Q-C manufacturers to exchange best practices at Lean Manufacturing Workshop

Press release submitted by Quad Cities Chamber

(Quad Cities) – Quad Cities area manufacturers will learn best practices in implementing lean manufacturing principals during a workshop called Go Lean to Compete on Wednesday, January 20 being held from 10:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. at the John Deere Davenport Works facility, 1175 E. 90th St., Davenport. The event is being hosted in partnership with the Quad Cities Chamber, Iowa Lean Consortium, Iowa State Center for Industrial Research and Services (CIRAS) and the Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center (IMEC). A tour of John Deere Davenport Works will take place immediately following the event.

Lean manufacturing is a systematic and collaborative process to streamline operations by eliminating waste in the areas of time, inventory, motion, waiting, over production, over processing, defects, and skills. Manufacturers apply the lean method to their processes to develop better products and improve cost competitiveness.

The event will feature a panel discussion followed by a question and answer session and roundtable discussion. The panelists are: Terry Durbin, Safety Manager, Winegard; Eric Funk, Lean Operations Manager, 3M; Lance Garner, Manufacturing Supervisor/Safety Manager, R.A. Jones; and Al Landwehr, Director of Operations, The Schebler Company.

Panelists will address issues including how to embed lean processes into everyday activities, how to sustain and grow a lean culture, training and staffing, and how to predict and overcome obstacles in implementing lean.

“The goals of the Quad Cities Manufacturing Innovation Hub are to help regional manufacturers grow, diversify, and stay competitive amid changing technologies,” says Curt Burnett, Executive Director of the Quad Cities Manufacturing Innovation Hub. “Hosting educational opportunities like this is just one of the ways we are serving area manufacturers as they evaluate and seek to implement new technologies and processes.”

The Quad Cities Manufacturing Innovation Hub is a program of the Quad Cities Chamber. The cost to attend the event is $25 and includes lunch