MONUMENTAL ROI DRIVES THIS LOCAL NEW JERSEY MANUFACTURING BUSINESS FORWARD

BACKGROUND

Andrew Grossman Upholstery (State Legislative District: 11; Congressional District: 6) started out in a 1,500 square foot facility in Belmar, New Jersey. Andrew Grossman had his sights set on growing the business, particularly here in New Jersey. To achieve this goal, leadership insisted on exploring the latest technologies while constantly looking for new ways to reduce waste and improve production. Expanding his business beyond upholstery to include fabrication allowed Andrew Grossman Upholstery to reach new markets and achieve continuous growth. Now they reside in a 20,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Asbury Park, NJ, and are one of the top-producing custom fabricators in the country.

All this growth is good for business but tends to create growing pains along the way.

CHALLENGE

COVID-19 presented a slew of challenges for every business owner. Every manufacturer in New Jersey was considered essential and allowed to remain open. Manufacturers being essential presented a different kind of challenge when compared to other businesses. Social distancing guidelines and COVID safety precautions put new pressure on production lines. Manufacturers need to do more with fewer people. With such an uncertain business environment, manufacturers needed to keep a closer eye on waste and efficiently to keep costs as low and competitive as possible.

Andrew Grossman has plans to explore continuous improvements before COVID-19 to maintain a productive and efficient businesses. When COVID-19 struck, they were already in the process of partnering with NJMEP on a Lean program. This put the company in a position to get out in front of the disruptions caused by the pandemic using Lean manufacturing strategies

SOLUTION

NJMEP received funds from the CARES ACT to create programs to support the recovery of local manufacturers. These funds were used to create a suite of services known as the ‘Tri50’ programs. One of those programs is the Lean ‘Tri50’ program which Andrew Grossman Upholstery was able to utilize.

NJMEP worked together with the client to identify a suite of training and consulting services that will help Andrew Grossman Upholstery do more with less and help encourage continued growth. A total of 20-hours was provided to the client at no-cost thanks to the ‘Tri50’ programs use of CARES ACT funds. Andrew Grossman Upholstery invested in their future by covering the remaining project costs on their own.

Andrew Grossman Upholstery worked with NJMEP in the following areas…

• Into to Lean Manufacturing Training – Discussing the current business environment and how Lean fits into a post-COVID environment. Training manufacturers on how to become more efficient with less space and fewer people.
• Value Stream Mapping – Evaluating every step in the production process from beginning to end. In a COVID and Post-COVID environment, it becomes more important to have a thorough understanding of a business’s value-add vs non-value-add processes.
• 5S Training – Providing the guidance and skills to maintain an organized and clean work environment to promote positive health and a productive culture.
• Total Productive Maintenance – Reviewing the best practices for keeping equipment in its optimal working state to maintain schedules and a high level of productivity.
• Quick Changeover – Training to help an organization improve the velocity of a piece of manufacturing equipment so that they can produce more from a single piece of equipment with a limited workforce. In response to COVID workforce constraints, the goal of this training is to increase productivity to reduce the number of machines required which reduces the number of employees required, while still meeting demand.

RESULTS

Andrew Grossman is thrilled with the improvements he’s seen by taking advantage of the NJMEP Lean Manufacturing Tri50 program. They have implemented numerous changes that leadership is committed to maintaining and instilling throughout their company culture. Andrew Grossman Upholstery gained an incredible amount of value from their partnership with NJMEP and their participation in the Lean Tri50 program. The company benefits immediately in the short term and leadership’s commitment to continuous improvement will provide countless long-term benefits.

In this statement submitted by Mr. Grossman, it is clear that the provided training and consulting highlighted the importance of not just Lean production practices but also complimentary Lean improvements that can be made throughout the facility to solidify the ROI. Andrew shared, “We added lighting to the facility. We cleaned out all the junk. We closed all the open doors of the cabinetry by adding doors to keep clean and organized. Created shadow boxes or black lines for brooms and dustpans. We created a path for traffic flow that is maintained clear. We cleared out clutter from drawers. Most importantly we changed our company culture and are all Kaizen working to improve everything.”

Andrew Grossman Upholstery Reported the Following Impact:

• RETAINED JOBS: 11
• INCREASED SALES: TBD
• RETAINED SALES: TBD
• EMPLOYEE CREATION: 2
• EMPLOYEES RETAINED: 9
• COST SAVINGS: $40,000*

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