Our client had two plants producing pickles. In peak season, the plants are running at full capacity. In the off season, the plants run under capacity. IET measured changeover, productivity and sanitation losses in the plant to get a picture of true current capacity and how much improvement could be gained. With this data, capacity models were built using historical product mixes and future product mixes. The true capacity of each line was calculated. The goal was to consolidate the smaller plant into the larger plant without adding extensive capital improvements.

To accomplish this, alternative crewing schedules during peak season were created. The alternative crewing schedules relied on 24 hours per day, seven days per week operation while minimizing overtime. Another large factor of the consolidation was creatively sourcing produce to extend the peak season. Logistics was also a challenge. Dock and trailer storage capacity was a constraint. Creative solutions were developed to store empty and full trailers at on site and off site locations.