CLEVELAND Feb. 6, 2020 TestOil, one of the leading oil sample testing labs, credits its rapid growth and outstanding reputation to its disciplined Lean strategy initiative.
The Lean methodology, about continuously improving work processes, purposes and people, is based on three principles:
1. Deliver value from the customers’ perspective.
2. Eliminate anything that doesn’t add value to the offering.
3. Strive for continuous improvement.
TestOil applies Lean to both
business and production processes.
President Mary Messuti made the
Lean initiative a priority at TestOil. “One of TestOil’s core values is
continuous improvement and learning,” she said. “It has always been in our
culture.”
Jill Furgason is TestOil’s
Director of Shared Services and Lean Initiatives. “People righty expect
everything to be delivered immediately, accurately and at the lowest price,”
she said. “So one of the processes we took a look at was how we could quickly
and accurately get reports to our customers.”
Furgason added that, as
far as she knows, TestOil is the only oil analysis lab in the area that
incorporates Lean.
One of TestOil’s initiatives was instituting Lean’s OEE (overall equipment
effectiveness)--to ensure that machines continuously perform at a Best Practice
level and that the availability of equipment is consistent with customer needs.
To that end, TestOil created an OEE dashboard for six of their most frequently
run tests.
“Based on what we learned,
we have been able to design experiments to identify the most frequently
occurring issues that have the most impact,” Furgason said. “We wanted to make
everything visible so that we could address any outliers quickly.”
Lean encourages
participants to share with one another. Because TestOil is part of a Lean
consortium through AME (Association for Manufacturing Excellence), they share
with the Lean community. TestOil is willing to share the intellectual concept
of the OEE dashboard they developed in house with other organizations.
“Lean has allowed us to
scale easily,” Furgason said. “As we evaluate new test offerings, Lean gives us
a systematic approach to investigate new methods and how to quickly get them to
market. We are continuously identifying and working on the areas that will
provide the most value to our customers.”
Messuti, Furgason, and
TestOil’s Lab Manager, Riley Johns are Lean/Six Sigma Certified. All three are
actively working on Black Belt certification.
“I would definitely
encourage other companies to adopt a Lean strategy,” Messuti said. “It’s a
daily reality check that is empowering. This drive to improve and experiment
creates an energy in our culture that keeps us on the leading edge.”
With more than 30 years of
experience in the oil analysis industry, TestOil focuses exclusively on
assisting industrial facilities with reducing maintenance costs and avoiding
unexpected downtime through oil analysis program implementation. As industry
experts in diagnosing oil-related issues in equipment such as turbines,
hydraulics, gearboxes, pumps, compressors and diesel generators, TestOil
provides customers with a guarantee of same-day turnaround on all routine
testing. With in-house certified training professionals, TestOil offers
lubrication and oil analysis training, private onsite training, certification
training and exams, and educational webinars. For more information on
partnering with TestOil on oil analysis programs or training opportunities
visit www.testoil.com.
