Basic Productivity Calculator Download

Posted on May 19, 2017 by Granta

 

To make it easier for you to calculate productivity in your factory or process we’ve created a downloadable Basic Productivity Calculator.  All you need to do is click here to download the calculator and then start analysing your process.

Basic-Productivity-Calculator

 

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Advantages and Disadvantages of Automation

Posted on May 18, 2017 by Granta

If you’re considering introducing automation into your production process, then you should consider both the advantages and disadvantages of automation, before making a decision. Read our blog to find out more about the pros and cons of industrial automation.

 

Advantages of Automation

 

  1. Improved working environment

With the use of automation it is possible to improve the working conditions and safety within your production process or plant.  Automation can reduce health and safety risks, eliminate manual handling and reduce the risk of repetitive strain injury.

 

  1. Increased competitiveness, sales and profit

Automation enables to you to become more competitive in your market.  This is because as your production process is more automated, human error is reduced, product quality become more consistent, and cost per part goes down due to increased production speeds and the reduction in resources required to produce the goods.

 

  1. No labour crisis

Finding labour for mundane, repetitive tasks is becoming more and more difficult, and is likely to become more difficult in the UK after Brexit.  Unemployment in the UK is currently at the lowest it’s ever been since July 1975, so many factories are struggling to find factory workers, especially for heavy manual work. Automation can eliminate the need for staff to perform these types of tasks.

 

  1. Increase production capacity

Automation increases your production capacity as machines can be set to work 24/7 unmanned.  Automated machines do not have breaks, sick leave or holidays, and therefore even if they are only running during normal shift hours, this alone can often lead to a production increase of 140%+. Automated machinery can also typically run faster and produce more accurately made products with fewer defects.

 

  1. Compliance consistency

Automated manufacturing is inherently more consistent and accurate in production quality. In order to meet market demands these days, product quality has to be better and more consistent than ever before, often the only way to achieve this is with automation. Automated inspection systems can be installed at the end of a manual or automated production process using sensors and vision systems to automatically check products for defects and compliance with specification.  This enables faulty products to be rejected, eliminating defects and costly product recalls.

 

  1. Increased factory productivity or OEE

With all the benefits of automation in the points above your process becomes more streamlined and efficient with lower running costs and faster production speeds, and better quality production. This dramatically improves your factory productivity. For some real life examples read our testimonials page.

 

Disadvantages of Automation

 

  1. Capital expenditure

Whilst automation can prove highly effective and bring you a positive ROI, it may also require a fairly high capital cost. That’s why, before making a decision we recommend considering both the investment needed and also the ROI you expect to achieve. When calculating the ROI it is important to include increased throughput value, reduced labour costs and the reduction in defects/recalls along with the capital expenditure before deciding whether or not there is a business case for investment. With the help of an automation project calculator you will be able to calculate your estimate payback and view finance estimates.

 

  1. Gets rid of jobs

It is true that with the introduction of automation there are some jobs that may become redundant, but this does not necessarily have to be a negative implication of automation. Instead of staff performing mind-numbing, monotonous or unpleasant tasks, they can be trained to transfer to working in other areas of your business.  Many companies have found that after installation of automation they have seen sales rise, thus creating more jobs in different parts of their business.

 

  1. Bespoke automation becomes redundant when production processes change

As with any type of machinery, if you change your production process or product you are manufacturing so that a particular machine is no longer part of the process then the machine becomes redundant.  Therefore it is very important to future proof any automation you install into your production process. A skilled automation company will design your automation system to enable it to be easily adapted to suit changes in your product design or production process. For example; by using standard flexible automation such as robots, these can be easily used somewhere else in a manufacturing process even if the existing process becomes redundant.

 

Conclusion

The advantages of automation often outweigh the disadvantages but every case needs careful consideration to ensure that the right decision is made. There will sometimes be situations where automation does not justify itself. Equally if you don’t automate and stay as you are without carefully assessing the benefits of automation you could be missing out on some significant advantages.

 

We hope this blog has given you some insight into the aspects you should consider before introducing automation into your company. However, if you need any more guidance or you’d like to find out more about the benefits of robotic palletising systems and how they could be applied in your production process then please don’t hesitate to contact our team of automation experts who are always happy to help. Give us a call on 01223 499488 or email helpline@granta-automation.co.uk.

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What Type Of Automation Should I Choose To Increase Factory Staff Motivation?

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Granta

What-Type-Of-Automation-Should-I-Choose-To-Increase-Factory-Staff-Motivation

The fact that automation is one of the ways you can incentivise and motivate factory staff is no longer a secret. But with so many different types of automation available today, it might seem like a daunting task choosing the best type of automation to help you achieve optimal results, not only when it comes to increasing your staff’s motivation, but also to boosting overall productivity and efficiency. Worry not! The Granta team are here to help. We’ve prepared a useful guide below that can help make this decision easier.

 

  1. Automated Dashboards and Scoreboards

An automated dashboard or scoreboard is a screen that is mounted in your factory or office, visible to all staff, showing live data relating to KPIs, bonuses or any other appropriate information that is going to motivate your staff.

Automated dashboards and scoreboards are by far one of the most effective ways of motivating your factory staff, by encouraging a healthy kind of competition amongst different teams. It can also turn abstract figures into a visual incentive that can demonstrate how all their hard work is paying off by reaching and even surpassing certain targets. Using dashboards and scoreboards to display relevant KPIs and targets can also become a useful reminder for everyone as to what they’re working towards and can add a sense of purpose to their work.

 

  1. Production Monitoring and Datalogging Systems

Production monitoring and datalogging systems consist of inputs throughout your production process, which can be in the form of sensors, detectors, encoders or HMIs, where data is automatically or manually input into the system.  This data can then be used to help identify areas within your production that require improvement; such as bottlenecks, reliability issues and product defects.

Whilst production monitoring and datalogging systems primarily help to boost your factory’s production efficiency, they can also be used as a great way to motivate your staff by creating a culture of continuous improvement. This, in turn, can encourage your staff to always strive for improved performance and feel like they’re contributing to making a difference within the entire company. Production monitoring and datalogging systems can also create a perpetual awareness of problem areas and help people focus on improving processes.  It is also important to appropriately reward any innovations or significant improvements that your staff perform, in order to sustain this type of culture.

 

  1. Downtime and Efficiency Tracking

Downtime and efficiency tracking systems monitor your plant 24/7, giving instant notification of plant stoppages and downtime.  With the more advanced downtime and efficiency tracking systems it is possible to log in remotely to your plant to see exactly where the faults are and what needs to be done to rectify them.  When used with a production monitoring and datalogging system, it is also possible to use this data to calculate OEE (overall equipment effectiveness).

By investing in downtime and efficiency tracking systems, you can give your staff the tools they need to work faster and smarter and create improvements in working conditions, which is another factor that plays an important part when it comes to staff motivation. You can also use this kind of technology to assess performance and then make executive decisions based on that.

 

  1. Automated Palletising

Autoamted palletising solutions enable you to reduce downtime and remove the risk of RSI occuring.

Installing and automated palletising solution can help transform working conditions and improve your production throughput. From standard pick and place palletising of bags or boxes through to high speed layer forming palletising, the Granta GA15 palletising system is a very versatile and flexible option for all your palletising requirements. Automated container unloading and palletising is also made possible thanks to the quick and easy programming software.

 

These are just some of the main types of automation that can help you increase factory staff motivation. If you’d like more information about the Granta GA15 palletising system and how we can help you achieve with automation, get in touch today on 01223 499 488 or use our unique project builder to get a quote online in just a few minutes!

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How Do I Incentivise And Motivate Factory Staff Who Are Doing Repetitive Tasks?

Posted on April 6, 2017 by Granta

How-to-incentivse-and-motivate-staff-who-are-doing-repetitive-tasks

If you’re a factory manager, then you probably know how important it is to motivate your workers as it has a positive impact on how efficient and productive they are, and thus influences the entire business.

Below we’ve provided a few useful tips and tricks to help you incentivise and motivate your factory staff so you can boost productivity and morale.

Constant communication

It’s important to have open and constructive communication with your staff. Start by giving them feedback and praising good performance, which is a good way to incentivise them, but also listening to their feedback and taking into account any suggestions they may have for improving the overall work environment.  No one knows better how to improve a working environment than those who actually work in the environment on a daily basis.

Keep a live scoreboard

It is a known and proven fact that a live scoreboard or dashboard is one of the most effective means of staff motivation. When a team’s speed of working and success or failure rate is displayed live to everyone in the factory, unit or team, it motivates staff beyond any other method.

Offer rewards whenever appropriate

Whether it’s the occasional company party or dinner, a well-deserved bonus for excellent results or putting in place a rewards scheme for your factory staff, any type of reward gives staff an extra incentive and something to work towards.  The results always show that incentivised and motivated staff result in an improvement in productivity.

Reduce the risk of repetitive strain injury

Motivating staff can prove to be a challenging task, especially when their job involves mundane, repetitive tasks that may lead to issues such as repetitive strain injury (RSI).  (Not sure how high the risk of RSI is in your factory? Download our repetitive strain injury risk assessment form and find out now!)  Following this assessment you may find some areas where you can make small changes to reduce the repetitive strain injury risks your workers are exposed to and make their jobs easier or more comfortable.

Update your processes

Use automation to upgrade your factory. This not only helps boost productivity and efficiency significantly, but it’s also a smart way of improving working conditions and creating new, more stimulating roles within the factory. It can often be frustrating for workers to conduct repetitive tasks using outdated machinery and technologies.  Therefore by introducing automation to do the repetitive tasks within your factory, and moving staff to more challenging job roles, staff become motivated as they feel they are now working in a modern, up to date, 21st century environment.  As we all know, motivated staff results in better productivity which in turn influences the culture of your business and results in an increase to your bottom line.

Encourage training

If possible, it’s good to set aside some time and resources to ensure that your staff are cross-trained within certain areas of your production or throughout your whole factory.  This then offers you and your staff more flexibility as you have several staff who are all fully trained to do a particular job.  Rotating job roles every shift gives your staff variety which helps to increase job engagement and reduce the risk of repetitive strain injury, whilst reducing the boredom of doing the same repetitive task all day every day.

 

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How do I Identify a Bottleneck in My Production Process?

Posted on March 16, 2017 by Granta

Often we are all too aware that there is a bottleneck in our production process, but to actually find and eliminate the bottleneck is usually a complex and time consuming task.

How-do-I-identify-a-bottleneck-in-my-production-processLet’s start by looking at what a bottleneck is and why they happen.

A bottleneck occurs where part of a process has lower throughput capacity than the rest of the process. The bottleneck is then limiting the speed of throughput through the whole process. For example; if all the machines in a production process are capable of a throughput of 100 parts per hour apart from one machine that can only process 75 parts per hour, then the 75 parts per hour machine will be the bottleneck in your production process.

Following the steps outlined below will help you to quickly identify the bottleneck in your process and enable you to establish the necessary measures you need to take to remove or exploit that bottleneck.

Step One – Identify the bottleneck in your production process

Bottleneck machines or processes are often easily identified as they have a build-up of parts waiting to be processed by them.

If your bottleneck is not so obvious, then it is best to create a flow chart showing the step by step processes that are involved in producing the particular product or part you believe may be part of a bottleneck process. Having completed a flow chart, you will then have an idea as to where in the process the bottleneck may be occurring, and you will be able to investigate this area further to see exactly where the bottleneck is.

Think broad, for example it may not be the speed of the machine when it is actually running, it may be the changeover time that drags a machine’s overall throughput down.

Step Two – Exploit the bottleneck

Having identified the bottleneck, it is important to do everything you can to ensure that the bottleneck machine or process is working to maximum efficiency.

The first and simplest way to do this is to quality check the parts entering the bottleneck for defects and reject any that are substandard before they enter the bottleneck machine or process. This ensures that the bottleneck is only working on good quality parts.

Check to see if all of the products going through the bottleneck have to go through it. Could some be processed in another way? Reducing the load on the bottleneck increases the overall throughput of your factory.

Increase the capacity of your bottleneck. Do you need to add another machine or more staff to this part of the process to help increase the capacity of the bottleneck?

Ensure that your bottleneck is working all of the time. Plan staff breaks or automate the process to ensure that the bottleneck never stops working except for maintenance or tool changes. If you are not already running the bottleneck machine or process 24/7 then consider doing so to increase capacity.

If you would like help and advice as to the best way to exploit the constraints of your bottleneck, one of our automation advisors will be happy to advise you as to how automated palletising systems can be of benefit to you. Contact us on 01223 499488 or helpline@granta-automation.co.uk .

Step Three – Go back to Step One

Having identified and exploited the bottleneck in your production process, it is important to begin the identifying and exploiting process again. You may find that the bottleneck has now moved to a different machine or process, or indeed you may have a wandering bottleneck in your production process.

Therefore, to enable maximum efficiency, it is very important to keep on reviewing where your bottlenecks are and exploiting these constraints.

For a more comprehensive overview on how to identify and eliminate bottlenecks we recommend reading ‘The Goal’ by Eliyahu M. Goldratt.

If you would like further help and advice on how to exploit the constraints of your bottleneck by using an automated palletising system, one of our automation advisors will be happy to assist you. Contact us on 01223 499488 or helpline@granta-automation.co.uk.

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2 Key Snippets from the 2017 Budget Speech!

Posted on March 9, 2017 by Granta

2-Key-Snippets-from-the-2017-Budget-SpeechRead on for a few key snippets about productivity from the budget speech. Click here to find out even more about the importance of productivity for you.

“…there is no room for complacency. As we prepare for our future outside the EU, we cannot rest on our past achievements. We must focus relentlessly on keeping Britain at the cutting edge of the global economy. The deficit is down, but debt is still too high. Employment is up, but productivity remains stubbornly low.”

“This House knows, that the only sustainable way to raise living standards is to improve our productivity growth. Simply put, higher productivity means higher pay. The stats are well known. We are 35% behind Germany and 18% behind the G7 average. And the gap is not closing. … this government places addressing the UK’s productivity challenge at the very heart of its economic plan. … £270 million to keep the UK at the forefront of disruptive technologies like biotech, robotic systems and driverless vehicles.”

http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/8a000060-1bde-4491-bffe-4359e85832ea

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2 Ways to Measure the Productivity, Effectiveness or Efficiency of your Machinery or Factory

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Granta

2-Feb

With productivity being a hot topic at the moment it’s important to know how to calculate the productivity of your machinery and factory to enable you to implement and track productivity improvements.

This article covers two productivity calculations.  The first is a Basic Productivity Calculation based on output and input, whereas the second is a more comprehensive productivity calculation based on Overall Equipment Effectiveness.

Basic Productivity Calculation

Basic productivity is calculated by comparing the amount of goods and services produced by the inputs that were used in production.  This results in a basic productivity formula of;

Productivity = Output/Input

This basic productivity formula can be used to calculate the productivity of your complete production process, or of a particular process or machine within your production process.

Output must be expressed as a numerical value, and is the finished value of goods or services produced by a person, machine, or process.

Input must also be expressed as a numerical value and is the value of input that was used to produce the output, such as labour, materials, machine time.

Worked Example

The widget making machine produces 100 units a day, the finished value of each unit is £10.00.  This means that the output of the machine is £1000.00 per day.

The total cost to make 1 widget is £2.50.  This cost includes £1.50 of materials, £0.50 of labour and £0.50 of machine time.  This means that the total input cost for 100 units is £250.00.

So the basic productivity calculation is £1000/£250 = 4.  Therefore the productivity for this machine on this particular day is 4.  Having established a productivity factor for this particular machine, it is then possible to use this same formula to compare the productivity of identical work stations, or to monitor the productivity of this particular machine over time.

Click here to download your FREE Basic Productivity Calculator Tool.

For more detailed information on this basic productivity calculation, read this clear guide by Accel:  http://www.accel-team.com/_pdf/atpdf_08_extract.pdf

OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) Calculation

For a more comprehensive productivity calculation OEE should be used.  OEE takes into account the speed at which the machine or factory runs, the quality of the finished products produced and the actual machine operating time versus the available operating time. OEE is best calculated per machine rather than across the whole factory as it is then easier to identify where improvements need to be made to help improve productivity. OEE is calculated as:

Performance x Availability x Quality

Performance is the speed at which the machine or work station runs expressed as a percentage of the speed it is designed to run.

Availability is the asset operating time expressed as a percentage of available operating time.

Quality is the total number of good units produced expressed as a percentage of the total number of units that were started.

Worked Example

Availability – The widget making machine is capable of producing 100 units every hour.  The production day is 8 hours, so the machine is capable of producing 800 units per working day.  But, today there is a downtime of 1 hour due to maintenance and a shortage of materials so this means that the machine will only be working for 7 hours.

Actual Operating Time (7 hours)/Available Operating Time (8h hours) = Availability of 87.5%

Performance – During the 7 hours of operating time that were available today, the machine produced 625 units.  The amount of units the machine is able to produce within an hour is 100.  So the theoretical time need to produced 625 units is 625/100 = 6.25 hrs.  The performance of the machine is;

Theoretical time (6.25 hrs)/Available time(7 Hrs) = 89% Performance

Quality – Of the 625 units produced today, only 600 of the units were of good enough quality to be sold.  The other 25 units need to be reworked before sale or scrapped. This means that the good units expressed as time is 600 units/100 units per hour = 6 hours. So the quality is;

Good Units expressed in time (6 hrs)/Performance time (6.25 Hrs) = 96% Quality

So our final OEE calculation is

Performance (89%) x Availability (87.5%) x Quality (96%) = 75% OEE

This calculation shows that the total losses during the day for this machine were 25% which equates to 2 hours of lost production time.  Over time, this adds up to a large amount of lost production time, therefore decreasing the profits that could be made if the productivity of the machine was higher.  It is therefore very important to identify the root causes of this loss and to then implement the necessary measures to reduce or eliminate the losses.

Click here to download your FREE OEE Calculator Tool.

There are many ways of improving performance, availability and quality, some of which are outlined below.

  • Performance of machinery can be simply improved by production monitoring systems that enable you to quickly identify, track and rectify faults or bottlenecks in the process. They also motivate workers associated with the process to hit targets.
  • Performance and availability can both be improved by automating your machinery and production process. Automation helps to increase available working hours as machinery is not dependent upon an operator for it to keep producing products. Robotic palletising systems are a very good example of this.
  • Quality can be improved by using vision inspection throughout your production process. Vision inspection during the production process enables you to identify and eliminate faulty products earlier in the process.

If you would like to discuss the productivity of your machinery or factory in relation to automated palletising systems, one of our automation consultants will be very happy to help.  Contact us on 01223 499488.

You may also be interested in our FREE Robotics and Automation Resource Pack that includes many other useful tools. It is available to download here.

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Does Automation Really Wreck People’s Lives and Cause Unemployment?

Posted on January 27, 2017 by Granta

young-man-without-a-jobThere seems to be a lot of fear mongering, especially in the UK, when it comes to automation and the role it plays in causing unemployment, despite evidence that suggests the contrary. Throughout the ages, as humanity evolved, so has the technology and now advancements from the automation industry are helping people work better, faster and in safer conditions, as many jobs that are dangerous can now be performed by robots. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that by embracing the benefits of automation, employees’ jobs will be at risk and millions of jobs will disappear.

Instead, what’s been happening over the past few years is a change in the employment landscape. As robotics and other automation have been implemented across different sectors, a need for new jobs has actually been created, and as this article demonstrates “on average, since 1980, occupations with above-average computer use have grown substantially faster (0.9 percent per year)”. What this indicates is a positive suggestion of the valuable benefits automation can bring and its contribution towards creating new types of jobs.

So, is automation really as bad as some people say it is?   Below are some answers to the most commonly asked questions.

Q: Why do you think there appears to be a general fear of job losses in the UK to automation?

A: There seems to be this notion amongst people, and perhaps part of it is also due to some of the media coverage when it comes to this issue, that automation leads to losing jobs. However, in our experience we’ve seen the positive effects of automation used beneficially to increase the quality of life for workers in factories, for example, by tackling tedious and dangerous jobs. Also with most automated technologies someone has to control them or work alongside them. So it’s not a matter of every person being replaced with automation, but rather implementing automation in a way that will be most effective in improving business results, along with the quality of working conditions, so in many instances it can be a win-win situation for staff and the business owners.

Q: What type of jobs do you think that automation can contribute?

A: Whilst it’s true that there are some jobs that may become redundant as automation technologies are being implemented, besides the need for people to manage the whole production processes, as a business grows, you’ll always need more people in order to support that growth. So the way we see it at Granta, and what we often ask our customers is ‘Instead of having your people do mindnumbing, monotonous or unpleasant jobs, isn’t it preferable to automate those jobs and to look at training your people so they can transfer their skills to other areas of the business, such as helping to drive new sales opportunities?’ We’ve even seen instances amongst our clients where implementing automation is critical not only to help them grow their business, but it actually meant that their business could stay in the market where it would otherwise be at a competitive disadvantage.

Q: What about the bigger picture? Do you think that automation can actually be beneficial for the UK’s economy, or on the contrary?

A: I’ve read articles about how automation is a cause for unemployment and thus it affects the economy, but as I’ve said before, I don’t think it’s always presented as a very balanced view of this issue. Yes, it’s true that some jobs will disappear in time, this is nothing new and we’ve seen that happening through history, way before automation or other evolved technologies appeared. For example think how many people used to be needed in farming; guiding horses drawn ploughs, manually sowing the seeds, using scythes to cut the fields, manually gathering the harvest. But then new, more people-friendly jobs appeared instead; in service jobs and industries where the hard, backbreaking, monotonous work of manual labour was not required. It’s all a matter of the human nature’s adaptability and ability to embrace progress.

Going back to ‘the bigger picture’, what I haven’t really seen much discussion around is whether it’s better to outsource our manufacturing to low cost labour countries such as China or India, or instead, use automation to keep production processes within the country. Personally, I am inclined to believe the second option will contribute to strengthening our economy, provide employment and in some cases, it can even allow certain companies to remain local and thus, save local jobs. With the value of the pound being down since the Brexit vote, this makes an even stronger case for supporting UK manufacturing as importing has become more expensive.

The Government is currently driving to increase manufacturing and productivity in the UK with a view to making the UK great again, and automation is going to be essential to the success of this. Read the Governments ‘Building our Industrial Strategy’ Green Paper for more information.

So, what do you think about automation? Does it really cause massive unemployment, or does it actually make a positive contribution by creating new jobs and improving the quality of working conditions? Let us know your thoughts…

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How to Increase Productivity in Your Factory with Automation

Posted on January 26, 2017 by Granta

In a fast and ever developing world, factories need to be able to keep up with increasing demand and higher competition levels, whilst ensuring they improve their productivity levels in order to thrive. This is where automation can help you achieve that as it can be used to boost productivity across factories.

Read on to discover how you can use the power of automation to increase productivity in your factory.

Robotic Automation

Robotic automation is a perfect place to start when looking at increasing your factory’s productivity. Implementing robotic automation can help you keep production costs down, while the product quality and the production speed improve, leading to better productivity and higher profits. Automating the palletising of products is a key way to improve productivity.

Depending on the industry you’re working on, certain types of robots will be more suitable than others to help you achieve your growth goals. For example, clean room robots are a great choice for medical and pharmaceutical manufacturers, while a vast range of industrial robots are better suited for the automotive and food industries.

Production Monitoring and Datalogging Systems

One way of increasing the productivity in your factory is by choosing the right KPIs for your business, and then using the right tools to monitor performance and identify any areas that can be improved.

With production monitoring and data logging systems you’re not just monitoring performance, but you can also use them to increase efficiency by creating a culture of continuous improvement which can translate into better productivity levels. This kind of automation is also a great option if you’re looking for ways of increasing staff incentives and keeping downtime to a minimum.

Bespoke Automation Solutions

Another way you can increase productivity is by implementing bespoke automated control systems, created specifically for the particular needs of your factory. Bespoke machinery that is custom built for specific applications has often proved to be a more cost-effective solution for achieving your productivity goals.

Alternatively, if your factory has old machinery that you’d like to still use instead of making a massive investment in brand new machinery, old machinery automation can help you make the most of your existing equipment by overhauling and modernising it.

Streamline Your Production Process

Now that you know what some of the best automation solutions for your factory are, it’s time to consider additional ways in which you can take the productivity of your factory further and increase profits. One option is to consider automated machinery integration which can help you streamline your entire production process, whilst reducing production costs and time.

Another way to help your factory thrive in today’s highly competitive market is by investing in reliable vision and inspection systems which are great for implementing automatic quality assurance and control, ensuring that you only produce high quality products, without having to spend extra time or labour.

Watch our short video explaining productivity…
 

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Theresa May Tackles Productivity to Increase Prosperity

Posted on January 26, 2017 by Granta

Building-our-Industrial-StrategyWhat is productivity?  How do I increase productivity?

These questions are the type of questions that many people will be asking themselves after the release of the governments ‘Building our Industrial Strategy’ Green Paper. With the policy open for debate and discussion, it’s important that we understand what is meant by Productivity.

Productivity is the effectiveness of productive effort measured in terms of the rate of output per unit of input. 

The ‘Building our Industrial Strategy’ Green Paper has identified the need to increase our productivity to help our Country become great again. To quote from Prime Minister Theresa May’s introduction in the ‘Building our Industrial Strategy’ Green Paper:

“This active government will build on Britain’s strategic strengths and tackle our underlying weaknesses, like low productivity. This is vital because if we want to increase our overall prosperity, if we want more people to share in that prosperity, if we want higher real wages, and if we want more opportunities for young people to get on – we have to raise our productivity.”

Productivity is closely related to prosperity and the standard of living within a country.  As productivity goes up, so does the standard of living.  Currently, when it comes to productivity, the UK is far behind many other parts of the World. To quote from Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

“For all the global excellence of the UK’s best companies, industries and places we have too many who lie far behind the leaders. That is why, on average, workers in France, Germany and the United States produce around as much in four days as UK workers do in five.”

Improving productivity is not done by making people work harder or faster, it is achieved when each hour of input is made to yield more output per hour than before.  This may sound difficult to achieve, but one of the keys to increase productivity is automation.  With automation, output can be increased whilst maintaining the same level of input.  As productivity goes up, so standards of living increase, and who of us doesn’t want that to happen!

Watch this short video to help you understand what productivity is and how you can increase productivity in your business.

Wishing you every success!

 

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