Vifian Möbelwerkstätten AG has been producing high quality and design-oriented office and home furniture in Schwarzenburg, Switzerland for more than 100 years. In addition to the product portfolio, the company also specializes in sophisticated interior design projects. Their main two focuses are customer orientation and the quality of their products.
the company EKG (SCHULER's company health check-up consulting service) from SCHULER Consulting GmbH convinced Hannes Vifian (fourth generation management of Vifian Möbelwerkstätten AG) right from the start: "It is amazing how quickly SCHULER Consulting has recognized our production and presented us with suggestions for improvement."
In a very short time, he received a neutral view from outside of his company. He was shown the current strengths and weaknesses and was presented with constructive measures for improvement. The entire project was time sensitive, financially manageable, and extremely efficient.
Goal
"The aim of the company EKG is to present strengths, weaknesses, possibilities and new impulses of the company to the management within 2-3 days," explains Stephan Zürcher, responsible consultant for Switzerland at SCHULER Consulting.
The goal is to shed light on the processes, material and information flows with an open, clear and unbiased perspective. With this view, the management receives the important information needed to develop the company in the long term.
Analysis Range
The SCHULER Company EKG focuses on the following areas: Production: What is the relative effectiveness of machines and workplaces? Logistics: Are materials and auxiliaries in the right place at the right time? The organization: Is the information and data flow seamlessly running from order entry to shipping? Products: Are the design principles for effective manufacturing in place? Finances: How does the company perform and how does it compare with the industry?
Procedure
For the company EKG there are always two experienced employees of SCHULER on site to ensure the customer receives a broad range of ideas and suggested improvements. SCHULER firmly believes that openness and transparency are a prerequisite for good cooperation, which is why all employees in the company are informed of the procedure in advance.
SCHULER begins the analysis with a detailed interview with the management to determine the objectives for the analysis and possible opportunities for the company. During the interview, the management sets the key priorities for the analysis. The schedule will be discussed and the dates for the interviews with the key stakeholders will be planned. Finally, a detailed tour of the operation is presented with the mutual introduction of all interviewees.
In the next step, the production will be analyzed from the order entry to the shipment of the goods. In doing so, attention is paid to both the big and small connections. The employees are interviewed accordingly, and the material and data flows are recorded.
Presentation
Many of the conversations, notes, pictures and impressions are summarized in a detailed presentation, which will be presented on the last day of the project. With the versatile experience from a wide range of companies, the presentation is supplemented with strengths, weaknesses, an independent evaluation and measures for direct implementation. Subsequently, the results are presented to all those responsible and discussed together.
"The consultants from SCHULER Consulting have presented us, with their great experience, constructive and pragmatic solutions, which we now have implemented. I appreciate the open and direct approach of the consultants. We can request specific support where we need it,” said Hannes Vifian of his experience with the SCHULER team.
In this consultation, the cost transparency was important to me. The offers from SCHULER were detailed and clear; I was able to estimate very well before the start of the project which services I would get for the manageable budget."
Once the suggested improvements were agreed upon, the optimization project was immediately put into effect. These improvements will eliminate bottlenecks in production and thus significantly increase production capacities. In the coming months, additional projects of varying size will follow.
With the company EKG companies receive the following data and information:
- independent perspective from outside of the company
- Strengths and weaknesses based on experience and benchmarks
- Suggestions for improvement and constructive next steps
- Detailed presentation and discussion basis for internal communication
The company EKG is the ground basis for decision-making for the long-term planning of your company.
