It’s no secret that retirement of skilled workers has created a massive skills gap.  According to a new study by Deloitte this crisis could result in 2.1 million unfilled jobs by 2030. But what about the situation right now?    Forbes Magazine noted that “while the pandemic resulted in more… Read More »Fighting The Skills Gap With Continuous Training

Front line workers are wasting massive amounts of effective work time doing redundant paperwork at the end of the day. How much time are they wasting?  A mining industry expert Atheer talked to said anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes is wasted per work order.  That adds up to between… Read More »The Cost Of Paperwork For Reporting

The biggest source of potential productivity loss for any manufacturing company is caused by unplanned downtime.  When equipment breaks down, production grinds to a stop and products can’t be made. It is estimated that almost every factory loses at least 5% of productivity, with some factories experiencing as much as… Read More »The Human Contribution To Machine Downtime

Standardized work refers to a foundational lean manufacturing practice. Standardized work analyzes and finds the best practices to make products in the safest, easiest, and most effective way based on current technologies. It documents the best practices with detailed steps and sequences in which they should be performed. It is… Read More »How To Standardize Work With Lean Manufacturing Software

In the early 1970s, Japanese industrial engineer and businessman Taiichi Ohno was looking for a way to meet increasing consumer demand and improve the quality of Toyota’s products. What resulted was called Just-in-Time manufacturing or the just in time system, now a management philosophy and lean manufacturing methodology, which has… Read More »Just In Time Production And The Connected Worker

One of the major problems faced by manufacturing companies is uneven batch production. Manufacturing huge quantities of a single product might save some money for the manufacturer but it can lead to excess production that takes up valuable warehouse space, costs money for storage, and in the end, might not… Read More »Heijunka And The Connected Worker

Among the many effective techniques in lean manufacturing, value stream mapping or VSM is used to analyse, document, and improve process activities involved in delivering a product to the customer. Also referred to as lean value stream mapping, VSM is most effective in manufacturing processes where products or items must… Read More »Lean Value Stream Mapping

Lean Manufacturing was developed by the Toyota Production System and this methodology focuses on improving the overall efficiency of manufacturing operations and eliminating waste from processes. Implementation of lean manufacturing leads to enhanced productivity and fewer errors. Industry 4.0 is the fourth industrial revolution brought forward by the introduction of… Read More »What Is Lean 4.0 And How Can The Connected Worker Help

One of the best ways of ensuring continuous improvement in the manufacturing process is for managers, leaders, and decision-makers to take part in the improvement process themselves by doing a Gemba Walk. Gemba is a Japanese term that means ‘the real place.’ In a Gemba Walk, managers and leaders walk… Read More »Gemba Walk 4.0 And The Connected Worker

In a world with strained supply chains, increased competition, intensifying skilled worker shortages all threatening manufacturers’ ability to meet customer demand, operational efficiency is more essential than ever.  Kaizen or Continuous improvement has helped manufacturers improve processes for decades but the philosophy has recently come under fire for encouraging improvement… Read More »Digitizing Kaizen

How can lean manufacturing help my business?  This is the first thing business owners must ask themselves when considering implementing lean manufacturing principles. The Manufacturing Advisory Service found that across the thousands of projects where they helped implement lean manufacturing practices, 33% of them experienced an increase in stock turnover… Read More »How Can Lean Manufacturing Help My Business

We are excited to announce the Gale update of Atheer’s AR Powered Front Line Worker platform is now available!   Our product team worked tirelessly to create some great new features to improve Atheer’s user experience and make the lives of our partners so much easier.     In the Gale… Read More »Atheer’s Gale Release: Improving User Experience And Introducing Air Anchors

It’s easy to get confused about the difference between what is transportation waste vs motion waste in lean manufacturing. While they are both part of the 8 wastes of lean manufacturing the sources of these wastes they are in fact completely different.  Before talking about how to eliminate these manufacturing… Read More »What Is Transportation Waste Vs Motion Waste

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the manufacturing industry reports over 300 work-related fatalities among full-time workers every year. In fact, despite the improvement in worker safety standards, the number of fatalities has increased from 303 in 2017 to 341 in 2020!  UK-based Health and Safety Executive reported… Read More »Connected Worker Safety: Improving Safety And Compliance In Manufacturing

As per the 2010 Compensation Data Manufacturing survey, nearly 70% of companies make use of lean manufacturing techniques. Lean manufacturing is the application of best practices, tools, and principles applied in the manufacturing process to reduce waste, cut costs, streamline processes, and increase production. One of the most important practices… Read More »What Is Lean Problem Solving?

One of the most used lean manufacturing techniques and tools for process improvement is called Six Sigma. Originally formulated nearly 35 years ago to reduce defects in parts manufacturing, lean Six Sigma principles and methodologies found their way into different fields such as finance, healthcare, and more.  In this article,… Read More »Digitizing Six Sigma And The Connected Worker

The lean manufacturing process uses lean principles, tools, and practices to eliminate waste, optimize processes, and boost business growth. Anything that doesn’t add value to the company or the customer is considered waste and eliminated in the lean manufacturing process. Lean manufacturing software enables companies to implement lean manufacturing principles… Read More »Lean Manufacturing Software

In the face of regular machine breakdowns costing manufacturing companies nearly a trillion dollars every year, the manufacturing sector can no longer rely on reactive maintenance. An effective preventive maintenance plan is a must if manufacturers  want to extend the life of their machinery and reduce their operational costs. Apart… Read More »Preventive Maintenance Plan: Improving With Connected Worker Platforms

Manufacturing, if not planned well, can lead to unnecessary waste, inefficient practices, and reduced productivity. This can cost valuable time and money to manufacturers and hurt their competitive position in the marketplace. One solution is lean manufacturing. Companies that invest in lean manufacturing report a whopping 25% increase in productivity. … Read More »What Is Lean Manufacturing

With supply chains strained and resources limited, manufacturing companies are increasingly trying to eliminate waste from their production processes to maximize operational efficiency. To do so they’re trying to eliminate the 8 Wastes of Lean.  But what are the 8 Wastes of Lean Manufacturing? First, let’s understand what is meant… Read More »Eliminating The 8 Wastes Of Lean

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated digital transformation among manufacturing companies across the world due to rising commodity prices and disrupted supply chains. Changes in business dynamics, evolving customer behavior, increased competition, and growth opportunities have been the key drivers behind the increased adoption of digital technologies and tools across industries. Technologies… Read More »The Connected Worker Of The Future

Human error is blamed for 18% of unscheduled equipment downtime according to a recent study by Plant Engineering. Manufacturing companies have been investing in Connected Worker Platforms to reduce human error by cutting out time, wasting paper processes and providing end to end knowledge support. The integration of the connected… Read More »The Connected Worker And Preventive Maintenance

Machine malfunctioning and downtime in the manufacturing domain reduce overall productivity and drastically increase the cost of maintenance. Over the years, manufacturers have adopted  preventive and corrective maintenance strategies to keep their machines running and operational for longer durations. A recent study reveals that aging equipment is viewed as a… Read More »Preventive And Corrective Maintenance: How Front Line Worker Platforms Improve Them Both

Preventive maintenance is concerned with increasing the usability and longevity of manufacturing equipment.  An optimized preventive maintenance (PM) must take into account every step of the process from quality work instructions down to work execution and reporting.  To keep equipment in optimum condition manufacturers must also look into preventive maintenance… Read More »Preventive Maintenance Of Tools & Equipment: Creating A Successful Program

A Plant Engineering study points out that almost half of Manufacturing facilities continue to use paper-based or manual systems to record and store their maintenance records. Entering these records involve dual data entry, a process where humans take the workflows generated in the field and type them into siloed computer… Read More »Preventive Maintenance Procedures: The Need To Digitize

In the previous article Operational Transparency Part 1: Transform OEE And Move Past Paper we discussed how paper based systems prevented manufacturers from capturing and communicating crucial machine data during machine monitoring and service tasks. We looked at how paper based processes reduced the availability of workers, the quality of… Read More »Operational Transparency Part Two: Improve OEE With Connected Worker Platforms

When it comes to keeping manufacturing assets operational, preventive maintenance is the preferred approach  in 78% of all facilities in contrast with reliance on reactive or corrective maintenance. This is because it’s obviously better to prevent problems than clean up their messy consequences. At the same time, scheduled maintenance work… Read More »Plant Preventive Maintenance Checklist: Improve It With A Connected Worker Platform

According to a 2021 Plant Engineering survey, over 50% of manufacturing plants use preventive maintenance software tools. This makes sense due to how important operational efficiency is, when companies with inefficient processes spend as much as four times more on preventive maintenance.  A 2021 study found that over 50% of… Read More »Preventive Maintenance Software: 5 Ways To Take It To The Next Level

What does it mean to reach Preventive Maintenance 4.0?  Industry 4.0 is the term used to describe the ongoing transformation of the manufacturing industry using a host of digital technologies including automation systems, cloud computing, and Augmented Reality. What was a buzz word a decade ago is fast becoming an… Read More »Reaching Preventive Maintenance Industry 4.0

We are excited to announce the Frost update of Atheer’s AR Powered Front Line Worker Platform is now available! This is one of our biggest updates ever. Our product teams worked tirelessly to improve on four key themes in our Platform:    Job Scheduling and Management Systems Integration Worker Communication… Read More »Atheer’s Frost Release: Elevating Job Scheduling And Management, Systems Integration, Worker Communication & Front Line Support

Most manufacturers operate at between 60 and 65% Overall Equipment Effectiveness.  World-class OEE is 85% or better. But how do you improve your OEE to a world-class level? Operational transparency is essential to capture and communicate crucial job data to iterate and improve processes to increase this crucial metric. In… Read More »Operational Transparency Part One: Transform OEE And Move Past Paper

Unplanned equipment downtime continues to cost manufacturing companies $50 billion each year, with aging equipment  being the leading cause of extended downtimes. Manufacturers are increasingly looking to move to planned predictive maintenance to reduce downtimes and increase the longevity of equipment. To improve equipment uptime and increase their operational life,… Read More »Planned Predictive Maintenance: Why Manufacturing Companies Must Go Beyond Scheduled Preventive Maintenance

The cost of unplanned machine downtime for industrial manufacturers is estimated to be $50 billion each year.  Massive amounts of productive time is wasted due to maintenance operators having to file paper reports into siloed computer systems at the end of the day and wait for paper instructions to be… Read More »Digitize Planned Preventive Maintenance: Why Companies Need To Do It

Machine breakdowns are the single greatest source of Overall Equipment Effective loss, making up 24% of all losses.  Changeover time related losses add up to another 6.2%.  Availability loss accounts for over 30% of all OEE losses.  This means that optimizing machine availability is critically important for increasing your OEE… Read More »OEE Availability: How Connected Worker Platforms Improve Availability

For small or large manufacturing firms, machine idling  means enormous OEE Performance losses. Idle time is the silent killer of productivity and costs employers globally an estimated 100 billion dollars every year. Not only does idle time create direct performance losses, it also results in accelerated wear and tear for machines… Read More »OEE Performance: How Connected Worker Platforms Improve Performance

OEE Quality is a crucial metric for any Manufacturing company.  Tracking quality metrics in real time has proven to offer companies a 6% advantage in OEE score according to LNS Research. Companies in today’s competitive environment need to make sure that the products they create are high quality and contain… Read More »Increasing OEE Quality: How Connected Worker Platforms Improve Quality

Manufacturers refer to Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) as the gold standard of productivity for a reason. It’s putting it mildly to say your equipment’s availability to perform at the highest level and output high-quality products are essential to your company’s success. Tracking your equipment’s efficiency is the first step to… Read More »What Is OEE And Why Is It Important For Your Business?

Despite improvements in safety standards and equipment, the fatality rate among frontline team members in the oil and gas industry remains high when compared to other industries. A Dräger survey reveals that only one-third of safety managers rated their organization’s safety measures as “strong,” while nearly 62% rate the quality… Read More »Increasing Frontline Team’s Safety And Compliance In The Oil And Gas Industry

The increasing pace of retirement in the baby boomers and earlier Generation-X workforce means that up to 50-66% of the existing employees are expected to leave the workplace by 2022. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the retirement percentage of the baby boomers generation has doubled since 2010. … Read More »Meeting The “Great Crew Change” Challenge In The Mining Industry

Wherever you are in your search for a Connected Worker Platform you need to know the right questions to find the right vendor for your business. It can feel a bit overwhelming to get started but we’re here to make sure you find what you’re looking for.  Evaluating your vendors… Read More »Connected Worker Platform RFP Template: Asking The Right Questions To Find The Right Vendor

A Front Line Worker Platform is a suite of modern digital tools that provide on-demand knowledge, support, and digital work instructions to improve job completion. To put it simply, a Front Line or Connected Worker Platform provides operational transparency for everyone in your organization to have the support they need… Read More »What Is A Front Line Worker Platform And How Can They Help Your Manufacturing Business?

High production or machine downtime is a growing scourge in the global oil and gas industry. An Aberdeen research found that the cost of unplanned downtimes worked out to around $260,000 every hour in 2016. When focusing on the causes of this downtime, a recent study conducted by Vanson Bourne… Read More »How To Reduce Production Downtime In The Oil And Gas Industry

The pandemic has revealed how easily business operations can be disrupted. 56% of Manufacturing companies say they have limited ability in responding to a major operational crisis. At the same time, 94% of manufacturers say that the adoption of digital technologies has enabled them to keep running their daily operations.… Read More »5 Ways Front Line Worker Platforms Can Digitally Transform Your Manufacturing Business

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote working has become the norm, increasing the demand for remote inspections and audits in the oil and gas sector. Today, the availability of digital tools and technology are making it possible to conduct “virtual” on-site inspections. In terms of business productivity, the… Read More »Conducting Remote Inspections & Audits In Oil & Gas Industry

According to Deloitte, the US oil and gas industry has a workforce of close to 1.5 million, most of whom are largely ignored by technology providers. In addition, the short cyclical nature of oil and gas exploration means that 70% of the jobs that were lost in 2020 may not… Read More »Reducing Plant Commissioning, Machine Installation Time & Errors In Oil & Gas Industry

Despite the continued improvement in occupational safety in the U.S mining industry, this sector continues to record worker fatalities. The U.S. Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) recorded the deaths of 27 miners in 2018 from an overall workforce strength of over 330,000. Researchers at the U.S. National Institute for… Read More »Increasing Frontline Team’s Safety And Compliance In The Mining & Metals Industry

Be it a manufacturing or mining company, unplanned production downtimes are a growing bane that is impacting overall productivity and operational efficiency. To counter this, mining companies are beginning to appreciate the benefits that digital tools and technologies can bring in reducing their production downtime. ABI Research estimates that global… Read More »Reducing Production Downtime In The Mining & Metals Industry

Plant or machine downtime can be devastating in any industry, however, it is critical in the Mining & Metals industry. Unplanned breakdown of mining equipment can cost mining companies up to $180,000 due to lost production. Loss in production in each incident can cost $3,000 every hour and up to… Read More »Reducing Plant Commissioning & Machine Installation Time & Errors In The Mining & Metals Industry

Setting standards for efficiency, quality and product integrity is crucial to protecting your brand’s reputation. Customers have an expectation that what they get you from will feel like your brand and be of uniform, high quality. Standardization of processes is the big, boring sounding key to the success of many… Read More »Digital Standardization: Making It Difficult For Inexperienced Workers To Make A Mistake

As an aftereffect of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the mining industry is also reimagining its mining operational model and enabling “remote working” facilities to its workers. McKinsey reports that mining companies have begun to relocate 15-20% of their onsite workforce to the remote work model. The emergence of digital inspection… Read More »Conducting Remote Inspections & Audits In Mining Industry

Nothing is more important than creating a high quality product. Fall short of the uniform quality your customers have come to expect and it can be a huge hit for your brand’s reputation. The largest factor behind unplanned downtime and defective products is no longer machine error but operator error.… Read More »Improve The Quality Of Your Product By Improving Quality Of Inspection

In 2019, Warranty Week reported that warranty claims expenditure for automotive manufacturers amounted to about 2.5% of their revenues. Controlling these automotive warranty costs provides auto makers a significant opportunity to increase their profitability.

Read More »Leveraging Technology To Control Automotive Warranty Costs And Improve Customer Satisfaction

The emergence of new technologies in the automotive industry has resulted in a generational change in complexity (of products and service offerings) and transformation of the underlying business and ownership models. Dealer technicians are at the sharp end of the impact of new technologies and increasing complexity and face the problem of accessing the right knowledge, information, and guidance they need.

Read More »How Digital Transformation Increases Repair Efficiency For Automotive Dealers And Manufacturers

A Partnership That Defines Success

Read More »How to Strengthen the Dealer – Manufacturer Relationship

Read More »Can You Improve Customer Satisfaction While Controlling Automotive Warranty Costs?

“The single biggest challenge to growth is to find, hire, and train and get enough technicians going.”

Read More »How Augmented Reality Scales Automotive Technical Expertise

The dealer-manufacturer relationship in the automobile industry has faced major challenges in recent years as:

Read More »Evolving the Automotive Manufacturer/Dealer Relationship