Lean Packaging
How do you begin to cut waste in a process?
What makes it run more efficiently?
The Greater Knead
To begin to answer these questions, we must first understand the process itself. We start by filming the process in full, start to finish from raw material coming into the process to finished good going out. Once we have the process on tape, we can complete a time bucket analysis to breakout different process steps and their associated outcomes. This allows us to evaluate which process steps are value added and which are directly considered waste. It also allows us to understand where the bulk of the process is allocated, and how we can improve upon that bulk as well to cut time and save money. Below are some examples of before and after analyses of a bagel packaging fixture developed for The Greater Knead bakery.
Zsa’s Ice Cream
Part of improving upon the bulk of the process also leads to machine design. One such example is our ice cream packaging solution for Zsa’s Ice Cream. After analyzing their process, we identified the bulk of the process being opening and sealing the bags for packaging. For this we developed an operator assisted machine which would open the bags for the operator, provide an easy to use guide into the bag, and a setup that would allow for quick heat sealing of the bags with the ice cream sandwich safely inside. This eliminated operator involvement in opening and sealing the bags which cut waste in their process but also improved the quality of the seal for their tasty ice cream sandwiches.
Boxing
We can do packaging design too! For Zsa’s we also designed some nice looking cardboard boxes showcasing their delightful treats – check it out below.
