Buhler Sortex

SORTEX, part of the International Bühler Group, is a world leader in innovation and delivery of sorting solutions to the global food and non-food processing industries. We design, manufacture and supply optical sorting machines to over 100 countries throughout the world. The machines are used to detect and remove unwanted and blemished material from products such as rice, coffee, nuts, vegetables, etc. We are a low volume, high value, high technology assembly operation utilising modern manufacturing techniques.

Topics Covered

Customer Service	Sortex identifies its customer needs through the use of focus groups and harnessing the Internet and other media. The organisation of world-wide field support and corrective action processes has demonstrably improved the company’s after sales performance.
Lean Manufacturing	Buhler Sortex builds its machines on a production line which operates to a Takt. More than 10 major product types and a range of options are built, tested, packed and dispatched in an integrated, single piece flow system. Lean Techniques such as shadow boards for tools, the supply of materials using Kanbans, the grouping of material requirements into kits, and the involvement of staff in sustained and continuous improvement are employed. Visual Management is used in the whole supply chain from product enquiry through to product ordering, manufacture and dispatch, providing all functional areas with a consistent information base. Visual management is also used to track progress against plan, and identify and action variances. The major drive for Lean Manufacturing is the reduction in throughput times for the factory, where a 50% improvement has already been achieved. There is also an emphasis on high standards on 5S.
People & Leadership	Sortex has benefited from the introduction of a flat organisational structure, empowering its workforce, teamworking and greatly improved internal communications. A significant cultural change has been achieved which they will share with visitors.

Dates

Topic	Capacity	Status	Location
10th September 2008
Customer Service, Lean Manufacturing, People & Leadership	20	Taking Bookings	London