Doug Hall, corporate growth guru, founder of Eureka! Ranch and mastermind behind CAMT's new growth service, Eureka! Winning Ways, toured Colorado and spoke with CAMT clients on January 31st. Throughout the day, Doug introduced Eureka! Winning Ways, a scientifically-based process that has proven to significantly grow business across the country to over 70 CAMT clients and partners.

This service provides companies with a disciplined process that helps companies create, filter, prioritize, and explore ideas for growth, based on data of real- world growth successes from thousands of companies. Already, several Colorado companies have signed on with CAMT and Eureka! Winning Ways to help their company radically grow top line sales and profits without breaking the bank.

If you missed Doug but would like to learn more about Eureka! Winning Ways, and the data behind the system, please contact Merrily Hill Smith for a copy of his best- selling book Jump Start Your Business Brain and to schedule a meeting with a CAMT growth coach.

"A long-term engagement with CAMT has allowed Sears Trostel to maintain continuous improvement efforts resulting in repeated savings and escalating revenue growth."
-- Curt Viehmeyer, Owner

Sears Trostel provides high quality custom millwork, hardwood and softwood lumber, and plywood to woodworking and building professionals. Founded in 1929 to supply the Fort Collins construction industry, the company began to add services and product lines over the last thirty years to expand into new markets in the region. They now employ over 60 workers at their two Fort Collins locations.

Sears Trostel, continuously striving to improve products and services, began investigating Lean Manufacturing in 2000. Sears Trostel contacted CAMT, then named MAMTC, to implement Lean principles on their plant floor in 2001 and has continued to utilize CAMT in their continuous improvement efforts to this day. In fact, Sears Trostel is currently embarking on a new growth service from CAMT, Eureka! Winning Ways, to identify and select viable ideas for new product lines, and to access new customers and markets.

Starting in 2001, Sears Trostel transformed production lines using general Lean principles, 5S Workplace Organization and Value Stream Mappings of all office and shop floor operations. Since then, lean techniques have been maintained through kaizen blitzes, employee-initiated kaizen events and attendance at CAMT public events, in addition to on- going internal training of new and existing employees. Curt Viehmeyer of Sears Trostel will be representing CAMT clients early next month when joining CEO Elaine Thorndike on visits to Colorado's members of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Kaizen blitzes, an intensive and focused week-long approach to process improvement on a product line, have allowed Sears Trostel to improve throughput and productivity by 170%, and improved lead times by 75% while improving quality through eliminating motion in their process and reducing change over times. Likewise, Sears Trostel has honed lean and other skills in staff by participating in public events ranging from lecture events featuring manufacturing greats, such as Lean Guru Masaaki Imai or nationally-known growth consultant Doug Hall, to day-long seminars on Lean tools to Lean Management Working groups in which CAMT clients tackle Lean and Process Improvement challenges together. In seven years of working on continuous improvement efforts with CAMT, Sears Trostel has increased sales by a $4.8 million, retained sales of $750,000 and avoided nearly $1 million in unnecessary labor costs. Last year alone, Sears Trostel increased sales by $2 million in their custom millwork department.

Results:

• Increased sales by $4.8 million
• Retained sales of $750,000
• Labor Cost Savings of $996,000

The Pueblo Workforce Center and Pueblo Community College have planned an initial meeting for a Pueblo Manufacturing Working Group to be held on March 13 from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. at the Pueblo Workforce Center. This group will gather manufacturing employers to discuss manufacturing specific issues in a number of areas, such as communications, marketing, manufacturing excellence and innovation.

Areas of focus, structure, schedule and other details for the new group will be decided upon at the meeting. Please RSVP to John Vukich at Pueblo Community College by calling 719.549.3334 or email.

Winning with Manual Machines
Despite the promise of CNC equipment, many job shops still find that manual machines are getting the job done. See full IndustryWeek article here.

Just In Time -- Buddy, Can You Spare a Job? U.S. manufacturers assert their continuing relevance despite a decline in overall employment and a lack of commitment from politicians. Read full article here.