1. Businessimprovement
Runninga Mine or manufacturingfacilityinthesehardeconomictimesrequiresalotof strategic
planninganda lotof experiencedpeople withinyourbusiness tohelpfacilitatethis.
Overthe yearsI have beenaskedto stepinand assistmanylarge and small Australianand
international companies inbusinessandprocessimprovement,costreductionanddefect
elimination.One of the biggestthingsthatstandsoutto me is that businessesoftenbecome
complacentabouthowtheirbusinessisstructuredoronhow it operates.
Whenevaluatingabusinessyoufirstneedtoascertainare theyrunningthingsefficientlyandare
theyusingupto date technologywithintheirbusiness,alsoare theyrunningtheirmaintenance,
reliabilityandengineeringinacost effective manner. Ihave undertakenmanyplantimprovement
projectsoverthe yearsto reduce downtime andincrease productionforalarge varietyof
manufacturingbusinessesandthe one questionthatisalwaysaskedis“whatwill itcost?”Thisis an
understandableandexpectedquestiontocome frommanagersanddirectorsalike butwhatI often
ask themishowmuch productdoesyour businessproduce perhourandhow much moneydoesthe
businessmake perhour?Thencalculate the amountof defectiveproductandthe amountof
downtime perdayor perweek.Withall these figuresyoucanthencalculate yourreturnon
investmentforanyplantupgradesor improvements.Youshouldalsobe able tocalculate your
expectedincreasesinproductionand availabilityaspart of your scope of work foryour plant
upgradesor improvements.
Anotherareaof concernwhenevaluatingabusinessisthe organisational structure andthe staffing
numbersallocatedtothe variousdepartments,while some departmentsare oftenoverstaffedyou
will oftenfindthe busiestdepartmentsthatrequire the moststaff are leftwithaverylarge workload
and notenoughpeople tocarry outthe workrequiredof them.Oftenisjustamatterof shuffling
staff aroundto get yourstaffingresourcesrightandothertimesthere isamore delicate cleanoutof
the cupboardrequireddue tostaff not havingthe correct skillsorqualificationstocarry outthe job
that theyare in.
Overall Ihave foundthatin orderto improve abusinessyoufirsthave tohave a thorough
understandingof howthatbusinessoperatesandwhattheyproduce andare theydoingitcost
effectivelyandis there roomforimprovementsinanyareasof the business.