Behr America’s Behr Heat Transfer Systems has completely redesigned the layout of its production facilities in Charleston, South Carolina, to improve efficiency and better meet future demand.
The supplier claims productivity has increased by nearly 20% and scrap rates have halved as a result of the restructuring programme and employee efficiencies, according to plant manager Tom Daffron.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
“We’ve seen significant improvements in efficiency which undoubtedly will translate into higher levels of customer satisfaction,” Daffron said. “Without the dedicated efforts of our entire team of Charleston employees, as well as excellent support from many others in Behr’s global organisation, we could not have completed this project so successfully.”
The Behr programme included an entire redesign of the plant’s layout, involved the relocation of virtually every piece of production equipment and took nearly two years to complete.
Since Behr began production in Charleston in 1993, its 350,000 sq ft facility, which supplies a variety of heat transfer units for primarily heavy truck customers, has undergone a number of changes, including the installation and removal of various process equipment. With plans to install a new, high-capacity furnace in 2011, Behr saw an opportunity to redesign the entire facility to meet the need for future improvements in material flow and overall efficiency.
To meet immediate and longer term needs, the company embarked on an major redevelopment in three phases which involved moving production cells, furnaces, core builders and stock areas without disrupting production, affecting quality or customer service.
Behr’s North American headquarters is in Troy, Michigan. It has about 2,700 employees at facilities there plus Dayton, Ohio, Charleston, Fort Worth, Texas, and Ramos Arizpe, Mexico.
