Brillion produces gray and ductile iron castings, such as the (clockwise from top) planet carrier, suspension arm, valve body and fl y wheel shown here.
By stabilizing scheduling,
reducing overtime usage and achiev- ing more uptime on the lines, Brillion reduced its break-even point by 30%. With sales down in 2013, the com- pany was still profi table, despite the lower revenue. “Lean doesn’t mean anything if it
doesn’t show up in financial perfor- mance,” Adams said. “Because of lean, we are a viable business, and now, as the market comes back and we remain lean, you can imagine the implications.” In conjunction with imple- menting process control and lean manufacturing, Accuride invested a total of $23 million at Brillion Iron Works from 2011 to 2014, with more still to come in the next two years for coremaking and finishing equipment. “Twenty-five percent of that first
investment was simple—fixing roofs, drainage, safety-related issues, light- ing,” Dauch said. “Some of the first investments were to clean up the lunchroom, break rooms and bath- rooms so people can have a good working environment.” Next, Brillion began investing
in repairing its equipment, section by section. This included about $10 million to the DISA molding line and 1980s-era BMD molding
line. Another $8 million was invested in increasing finish- ing capacity, adding automatic grinding machines and replac- ing coremaking equipment. “Since we have added auto-
matic grinding, our production has doubled and injuries are down,” said Troy Wendling, fi nishing coordina- tor. Brillion currently automatically grinds 20% of its castings. Over the course of the next three
to four years, Brillion will invest $5-$7 million a year to replace 35 existing coremaking machines with 14 new machines that will result in increased capacity and higher quality. Another $6-$10 million is planned to stream- line grinding and shotpeening. “We benchmarked some of our
competitors here and overseas,” Dauch said. “We see that we need to make these investments. You can’t expect to be globally competitive if your work- force doesn’t have capable equipment, good tooling and a real, true lean manufacturing system.” Other Brillion priorities for
2014, according to Adams, include improving safety metrics by 25-50%, growing revenues with $10 mil- lion or more in new business wins, achieving long-term agreements
with customers, and continuous operational improvement and lean system implementation. “The order of importance for
focus is 1) safety, 2) quality, 3) deliv- ery and 4) financial performance,” Adams said.
Support of Union Contract In 2013, Brillion also ironed out a
five-year contract with its union that gives a sense of workforce stability for both management and its more than 400 hourly employees. One of the negotiated items that became effective was a pay-for-performance program based on scrap, productiv- ity and safety. Company savings in these categories are shared 50/50 with employees, up to a maximum payout of $1,000 per employee per year. Results are posted on company bulletin boards.
October 2014 MODERN CASTING | 29
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