FABTECH 2010 – lean and green finishing systems?

With FABTECH 2010 in full swing, trendy industry buzzwords are being tossed around left and right. Everything is innovative or unprecedented or will revolutionize some part of the manufacturing process. The terms lean and green manufacturing dominate conversations and presentations and there’s even a Kaizen boot camp.

Efficient manufacturing practices has been my passion for many, many years, and I’m excited I have the honor of participating on a panel Wednesday morning entitled, “Make Green by Going Green: How Manufacturers Can Gain a Competitive Advantage”. Following, I get to delve even deeper into the subject when I speak on, “Is It Possible to be Lean and Green with Your Finishing System?” Why am I excited?

Finishing systems have never been thought of as lean … or green. In fact, some lean experts believe that paint is the one production area in today’s factories that cannot conform to the lean methodology. I’ll be sharing trade secrets that could make your finishing system lean with point-of-use access to your factory floor. Also, I’ll discuss how to decrease the amount of valuable floor space, while reducing energy and chemical costs compared to the traditional monument systems.

Many use the term ‘kaizen’ to refer to improving upon the process, but with the advances within the finishing world, I prefer the phrase ‘disruptive innovation.’ The concept permeates all of my thinking and I believe it’s the way companies need to think to grow for the future. It ultimately represents a positive change for the industry by displacing the current, outdated technology with, basically, a better mousetrap. Companies need to be lean and innovative to remain competitive.

I think FABTECH 2010 will be an excellent opportunity to educate the industry and speak with companies who are willing to look to the future and recognize the need to adopt more efficient finishing systems for their manufacturing processes.