How can technology track, predict and improve organisational productivity?

Client: 

The Texmo Group

Timeline: 

4 Months

Align With Leaders

Most factories use algorithms to predict how productive they will be on any given day. But the reality is that all sorts of factors impact on output, and it’s very hard for managers to understand the gap between what the computers say the factory will produce, and what is actually produced. 

The leaders of the Texmo Group, one of the world leading manufacturers of precision castings, had become frustrated with this unpredictability. They wanted to understand what was happening on their factory floors, and help employees meet their targets. 

When we dug into the problem, we discovered that making sense of a complex and fast-paced manufacturing environment is easier said than done. There are lots of reasons why production might slow down, and it wasn’t always clear how one department’s work impacted on another’s. We needed to create a more holistic view of Texmo’s factories, to join the dots between the different data points. 

Become The People

At the heart of this project was a delicate balancing act. Texmo’s leaders wanted to boost productivity and help employees and managers understand when they were meeting targets, and when they had fallen behind. But they were also very mindful of their responsibilities, as an employer that respects their workforce and sets realistic expectations. 

So the challenge was to empower employees with this information, without making them feel overly pressured. 

Working with our in-house behavioural scientist, we spent a lot of time exploring how the way we presented the data would affect the way it was received on the factory floor. That meant thinking very hard about the words, colours and graphics we used, to strike the right tone. 

It also meant speaking with workers directly, to understand some of the roadblocks they come up against in their work, and helping them share the most relevant information in the most efficient way. 

Create New Solutions

The Digital Factory was an app pre-loaded onto tablets that connect workers to their workstation at the start of every shift. It shows clearly how much work they are expected to do, and provides a real-time picture of their progress against targets. 

But it also empowers every worker to delay a specific job if they can’t complete it, share their reasons for these decisions, and explain why products might be rejected, giving managers clarity and insight into what’s happening minute-by-minute in the factory.    

By using softer colours and thoughtful language, we positioned the app as an ally helping workers meet their goals, rather than a management device keeping tabs on employees for the wrong reasons. 

Deliver Sustainable Change

As often happens with clients who become long-term collaborators, this project led to several similar conversations, about applying the same core principles to other areas of the business that required digitising. 

Texmo’s leaders asked if we could develop a task-management system for desk-based workers, so they too could oversee and prioritise their day-to-day work. 

We took a similar approach to this project, designing software that was simple to use and added immediate value to both managers and their teams, with an interface that mirrored the kind of company Texmo wants to be.  

Contact Us

If you’re curious how we could collaborate, we’re ready to talk: [email protected]

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