Visit at Electrolux, Curitiba Tuesday 2011-02-22

We were welcomed to the Electrolux factory in Curitiba by Antonio, the factory manager Caesar (he says hello to SvenJ) manufacturing specialist, Cristiano and Gabriel, production engineers.

Electrolux was founded in Brazil with direct sells in Sao Paolo 1926. !950 started Electrolux to produce vaccum cleaners In Sao Paolo.

The Curitiba factory produce upright freezers, chest freezer, 1 door refrigerators and 2 door refrigerators. Is works 3200 blue collars here and the Curitiba factory produced 2 500 000 units 2010.

Electrolux has factories in Sao Carlos (washing machines, chest freezer and cookers) and Manaus (microwave oven, air conditioner) as well.

Caesar presented the work they have done with implementing the EMS (Electrolux Manufacturing System). The main bullets in EMS are:

·         stability

·         process improvement

·         culture change

Electrolux has worked with implementation of their global production strategy since 2005 and includes both internal and external activities. One of the success factors of the EMS strategy in the Curitiba factory is the top management support. Caesar describes the work as a cultural change program with permanent commitment.

EMS stands for standardization as well. Electrolux has grown organic and became 50 factories worldwide with a mixture of facilities and culture.

For Caesar EMS is to involve people, EMS should be a daily issue and one way to participate to improvements is the program “suggest and win”. One of the guides that showed us the factory, Gabriel’s project has been selected to EMS Best Practices Award, which annually awards the best EMS work of plans Electrolux worldwide. Next step is to be selected in competition with Manaus and San Carlos and if that is successful we will buy you a beer when you come to Stockholm in March. J

After the presentation we divided into three groups for a factory tour. On the shop floor we could see how EMS was practiced in reality. Processes in the production flow are cabinet and doors forming, painting, cabinet and door foaming, assembly, testing and packaging.

The Curitiba factory has improved their productivity with 22% the last three years and the quality has drastically improved.

During the visit we could notice happiness in working at Electrolux. To be proud of working at Electrolux in Curitiba, Samba Production system to refer to Professor Ståhl.

Well in the end is all about the implementation and continuous improvement … How do you become a winner of EMS Best Practices Award both 2007 and 2009?

You do EMS the Brazilian wayJ

Kerstin Dencker, Swerea IVF/KTH and Victoria Rogstrand, KTH  for PADOK