Managing Projects and Work Flow
Presenter: Mike Elsholz
Company: Steelcase Inc.
History: 25 years experience
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Engineering
Project Management
Test Lab Supervisor
Model Shop Manager
Outside interests:
family, golf, football, wood working.
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Victor
Steelcase's history of innovation and sustainability began 100 years
ago with Victor, a metal wastebasket designed to reduce fires
caused by ashes in wicker wastebaskets.
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Presentation Outline
based on my recent Model Shop
transformation/move
• Business Strategy and Objective
• Shop Layout
• Strategy
• Workflow
• Project Tracking
• Use of a database
• Procedures and Safety
Questions are welcome
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Identify your business:
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What do you do
Who are your customers
What is your focus
What is your core competencies (areas of strength)
What is your work environment
Functional model vs. soft visual models
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Opportunity for Reinvention
Steelcase CDC
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Opportunity for Reinvention
Steelcase CDC
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Opportunity for Reinvention
We were planning to move out of CDC
• Should the model shop move
• Disband, move as is, move and modify
• Shop size (sq. footage)
• Evaluated who we are
• What we wanted to be
• Determined our strengths
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Who we are
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An internal shop of a large Corporation
Support New Product Development
Our Customers are
• Engineers/Designers
• Show rooms
• Mock-ups for customers
• Facilities
• Sales
• Other
Philosophy on Modeling
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Build to learn
Build it, see it, touch it
Repetitive model builds
Visual and factual
Hands on modeling (design and engineering)
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We Focused on our Capabilities
core competencies
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Sheet metal
Upholstery
Wood
Painting
Welding
Assembly
other areas
• Machining
• CNC milling
• 3D printing
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Outsourced Capabilities
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CNC milling
3D printing
Casting
Molding; vacuum, injection, …
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Model Shop Reinvention
Mission statement:
An integral component of New Product Development that is a collaborating
part of Design and Engineering thinking. Making design ideas tangible and
assessable through quality modeling and providing hands on learning. A part
of the building of intelligence in new product development. Designing and
modeling on the edge of solvability.
Objectives:
 Build models collaboratively
 Providing input and feedback on product designs
 A source of knowledge
 Continuously improving turnaround time of prototypes, Excel
 Can do attitude (not limited)
 Easy to work with
 Problem solvers
 Versatile team with large skill set and experience
 Agile/Flexible
Principles
A) Modeling makes Design thinking tangible and
assessable. A part of the building of intelligence in
new product development.
B) Modeling as method for hands on learning is integral
to New Product Development and the collaboration
between Design and Engineering thinking.
C) Modeling is a means to defining the edge of
solvability.
D) Modeling is a tool, as drawing is a tool, and requires
immediate and dynamic accessibility.
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RECOMMENDATION:
It is critical for New Product Development to have a Model Shop located in close proximity to PD&L
where product development is being controlled and design decisions are being reviewed and made.
The new Model Shop will have the appropriate capabilities and capacity to adequately support new
product development. It needs to be staffed with talented, creative, forward thinking Model Makers
that can work in a professional and collaborative environment that fosters creativity. These
individuals must be able to interact and share ideas with co-workers, Designers and Engineers. The
Environment needs to be conducive to creativity , learning and support a collaborative work space.
BENEFITS:
•Improves PD&L development time lines through faster turnaround on prototyping builds.
•Improves cycle time on learning cycles which improves PD&L intelligence.
•Control of our design confidentiality and intellectual property
•Improves the collaboration between the development teams and the Model Makers which
provides better designs from increase learning .
•Control over Priorities (i.e. “HOT” emergency jobs)
NEGATIVES:
•Larger move cost (relative to a Basic Shop).
•Larger utility and overhead cost (relative to a Basic Shop).
NOTES; Recommendation is based on analysis of our experiences of outsourcing and discussions
with leaders with in PD&L (Engineering and Design Directors).
Work Flow
 Let’s look at our work flow
order
machining
3D
assembly
wood
Completion $$$
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What is your work environment?
How do you work?
Individually/independently
Collaborative
Creative
Hands on
Teams
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Analyze your current layout
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how
Involve your Team
Analyze by area
What works well
What does not well
Wish list
Pros/Cons
Prioritize Requirements
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new
Our focus was on collaboration and interaction (high to low)
High
 Office
 Benches and assembly area
 Sheet metal
 Upholstery
 Wood
Low
 welding
 painting
 Machining
 Rapid Prototyping
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Engineering
Design
marketing
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Welcome to
our new
home
Jan. 2014
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Repurposed an old plant
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Rapid learnings
Hands on modeling
Designer and Engineering
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Project Tracking
 How do you track your projects?
 Use of work requests – mini form
 Spread sheets
 Electronic vs. paper
 What information do you want to track?
 Cost
 Timing
 Status of projects
 Work flow
 Completion
 Reports
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Database
 Use of a database can help track work requests, cost,
status of work, communication with customer and
reports.
 Assign work request to team leads or model makers
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Database
Steelcase
 We currently are using MS Access as our data base
 Readily available
 But has limitations
 Need some training
 We are in the process of changing to SAP
 It our company standard
 It’s powerful
 But can be more than you need
 Need training
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Current Database Back office
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Current
request
form
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Current Database
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New Database Criteria
Improve target areas:
 Visibility
 communication
 Tracking
 Through put
 Ease of filling out request, adding tasks, split orders
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New Database Criteria
adding tasks and split orders
request
Model
maker
Model
maker
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Sheet
metal
outsource
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New Database Criteria
Work Order/ Request
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Generate unique number per work order
Our work instructions
Require: Name, Phone and email
Date Needed
Cost Center#, WBS#
Cost Center Owner
Back up Person and Phone#
Cost Estimate requested (auto email back to requester)
Work Instructions (similar to current)
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Wood
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Sheet Metal (s/m)
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3D Printing
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General Model Making
Drawings/Prints, Data files linked to WO to include Rev. level
Easy work request creation (Auto Population) of new WO and for add on
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i.e. Button on original WO that uses pertinent information (use of an extension or new
request number)
Auto Message (email) as to which Model Maker was assigned
Auto Message (email) when Work Order completed
Bar code generated and assigned to each W.O. for tracking purposes
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New Database Criteria
Database Requirements
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Houses Work Order
IP Protection
Storage (Data, Prints) 5 years
Attach and store prints and pictures
Scanned PDF
Legacy Data Base
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Keep?
How long?
Where?
Or convert to our New Database
Cross Charge/Finance Team (SAP)
 Track labor hours and cross charge each month to Cost Center & WBS
 Track material costs and cross charge each month to Cost Center &WBS
 Track outsourced costs and cross charge each month to Cost Center & WBS
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New Database Criteria
Tracking: Through Shop/Process/Department
 What do we Track, (outsource, split order, Process Paint, Weld,
Laser, % completed, who is currently working on it)
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Auto email sent to requester each time the status is updated.
% complete is updated each day
 How do we track it (Scan Bar?) scanner throughout the shop
 Model Maker notes and activity of project captured on Work
Order(story)
 Who sees it (Transparency, Process, on Touch Screen) i.e..
Requester, Model Maker, Cost Center owner
 Tie Purchase Orders to Work Orders
 Time/hours work on each job (similar to today)
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Need to output to Finance
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New Database Criteria
Reports
 Cost by Requester , Person, Cost Center, WBS#, Supplier, In-
house, Outsource, and Project Name (Same as Today)
 We Want Monthly Reports on (General Performance)
 Number or requests
 On Time
 Outsourced
 Cost to (Requester/Model Shop/Hours)
 Quality
 Jobs on the Floor
 Projects
 Is every WBS# and Cost Center in SAP?
 Controlling Data/Reports vs. open to all?
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Procedures and Safety
 Set safety procedure and policy
 Overall shop
 Each machine
 Consequences for not following
 JSA
 Safe machine operation
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JSA – Job Safety Analysis
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Safe use policy
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