Case Study
30% increase in productivity for boxed flowers producer
Background
A UK producer of boxed flowers for home delivery asked for our help because it was facing rising demand but flat productivity. Like many operations that grow quickly, the production line had evolved naturally rather than by design.
The amount the company produced depended heavily on individual effort instead of a well-balanced, well-understood process. Plus, unboxing and quality inspection were happening on the line itself instead of as a separate step, so the quality of the stems being delivered was inconsistent, which in turn was driving customer complaints.
Our project brief and goal
Our client needed an expert partner to get on the shopfloor, work alongside their operators, and leave their team with the capability to run and improve the process themselves.
Initial diagnosis
We recognised the success of the project would come down to tackling quality and productivity as two distinct problems, instead of expecting one fix to solve both.
Our strategy
We delivered our operational excellence project in three phases:
1. Diagnose
Our consultants went on the ground to ‘Go, Look, See’ – a lean consulting approach that involves observing the live process and talking directly with team members.
We captured the current state as a process map and collaborated with the operators to identify opportunities for improvement.
And we supported this with targeted training in flow and line balance – the specific operational excellence skills most relevant to this process.
2. Kaizen Event
Our specialists held an intensive, hands-on improvement week with the team. We put the ideas that came out of Phase 1 into action and tested them in real time using Plan, Do, Check, Act (PDCA).
Two changes proved key:
- Separating the unboxing and inspection of flowers from the production line itself, so only good stems reached the team for boxing.
- Rebalancing the line, which improved line speed consistency and revealed an opportunity to reduce headcount. Savings were captured and reported back to management at the close of the week.
3. Sustainability
We followed up by visiting one day a month for three months to:
- Check the changes stayed in place
- Coach the team through any drift
- Ensure new working standards were properly documented, so the improvement outlasted our work
“We took unboxing and inspection off the production line to move quality upstream instead of being caught (or missed) downstream. Separately, rebalancing the line gave a consistent, predictable line speed, which in turn made it obvious where headcount could be reduced without affecting output. By combining flow and line balance training with real-time implementation and structured follow-up, People Centred Excellence turned a one-off improvement project into a lasting capability.”
The results
Our hands-on, teach-while-you-fix approach produced:
Productivity & cost savings
- 30% productivity improvement across the production line
- £16,000 per week in labour cost savings – more than £830,000 annualised
Quality
- 40%-plus reduction in customer complaints
- An improvement in right first time (RFT) and the quality of boxed flowers reaching the customer
Capability & sustainability
- New process and quality standards – documented and owned by the client’s own team
- A trained, capable workforce able to sustain the process – and keep making it better – without ongoing reliance on external consultants
Conclusion
People Centred Excellence stands out from other lean consultancies because we don’t send in consultants to simply observe and write up their findings.
“The consultants didn’t just tell us what to change – they were on the line with us making it happen. Separating inspection from the line alone made a visible difference immediately, allowing us to increase throughput. Then, with the line balance activity, we can ensure the labour required is not excessively impacting costs. With a bit more practice, our own team will be able to run and improve the process without needing outside help.”
Operations Manager at UK boxed flowers producer
