The 57th Annual KAIZEN Conference took place in the Japanese city of Fukuyama on the 27th and 28th of October 2016. The following team members were selected to represent INDET SAFETY SYSTEMS a.s. (ISS): Mr. M. Včelica (PROD Dept.), Mr. P. Tydlačka (PROD Dept.), Mr. M. Mikulec (ENG Dept.) and interpreter, Ms. K. Kissová (CP Dept.).
“Our journey began with a rather exhausting flight to the Japanese city of Osaka, where we were greeted by sunny, 20◦C weather. We then moved to the plant in Himeji where, together with colleagues from KSM Mexico, KSH China and KMY Malaysia, we had the opportunity to see the Micro GG and inflator assembly production lines, which are produced using a component dispatched by ISS.
Afterwards, we travelled south to Fukuyama, located approximately 100 km north of Hiroshima. 28 candidates from the Nippon Kayaku Group (NK), including us, presented their improvement proposals. It was an invaluable experience to share in the efforts with our fellow subsidiary companies and to gain new perspectives on the different production branches of NK.
Our theme dealt with the reduction of scrap materials in the GTMS squib over-molding process. The project included adjustments of coloring units, vibrating feeders and the setting system on the injection molding machines, specifically on manipulators. These improvements were mainly in the hands of the product team members. The main part of the presentation was the introduction of the KAIZEN proposal to adjust the injection molding parameters on the GTMS production lines, which was submitted by the employees from the workshop. By implementing these improvements, we achieved the desired decrease in scrap and we managed to save on material costs. The project was successful mainly due to the collaboration among employees and their efforts to improve the process.
This year’s winners were the Fukuyama and Takasaki plants. The former operates in functional chemicals production, mainly dyes, and the later is in the pharmaceuticals field. The members from Fukuyama presented cost-cutting through effective processing of colored waste water. We had the opportunity to witness this project on a plant tour.
Despite the fact that we did not manage to win a prize, we were happy that we could participate in this prestigious event and meet with our colleagues from all around the globe” wrote M. Mikulec.
(MM, ENG Dept.)
Simply click on the photo or location name and navigate.
