Lean Manufacturing...and less boring things

I was talking with a friend earlier this week about how things are ramping up quickly at Chapelwood. I told her that I am finding ways to get things moving through the shop more efficiently. And she asked me a really great question.

Can you get more done if you make a lot of something at one time?

The answer might surprise you. It is no.

I’ll give you the boring manufacturing reason. I’ll keep it short. And then I’ll give you the more important reason.

I’ve been in manufacturing for a couple of decades and am a big fan of something called Lean Manufacturing. One of the key components of this manufacturing philosophy is working with the smallest lot size you can…if possible getting to a level of what’s called one-piece flow. That goes against a lot of what you might assume when it comes to efficiency. There is quite a bit of thinking, planning and setup that goes into making it work, but when you get it right, it’s pretty magical.

So…unless you are a manufacturing geek, you are probably stifling your third yawn right about now.

Here’s the important and interesting reason.

When you make multiple pieces of something, it is easy to get numb. It’s just chunks of wood that are run through a machine or shaped, or glued. If I’m cutting pieces for 30 gift boxes, then it’s just wood and sawdust.

But if I set up to efficiently to make one box at a time, then I am not just shaping chunks of wood like a robot. I’m putting thought into the whole piece, focused on making a finished thing for single person.

It’s YOUR gift box.

It’s YOUR occasional table.

It’s YOUR wall cross.

That’s more important to me than just making a bunch of something. And it points to what makes Chapelwood a different organization than other fine woodworking companies you might look at. We don’t just make things. We make individual things that have meaning…meaning for you or for the person that you will give it to.

I love it when the BEST way to do something is actually the most efficient way to do something. I love it even more when it is consistent with how Chapelwood creates things for not just anybody. Chapelwood creates things for you.

What can I create for you? Go to my contact page if you have an idea and I'll help you make it happen.