CUSTOM MOLDS INC.

 CASE STUDY 1
 MSC 303.103]
 MAY 21, 2001
 TEAM 2: Kristin Harvin, Jung Lee,
Andrea Price, Kadek Santi
Description
 Established father-son business
 began with focus on molds and later
expanded into the production of plastic
parts
 has traditionally focused on quality,
design of both molds and parts, mass
production as well as customization
 total order numbers have remained the
same, but clients’ needs have shifted
Issues
 Changing strategies within their clients’
businesses changed order needs in an
unexpected way
 total time from order placement to
receipt by customer is much longer than
promised
 more and more products defective
 bottlenecks in production
– can’t predict where, when, why
Analysis
 Many issues are the result of general
inefficiency in several departments
– offices: design conceptualization taking too
long, ideas go back and forth between
engineers and managers and customers
far too much
– mold fabrication: needs have changed;
need to make very small batches of many
different designs, necessitating more runs
on different settings (flexible flow strategy)
Analysis (cont.)
 Parts fabrication (injection, assembly):
needs to make large batches of the
same design, necessitating fewer
(longer) runs on the same settings (line
flow strategy)
 testing: could probably be more efficient
in terms of time spent, and there are too
many defects
 receiving, mixing, and shipping not
apparently a problem; do not account
for much time spent on project
Recommendations:

 In mold fabrication: focus on many,

small-capacity, specialized machines
with more workers to oversee settings
 in parts fabrication (injection, assembly,
cutting & trimming): focus on few, large
capacity specialized machines with
fewer workers, as there are few
settings-changes to oversee
Recommendations (cont.):

 Move testing area to more central

location for more time-efficient
movement of goods back and forth and
increased, easier communication
between testers and office and
manufacturing areas so that problems
that caused defects can be quickly
recognized and fixed.
Recommendations (cont.):

 Office:
– make order placement based on ability to
complete product requested in time
promised (through communication with
other departments)
– coordinate inter-department
communication in design development with
more efficient process (not so much back
and forth); CUT TIME SPENT IN HALF
Recommendations (cont.)

– Form position to study market so that

customers’ needs can be identified and
predicted; use to determine needs of
facility and human resources
– focus on overall efficiency in terms of
process, movement, inter-department
communication
– evaluate effects of proposed changes on
company finances, figuring ROI
Recommendation: Alternative

 Analyze market and decide, based on

the changes in the needs of the market,
whether to focus on parts OR molds
– proceed with applicable recommendations
made previously
Textbook Question 1

 What are the major issues facing Tom

and Mason Miller?
 See slides concerning “Issues”
Textbook Question 2

 Identify the individual processes on a

flow diagram. What are the competitive
priorities for these processes and the
changing nature of the industry?
 See flow diagram for all information
Textbook Question 3
 What alternative might the Millers
pursue? What key factors should they
consider as they evaluate these
alternatives?
 They should consider alternatives as
described in “Recommendations” while
always considering the needs of the
market and the effect the changes will
have on finances, including the ROI