Lean Operator
Source : The Manufacturer US
Published : 26 Sep 2005 18:59
Remmele Engineering’s Automation Division focuses on lean processes to take its design/build expertise of custom equipment to the next level. Linda Seid Frembes reports
Located in St. Paul, MN, Remmele Engineering’s Automation division provides the people, resources, and processes to design and build custom equipment for product development and commercial manufacturing. As a leader in custom equipment, Remmele Engineering applies their manufacturing expertise and resources for customers who are looking to scale up its production for either new or existing products.
Fred L. Remmele began what is now Remmele Engineering as a tool and die business in 1949. Today, Remmele Engineering is a national organization with four facilities and more than $85 million in annual sales. The company’s two divisions (Automation and Contract Manufacturing) employ nearly 500 people in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area and service both national and international leading-edge companies.
“The majority of what we do is design and build custom equipment, and it all starts with a customer request or inquiry,” says Terry Johnson, vice president and general manager who is responsible for the Automation division. “Our project engineers and program managers work together with the client to determine needs and solutions.” Those needs can range from product and process development, proof-of-principle, design of experiment, contextual design, design and build, and integration services.
Upon client acceptance of the proposal, a Remmele project engineer, design and control engineer, and program manger lead a team in the execution of the client’s project. There can be six to eight major project teams in action at any one time. Project stages include the design and development of the equipment in CAD, approval of the design by the client, procurement to obtain parts or in-house fabrication of custom parts, assembly, commission and testing of the equipment, and then installation in the client’s designated manufacturing facility.
Remmele Engineering’s wide range of expertise includes novel drug delivery systems, in-vitro diagnostics, energy storage, consumer products, electronics, and medical devices. “We offer technology across a broad range of markets,” says Brian Raehsler, manager of client development, who is responsible for marketing, sales, and program management of the Automation division. “The areas where we fare well are in the medical arena; in particular with drug delivery, in-vitro diagnostics, and energy storage. Those segments comprise roughly two-thirds of our business.”
In drug delivery, Remmele’s range of experience encompasses all phases of the product development process, including pilot lines, proofs-of-principle, clinical manufacturing, commercial manufacturing, and validation testing. “Some segments of the market are very mature, with lots of commoditized, standardized equipment like syringe assemblies, for instance,” says Raehsler. “The type of projects that we get involved in are emerging platforms like a pulmonary drug delivery system, for example.”
Remmele’s team was hired by Aradigm Corporation of Hayward, CA, to produce the dosage form for its AERx pulmonary drug delivery system, which was in late stage development for the delivery of insulin through the lungs. Instead of using a needle to administer the insulin, the patient would breathe into a mouthpiece, and the system would meter the patient’s breathing rate and calculate the appropriate dose. “Our customers are usually product or process innovators,” says Raehsler. “We can help them with the engineering to scale up or build a custom manufacturing solution.”
Since the demand for high-end capital equipment is limited and spending is very discretionary, Remmele’s business can sometimes be unpredictable. The company recognizes the need to be flexible and scalable at all times. Brian Miles, manager of design and control engineering who is responsible for the engineers assigned to various client projects in the Automation division notes: “We strive to be complete and accurate for our clients; and to always focus on our core competencies. Scalability of resources is a key point. Our people are specialized but can explore different industries for opportunities in a vertical market segment. It keeps us operationally excellent.”
Remmele’s world class manufacturing strategy revolves around four primary areas of continuous improvement and growth: total organization commitment, lean business practices, total resource management, and six sigma. The Automation division’s Purchasing Manager, Linda Schmitz, also serves as its world class manufacturing coordinator. “We’ve always had an initiative for business process improvement,” says Johnson. “Our formal world class manufacturing program started three or four years ago, and at first it was hard to recognize how to use it since we do not make the same parts on a repetitive basis. For us, continuous improvement is more about applying lean principles to the business processes. It’s a focus on removing waste from our business practices, developing robust processes, and driving resource management to on-time delivery.”
Continuous improvement holds true for both internal and external projects, as the team must engineer for lean and six sigma customers. “Improvement has to be included in the engineering according to the customer specification; therefore, we must be well-versed in a broad range of methods,” says Miles.
Remmele Engineering conducts an active engineering co-op program, whereby the company recruits from five local universities in mechanical and electrical engineering. The co-op accepts four students per year who get involved in client projects. Remmele strives to hire from their co-op. Once hired, the full-time employee will spend an additional three years in an internal associate engineering program; some also continue to pursue a master’s degree. At the end of the three years, that Remmele engineer is able to lead client projects. Miles adds: “Training is part of our culture. We were originally machinist centered where we offered apprenticeships. We have now added the engineering co-op program which is a similar spirit but different execution.”
Remmele Engineering maintains its continuous improvement journey as it has since its founding. The company recently hired a Director of Supply Chain Management to streamline procurement practices for both of its divisions.
