Sewing Technology Inc.
Lean Manufacturing Enables Sewing Technology to Meet U.S. Navy Requirements
Will Bargar, CEOThe required changes were implemented much more quickly due to the synergy between Insyte Consulting and our internal team.
The Company
Sewing Technology is a contract manufacturer of cut & sew products, primarily for the aerospace and defense markets. The company was founded in 1993 and was a woman-owned enterprise until 2015 when it was acquired by the current ownership. At that time Sewing Technology had sales of about $1.5 million and employed 14 people, including both shop floor and office personnel. Manufacturing operations have been conducted within 5,000 square feet of a multi-story light industrial building on a single shift.
The Challenge
Shortly after the ownership change, the company needed to execute on a contract from the U.S. Navy to supply 5,000 helmet covers per month over the next several years. These are worn on the flight decks of aircraft carriers and to a large extent are considered to be a consumable commodity. Although this represented a huge sales opportunity, there was an issue in meeting the monthly demand, as seen in an immediate production backlog. This situation was exacerbated by the limited availability of trained sewers in the area. It was also difficult to realize acceptable profitability on a low margin product.
Our Solution
Shortly after the ownership change, the company needed to execute on a contract from the U.S. Navy to supply 5,000 helmet covers per month over the next several years. These are worn on the flight decks of aircraft carriers and to a large extent are considered to be a consumable commodity. Although this represented a huge sales opportunity, there was an issue in meeting the monthly demand, as seen in an immediate production backlog. This situation was exacerbated by the limited availability of trained sewers in the area. It was also difficult to realize acceptable profitability on a low margin product.
