Teal Patents Ltd

A case study in implementing the Productivity and Competitiveness (PAC) Framework

"Overall the PAC activity has had a positive effect on the business. We have adopted the continuous improvement culture, and this is being backed up by the team members. I have noticed more involvement from every member of the team, not just the ones that were working on the PAC activity. Long may it continue' 'Working with the individuals involved in the process was paramount. It was a learning experience by all parties. Seeing that, with a few changes, we could work smarter not harder. " David Cole, Factory Manager

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The Customer

TEAL make and supply a wide range of portable and mobile hot water hand wash units that need NO mains water connection and NO fixed drainage
TEAL International models feature hand washing under hot running water and comprises the CASCADE and TEALwash ranges
TEAL market reach is Global. They have a turnover of £1.4m and employs 13 people.

The Customer's need

TEAL had identified potential for additional sales of its premier product the CASCADE. The volume growth was expected to be 100%. Large volume increases were especially likely due to the war in Iraq and the extensive use of these systems in field hostpitals. Current capacity was hindered by process layout and assembly methodologies. Improvements were required to increase output without the addition or more labour and the improvements were to be applied to other products

The IF Solution

The PAC Framework was developed by IF for SEMTA to demonstrate how a combination of a "Learning by Doing" process intervention, coupled with employees achieving a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) in Business Improvement Techniques could yield sustainable improvements in productivity that could be measured on the bottom-line.
IF convinced the company to buy a PAC activity to achieve the dual benefits of bottom-line improvement, together with the creation of upskilled employees who could use the practical skills acquired during the "Learning by Doing" activity to implement and sustain continuous improvement, and gain NVQ Level 2 qualifications.

The "Learning By Doing" Process, (b), linked to a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) (c)

Return on Stakeholders' Investment

Seven Measures of QCD Competitiveness

People productivity
Before:	0.33 parts/person/hour	After:	0.66 parts/person/hour
Floor Space Utilisation
Before:	£3,017/m2	After:	£6,034/m2
Value Added Per person (per annum)
Before:	£75,000	After:	£150,000
Financial Benefits
Bottom line impact of additional units sold			£160,000 per annum
Upskilling for Sustained Continuous Improvement
Achievement of NVQ Level 2 in Business Improvement Techniques for two members of the team