Crystal clear improvements

Hansueli Flückiger, Group-wide Q Manager of the three flat glass production plants in Wikon, Thun and Münchenbuchsee cannot hide his enthusiasm: "With the new tool, we can react quickly and across all sites. Let's take our most frequent customer complaint, broken glass. Each damage is recorded in the corresponding plant in the ERP and then automatically transferred to Improve." Once the complaint is entered, the rest of the quality management process is fully supported by the KVP software. The commercial aspects, such as a credit note for the customer, on the other hand, are covered by the ERP system. "Fortunately, the interface to the ERP is included in the basic Improve package," emphasises Quality Manager HF. No wonder, customer satisfaction has continued to rise at the dedicated SME, which has been producing high-performance functional glass for many years.

React immediately

The skilful management of complaints and their cross-site handling are important for the corporate success of Flachglas Schweiz, which emerged from the former Pilkington AG. "We don't want to stop getting better, because quality only counts when you need it," comments Beppino Candolo, Chairman of the Executive Board. And Improve is making a significant contribution to this. "The complaints recorded can now be systematically analysed for their causes," says Hansueli Flückiger. He also notes that, compared to the earlier Excel solutions, responsibilities are much more clearly defined and the usual hectic pace before an audit has disappeared.

In-depth analysis

The company, which belongs to the German Flachglas Wernberg Group, consistently makes use of these results and initiates necessary measures. But not enough. Since the web-based special software has been in use, annoying duplications are also a thing of the past. The employees of the flat glass companies appreciate this and can no longer imagine a working day without Improve. The ambitious glass finishing group even goes one step further: "Every trimester, we analyze three real or possible reasons for complaints in depth," explains safety expert Flückiger, who has been with the holding company in Wikon, Lucerne, since 2007.

Preventive maintenance

The ambitious SME, which ranks second in the Swiss glass processing market, has a total of 700 units at its three production sites, such as machines and other equipment that require preventive maintenance. "With this size, a suitable tool is needed to maintain an overview at all times and to plan maintenance work efficiently," emphasizes Hansueli Flückiger. Until 2013, Excel solutions were used for this purpose, but they had proven increasingly unsuitable for company management. Because flawless maintenance is a vital success factor at Flachglas, the management was looking for a suitable, group-wide software. "We had set ourselves the goal of more efficient preventive maintenance ", clarifies Beppino Candolo. It is important to always know the condition of the equipment and the pending maintenance work in a timely and detailed manner.

Nothing is forgotten

Today, Improve is an excellent tool for this. The tool makes the data available in a visualized form at the click of a mouse. But the best is yet to come. The responsible employees are automatically informed by e-mail about upcoming tasks. "This way, nothing is forgotten," says the Q manager happily. If an employee misses a maintenance task, he is reminded by the system - basically until the job is done.

High acceptance

The new tool was quickly accepted internally after its introduction at Flachglas Schweiz. This pleases 46-year-old Flückiger: "Improve is exceptionally user-friendly, and there is no longer any confusion between similar plants". How is this possible? Quite simply, every piece of equipment is stored in the system with a photo. The cost accounting facts and even the history of faults, including the corresponding remedial measures, are also recorded. The big plus: all relevant information is now bundled in one place. The requirement of preventive maintenance is now fulfilled without any ifs and buts at the renowned glass producer. All the more so because the CIP software also fulfils an important customer benefit with regard to measuring equipment: Various time cycles can be superimposed on each measuring device, for example weekly, monthly and annual maintenance tasks.

Occupational safety as an important field

Occupational safety has traditionally been a high priority at Flachglas Schweiz. This is not particularly surprising, because handling the coveted glass is not without risks. Employees often have to deal with very heavy weights, large surfaces and razor-sharp cutting edges. A pane can weigh up to 1.3 tonnes and be almost 20 square metres in size. The respected SME, which has a great deal of experience with challenging glass installations, is doing everything it can to reduce workplace accidents throughout Switzerland. "We work with the Occupational Health and Safety Management System according to OHSAS 18001:2007 and are on the SUVA Safety Charter," explains Beppino Candolo. In addition to various preventive measures and means, the software should also help to avoid accidents in the best case or otherwise to handle them correctly and to learn from the individual cases. This is where Improve comes in. The tool allows an accident to be recorded locally as a case at the incident location, and images can be stored. Each incident is comprehensively documented: Not only are steps taken, deadline monitoring and costs summarized in one place, but the treating physicians and responsible hospitals are also clearly registered in the system.

Good prospects

Hansueli Flückiger also appreciates very pragmatic things about accident recording: "At last we are rid of the avalanches of e-mails. An entry in Improve replaces time-consuming e-mailing back and forth, saving time and hassle". And the prospects for even more confident accident handling with the quality software are rosy. Hubert Geisseler, CEO of Synprovis, says: "Starting this fall, we will be offering our customers even more significant work simplifications. Improve will be linked to SUVA's 'Sunetplus' via an interface. The CIP concept is thus optimally fulfilled, because the process does not end after the SUVA report has been completed and a whole series of evaluations are opened up. Manufacturers, employees and customers all agree: Improve has brought crystal-clear improvements in a wide range of areas.