS company.

Apart from design and manufacturing electronic products for our customers, we are also capable in managing the entire supply chain for the customer,” says Dominic Chan, Senior Vice President, Operations - PCI. The goal? To be the EMS partner of choice for companies that require a highly competent service, one that can meet their complex demands.

A fully diversified company, PCI works with some of the leading businesses in a number of

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“PCI is one of Velocity’s most valued business partner in the Asia region. We would like to congratulate Dominic and his dedicated teams at PCI on their recent successes!”

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industry sectors, including industrial, commercial, consumer, automotive and medical.

Customer complexity As the Senior Vice President of Operations, Chan is all too aware of those complex needs and, more importantly, how quickly they can change.

“The electronics industry is so dynamic, and with that the supply chain demand is ever-evolving,” he says. “For me, that means that the supply chain and operations of the company have to be versatile and responsive, providing innovative solutions that can meet those changing and unique requirements.”

It is this need to be agile, to be innovative and to be able to offer the right solution to

1972

The year that PCI Limited was founded

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PCI LIMITED

“The supply chain and operations of the company have to be versatile and responsive, providing innovative solutions that can meet those changing and unique requirements” DOMINIC CHAN Senior VP Operations

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the right customer in the face of a changing customer expectation, that saw PCI embark on a transformative journey eight years ago, one that would “take things back to basics.

This journey saw the company invest significantly into three key areas that would completely transform the its supply chain operations, enabling that agility and versatility.

“We need to be able to respond rapidly to customer’s evolving needs and keep up with the pace of our industry. We needed to think big, but operate small,” says Chan.

Through this investment, PCI bolstered its workforce with training Programmes, equipping them with the right skillsets and to improve their work processes and problem-solving abilities.

The company also identified what Chan describes as “technology enablers”, which saw the implementation of a new ERP system (SAP) and linking it with PCI’s Manufacturing Execution System (MES) in order to enable a far greater control of the production shop floor.

“It allowed us to collect more data,” says Chan. “And with that we could improve our overall performance.”

PCI also heavily invested in a system integration, one that revamped its entire quality system and certifying it to a number of standards, including ISO 9001 (Quality Management

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System (QMS), ISO 13485 (QMS for medical) and ISO/TS 16949 (QMS for automotive).

This particular level of investment was rewarded, with PCI receiving the Singapore Quality Class, a business excellence mark issued by SPRING Singapore.

A challenging landscape No transformation is without challenge, and to transform in the way that PCI has over the last eight years is certainly no exception.

“The greatest challenge, really, is helping all the team members adapt to change,” says Chan.

“We know that in our industry, the only constant is change. In each project implementation, we continue

1972

The year that PCI Limited was founded

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PCI LIMITED

“We know that in our industry, the only constant is change. In each project implementation, we continue to pay attention to training. The key to mastering a specific skillset or capability within the organisation is to be able to learn, unlearn and relearn” DOMINIC CHAN Senior VP Operations

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to pay attention to training. The key to mastering a specific skillset or capability within the organisation is to be able to learn, unlearn and relearn.”

Amidst the quest for versatility and agility, PCI is supported by its supply partners. For Chan, in the eyes of the customer the supply chain is as strong as its weakest link, and the continuous challenge that PCI faces is identifying and working with the right partner who has the right capabilities for the company’s needs.

“It’s important to know where our own strengths and weaknesses are, and to find the right supply partner who can complement us in the right way so that we can elevate on one another’s strength to offer the best value proposition for our customers,” says Chan.

As one of the key areas for investment, technology has played a significant role in the transformation of PCI, and with the pace of technological change growing faster and faster, will continue to drive growth.

“It’s important to keep abreast of the latest developing in technology innovation. IT gives us more options in approaching any kind of challenges that we may face,” says Chan.

But as many companies innovate and implement new technologies, there can be the temptation to innovate for innovation’s sake. Chan, however, understands this changing landscape all too well.

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“Not all technology may be relevant,” he says.

“It is more important to know what we need, and what the technology can offer, rather than to just be always ahead of the technology innovation curve.”

Powered by people A major core value for the company is its people, and PCI goes to great lengths to secure the services of its skilled workforce long term, with a large portion of its staff being with the company for more than 10 years.

“Each year, PCI has a long list of long service award recipients during our annual dinner and dance,” says Chan. “This is something that we at PCI are proud of. We have an open work culture which brings about sufficient trust amongst peers and management that everyone is working towards a common goal of continuous improvement.”

While the company truly values the talent and the workforce already in its family, the company cannot ignore the future and the workforces of tomorrow. In Singapore, talent acquisition is a challenge for a number of manufacturing companies and so PCI works hard to attract the younger generations into a career in the industry.

“We run a management trainee Programme to recruit and nurture fresh graduates with high potential. We give them a chance to participate in key projects together with more experienced colleagues, providing them access to senior management, while

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their career progression is being monitored by a mentor,” says Chan.

Over the last 30 years, PCI has grown, continued to innovate and remain as a manufacturer of choice, but the company cannot rest on its laurels.

Chan speaks to the age of digitalisation, with electronics manufacturing outsourcing continuing to expand at a rapid rate, with PCI being well positioned and consisting of all the right capabilities

and experience to ride this wave and propel it to greater heights.

“The vision for the company is to continue to be the EMS partner of choice for OEM companies who are leaders in their own field,” he says.

“This is achieved through a strong spirit in continuous improvement, and achieving excellence in all the strategic projects that we do.”

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EXCELLENCE

in manufacturing, sales and after-sales Chevrolet is the preferred and leading brand in Colombia thanks to the outstanding work of GM Colmotores, a production, logistics, distribution and aftermarket service pioneer

Written by Mateo Rafael Tablado Produced by Taybele Piven Interviewee: Rodrigo Godinho, VP and Director of Global Purchases and Supply Chain, General MotorsColombia and Ecuador; and Juan Carlos Landรกzuri, VP of Manufacturing and Quality, GM Colmotores

GM COLMOTORES

G

M Colmotores, a subsidiary of General Motors Company in Colombia, boasts 60 years of experience, throughout which it has strengthened its vehicle manufacturing, distribution and sales operations. Colmotores is not only lauded a forerunner in vehicle assembly operations, but is today the acclaimed leader in vehicle body manufacturing.

Colmotores operations reached a major milestone thanks to its Free Economic Zone (FEZ) designation in 2012. This launched a new stage for Colombia’s vehicle manufacture.

Embracing GM company guidelines, adopted in more than 30 countries throughout five continents, has also boosted the Colombian operation for the guidelines provide models to refer to: the equally competitive GM operations in India and Mexico. “Colmotores has improved its level of competitiveness, quality and supplier relationships, but we are currently especially competitive locally,� says Rodrigo Godinho, Vice President and Director of Global Purchasing and Supply Chain (GPSC) for General Motors, Colombia and Ecuador.

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L AT I N A M E R I C A

The staff at Colmotores undergoes demanding training programs

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MobilTM congratulates General Motors for its 60 years of success in Colombia.

Š 2017 ExxonMobil. All trademarks used herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of ExxonMobil Corporation or one of its subsidiaries.

We celebrate the trajectory of one of the leading companies in the country, and more than a decade as strategic allies with the highest performance lubricants in the market.

L AT I N A M E R I C A

Godinho is a mechanical engineer who graduated from the University of Sao Paulo, where he also acquired a Masters in Quality Management.

Notably, he continuously sharpens his exceptional leadership skills at institutions such as Harvard. The Brazilian executive has experience in supplier development, worked for the US corporation as an accessories and spare gears purchaser, and been involved in projects within Brazil as well as abroad – namely the launch of the highly successful Chevrolet Onix – after which he led projects under the title of Vice President for Colombia and Ecuador.

Excellence in manufacturing, sales and after-sales

Thanks to strong support at the industrial level, as well as dedicated (and creative) efforts to get the product to where it should be, GM Colmotores offers a wide range of vehicles for all purposes. The Chevrolet Spark (Life and GT), Sail, domestically manufactured

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Your promise. Delivered.

MAERSK LINE & GENERAL MOTORS IN COLOMBIA: A PARTNERSHIP THAT CONTINUES TO SAIL For more than 10 years, we have been constantly driven to help General Motors to deliver promises for satisfied customers in Colombia.

Maersk Line’s expertise in shipping has been an important asset for General Motors (GM) in Colombia. Here are reasons why we continue to be the best partners in what we do: WE DELIVER ALL THE TIME, EVERY TIME

WE PROVIDE SOLUTIONS

General Motors in Colombia imports over 6,000 containers every year, with 80% of its materials coming from Asia. From ensuring materials are delivered on time to assembling vehicles with the highest quality standards, we both ensure that we deliver on what is really important: our customer’s promises.

We come in with meticulous planning and contingency managment with the common goal of delivering precious cargo to our customers.

WE COMMUNICATE AND PRACTICE TRANSPARENCY We at Maersk Line connect with General Motors on all aspects of the business. A clear communication is key to propel business ambitions and we have a clear partnership of trust for both our businesses.

We at Maersk Line are confident in doing business with GM in Colombia because we want to deliver the promise of the best customer experience. Together, we continue to propel business ambitions on a global scale. Our businesses grow from our constant innovation of products and services. And with every shipment that travels across oceans, our partnership strengthens well into the future.

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L AT I N A M E R I C A

“Logistics can be quite challenging in Colombia. To improve competitiveness, multimodal logistics, including train freight and the Magdalena River, would perhaps be a good alternative with an interesting future” – Rodrigo Godinho, VP and GPSC Director of General Motors for Colombia and Ecuador.

buses and trucks, the Onix, Sonic, Cruze, the sporty Camaro and comfortable and practical trucks such as the Trailblazer, Tracker, Captiva, Traverse and Tahoe are but a few of the vehicles GM Colmotores has to offer. A network of 29 dealers across the country paired with colossal distribution efforts have made these vehicles available to Colombian drivers.

Likewise, many of the country’s leading companies trust GM Colmotores buses and trucks, as well as vehicles, to make up the bulk (if not all) of their fleet – proof that Chevrolet is a recognized reliable partner.

The manufacturing process, including stamping, was implemented in recent years and transformed the company from an assembly plant into the country’s only automaker. Today,

the company manufactures the components it once had to import from abroad. Interestingly, and perhaps serendipitously, the limited availability of automation suppliers resulted in having to train a group of employees to become specialized in robotic integration for the production processes.

Under an initiative developed in 2011, today, 30 robots have been integrated into the assembly as well as the car body welding lines.

“These are advances that allow us to maintain a competitive edge.

The milestones reached here have repositioned the brand and today we are Colombia’s manufacturer of choice,” says Juan Carlos Landázuri, Vice President of Manufacturing and Quality for GM Colmotores.

Originally from Ecuador, Landázuri is a mechanical engineer who graduated from the Tecnológico de

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Somos una empresa confiable, emprendedora, flexible y humana.

FANALCA, manufacturer of radiators, condensers, AC lines and Steel autoparts, congratulates GM Colmotores on their 60th anniversary contributing to the industrial development of Colombia. ncortess@fanalca.com.co

L AT I N A M E R I C A

In 2015, following the implementation of an energy management system, work that was carried out in conjunction with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Landázuri was invited to present this program to a forum in Vienna, prior to a world leaders’ summit on climate change in Paris.

Top-level technology in each vehicle

Rodrigo Godinho VP and Director of GPSC of General Motors for Colombia and Ecuador

Monterrey (Monterrey Technological Institute) in Mexico, and also holds a degree in Business Administration from Ecuador’s IDE Business School. Landázuri has been with GM for 17 years now, perfecting his efforts at four of its production plants: one in Ecuador, two in Brazil, and, for the past year, as Manufacturing and Quality Operations Director at Colmotores.

All GM Colmotores vehicles boast the latest technological advances.

Most of these technological developments focus on driver safety, meaning accident prevention, no matter how small they may be.

Blind spot warning, front distance control, reverse camera, automatic and semiautomatic perpendicular or parallel parking assistance and automatic light changes are just some of the features offered by the latest vehicles.

For its part, the ChevyStar system, an innovative remote diagnostics system for vehicles, will be, among others, a preventative security and

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GM COLMOTORES

Every part is now locally available, importing supplies is no longer necessary

ALUMINUM WHEELS

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BRAKE FLUID

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L AT I N A M E R I C A

sustainable mobility solution for the country, as it contributes to the development of smart cities.

Now in its eighth generation, it relies on small sensors located in various parts of the vehicle so that it is able to provide service maintenance notifications, report tire inflation volume, fault codes and other diagnostic.

“ChevyStar is something we are proud of. We have pioneered this type of support system,” declares Landázuri.

to the dealer network in such a way that external conditions such as a driver’s strike would hardly affect Colmotores’s operations.

“Logistics can be quite challenging in Colombia. The government has worked hard to improve its infrastructure, creating alternate roads such as the 4G highways.

To improve competitiveness, multimodal logistics, including the train and the Magdalena River, would perhaps be a good alternative with an interesting future,” Godinho points out.

Logistics: a solution for every challenge

Qualified suppliers

GM Colmotores’s logistics department, headed by Godinho, counts on different methods in order to complete each task and to generate efficiencies, resulting, on average, in a 30 percent cost reduction over the last two years.

The factory has its own transportation operators that handle inbound logistics and use a single provider for outbound logistics. In other words, vehicles are distributed

GM Colmotores has an excellent network of suppliers, able to comply with the company’s strict guidelines and requirements.

Suppliers develop new components quickly and efficiently and are open to the company’s suggestions and recommendations. Working openly has made it possible to locate many supplies at competitive costs without sacrificing quality.

All suppliers are evaluated by

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L AT I N A M E R I C A

Juan Carlos Landázuri, VP of Manufacturing and Quality, GM Colmotores

a team of quality engineers to ensure that they are aligned with Colmotores’s expectations. Yearly supplier reassessments guarantee that QSB (Quality Systems Basics), ISO and other such internal certifications pertaining to each operation are maintained.

“We work transparently and communicate clearly. To us, this is key. Our suppliers feel comfortable, and we with them,” says Godinho.

GM’s global support and Colmotores’s contribution

Working for an auto giant like GM means that Colmotores operates under a set of tried and true

standards and guidelines. There is also an openness to share experiences with other subsidiaries in the area. Colmotores primarily reports to GM Brazil, South America’s headquarters, and subsequently to the global office.

The Brazil office receives the corporation’s support and best practices. As a result, its production volume is now the third largest in the world. It boasts a 25 percent local market share, placing it among the brands with the highest local market share in the automotive industry and making it a major global contributor for GM.

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“The milestones reached here have repositioned the brand and today we are Colombia’s manufacturer of choice” – Juan Carlos Landázuri, VP of Manufacturing and Quality, GM Colmotores

Development and preparation of the workforce

GM Colmotores offers virtual training, classroom training, and considerable backing from General Motors University.

One of Colmotores’s greatest responsibilities is maintaining employee satisfaction so as to prevent turnaround.

Surveys reveal an 89 percent employee satisfaction rate.

“We work hard so that inhouse talents choose to stay and make important contributions,” adds Godinho.

Sustainability policies and social action

Colmotores is certified as being

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Welding and embossing procedures are also performed at the Colmotores plant

environmentally responsible. Efforts to ensure its efficient operation include sound savings programs and efficient use of water and energy. Colmotores is a benchmark in the region in terms of energy consumption per unit produced, and places second in lowest water consumption. Moreover, since 2014 its operation is certified ‘landfill free’, which means it does not generate waste that goes to landfills thanks to strict re-use and recycling programs.

Additionally, through the Chevrolet Foundation, Colmotores pursues various social initiatives that support improving the quality of life for vulnerable communities, and promotes sustainable mobility

programs and employability.

“We hope that all these programs make a significant contribution to reducing carbon footprint,” Landazuri concludes.

Excellent results with regards to exploration

GM Colmotores plans to continue growing in 2017 given the opportunities Colombia’s automotive industry has to offer. The work done so far has managed to catapult Colmotores among GM’s major plants based on manufacturing quality.

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