Continuous Improvement (CI) Services
Build a strong link between your CI processes and new technologies
Do you want to learn how CI such as Lean Six Sigma can be implemented in your organisation? Thinking about integrating new technologies into your processes?
How we can help
Improve your company’s knowledge, skills and behaviour
With the right training and a change management approach, you’ll improve your employees’ knowledge, skills and behaviours towards Continuous Improvement. To help you achieve this, PwC’s established a strategic partnership with MoreSteam, the world’s leading company in Lean Six Sigma e-learning.
Improve your company’s processes and tools
With our experience in a wide variety of projects, we can design and implement tailored processes. With the right tools, these will enable your company to continuously improve. We teach you not only to use specific tools, but the methodology of solving complex business problems and improving your company’s performance.
Build a strong Continuous Improvement structure and governance
Together, we’ll ensure that clear governance rules are set within your company, so that the roles and responsibilities at all levels are supporting each stage of the Continuous Improvement programme.
What’s Continuous Improvement (CI)?
No two companies are alike, but many of the challenges they face are similar: increasing costs, declining revenue, cash flow issues, employee turnover, customer complaints, market share decrease, etc. All of these issues can be successfully addressed with CI methodology.
Maturity of existing processes and readiness for change should be considered, among many other factors, in the decision of where and how to apply CI.
You can learn more about Industry 4.0 by visiting our Experience Centre
Maturity levels
We will tailor our service offering to the maturity level of your organisation. You can take the test to assess your current situation, or see a general overview below.
Excellent performer
Your performance is continuously improving
All your employees, from the shop floor to top management, have a very strong knowledge of CI
CI is part of your culture and is a clear pillar within your strategic goals
You’re fully in control of all the parameters that may affect your performance, which enables you to foresee and prevent problems
Your employees’ innovative ideas enable you to improve faster than your competitors
Your database and knowledge management system is robust and complete
Incremental performer
Your performance continues to improve, but you don’t leverage the full potential of your employees’ ideas
A large portion of your employees has a good knowledge in CI
CI is growing in importance within the company. It’s becoming part of your corporate culture due to initiatives by top management
Problems encountered in the company are solved quickly and efficiently
You sometimes fail to foresee problems and would like to improve in that area
You have a strong knowledge management system that enables you to quickly analyse the problems you encounter
Stable performer
Average performance, remains on the same level over time
Regular peaks and downfalls in performance are experienced
There’s basic knowledge of Continuous Improvement (CI) within your organisation
CI isn’t embedded in your company culture
Problems are being resolved in an unstructured and unstandardised way
Coping performer
You lack a long-term vision on performance, as you’re too busy fighting various day-to-day problems
CI is a concept that is unknown to most of your employees
You don’t have a clear view on all the problems that arise within the organisation, or on how these are solved
You’re unaware of the parameters that may affect your performance and how you can identify and control them
There’s no standard way of working, or standard procedure for problem solving
Employees aren’t involved in improvement programmes
Cases and testimonials
Examples of results in factory projects (bottom up)
| Baseline | Improvement (%) | Achieved value | |
| Output production | 38 tons/shift |
31% | 50 t/sh |
| Scrap reduction | 2.5% | 75% | 0.5% |
| Overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) increase | 60% | 30% | 82% |
| Lead time reduction | 15 weeks | 66% | 5 w |
| Scrap reduction | 4% | 50% | 2% |
| Inventory reduction | 24m euros | 42% | 14m euros |
| Technical failures | 1,800 hours | 86% | 250 hours |
| Production output | 30 tons/shift | 27% | 38 t/sh |
Example of results of an implemented programme (top down)
| Baseline | Improvement (%) | Achieved value | |
| Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) improvement | 1.5% | 400% | 6% |
| Programme savings | 20m euros / 200m euros |
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| Programme payback after one-year implementation | ~1-4 months | ||
Barry Callebaut
Development of a global Continuous Improvement programme and culture
The Barry Callebaut and PwC collaboration started by assessing various situations in the plants before building a new vision and roadmap. PwC supported it by launching a successful pilot in one of the plants. Finally, Barry Callebaut implemented the full programme and culture globally. This has enabled it to achieve significant savings and ensured continuity for future improvements.
Abriso
Visual management implementation
PwC helped Abriso improve communication between the operators and production, as well as knowledge sharing and involvement from management with regards to operators’ daily activities. These objectives were successfully achieved with the implementation of 24-hour boards and a Gemba Walk in the plant.
Bayer
Bart Smits, Global Head of Quality Assurance
“With its deep knowledge and experience in operational excellence, PwC supported us in bringing structure and transparency to our operational improvements.Together, we built a vision and a roadmap, and we’re putting all the building blocks in place to make this is a sustainable effort. One of the key success factors is PwC’s ability to connect to our culture and people, creating engagement at all levels of our organisation.”
Abbvie
Axel Schaaf, Director of Strategic Programmes & TPM Management
“In five months Abbvie, together with PwC, identified its main manufacturing-related gaps and translated them into a portfolio of initiatives to implement. The project required PMO support for some initiatives and full implementation of the lean methodology for others (SMED, KAIZEN...)”
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