Gretna Machine Shop Reduces Order Processing Lead Time by 67%

Gretna Machine Shop is an ISO-certified, women- and minority-owned lean manufacturing facility located in the heart of Houston’s industrial corridor. Since 1980, Gretna has offered its customers outstanding service and quality work in precision components for the oil and gas industry and beyond. With the capability to serve the energy, aerospace, automotive and government sectors, Gretna prides itself on being the machine shop of choice for a number of multinational and Fortune 500 companies.

Gretna Machine Shop was experiencing excessive lead times in their order processing. The situation caused disruptions in the planning, scheduling and disposition of orders. This caused management to seek out a solution that would streamline the process while shortening the time from proposal review to actual production that ultimately reduced customer product lead time.

Early in 2018, Gretna’s management team reached out to TMAC TEEX. With coaching from TMAC field staff, Gretna began their lean journey. They initiated efforts by first learning how to continuously improve then adopted Toyota Kata and began practicing it in their daily operations. Later that year, with coaching from TMAC, management started learning about and employing the principles of a lean management system. They began with visual management techniques, leader standard work, and daily accountability. TMAC taught company management how to develop an office value stream map to analyze the current state of their administrative processes. They also developed a future map that helped them prioritize where improvements should be made. Soon after using value stream analysis, TMAC field staff provided a lean office training for administrative personnel. Management felt that associates within the ranks of administrative work should have the opportunity to learn and understand the tenets of lean thinking.