Some manufacturers are able to do this through reducing manufacturing steps (i.e., fewer hours of production per day) and/or by redesigning existing processes (i.e., using pneumatic conveying systems to transport large assemblies instead of wood or plastic decks). For Pneumatic Conveying, visit a site like Aptech, suppliers of Pneumatic Conveying systems. While others have proposed ways of saving money in other ways such as by increasing cash flow, reducing over-staffing, cutting excess inventory and/or requiring a certain minimum number of workers to perform a specific task. These ideas generally fall into one of two categories: ways to “make my factory more efficient” and/or ways to “reduce cost structure”.
In all honesty, it is much easier to reduce costs when there is a “big picture” strategy in place, where every aspect of the manufacturing operation is looked at in a macro fashion. This sort of strategy is usually very effective, because it forces the individual managers and executives in the various companies to consider their budgets, operating procedures, quality, quantity, timing, etc.. In other words, it forces each of them to face up to reality and it requires them to make difficult decisions.
If you are seeking new ways to make your factory more efficient, then every area of the production will need analysing to see if there are wasteful processes or duplicated activities that could be streamlined, for example. Improving the time it takes to transport products from one area to another is an excellent place to start in terms of increasing efficiency.