Over 75 people attended this month's SIG at J.D. Sweid Ltd (formerly Elmira Poultry). They are one of the largest further processor of Beef and Pork and Poultry Products in Canada. They have two Production facilities in Vancouver B.C. and one in Waterloo Ont. One of the brands you may be familiar with is the Hampton House brand that is sold at Costco.

http://www.emccanada.org/membersonl/ontario/kitchener/sustainability2010ppt

Senior Manager's
Doug Campbell started this SIG with a presentation and video on J.D. Sweid's Waterloo facility.  Following Doug's presentation Laura Rourke, EMC's Health, Safety and Environment Manager spoke on Sustainability and what it means to manufacturers today.  She reminded us that there is a lot involved in sustainability but to 'bite off one piece of the elephant at a time'.

Continuous Improvement
In the Continuous Improvement SIG the participants were encouraged to offer suggestions for the CI Group: "Increasing Throughput: A Look at the Value Stream on a Processing Line/work cell" The Waterloo facility was expanded in 2009, a state of the art Fully Cooked processing line has been in operation for the past 14 months. This Line runs Fully Cooked Bone in Breaded Chicken Pieces.

Overall Goal: Opportunities exist to improve throughput on this line
Given current constraints and the current state of inputs and other factors, the goal is brainstorm ideas that could impact throughput. 

• One constraint is the speed which we run product through the oven belt. The chicken must achieve a minimum internal temperature
• 1/2 hour lunch and 2 10 minute breaks
• We operate 5 days per week 8 hr shifts

Areas to consider further investigation for through put improvements - working through breaks and lunch - reduce equipment break down  -  10 hour shifts.  Some great suggestions were provided on a variety of areas that could be considered to improve the throughput.  We look forward to hearing in the future which suggestions were implemented and the outcomes that were achieved.

Health and Safety
Most companies have created their policy and procedure regarding Bill 168 so this session will give you the chance to network and share any concern you have regarding this legislation that comes into force on June 15, 2010.

Some things discussed included:

• Are there any pieces of the Bill that you still feel you aren't in compliance with? 
• Have you designed a training piece for orientation that covers Bill 168?
• What questions or concerns have come up from employees and management regarding the legislation that you didn't anticipate?

Some things to consider regarding Bill 168 is the training of contract security guards and ensuring you have a policy, procedure, training and risk assessment completed.  The key is to know what the risks in your organization are and determining the best course of action to control those risks in your facility.

Human Resources
During the final SIG for the day we discussed the issue of a flexible workforce and how to create one.  It was agreed by all in the group that one of the needs of manufacturers of today was a flexible work force since production volumes are constantly changing and very unpredictable. 

Some areas discussed included:

• What challenges have you had in your workplace that may benefit from a flexible workforce? 
• What flexible workplace options have you put into place to meet customer demands? What worked and what didn't work?
• Are there flexible workplace options that you have considered but not put into place?  Why?
• Have you explored the options of offering semi-retirement; job sharing and elect to work options for your employees

Some of the items discussed included how much cross training do you do and do you financially compensate for it; what staffing options do you (or should you) offer to your older workers and should you consider having some part time/flexible work hour staff on your payroll.

Thanks again to the Doug Campbell and the rest of the team at J.D. Sweid Ltd. for hosting this great event!

For more information on future SIGs in the K-W/Cambridge area please contact Laura Gibson at lgibson@emccanada.org or 519-304-4648 or Mike Baker at mbaker@emccanada.org