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Palmer Hamilton Looks to Breadth of WMEP Services to Achieve Sustainable Growth
With the help of: Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing and Productivity (WCMP)
About
Based in Elkhorn and founded in 1986, Palmer Hamilton produces a line of furniture, including tables, booths and chairs, for schools, health care facilities and corporate environments. They are currently a $60M company with approximately 200 employees and growing.
The Challenge
At the end of 2021, Palmer Hamilton found themselves with 30 open positions they were having trouble filling, a turnover rate of more than 50%, a 9-month sales backlog, and a lack of direction for the senior management team. They engaged with a broad array of WMEP Manufacturing Solutions (WMEP), part of the MEP National Network™, services to tackle these multi-faceted issues.
From a supply chain point of view, well over 90% of what Palmer Hamilton purchases is made in America, which has helped. However, Palmer Hamilton has invested in manufacturing capabilities to insource some critical parts to control more of the items used in manufacturing. Palmer Hamilton heavily invested in employee recruiting and retention, especially for skilled labor. The 18-month effort [with WMEP] has paid off in significant ways. Our turnover rate is about half what it was in 2021, and we are very close to being fully staffed for the first time since 2020.
MEP's Role
WMEP assisted Palmer Hamilton on their transformation journey through the center's TPI (total productivity initiative) process. An assessment led to a list of potential gap closure projects, which were reviewed with the client and then prioritized. Growth strategy work defined the vision, mission and values and translated strategy to a scorecard to manage the business. Talent and culture assistance focused on a more targeted approach to recruiting and a substantially improved onboarding process for new employees. Operational excellence improvements centered on improvements to the quote to cash process through value streaming, activation of a lean starring team, and an enhanced plant layout. An AutomationAdvisor assessment defined high impact areas for Palmer Hamilton to automate.
Created October 19, 2024