Lean Initiatives, Mixed Model Manufacturing and
Glass Technology Leads to Greater Quality, Efficiency for Farm
Equipment Manufacturer
AGCO Jackson Operations, the Minnesota-based manufacturing
center for AGCO Corporation (NYSE:AGCO), a worldwide distributor
and manufacturer of agricultural equipment, has been named the 2017
Assembly Plant of the Year. The Jackson facility manufactures
complex, custom-configured Challenger® and Massey Ferguson®
agricultural machines including tractors and application
equipment.
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AGCO Jackson Operations was named the
2017 Assembly Plant of the Year during The ASSEMBLY Show, Oct. 25
in Rosemont, Ill. Accepting the honor on behalf of the entire AGCO
Jackson manufacturing team are left to right: Jim Croxton, director
of Manufacturing; Kim Phillips, manager, Human Resources; Greg
Bornholdt, director of Finance; Eric Fisher, director of
Operations; Peggy Gulick, director of Business Process Improvement;
Travis Van Genderen, senior manager, Supply Chain and Rick Leonard,
Quality manager. AGCO Jackson Operations is the only agricultural
manufacturing center to receive this distinction since the award
was founded in 2004. (Photo: Business Wire)
The Assembly Plant of the Year award was founded in 2004 to
showcase production facilities in America and the people, products
and processes that make them successful. The award is presented by
ASSEMBLY magazine to a state-of-the-art facility that has applied
world-class processes to reduce production costs, increase
productivity, shorten time to market or improve product
quality.
AGCO Jackson Operations was chosen as the 2017 Assembly Plant of
the Year because of its use of cutting-edge technology such as
Glass assisted-reality wearable devices and adoption of mixed
product manufacturing processes. These manufacturing innovations
enable the company to custom build five distinct types of tractors
and applicators in multiple variations – and to do so better,
faster, more efficiently and to the highest standards of
quality.
In 2011 when AGCO moved production of Challenger and Massey
Ferguson high-horsepower wheeled row crop tractors for the North
American market to Jackson, the company began a five-year, $50
million factory upgrade to improve efficiency and increase
production capacity by 25 percent while maintaining the same high
product quality.
“To efficiently increase production and produce the highest
quality product, we needed to overhaul the manufacturing process,”
says Peggy Gulick, AGCO’s director of Business Process Improvement.
“We launched improvement programs in design, build, quality
control, supply and delivery, all aspects of efficient production
while ensuring the best quality product for our customers.”
Gulick points out the expansion enabled AGCO to add four quality
gates for in-line testing, letting workers troubleshoot quality
issues and make needed corrections earlier in the process. The
addition of state-of-the-art testing equipment at the end of the
line employs a two-hour evaluation of completed machines and
further ensures all products will perform to maximum capacity in
the field.
Mixed Model Manufacturing
Part of the change in Jackson included moving to a mixed model
manufacturing line to streamline processes and provide the
flexibility needed to custom manufacture machines where no two are
exactly alike. For example, the build sequence can have a
high-horsepower Challenger tractor with tracks, followed by a
high-horsepower Massey Ferguson tractor with wheels. The mixed
model assembly line enables operators to easily switch back and
forth between the two while reaching AGCO’s quality
requirements.
With a moderate volume of Challenger and Massey Ferguson
tractors manufactured each year as well as seasonal demand swings
and changes in the market, the mixed assembly provided AGCO the
flexibility to better meet the just-in-time product flow needed
from the plant. “A mixed model line works best because we can
adjust to produce a large variety of a mix of products or product
variation on the same line,” says Eric Fisher, general manager,
Operations in Jackson.
Lean Manufacturing Initiatives Save Money
The Jackson team also implemented several lean manufacturing
initiatives to improve throughput, reduce operating costs and boost
quality. For example, employees are empowered to find better, more
efficient processes in production of the machinery. In 2013, a
three-step, problem-solving online tool was introduced so employees
could submit suggestions to improve safety, product quality or
reduce costs in their daily work or area of the plant. Since its
inception, 13,095 ideas have been submitted. In 2016, recordable
savings reached just under $1 million.
Another example is the use of a lean daily management system to
ensure critical information is communicated in timely, systematic
forums. Each morning, the Jackson management team meets on the
plant floor to review cost, delivery, quality and safety targets.
They discuss standardized control points and metrics posted on
boards and kiosks on the plant floor. All employees are encouraged
to participate in the daily meetings.
AGCO only Agricultural Manufacturer Using Glass
Glass is an assisted reality, wearable headset device being used
in Jackson. Glass provides each worker hands-free instant access to
parts lists, assembly instructions, quality checkpoints and other
work instructions for the specific machine. Today, AGCO is the only
agricultural equipment company using this technology in
manufacturing, with more than 100 pairs of Glass deployed at the
Jackson facility. The technology also is being adopted at six other
AGCO facilities globally.
“We tested many wearable technologies – watches and tablets -
but Glass is what we selected,” says Gulick. “Prior to switching to
Glass, we used tablets but they would break easily and were
expensive to replace. Glass is the right choice for AGCO.”
By using Glass in product quality control, AGCO has been able to
reduce inspection time by more than 30 percent and cut the
production time for low-volume, high-complexity assemblies by 25
percent. In addition, training is more efficient with a 50 percent
reduction in time needed to train new employees and staff training
on cross-functional operations cut threefold, reducing the average
learning curve from 10 days to three.
“AGCO and its employees at Jackson had a vision of what it would
take to be a world-class manufacturer of agricultural equipment. It
took a lot of work, but we knew our employees were up to the
challenge and we’ve achieved tremendous success,” says Fisher.
“Today, our team is setting a standard of excellence for all AGCO
manufacturing sites by delivering high-quality products to meet the
demand of our customers and dealers.”
As the winner of the 14th annual Assembly Plant of the Year
competition, AGCO joins previous recipients including Bosch Rexroth
Corp. (Fountain Inn, SC); Polaris Industries Inc. (Spirit Lake,
IA); STIHL Inc. (Virginia Beach, VA); Northrop Grumman Corp.
(Palmdale, CA); Ford Motor Co. (Wayne, MI); Philips Respironics
(New Kensington, PA); Eaton Corp. (Lincoln, IL); Batesville Casket
Co. (Manchester, TN); IBM Corp. (Poughkeepsie, NY); Schneider
Electric/Square D (Lexington, KY); Lear Corp. (Montgomery, AL);
Xerox Corp. (Webster, NY); and Kenworth Truck Co. (Renton, WA).
For more information about manufacturing innovations at AGCO,
visit https://news.agcocorp.com/news/glass,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jIbhRPCJG4 or to learn more about
the Assembly Plant of the Year Award, visit
https://www.assemblymag.com/plantoftheyear.
©2017 AGCO Corporation. Massey Ferguson is a worldwide brand of
AGCO. Challenger is a registered trademark of Caterpillar Inc. and
is used under license by AGCO.
About AGCO
AGCO (NYSE:AGCO) is a global leader in the design, manufacture
and distribution of agricultural solutions and supports more
productive farming through its full line of equipment and related
services. AGCO products are sold through five core brands,
Challenger®, Fendt®, GSI®, Massey Ferguson® and Valtra®, supported
by Fuse® precision technologies and farm optimization services, and
are distributed globally through a combination of over 3,000
independent dealers and distributors in more than 150 countries.
Founded in 1990, AGCO is headquartered in Duluth, GA, USA. In 2016,
AGCO had net sales of approximately $7.4 billion. For more
information, visit http://www.AGCOcorp.com. For company news,
information and events, please follow us on Twitter: @AGCOCorp. For
financial news on Twitter, please follow the hashtag #AGCOIR.
About ASSEMBLY Magazine
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www.bnpmedia.com.
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AGCO CorporationMeghann McNally,
770-232-8138Meghann.McNally@AGCOcorp.comorDee Weeda
CommunicationsDee Weeda, 641-344-0757dee@deeweedacomm.com
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