MAGNET Assists Dura-Line Growth Through Factory and Warehouse Kaizens

Dura-Line, a leading global manufacturer and distributor, is transforming the structure of communication. Technology, data, and constant communication are more intertwined with our daily lives than ever before in human history. Dura-Line provides the essential infrastructure – conduit, FuturePath, cable-in-conduit, and accessories – to make this possible. Through our innovative product solutions and unparalleled customer insight, Dura-Line creates what connects us, serving a wide variety of markets including telecommunications, enterprise networking, energy, and transportation.

Dura-Line was moving to a new facility and wanted to take advantage of lean principles. Current distribution layout and coupler layout were inefficient. Wastes included motion, transportation and others. The plant manager engaged MAGNET, part of the Ohio MEP and the MEP National Network™, to challenge current staff, including supervisors, to eliminate waste.

A series of Kaizen events led to improved layouts for the warehouse and coupler assembly. The key wastes removed were transportation and motion. The warehouse layout consolidated items into an efficient picking operation with the use of Kanban to trigger replenishment. The coupler layout used the same approach and eliminated transportation and motion waste while implementing Kanban principles to feed product through the coupler assembly process.