First year LFMs visit partner companies on 2008 domestic plant trek

By Patty Eames, LFM/SDM Communications Assistant – March 6, 2008

Each January first year fellows in MIT’s Leaders for Manufacturing (LFM) program leave campus to see their classroom learnings out into practice on shop floors of LFM’s partner companies across the nation. Over the course of two weeks in January 2008 the students visited eight different manufacturing sites and met with executive leaders of nine partner companies.

Although most LFMs already have manufacturing experience prior to enrollment, LFM’s domestic plant trek provides every student with an opportunity to compare a variety of manufacturing operations and management styles in action. LFM fellows are assigned to teams and asked to analyze the integration of nine aspects of manufacturing at each company site/plant they visit: global competition and strategy, leadership, customers, society/sustainability, new product information, supply chain, organization, operations, and information metrics/quality. Upon their return, teams present plant analyses and send the partner companies reports that are often used to implement company-wide improvements.

In addition to the trek’s offering of a unique opportunity for students to apply a wealth of program knowledge directly to industry operations, it is also provides LFMers with a dynamic cohort building experience. Through several sponsored dinners and receptions as well as the tours and meetings, LFM partner companies and students have found a great opportunity to network for internship assignments as well as future hiring possibilities. This year’s domestic plant trek was organized by a team of students in the class of 2009: Brian Anstey, Hadas Artzi, Michael Boren, Missy Brost, Aimee Constantine, Juliet Duffy, Sean Fortin, Daniel George, Kanay Gupte, David Larson, and Ryan Lester (chair).

The LFM class of 2009 visited the following partner companies/plants:

Cisco Systems, Inc. and Flextronics International - Austin, TX
The first stop was at a facility jointly owned by two LFM partner companies. Cisco Systems is an international leader for hardware, software, and service offerings that build the framework for Internet networks. Flextronics is a principal provider of Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS) including design, engineering, and manufacturing services across automotive, computing, consumer digital, industrial, infrastructure, medical, and mobile industries. At the plant, managed by Flextronics and building Cisco products, LFM fellows observed the entire design process and production stages for several types of servers and routers, including a brand new product line of a router.

Dell Inc. - Austin, TX
At Dell, best known for its desktop and notebook computers products and services, LFMers visited the Topfer Manufacturing Center—where Dell’s OptiPlex desktop and Precision Workstations are built. They also met with top Dell executive leaders: Founder and current Chairman of the Board, Michael Dell and Dick Hunter, head of Dell’s Customer Experience Initiative.

Amazon.com - Fernley, NV
The next stop on the trek was Amazon.com’s Fernley Fulfillment Center. Located near Reno, Nevada, it is Amazon.com’s largest distribution center on the west coast. LFM 09’s saw the receiving, shelving, pulling, packaging, and shipping of the full spectrum of Amazon.com orders: books, food, toys, electronics, and more. At this facility Amazon.com also handles the stocking of third party goods for its customers—a “marketplace” for the personal sale of goods conducted through their site. The group also met with LFM ’93 alum, Jeff Wilke, Senior Vice-President, Worldwide Operations.

The Boeing Company - Seattle, WA
LFM trekkers visited several different manufacturing sites at The Boeing Company–the world’s largest manufacturers of commercial, business, and military aircrafts combined. Over the course of two days, they saw the Everett Factory, where Boeing’s 747, 777, and 787 aircrafts are built. They also visited Boeing’s Renton 737 Final Assembly Plant, which builds the 737—a high-end aircraft constructed on what has been called the most advanced Lean production assembly line in the world. During the final portion of this stop, the group divided, with one half visiting the F-22 Development Center and the other participating in a Lean engineering workshop simulation of the 737 assembly line. While in Seattle, the LFMs also enjoyed a tour and reception at the Museum of Flight.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. - Milwaukee, WI
During this first-ever plant visit to a Harley-Davidson facility, the group was greeted at company headquarters by two LFM alumni: LFM ’06 Aimee Vessell and LFM ’93 Greg Smith. Ron Hutchinson, Senior Vice President of Product Development, and Jim McCaslin, President and COO, then described the company’s history, values and product development of the five families of motorcycles. LFM students were also given the opportunity to talk to a panel of participants in and the advisor of H-D’s Leadership Development Program – a select group of H-D employees that rotate through self-directed assignments in the company with the goal of gaining cross-company knowledge and moving up through various leadership positions.

LFM Class of 2009 at Harley-Davidson Dealership in Milwaukee, WI View larger image (Photo by Patty Eames)

Next the group visited the Pilgrim Road Powertrain Operations facility, where powertrains (engine and other power generating components) are assembled for two families of the H-D motorcycles. They also had the opportunity to visit Milwaukee’s largest Harley-Davidson dealership, gaining a deeper look into the strong culture and commercial side of H-D motorcycles.

I was lucky enough to join up with the trek for the Milwaukee/Chicago portion of the trip and get a closer look at what went on during at Harley-Davidson and Honeywell. As a member of the LFM staff for just over a year, this experience allowed me to achieve a much deeper understanding of and appreciation for LFM’s academic teachings and the great impact LFM students and alumni have on the manufacturing industry. It was also quite impressive to see the widespread and prideful spirit of the Harley-Davidson culture and the start to finish production processes of life-saving safety products at Honeywell.

Honeywell International Inc. – Saint Charles, IL
The Honeywell site visit was held at a System Sensor facility were smoke detectors and fire alarms are produced—part of Honeywell’s Automation and Control Solutions division. Honeywell also leads world markets in technology and manufacturing for aerospace products and services, automotive products, turbochargers, and specialty materials. During this visit the group met with three alumni: Hans Laudon, LFM ’96, Ben Lathrop, LFM ’06, and Sabrina Chang, LFM ’07. They also spoke at length with Karl Odegaard, Director of Operations at the Saint Charles, IL plant, about the site’s Lean implementations.

In addition to the usual formal manufacturing site tour, LFMers also had the opportunity to walk freely around the plant floor. This enabled them to get a closer look at the equipment, floor layout, machinery ergonomics, and displayed metrics of performance as well as the chance to speak directly with plant operators about their experience with the company and the mechanics of their work.

North American International Auto Show, Detroit, MI
A yearly tradition to the domestic plant trek, the LFM class of 2009 got a close up look at the newest developments in the automotive industry at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

General Motors Corporation - Detroit, MI
General Motors is the largest automotive manufacturer in the world, with 12 different vehicle brands. At its Lansing Delta Township (LDT) Assembly Center, the company’s newest plant in the U.S., LFMers saw three different styles of GM automobiles being built: the GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook, and Buick Enclave. The LDT plant was especially interesting for the class to visit because it is the largest facility in the world, as well as the only automotive plant, to receive a gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Students were impressed by the environmentally friendly use of filtered rainwater for sanitary facilities, efficient use of lights that were kept on only when needed, exceptional ergonomics of machinery for operators, and carefully planned assembly line that allows for continuous movement of received parts through assembly and shipping of the final product.

American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc. - Detroit, MI
The final stop was a half-day visit to the global headquarters of American Axle & Manufacturing (AAM), an international supplier of driveline, drivetrain and chassis systems. Here the trekkers also saw one of the company’s oldest plants, one that has also gone through many transformations to incorporate Lean manufacturing. At this site, AAM constructs axle components and assembles front-wheel drive trucks.