Starting Point: 500 Units Was Considered “Capacity”
One of Turkey’s long-established and leading bicycle brands offered a wide product range for every age group. However, long lead times, low productivity and operational data that did not provide enough guidance prevented the factory’s real capacity from being used.
The assembly line’s shift target was 500 bicycles, and current performance was accepted as the capacity the plant could reach. Time measurements and workload analyses showed that this level was well below real capacity. The main problems were:
- Unbalanced workload: There were non-value-adding activities and unbalanced load between operations.
- Accumulating work-in-process inventory: Inventory built up between workshops, and bottleneck lines slowed the flow.
- Complex factory layout: A long and complicated product flow extended total lead time, and the assembly line could not be fed at the right time and in the right quantity.
Approach: First the Line, Then the Whole Factory
The transformation began at the assembly line, the production point closest to the customer. In the first phase, operation times were measured, workloads were balanced among employees, non-value-adding work was removed and the line’s working order was rebuilt. With these changes, shift output rose from 500 to 650 units.
In the second phase, the entire production system was reconsidered:
- The factory layout plan was changed from the ground up.
- Lines that created bottlenecks and inventory were repositioned.
- Workshops moved to a one-piece flow system.
- Balance was established between the production lines and the assembly line.
- The assembly line was fed on a just-in-time principle.
Result: The Transformation Scorecard
With the same 22-person team, shift output rose from 500 to 900 units; total output increased by 80% and output per employee per shift by about 80%. The results were achieved without any need for additional employees, by using existing resources more effectively.
| Parameter | Before | After | Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shift output (after line balancing) | 500 units | 650 units | First phase |
| Shift output (after factory flow transformation) | 500 units | 900 units | +%80 |
| Number of employees | 22 people | 22 people | No additional staff |
| Output per employee per shift | Baseline | ≈ +%80 | Productivity increase |
If you think you need more employees or new machines to reach your production targets, let us first assess together how much of your existing capacity you are actually using.
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