What is Lean Management?
Lean Management – A Guide To Starting Out Right Much like anything over-used and spread before those singing praises have done a lot of research, Lean is a concept that sometimes, despite the best of intentions, misses its mark. Lean principles aren’t particularly tricky, but with many offshoots and brands of the ideology, it can…
Tony Ferraro | June 20, 2014 | Lean | Continuous Improvement, Facility Efficiency | 4 min read
Three Tips to Maximize the Life of Your Floor Tape
Tip #1: Proper Installation of Floor Tape To ensure floor tape lasts for years, proper installation is vital. Create a plan for where the tape will be installed and who will install it. It may be a good idea to have two or more people do the actual installation if you plan to apply long…
Tony Ferraro | June 17, 2014 | Floor Marking, Safety Products | Facility Efficiency, Facility Marking, Floor Marking, Forklift Safety, Safety, Workplace Safety | 3 min read
Sign Maker Machines
Things to Consider When Thinking About Purchasing a Sign Maker Machine One of the fastest and most effective ways to convey safety information in a facility is by using visual signs. When walking through most workplaces, you’ll see a number of different signs that help people stay safe. Everything from letting people know where a…
Tony Ferraro | June 4, 2014 | Safety Products | Facility Efficiency, Labeling, Safety, Safety Signs | 7 min read
Industrial Labeling Systems
Safety signs, labels and other types of visual information are essential in every facility. Some of these items are required by OSHA or other regulations, and others are needed for improved efficiency and safety. The bottom line is that all facilities use these types of things, and need them to be easy to see, very…
Tony Ferraro | May 27, 2014 | Safety Products | 5S, Equipment Labeling, Facility Efficiency, Facility Marking, GHS, Labeling, Organized Workplace, Safety, Safety Signs | 4 min read
Achieving OSHA Compliance with the help of an Industrial Label Maker
The role of a safety manager at a facility is often difficult because of all the different requirements and responsibilities involved. Several years ago, I was hired into a facility as a safety manager. Prior to being hired on, the facility did not have a dedicated safety manager, so the responsibilities were just performed by…
Tony Ferraro | May 1, 2014 | Safety Products | Equipment Labeling, Facility Efficiency, Industrial Label Printers, Label Makers, Labeling, OSHA, OSHA Compliance, Safety, Safety Signs, Tool Organization | 9 min read
Tips for Tool Safety
The human ability to invent and use advanced tools is one of the main things that has helped us to become the dominant species on the planet. Of course, thousands of years ago it would have been impossible to predict just how far tools would come. Whether it is a stick being used as a…
Tony Ferraro | March 11, 2014 | Safety Solutions | Facility Efficiency, Organized Workplace, OSHA, Safety, Tool Organization, Workplace Safety | 4 min read
Internet Usage – Does it Hurt Employee Productivity?
Internet and cell phone usage are to our most recent generations what smoking was to those in the past. You’ve got people getting hired left and right who use the Internet on a daily basis, and then are asked to completely abstain from such activity from 9am to 5pm Monday through Friday (barring lunch breaks).…
Tony Ferraro | February 14, 2014 | Lean | Facility Efficiency, Lean Manufacturing | 3 min read
Whats Inside Your Safety Toolbox?
I was recently brought into a manufacturing facility to help analyze their overall safety program, and attempt to improve it. The facility was part of a global company. The global company was encouraging all of the local facilities to focus on improving safety, but hadn’t given them much guidance on how this should be done.…
Tony Ferraro | February 7, 2014 | Safety Products | Facility Efficiency, Facility Marking, Floor Marking, Forklift Safety, PPE, Safety, Safety Signs, Workplace Safety | 5 min read
How to Customize a Foam Tool Organizer
As business owners, we do a lot of take control of our day to day operations and make them as efficient as possible. We spend thousands on implementing rigorous training programs, color coding our warehouses, re-arranging assembly lines and work stations, hiring outside consultants to help eliminate waste and cut down on production times, but…
Tony Ferraro | February 3, 2014 | Safety Products | 5S, Facility Efficiency, Organized Workplace, Safety, Tool Organization | 4 min read
5S Supplies Improve Safety and Organization in Auto Repair Shops
A few months ago Creative Safety Supply donated a variety of 5S supplies to an auto shop at Portland Community College. CSS also worked with the college to help make their facility safer and more efficient. You can read more about the changes made here. After I seen the success of this project I decided…
Tony Ferraro | January 16, 2014 | 5S | Facility Efficiency, Facility Marking, Labeling, Lean Manufacturing, Organized Workplace, Rack Labeling, Safety, Safety Signs, Tool Organization, Workplace Safety | 5 min read
How Simple Visibility Improvements can Improve Efficiency & Reduce Waste
Over the years, I have learned that one of the biggest mistakes individuals and companies make is always looking for the big changes to reduce waste or improve efficiency. They keep focusing on finding the next big, innovative move that will result in dramatic improvements to the bottom line. While these are great when they…
Tony Ferraro | January 10, 2014 | Lean | Barcoding, Continuous Improvement, Facility Efficiency, Labeling, Organized Workplace, Safety Signs | 5 min read
Kaizen Event Reduces Transport Waste & Optimizes Efficiency
I was recently brought in to assist in a Lean event for a large manufacturing facility, with the goal of eliminating waste, and completing the implementation of Lean strategies. The facility had already begun the process over the past 18 months, and had done quite an impressive job. When they consulted with me, I was…
Tony Ferraro | January 2, 2014 | Kaizen | Facility Efficiency, Kaizen, Lean Manufacturing | 5 min read
5S Tools and Blueprint Used In My Last 5S Project
When re-organizing or changing up your work floor or operations setup, you can have a potentially massive task on your hands. The problem with “potentially massive” projects is that they tend to easily become overwhelming, leading many to one of two undesirable outcomes: A) You take shortcuts and end up with a sort of half-result…
Tony Ferraro | December 30, 2013 | 5S | 5S, Facility Efficiency, Floor Marking, Labeling, Organized Workplace, Rack Labeling, Safety Signs, Tool Organization | 5 min read
The Power of Color Coding: Floor Marking
Colors are used everywhere to signify different meanings. We create order, understanding, and cohesion with color coding. For example, all drivers are aware of the color code used for traffic stop lights. Red is stop, green is go, and yellow is slow down. In fact, the color coding on stoplights is so easy to follow…
Tony Ferraro | December 2, 2013 | Floor Marking | ANSI, Facility Efficiency, Facility Marking, Fire Safety, Floor Marking, Floor Tape, Forklift Safety, Organized Workplace, Safety, Workplace Safety | 4 min read
6S System: The Basics
Let’s take a moment and go back to the basics. The ‘5S’ system, as it’s called, stands for Sort, Set In Order, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain. The system outlines how to go about organizational projects in a way that is efficient and effective both in the short and long term. In this blog post, we’re…
Tony Ferraro | November 13, 2013 | 5S | 5S, 6S, Facility Efficiency, Organized Workplace | 3 min read
