The employees of NewStream Enterprises, LLC Joliet facility hit a milestone – Zero Quality Errors out of 10,000 line items shipped in the month of December, a first for the company. The feat did not go unnoticed. The facility was contacted with words of encouragement and appreciation from top management from the OEM customer and NSE.
The team at this single-parts packaging facility was ecstatic to reach its goal. However, this wasn’t the first time Joliet exceeded an OEM customers’ expectations.
In 2016, NSE was able to turn a large volume of product in 2.4 days on average, consistently beating the OEM’s goal of three days. The operation brought in 50,000 pieces per day on average, shipping ten trucks per day to nine parts distribution centers (PDCs) and up to 400 critical orders per day to over 3,000 direct dealer locations.
In addition to beating its inventory turn goal, the NSE facility also surpassed its quality goal of less than five errors in 2016 per 10,000 lines shipped, reaching marks 60% better with a rate of 1.8 errors per 10,000 lines shipped.
Exceeding the goal, however, was not enough for the employees of this Joliet facility. The team penned an internal goal, dubbed “PROJECT ZERO”, and made the necessary steps to reach it.
“This zero is symbolic in essence,” Tim Huynh, Quality Manager said about the lofty goal. “Anything you find important in life is achievable.”
The company credits this feat to a multitude of actions – layered process audits, root cause analysis, and mini-games, but mostly, its people.
NSE- JOLIET’S HISTORY
In 2013, NSE received a request for quote (RFQ) for single parts packaging from a current customer. This on/off highway original equipment manufacturer (OEM) was dissatisfied with its current service provider, an NSE competitor, because of issues with customer service and turn time. After a rigorous quoting process, NSE was awarded the business and the transition from previous service provider to NSE was successful. Soon after, NSE met and exceeded the goals set for two major OEM metrics.
At start-up, NSE secured a lease for a new 135,000 square foot building, with no infrastructure, in a separate location from its headquarters. The facility was fully operational in just 30 days, significantly beating the OEM’s transition goal of 120, and featured single parts packaging, cross-docking, bulk pack, critical order processing, allocation, repack services, and an in-house wood shop.