Edward Deming, the father of modern quality management, astutely stated that, "If you can't measure it, you can't manage it." This encapsulates the fundamental principle behind OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness), a central metric in measuring manufacturing productivity. Enterprises strive to maximize this metric, as it directly impacts their Operational Excellence.
Understanding OEE
OEE is a composite measure that indicates how well an organization is making use of its manufacturing equipment. It factors in availability (does the equipment function when needed?), performance (does it work at the desired speed?), and quality (does it generate high-grade outputs?). By combining these three vectors, OEE provides a comprehensive understanding of manufacturing efficiencies, or more accurately, the lack thereof.
Driving Performance Management with OEE
As with all metrics, the goal of tracking OEE isn't just to quantify current performance—it's to cultivate incremental improvements over time. Consequently, OEE shouldn't be viewed as a mere statistic, but as a pivotal instrument in your Performance Management toolkit. By enhancing the factors that contribute to OEE—equipment availability, speed, and quality—you drive overall manufacturing performance upward.
Key Principles in Maximizing OEE:
Data Transparency: A clear and unhindered view of the data that impacts OEE is crucial. Equip decisive staff with real-time, easy-to-understand insights on equipment status, production speed and quality metrics. This supports timely, data-backed decision-making.
Consistent Monitoring: Regularly monitor your OEE numbers. Variance and trend analyses can show the trajectory of your productivity, help identify areas of concern and enable forecasting.
Scheduled Maintenance: Preserving high manufacturing availability requires a proactive maintenance stance. Scheduled maintenance prevents breakdowns and sustains performance and quality.
Training and Development: Skilled staff mitigate production issues sooner, restricting any impact on the continuity or quality of output. Development programs can escalate proficiency in managing and maintaining equipment.
Deploying Technology to Enhance OEE
Technology now plays a central role in elevating OEE by providing critical insights at the right intervals. Internet of Things (IoT) systems inform real-time equipment diagnostics and preempt malfunctions. Through Machine Learning and Predictive Analytics, organizations can foresee and mitigate anomalies, thereby boosting the availability and performance levels in the production process.
Uniting OEE with Strategic Goals
OEE doesn't function in isolation; it plays a central role in achieving Strategic Planning objectives and driving Digital Transformation. Minimum acceptable OEE levels should be an integral part of your strategic planning, setting standards that encourage a culture of excellence. OEE improvements direct technological investments that promote Digital Transformation. Thus, it bridges the divide between performance metrics and strategic ambitions.
Risk Management & OEE
OEE also aids in Risk Management. By unmasking inefficiencies, we can locate risks within our processes. Actioning these insights mitigates risks and equips the manufacturing setup to handle unanticipated scenarios more effectively. Consequently, OEE, via better Risk Management practices, contributes to business resilience—a top-of-mind concern for Fortune 500 C-level executives today.
In conclusion, OEE rests at the intersection of Strategic Planning, Performance Management, Digital Transformation, and Risk Management. It is a metric that matters immensely, not just for what it reveals about manufacturing productivity, but for its far-reaching implications on Operational Excellence. So, whether you're optimizing your existing manufacturing setup or laying the groundwork for an Industry 4.0 upgrade, remember your pursuit of Operational Excellence must be firmly rooted in OEE.
CUSTOMER TESTIMONIALS
"As an Independent Management Consultant, I find Flevy to add great value as a source of best practices, templates and information on new trends. Flevy has matured and the quality and quantity of the library is excellent. Lastly the price charged is reasonable, creating a win-win value for the customer, Flevy and the various authors. This is truly a service that benefits the consulting industry and associated clients. Thanks for providing this service. "
– Jim Schoen, Principal at FRC Group
"Flevy is now a part of my business routine. I visit Flevy at least 3 times each month.
Flevy has become my preferred learning source, because what it provides is practical, current, and useful in this era where the business world is being rewritten.
In today's environment where there are so many challenges and there is the need to make the right decisions in a short time, with so much scattered information, we are fortunate to have Flevy. Flevy investigates, selects, and puts at our disposal the best of the best to help us be successful in our work."
– Omar Hernán Montes Parra, CEO at Quantum SFE
"As a small business owner, the resource material available from FlevyPro has proven to be invaluable. The ability to search for material on demand based our project events and client requirements was great for me and proved very beneficial to my clients. Importantly, being able to easily edit and tailor the material for specific purposes helped us to make presentations, knowledge sharing, and toolkit development, which formed part of the overall program collateral. While FlevyPro contains resource material that any consultancy, project or delivery firm must have, it is an essential part of a small firm or independent consultant's toolbox."
– Michael Duff, Managing Director at Change Strategy (UK)
"Flevy.com has proven to be an invaluable resource library to our Independent Management Consultancy, supporting and enabling us to better serve our enterprise clients.
The value derived from our [FlevyPro] subscription in terms of the business it has helped to gain far exceeds the investment made, making a subscription a no-brainer for any growing consultancy – or in-house strategy team."
– Dean Carlton, Chief Transformation Officer, Global Village Transformations Pty Ltd.
"I have found Flevy to be an amazing resource and library of useful presentations for lean sigma, change management and so many other topics. This has reduced the time I need to spend on preparing for my performance consultation. The library is easily accessible and updates are regularly provided. A wealth of great information."
– Cynthia Howard RN, PhD, Executive Coach at Ei Leadership
"I like your product. I'm frequently designing PowerPoint presentations for my company and your product has given me so many great ideas on the use of charts, layouts, tools, and frameworks. I really think the templates are a valuable asset to the job."
– Roberto Fuentes Martinez, Senior Executive Director at Technology Transformation Advisory
"The wide selection of frameworks is very useful to me as an independent consultant. In fact, it rivals what I had at my disposal at Big 4 Consulting firms in terms of efficacy and organization."
– Julia T., Consulting Firm Owner (Former Manager at Deloitte and Capgemini)
"I have used FlevyPro for several business applications. It is a great complement to working with expensive consultants. The quality and effectiveness of the tools are of the highest standards."
– Moritz Bernhoerster, Global Sourcing Director at Fortune 500
SELECT CUSTOMERS
Since 2012, we have provided best practices to over 10,000 businesses and organizations of all sizes across the world—in over 130 countries.
Below is just a very small sample of our customer base.
Did you know?
The average daily rate of a McKinsey consultant is $6,625 (not including expenses). The average price of a Flevy document is $65.
Download our free compilation of 50+ Strategy & Transformation slides and templates. Frameworks include McKinsey 7-S Strategy Model, Balanced Scorecard, Disruptive Innovation, BCG Experience Curve, and many more.
Download our free compilation of 50+ Strategy & Transformation slides and templates. Frameworks include McKinsey 7-S Strategy Model, Balanced Scorecard, Disruptive Innovation, BCG Experience Curve, and many more.