Strength in numbers

growth plans, the journey to Lean and what it means for the whole UK industry.

Those visiting Arrowsmith's site over the last few months will have seen a hive of activity as the subcontractor nears the conclusion of its plans to turn itself into a larger and leaner business in line with the demands of an increasingly rigorous aerospace sector.

In the new headquarters, workmen are completing the construction of new offices and an additional 5,000ft² of shopfloor and clean room space while a range of machinery from recent acquisition Exhall Grinding sits in limbo, ready to be installed. In the original facility, representatives from Goodrich are helping employees achieve 5S principles and helping upgrade existing machinery with TPM programmes while training provider TEC is showing employees how to validate first-off parts. Running operations from the old office, Jason Aldridge is busy implementing a new MRP system which will allow the company to take on much more work.

Somewhere in between all of this, machine operators are still busy churning out parts for the company's aerospace, motorsport and energy clients.

This metamorphosis represents many of the typical procedures that have characterised the more proactive British subcontractors over the last five years as the pressure from competition has swung from a national to an international level. Arrowsmith has taken a fair bit of pain to reach this point but these short-term difficulties will ensure the company remains prosperous in the long-term with the facilities and expertise needed to grow effectively.

Award winning efficiency

Arrowsmith started out as a general engineering firm in 1967, but since 1970 has enjoyed a fruitful relationship with Rolls-Royce and has always been focused on low batch and R&D aerospace work with several primes. Arrowsmith was purchased by the Aldridge family in 1995, at which point it had an annual turnover of £300,000. Now it is preparing for the next generation with the new building and has grown to just under £2m. While the outward signs have always been positive, meeting the increased demands of the aerospace industry over the last few years has not been easy.

Mr Aldridge took up his role in 2006 with a remit to expand the customer base and oversee the move towards Lean. While none of the steps taken have been particularly unusual or radical, a common sense approach, attention to detail and commitment to continuous improvement has allowed the business to become much more efficient and serves as a good case study for any business wanting to compete in the sector – aspects highlighted by its winning of Small Business of the Year at the 2009 Coventry and Warwickshire Business Awards.
The first step was to employ efficient analysis by introducing Key Performance Indicators (KPI) and Business Operating System (BOS) sheets. The company then implemented the aerospace-specific 21st Century Supply Chain (SC21) initiative as a self-starter in June 2008, and in 2009 it began the migration to Jobshop MRP software. Staff development has also been crucial to effective change, and to this end the company has integrated new responsibilities by introducing team leader roles on the shopfloor not only to improve communication between management and operator, but also to improve internal career aspirations, resulting in an altogether more motivated workforce.

Triple challenges

In the last two years, OTIF (On Time, In Full) performance has increased from 72% to 89% - a figure that Mr Aldridge emphasises is true for every customer, not a select few. As a result of this improved performance, Arrowsmith has not only gained Goodrich as a customer, but the prime is also devoting resources to the company's 5S projects.

“Goodrich's improvement team are some of the best consultants I've ever dealt with,” explains Mr Aldridge. “They're brilliantly motivated and will have achieved the same progress in seven weeks than we could have done on our own in seven months. Having a major customer taking the time to help the business and who cares about what you do is a fabulous motivator for the whole team. I can't stress how important that is.”

This is not the whole story however. 2009 bought three big challenges to the business. There was the ubiquitous reduction in work brought about by the recession and the resource consuming task of reprogramming every component produced at the site for the new MRP system. Then, a day after the system came online in April a fire destroyed its main process house, Abbey Metal Finishing (Amfin). This temporarily reversed much of the progress that had been made with OTIF, which up to that point had reached 97%. It is worth mentioning at this point that Amfin is hoping to resume business with a new facility early in the new year.

Purple patch

Given these challenges, Mr Aldridge is keen to emphasise the aid given not only by the RDAs, but the spirit demonstrated by the manufacturing community in general to raise the profile of businesses in the region in what he describes as a ‘purple patch' of Government assistance.

“In the past 3-4 years there has been a massive investment, especially through Advantage West Midlands (AWM) (which is to be scrapped under the current Government's austerity measures) and the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS), which have been excellent in helping us drive business forward,” he explains.

“MAS in particular has been helping us to upskill our employees as well as awarding grants for software training, processes and capital investment and they have run some brilliant training programmes. We've also put an apprenticeship programme together with Midland Group Training Services which we have one employee going through now.
“There's been a huge amount of progress throughout manufacturing in the Midlands. Work that has moved overseas is coming back now as a direct result. The only thing it hasn't done is bridge the labour costs, but the higher skill levels have worked in our advantage.”

He adds: “In my opinion it would be a travesty to lose this support because it has achieved so much in joining up the companies in the region. AWM managed to gel Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Coventry which as a single unit is a very saleable region. We've started working with other companies and institutions in the area a great deal in the last five years and we've got three excellent technology centres, but you need someone to pull it together.

“For example we've established the Coventry and Warwickshire Aerospace Forum with Coventry City Council, involving 10 main and 15 subsidiary aerospace companies. We're quite appreciative there's a world market to take on and we don't need to be battling each other. It's strength without a doubt and means we can bid for larger work together.”

Survival tactics

Government spending cuts notwithstanding, Mr Aldridge fully believes that contrary to popular belief, UK manufacturing has rarely been in better health in recent times thanks to this additional support with upgrading processes and equipment. “People say Lean manufacturing saves you money,” he concludes, “but in the short-term it costs a lot, not just with consultants and programmes but with downtime. You eventually get the money back but the crucial thing is that it will turn you into a company that will survive. Without an MRP system we couldn't grow. Without KPIs and BOS sheets we couldn't demonstrate control to customers. Without 5S, we can't ultimately reduce our costs.”

The next stage for the company is to fill its new factory space with new machinery, where once fully operational, it will offer 5-axis capability for the first time. It is also expecting to achieve bronze SC21 status next year as its efforts over recent years continue to bear fruit.

Arrowsmith Engineering
www.arrowsmitheng.co.uk