Like many corrugated facilities, each of TimBar’s nine facilities nationwide had always measured waste. However, the process had been manual and subject to inconsistencies, inaccuracies and other human factors. TimBar decided to install SCRAP TRAKKER within each of its facilities. According to Bill Thom, Vice President Operations, TimBar Packaging & Display, “SCRAP TRAKKER is the only stand alone, complete package for identifying, tracking, and reducing controllable waste in a box plant.” He adds, “Not only is it an automated solution, SCRAP TRAKKER is highly flexible and customizable. We’ve been able to tailor it to fit within our processes for collecting and reporting our most pertinent data.”
Thanks to SCRAP TRAKKER, TimBar Packaging & Display has reduced its waste more than a percent corporate wide (it operates nine plants nationwide). This has made a huge impact on TimBar’s lean manufacturing initiative. “SCRAP TRAKKER absolutely took steps out of our collecting and reporting process from an administrative and on-the-floor perspective,” explains Thom. Without SCRAP TRAKKER, the company’s lean process would not have evolved as quickly and they would not be where they are today.
In April of 2005, RTC installed the first international SCRAP TRAKKER system in Cajas Y Empaques Modernos in Mexico City, Mexico. While SCRAP TRAKKER has had bilingual capabilities for some time, this was the first true Spanish implementation.
"We are more than pleased with the SCRAP TRAKKER, it is the kind of thing I wish I would have known about sooner. We are still learning but already reducing scrap. Best regards and congratulations on this fine product."
Innovative Packaging Corp. (IPC), a sheet feeder located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, needed an accurate and reliable way to document the scrap being generated by waste category and originating location, enabling management to focus improvement efforts on the correct areas. When considering automated and manual alternatives, it became clear that only SCRAP TRAKKER would allow IPC the ability to track waste by source and reason in an efficient manner.
"We were looking for a solution that could seamlessly fit into our everyday processes," explains John Lingle, President, IPC. "SCRAP TRAKKER is simple to use, and it is built right into our operating and management process."
Mr. Lingle attributes more than monetary savings to SCRAP TRAKKER. He says, "No doubt the savings (SCRAP TRAKKER provides) are real, but SCRAP TRAKKER makes waste tracking a priority, without added resources or work load."
When we designed Niagara Sheets to be a World Class Sheetfeeder, I researched the software systems in use by the top performing Sheetfeeders in the industry and determined that Avista offered the best approach with a complete suite of products to support our business.
I wanted to avoid the integrated software systems approach because of my experience with Operational system downtime and the finger pointing between various systems providers when an MIS issue occurs.
After 6 years of daily use with the Avista system, I know we made the right choice with Avista products.