From February 8th to the 10th sixteen IRE students traveled to Winnipeg, Canada to observe manufacturing styles and techniques at various companies and manufactures. The purpose was to gain a broad understanding of numerous manufacturing processes which could be implemented in future projects.
On the first day we drove through Bagley to visit TEAM industries. They showed us their manufacturing floor and explained to us how they use Lean and Kanban to make their processes run smoothly. The design engineers work hand in hand with the manufacturing side to make all of their products which drives innovation into their power-train solutions.
The next stop was DigiKey. While they do not manufacture anything, we went to see the innovative ways orders are received and shipped within 20 minutes. DigiKey offers great customer service and computer operated management of their packing lines to keep their competitive edge.
From these monsters to the small shop ideas of PodCo, we were able to see a company that is willing to powder coat items to look like anything you want. Their small business mentality gets them their customers and keeps them competitive.
The second day started out in Winnipeg where we went to tour MacDon, a producer of large farm equipment. It was fascinating to see how they are taking their current operations with massive forklift crews and large part bins to something that will eventually be able to be supplied all by hand. Getting to see the old next to the new, you can see the innovation at work.
We continued on to Ancast industries, a small foundry that supplies cast iron products. Their willingness to make products no one else will keeps them competitive. We got to see how real world scenarios can be different than what you may see on a computer. They spend a lot of time and resources perfecting each mold dye so that it will produce what the customer wants and still work on their machines.
CG global was our first stop on the third day. It was astounding to see the size of the transformers and the way that CG builds and tests all of their products. Since these huge pieces have to be transported by train or truck to get to their destinations, we saw how things have to be designed with travel and manufacturing in mind. From the giant windings of copper to the lightning machine, CG conducts an amazing operation.
Finally our tour stopped off at Marvin windows in Warroad, MN. It was amazing to see how much product the company goes through every three weeks. Their “random” warehouse operates by placing items wherever they will fit. The items are catalogued on a computer according to their location by row, height, and section. This allows them to quickly fill and find all of the product in their large warehouse. Their method of producing windows after they are ordered leaves space for inventory of parts and brand new windows for their customers.
IRE would like to thank all of the industries that allowed us to tour their places of business. We also thank all of the individuals who took the time to explain and show us the work that they do.
Proofread by Matt Hudson
No comments:
Post a Comment