Problem

Allegheny Industrial Associates was asked to perform a load securement audit for a major US paper manufacturer. The mill was looking for additional cost reduction opportunities when loading railcars. They previously had their own employees conduct an analysis but found little in the way of savings. Management was convinced their people were coming at the problem with the same approach they had been using for several years and were not looking “outside the box.”

They called-in Allegheny for assistance, knowing we would attack the situation with an objective and fresh perspective.

Solution

An Allegheny representative spent a full day in the mill watching rail car and container loading, analyzing patterns, reviewing current load securement products and discussing problems with multiple departments including quality, logistics and purchasing. Additionally, impact recorders were utilized to monitor in-transit loads.

Following the audit, Allegheny presented a series of recommendations including procedural changes, new loading patterns, and the adoption of several different products to both improve efficiency and eliminate costs:

• Realigning loading patterns and change doorway strapping procedures to reduce door-banding labor time by 20 minutes.
• Implement new loading patterns to reduce claims for roll edge damage by 20% and crushed cores by 15%.
• Utilize different load securement products to reduce expenditures by $8,000 per month.

Following the presentation, management of the paper company requested that Allegheny present these recommendations to their other mills and perform mini-audits to identify additional efficiency improvements.