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40% more production and 15% lower labor cost per part

40% more production and 15% lower labor cost per part

Arthrex Manufacturing

Healthcare & Insurance

+40%

production increase with zero turnover

-15%

labor cost per part

$40M

facility spend deferred

The problem

Arthrex was growing 30% a year and handling it by buying equipment, adding space, or hiring. Production ran two 8-hour shifts, 80 hours a week, with Saturday overtime in the busy season and a slowdown from August to November. As more people crowded into the clean room at once, packaging productivity fell sharply and idle time grew while employees waited in line to get in.

What we did

  • Analyzed historical production and growth forecasts, showing the need for 120 production hours a week
  • Ran an anonymous survey that revealed strong interest in 10-hour shifts and longer breaks
  • Designed schedules with one-third fewer people entering and exiting the clean room at once
  • Transitioned 275 employees to extended shifts

The results

  • +40% production
  • 15% lower total labor cost per part
  • 0% turnover across 275 employees moved to extended shifts
  • $40 million facility expenditure deferred, while injection molding parts rose 100%
  • 20% fewer days at work per year, with 5-day breaks every three weeks
Our goal was to expand capacity into the weekend and meet the needs of our employees. Implementation (of the Coleman schedule) resulted in a 40% increase in production and 0% employee turnover.

Andy Owen, Director of Manufacturing, Arthrex Manufacturing

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