Century-old Indiana manufacturer adopts Lean practices for 21st century marketplace

Any company that's been around for more than 100 years must be doing a few things right. But with the rapid pace of change in today's business environment, the need to adopt more sustainable and efficient processes becomes imperative. General Electric is an example of just such a brand, having recently reported that it will save hundreds of American jobs by adopting Lean practices.

Another less known brand, Clabber Girl, is adopting a similar strategy. Having been in business since 1870, the Indiana-based baking powder manufacturer is looking toward the future with an eye on cost reduction, improved productivity and up-to-date processes and technologies. And with one of its facilities being more than a century old, the challenge is even more daunting.

“All of these are forces that led us to say, 'We can't continue to do [business] the same way we've been doing it,'” Gary Morris, president and chief operating officer at Clabber Girl, told IndustryWeek.

Clabber Girl plans to adopt a Lean manufacturing strategy that will launch in its Terre Haute, Indiana, location and eventually roll out to other areas of the company. Like any other Lean program, Clabber Girl intends to develop and implement its Lean strategy through a process of continuous improvement, wherein workers identify redundancies and areas of inefficiency and adopt methods for eliminating them.

For example, Morris told the source that Clabber Girl has realized a huge reduction in the material wasted during filling processes on its production lines.

The company has also implemented a training program that receives support from management students at Indiana State University. This partnership helps employees and managers glean practical learning solutions.

“One of the interesting things I like about having them come in is they don't know what they don't know, and they ask questions we take for granted,” Morris added. “It causes you to sit back and say, 'That's a darn good question, why didn't we ask that.' think it has energized some of the employees because the kids are enthusiastic and engaged, and employees feel like they have the ability to share what they know.”