In the heart of the automotive industry, ELDOR Automotive Powertrain stands out not just for its global footprint, spanning from the U.S. to China, but also for its innovation in operational efficiency and strategy. We had the pleasure of hosting Jacob King, Organization and Development Supervisor, for a customer spotlight discussing ELDOR’s operational excellence.
Watch the full recording here!
Specializing in the manufacture of several types of ignition coils for varying brands (including Ferrari!), ELDOR faced substantial challenges in managing countless amounts of data across multiple plants and departments. The Organization Systems Development team sought out a tool to manage plant operations for process improvement purposes.
Previously, the company struggled with a cumbersome mix of PowerPoint and Excel to collect vast amounts of data and display it in a visually appealing way. This approach was time-consuming and often resulted in a “hodge podge” of numbers and images, requiring extensive labor to compile.
It took an absurd amount of time to create what we would review for 30 minutes to an hour on a weekly basis.
According to King, the automotive industry must be extremely budget-oriented, as organizations can lose “a million dollars a day of downtime.” Recognizing the inefficiency, ELDOR conducted a time study, interviewing individuals in each department to collect the total time spent on reporting. The results? Spending $120,000 per year in labor time.
King, who previously used ClearPoint Strategy at Carilion Clinic, brought the software to ELDOR. With ClearPoint automation, the organization saves over 80% of that cost, now spending only $15,000 - $20,000 per year on reporting. Furthermore, the money saved can then be reinvested, implemented somewhere else on the line. This results in a multiplier effect:
For example, to save $X, ELDOR would normally have to put a machine down for an allotted amount of time. However, the newfound savings can now be allocated to that machine to reduce its downtime. Considering the initial savings – plus the extra production – you’re looking at an exponential amount of productivity gains.
Every second counts within the automotive world. If you can see it right then and there, to make an adjustment moving forward, that alone can save you thousands of dollars.
The introduction of ClearPoint Strategy initiated a transformation. The smart platform allowed ELDOR to centralize and streamline their reporting processes for its array of key performance indicators across HR, Environmental Health and Safety (EHS), Plastics, Assembly, and Quality departments.
King shares a look at ELDORs ClearPoint account – take a look! (14:47)
ELDOR operates on a 7S Model – even more clean than traditional 5S standards. Reporting cadences occur weekly, on Wednesdays and Thursdays, for Operational departments, and monthly for overall Strategy. The Plant scorecard hosts Finance and Culture data, then branches off into individual departments.
Assembly and Plastics track KPIs such as:
- Quality
- Production Efficiency
- Logistics
- EHS
- Labor Time/Overtime
- Scrap Rate
To assess whether metrics are within or out of tolerance.
ClearPoint makes it easy to pull machine data from Smart Factory, which supervisors then review for quality assurance (for instances out of ELDOR’s control, like defects) on a weekly basis. Monthly plant-wide reports are reported out to everyone to view outcomes and determine what ELDOR can do to, in King’s words, “move together as one.”
Each department is equipped with its own scorecard in ClearPoint, ensuring that data is transparent and accessible to all. This shift was crucial for maintaining an operational plan that stays aligned with the overall strategy. King even has future plans to install monitors throughout the plant displaying dashboards that make performance data part of daily conversation.
As processes are now run automatically, ELDOR is growing. The for-profit hopes to expand ClearPoint Strategy to its other plants, starting in Brazil and Turkey, and eventually go global. With ClearPoint, ELDOR prides itself on its seamless integration of strategic initiatives that drive continuous improvement.
Every plant is going to have the potential to grow within, once it has ClearPoint.
Eager to see similar results? Talk with one of our strategy experts to combine strategic foresight and technology for a measurable impact.