TRUE LEAN Case Study: World Emblem

“It's the single biggest change – it educates and teaches rather than trying to ram a solution into the business.” – Randy Carr, CEO, World Emblem 

True Lean Services Utilized

Lean Executive Leadership Institute, Lean Certification Series, Executive Coaching, True Lean Coaching, Onsite gap Assessments.

Background

World Emblem, the largest global manufacturer of emblems, patches, labels, and badges, serves a diverse clientele including the U.S. military, industrial laundries, and sports teams. Founded by the Carr family, the company started as a small business in Medley, Florida, before expanding internationally with multiple production facilities in North America. Over the years, the company faced growing pains associated with scaling operations from a small shop to a global powerhouse producing over 800,000 emblems daily.

Problems

  1. Leadership transition and role definition: With the growth of the company, leadership structures needed refinement to support scalability.
  2. Inconsistent on-time delivery: The company struggled to meet deadlines due to bottlenecks in production.
  3. Escalating operational costs: The rapid expansion required a more efficient system to maximize productivity.
  4. Lack of standardized processes: Variability in workflows led to inefficiencies and inconsistencies across facilities.
     

Lean Solutions

  1. Leadership Development: Training programs for executives, managers, and supervisors ensured leadership alignment in responsibilities and Lean principles.
  2. Gap Assessment: A thorough evaluation was conducted across administrative and manufacturing processes to identify inefficiencies and improvement areas.
  3. Motion Analysis: Eliminating steps, hand movements, and training to the level of exact hand motions by each operator.
  4. Standardization and Problem-Solving: The implementation emphasized the 8-step problem solving methodology, KPI-driven decision-making, structured workflows and job instructions. 
     

Key Improvements and Outcomes:

  • Process Optimization: By reconfiguring production cells and reducing unnecessary movements, cycle time was reduced from 14 minutes to 11 minutes and resulted in a 70% reduction in overtime 

  • Cost Reduction: A simple $4 table modification streamlined workflow, reducing motion waste and enhancing efficiency. Removing one second per name emblem produced saved 12.5 labor hours per day, which equates to over $60,000 per year. 

  • Consistent Schedule: Significant productivity gains have resulted in a nearly 99% on-time performance. 

  • Operator Efficiency: Operators are following standard work, which has resulted in a 15% improvement in overall productivity in that department, and turnover has decreased to 15% annually. 

  • Empowered Workforce: Employees are actively involved in identifying and implementing process improvements, fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

  • Sustainable Leadership Model: Clear role definitions, succession planning, and leadership training ensured long-term adherence to Lean principles.
70% REDUCTION IN OVERTIME 
$60K OR MORE SAVINGS PER YEAR 
99% ON-TIME PERFORMANCE 
15% TURNOVER DECREASED 

Leading Forward

Since World Emblems journey to Lean began in 2023 they have won multiple business awards including: American Business Awards – Manufacturing Company of the Year, South Florida Business Journal Family-Owned Business Award, TITAN Business Development Award (Platinum Winner) and  ASI Counselor Top 40 Suppliers.