Caterpillar 2013 Annual Report Download - page 34

Download and view the complete annual report

Please find page 34 of the 2013 Caterpillar annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.

Page out of 67

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • 11
  • 12
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15
  • 16
  • 17
  • 18
  • 19
  • 20
  • 21
  • 22
  • 23
  • 24
  • 25
  • 26
  • 27
  • 28
  • 29
  • 30
  • 31
  • 32
  • 33
  • 34
  • 35
  • 36
  • 37
  • 38
  • 39
  • 40
  • 41
  • 42
  • 43
  • 44
  • 45
  • 46
  • 47
  • 48
  • 49
  • 50
  • 51
  • 52
  • 53
  • 54
  • 55
  • 56
  • 57
  • 58
  • 59
  • 60
  • 61
  • 62
  • 63
  • 64
  • 65
  • 66
  • 67

CATERPILLAR INC. 2013 YEAR IN REVIEW
32
Lean: A Journey that Delivers Signifi cant Results (continued)
Lean at Work: Spotlight on Medium Wheel Loaders in Aurora, Ill.
Caterpillar is known for its quality, but no matter the product or service
there is always room for improvement. Nowhere is this more evident
than at Caterpillar’s Aurora, Ill. facility. By deploying Lean within the
medium wheel loader value stream we are eliminating defects and
improving our medium wheel loader process – from customer order-
to-delivery.
Since the introduction of Lean at our Aurora facility in April 2013,
the results are signifi cant. At initial deployment, Aurora employees
were discovering defects on medium wheel loaders and this was
seen as normal. Once discovered, those internal defects were then
repaired before shipment to the customer; however each repair
added extra time associated with rework to our internal processes
and additional inventory.
By leveraging the tools and processes of 6 Sigma and the Caterpillar
Production System (CPS), Lean empowered Aurora employees to
eliminate internal defects throughout the entire value stream. Our
more disciplined approach has driven down our average internal
defects by 60 percent per medium wheel loader and 98 percent less
at our pre-delivery inspection gate.
The elimination of defects and rework is a driving factor behind
medium wheel loader value stream velocity improvements. When
compared to just a year ago, medium wheel loaders in Aurora are
now being built in half the time. Improvements driven by Lean will
ensure better product availability for our medium wheel loader cus-
tomers; and as we continue to deploy Lean across the enterprise
customers around the world will see the benefi ts.
PRE-DELIVERY
DEFECTS
PER MACHINE