TRAINING COURSE SEES COMPANY REFLECT ON THE FUTURE

Sunderland glass factory, Newells is shattering barriers by sending all its supervisory staff on an intensive training course to learn the art of lean manufacturing.

Managers, supervisors and team leaders from the Wear Glass Works site on Leopold Street are taking part in an innovative course based in Northumberland that sees them wade through swamps all in the name of improving British manufacturing industry’s competitive edge.

The manufacturer that has Pyrex glassware for the last 90 years has turned to Northeast consultants Forward Vision to help them develop their Wearside operation in line with the latest lean manufacturing principles.

The bespoke training course begins at Fulbeck Grange in Morpeth, and comprises of activities including team-building exercises such as crossing swamps and night-time orienteering to demonstrate the fundamentals of effective management on the factory floor.

The Pyrex factory site has employed people on Wearside for decades and in 1994 it was bought by Newell Rubbermaid International group, which employs 50,500 people worldwide. A new management team was introduced two years ago. The training initiative comes after many operational and production changes to the plant to create a leaner manufacturing outfit, and is designed to help everyone understand the company’s vision and competitive strategy.

Heading up the course is Forward Vision director, Ed Handyside who was formerly responsible for management training at Nissan. He said: “This course is not just about bonding at days out in swampy marshland, but is an intensive training mission designed to help Newells achieve international competitive performance.”

Many of Forward Vision’s courses are backed by the Institute for Leadership and Management, including its new Diploma in Manufacturing Management that is a first for the industry.

Handyside further states: “This away course is aimed at getting the basic techniques of effective management across, and at bringing the Newells employees together to connect with each other. The key to making any change to a company’s operations is firstly good communication, and you have to be able to communicate with your colleagues when you are knee deep in mud and sinking!

“Our courses are developed in response to demand from companies who wanted access to high quality practical industry-certified training for managers and supervisors. Production management is the key weakness of British industry, command of process disciplines and operational detail must be radically improved out in our factories where products are made. Until a critical mass of our people in industry are practically familiar with what is required, we will never close the productivity gap between ourselves and other developed countries. This type of course is learning that really does deliver a payback.”

As well as time at Fulbeck, the bespoke course for Newells uses a mixture of formal tutorials, discussion groups and team exercises, which are combined with the opportunity to assess situations, diagnose problems and identify and implement improvements. Newells will be taking the initiative to rest of the factory floor staff in the next twelve months.

Steve Nesbitt, plant manager at Newells, said: ”This project is making a fundamental difference to the plant – our staff now share the company’s vision in wanting to be around in another hundred years’ time. They are gaining an understanding of the role of every person at the plant in its overall success, and are all talking the same language – there has been a huge shift in attitude and willingness to embrace changes. Even after-hours at the residential course they chose to talk with each other about work instead of football, so the training has really fired everyone up!”

Forward Vision provides specialist consultancy and training to a wide range of manufacturing companies in the UK and abroad, including United Biscuits and Mercedes. The company was set up in 1991, when its founder, Ed Handyside, spotted a gap in the market for professional, industry-specific training and consultancy. The company employs 6 full time consultants from its offices in Morpeth.