Lean Office – Lean Efficiency for Your Administrative Operations

11:00 am – Concurrent Session 1b

Presented By: Bill Kuhns & Paul Demers, Vermont Manufacturing Extension Center

Lean isn't just for the shop floor anymore. There are also opportunities to improve lead times and efficiencies in office processes. Don't be fooled by the word "office" - this is ideal for any environment that processes a lot of information - real or electronic - whether it is purchasing, accounting, engineering, doctor's offices, banking, etc. Just a few of the benefits of a Lean office environment are improved efficiency, cost savings, complex processes simplified, and faster customer response. Who wouldn't want that? During this interactive presentation, you will be introduced to some key Lean Office concepts that can be applied to your own business.

Bill Kuhns, VMEC Professional Manufacturing and IT Advisor - Beginning his career with VMEC in 1998, Bill has worked with computers and computer-based systems for more than 20 years. Bill has worked on a broad range of avionic and satellite systems as well as associated test and simulation equipment. On the manufacturing side, he has managed manufacturing and test engineering groups and has helped to select and implement integrated manufacturing software systems.  With a background in Engineering and Computer Science, his focus at VMEC has been working with nationally recognized experts and Vermont clients to apply Lean principles beyond the production floor. He has been involved in dozens of projects in areas ranging from finance to product development to purchasing. Bill works from a home office in Monkton.

Paul Demers, VMEC Senior Manufacturing Advisor - Paul joined VMEC as one of the Center's first field engineers in January 1996. Working from VMEC's Burlington office, Paul has provided direct assistance and managed a wide variety of projects for Vermont manufacturers including the areas of Lean Manufacturing training and implementation, Set Up Reduction, Human Resource Assessments, Cellular Manufacturing, and Total Productivity Maintenance (TPM). Paul has trained over 10,000 Vermont manufacturing employees in Lean concepts. He is certified by SME/AME as a Bronze Level Lean Sensei and serves as a Northeast Shingo Prize Ambassador.