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For this pharmaceutical plant, achieving Six Sigma required finding the right mapping and diagramming tool.
It is no secret that achieving the goals of Six Sigma creates opportunities to retain customers, capture new markets and build a reputation for world-class products and services. For one of Allergen's manufacturing plants (Waco, TX), reaching these goals went beyond achieving breakthroughs in every area of its operation; to accelerate Six Sigma deployment while reducing costs, the Waco plant's quality leaders needed to find the right visual tool for mapping various Six Sigma and lean processes already in place.
Allergan, a global specialty pharmaceutical company, has more than 5.000 employees, 33 commercial locations, four research and development facilities, and three manufacturing plants. The Waco plant has been pioneering Six Sigma and lean manufacturing initiatives on behalf of company operations worldwide.
"Since we started these programs, we've become sort of the kernel on which Allergan's Six Sigma program was built," says Brent DeMoville. director of human resources at Allergan's Waco plant. "Now it's moving into our facilities in Brazil, Ireland and the United States."
DeMoville previously worked at Johnson & Johnson, one of the first healthcare companies to begin deploying Six Sigma. With Allergan, DeMoville now is responsible for overseeing the Waco plant's Continuous Improvement Group, which leads the charge for Six Sigma deployment.
"Like many companies that employ Six Sigma, we were looking to improve customer service and our cost structure," DeMoville says. "The Continuous Improvement Group was created to facilitate these changes."
Jesse Urteaga, Allergan's continuous improvement group manager, has eight years of experience in lean manufacturing and Six Sigma. "We were looking for a method to add muscle in creating change quickly and effectively," Urteaga says. "We were interested in the structured approach of Six Sigma along with the quick implementation of lean, so we decided to combine the two."
SOFTWARE SOLUTION
As part of the Continuous Improvement Group's methodology, Urteaga and Training Manager and Six Sigma Greenbelt Amy Kilgo focus on converting and streamlining positions that are inefficient. They also focus on developing positions that enhance the bottom line.
"We do a scan of the environment to see what improvement activities we can focus on," Kilgo says. "We work as facilitators with departments that need...