One of the client’s facilities had more than 150 lift truck drivers supporting production operations. The unionized plant was very large and many drivers traveled long distances, making it difficult for supervisors to know what drivers really did on their delivery routes. ACH management needed to boost indirect labor productivity and the material handling function was a prime candidate for improvement.

IET recognized that work measurement could provide the facts to support a decision. Their engineers performed fixed interval work sampling studies on approximately 75 material handlers from day and afternoon shifts. These people worked on three different Shipping/Receiving docks and 40 assembly lines throughout the plant. Using ProPlanner® simulation software, IET validated their labor utilization results and determined material handling routes that minimized non-value added lift truck travel time. IET was able to eliminate 21 positions by improving the true productivity of the material handling function.