Profile

Fascia Graphics are the market leaders for the production of membrane keypads in the printed graphics industry. Established in 1994, and based in Chippenham, their state of the art manufacturing plant features the latest techniques for the manufacture of membrane keyboards / keypads & switches, graphic overlays, screen printed labels, nameplates and associated products. The company has grown steadily and now employ 58 people.

The Challenge

“When we were smaller it was a lot easier to train staff on an informal basis.  However as we have introduced more production lines the organisation has become more complex” says Gary Knowles (Training & QA Manager).

“We realised that we could improve efficiency by creating a more flexible workforce able to operate on different lines. So we looked at how training could help us achieve this.

The Solution

After some research Avon Vale Training were recommended as the best training provider in the region. They took time to understand what we were looking for and provided good clear guidance. “

“We knew we wanted to introduce more ‘Lean Manufacturing’ to the company and the ‘Business Improvement Techniques’ (BIT) NVQ seemed the perfect vehicle. It is also good because the course is designed to suit all employees from management to the shop-floor.”

The Results

“We are now about 6 months into the course or half way and I’m really impressed about how useful it is proving to be. It gets us to think creatively about how we do things and generates ideas from the bottom up. It has already produced many significant benefits” says Gary.

“We have changed to buying-in a pre-cut component for large orders which has already saved us £9,500. We have also reorganised our storage system making us more efficient and saving about 80 hours a year. BIT brings plenty of improvements but its an ongoing process which will keep delivering benefits for the business.”