The Top 5 Best Manufacturing Practices of Good Companies

Why is it important to have good manufacturing practices?

A company's success — or failure — can be determined by how it controls its manufacturing operations. 

Good manufacturing companies set themselves apart by optimizing their production by following best-in-class practices. Good companies invest time and money into best practices that create a profitable, efficient, healthy, and happy work environment. While it will take time, cooperation, leadership, and collaboration to get there, we promise it will pay off. 

Want to learn how to turn your manufacturing business into a well-oiled machine? Over decades of working hand-in-hand with some of the best manufacturers across North America, we have created a list of the manufacturing industry’s best practices that your company can follow too. 

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What is a best practice?

A best practice tells you the best way to do something to get the best results. 

A standard set of recommendations that are recognized to result in good outcomes when followed are referred to as best practices. A procedure, method, or technique that consistently is more effective, produces better results than other approaches and strategies, and can be duplicated is considered a best practice. 

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Why should manufacturing companies follow best practices?

Best practices will make you more efficient, improve your company’s performance, create a better workplace for your employees, increase customer satisfaction, and boost your bottom line. Establishing your company’s best practices — and communicating them — are crucial to your success and will result in a more consistent work product and a better workplace. 

While it may not be required to adhere to a best practice, manufacturers should follow them wherever possible to guarantee success and set themselves apart as a top manufacturing company.

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Top 5 Best Practices in the Manufacturing Industry

1. Employees must be your top priority.

Now more than ever, your employees are your most valuable resource and must be treated as such. Labor shortages across the industry have made recruiting and retaining talent increasingly difficult. You need to focus on — and empower — the people on your shop floor to create an efficient business that people want to come to work at every day.

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• Invest in training. Give your staff the training they need to do their jobs right. Well-trained staff are more likely to stick around and add long-term value to your organization. Consider cross-training your team to make your shop even more efficient.

• Set expectations. Your team needs to know what is expected of them to deliver results. Your employees may spend a significant portion of their workdays focused on the wrong objectives if goals and priorities aren't clearly stated.

• Empower your employees. Your shop floor employees are great resources and fountains of knowledge. Tap into that. Build trust, give them a voice, and let your employees make changes and improvements where they see fit.

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Want to know the other four top manufacturing best practices? Download our guide The 5 Best Ways to Become a Manufacturing Superhero, to find them all out, including the number one thing you need to have in your shop to become a great manufacturing company.

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