Florida MEP: Florida Manufacturing Extension Partnership

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 17, 2008

For more information please contact:
Gene Lussier
Board Chair, Florida MEP
954-565-0047

ENSER CORPORATION’S LEAN MISSION: ACCOMPLISHED
Department of Defense Subcontractor Works With Florida MEP to Transform Into a Lean Shop

ORLANDO, FL - ENSER Corporation is tasked with a very important mission. They are a subcontractor to the Department of Defense and major U.S. Aerospace and Defense companies, where they design, develop, qualify and manufacture high reliability thermal batteries for a wide range of tactical and strategic military applications.

To keep their production lines running as efficiently as possible, the company began work with the Florida Manufacturing Extension Partnership (Florida MEP) to begin transforming ENSER into a Lean shop. Florida MEP assisted with an Incumbent Worker Training (IWT) Grant, which provided funding for the training.

“The Florida MEP facilitated 12 Time Wise® Principles of Lean Manufacturing workshops with us, which included Value Stream Mapping (VSM) and Kaizens which helped us to quickly improve work cell flow. Chris really took ownership with our projects and did a fantastic job,” said Bob Daidone, vice president of manufacturing operations at ENSER. “All 70 of our employees took part in this training and I personally was extremely happy to see the reaction of the employees and how well it was received.”

“ENSER gained more floor space as a result of the Kaizen events and their work areas continue to improve,” said Joe Trangata, Florida MEP project manager. “The team was able to work really well with the group at ENSER. They really grasped the concepts and have been very successful.”

Daidone said the most prominent event the groups now use at ENSER is the VSM as an every day tool.

“We do not initiate a new process without conducting a VSM,” he added. “We’ve also noticed a reduction in company costs, but an increase in company sales. The progress to-date is remarkable. We were more than satisfied with our Lean training and look forward to our continued work with the Florida MEP.”

The Florida MEP is an affiliate of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) under the U.S. Department of Commerce. The national MEP is a network of manufacturing extension centers that provide business and technical assistance to smaller manufacturers in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Through MEP, manufacturers have access to more than 2000 manufacturing and business “coaches” whose job is to help firms make changes that lead to greater productivity, increased profits, and enhanced global competitiveness. For more information on the Florida MEP program call 321-939-4000.

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