Implementing technology to support production and/or business operations at the wrong time is a recipe for disappointment, even if it's the right solution. Premature investments often result in underutilized systems or insufficient staff support, while delayed adoption means missing significant opportunities as competitors advance. Understanding your business maturity level is a crucial first step to making the right technology decisions and maximizing return on investment.
Manufacturing Business Maturity Model
As a company grows and operations mature, the tools and technologies needed to support the business will also. What we have found to be true at the Michigan Manufacturing
Technology Center (MMTC) is that there are five maturity steps in a manufacturing business shown in the image below beginning with the Reactive Manufacturing Step. Advancement to each subsequent step requires institutionalizing key elements, beginning with metrics and measurements.
We are witnessing this with MMTC’s very own Real Factory that kicked off late 2024. The Real Factory will be used to augment the in-person training and classes offered at MMTC. The project began with an assessment of equipment needed and a series of safety reviews to guide set-up decisions. Further efforts focused on fixing post-process quality issues and hitting takt* time.
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