Kador Implements 5S Housekeeping System
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- Published on Monday, 01 June 2009 11:09
Kador, with the help of Brisbane based consultancy QMI Solutions, recently introduced the 5S Housekeeping System across its three workshops. The 5S system is a structured, systematized approach to housekeeping and a cornerstone of any successful manufacturing operation. It recognizes that good housekeeping is fundamental for an organization to deliver quality products on time.
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There are five steps to the 5S system. They corresponded originally to five Japanese words starting with 's' but now are most commonly known as follows:
- Sort - The first step in the 5S program is to get rid of excess materials and equipment
- Set in Order - The second step is to ensure that all materials, tools and equipment have a designated location and that all such locations are easy to find – 'a place for everything and everything in its place'
- Shine - This third step is sometimes referred to as "sweep" or "scrub". It emphasises the removal of dirt, grime and dust from the factory, and its purpose includes improving morale and ensuring that when someone needs to use an item it is in good condition and ready for use
- Standardise - Step four is to establish standards to be regularly applied to the workplace that will help maintain the first three steps (3S)
- Sustain - The fifth step is to make a habit of maintaining the momentum of the previous four steps to assure sustainability of the system
The system aims to remove waste from the workplace, provide a reduction in non-value adding activities, provide an environment that fosters continuous improvement and improve safety and quality.
Even after only a short period, Kador is reaping the benefits the 5S system provides.
QMI Solutions is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to helping industry on the journey to manufacturing excellence through research, education, and implementation of world class practices and technologies.
For further information on the work QMI has done with Kador, click here.
Kador Helps Put a Lid on Municipal Landfill Problems
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- Published on Friday, 01 May 2009 11:09
Kador is helping municipal landfill operators put a lid on both their costs and their environmental problems through the manufacture of WasteWell Environmental's 'Landfill Lid'.
WasteWell have designed a simple, affordable and adaptable landfill day cover system that controls birds, flies and windblown litter, and reduces fire risk, all at a lower cost than using virgin excavated natural material (VENM, or soil cover).
The Landfill Lids are placed over a compacted waste tip face at the end of every working day, using the machinery on site. Each lid comprises a portable, rigid, wind resistant 90m2 steel frame that weighs 1.5 tonne. A UV-rated PVC tarpaulin is attached to the frame and has no contact with the waste or ground. The lids are used in a series to cover the active working tip face, replacing the 150mm layer of VENM that would otherwise be required.
Easy to move with dozers, compactors, excavators or other machinery, the Landfill Lid can be positioned in minutes, making the end of the day easy for operators.
According to Wastewell, the Landfill Lid in use on a number of landfill sites and is gaining a growing share of the market.
SEBBA Dump Bodies
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- Published on Wednesday, 01 April 2009 11:11
Kador recently delivered the first of a quantity of dump bodies being manufactured for SEBBA International. SEBBA is the product design and development arm of Queensland based Swift Group Holdings.
SEBBA selected Kador as their Brisbane based partner for the manufacture of their innovative, lighter weight, larger volume OHT bodies to meet the ongoing demands for their products.
The first bodies are for CAT 793 & TEREX MT3700 trucks and will be used in the Central Qld coalfields and are built in accordance with SEBBA's quality assurance specifications.
Over the past nine years Kador has manufactured more than 120 dump bodies for both OEMs and the body replacement market.
Salt Harvesters for Western Australia
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- Published on Sunday, 01 March 2009 11:11
Kador played a major role in the manufacture of two new salt harvesters for use at Shark Bay, and Onslow in Western Australia.
Kador's experience in the manufacture of complex fabrications, and ability to 'fast track' the work while the design was being developed, prompted Brisbane based Loadquip to select Kador as a partner for this project.
The harvesters sit on crawler tracks, with a cutter head harvesting the dried salt and feeding it into two inclined conveyors, a cross conveyor, and then into a truck.
Kador's scope of work included the fabrication and surface treatment of the main frame, the salt harvesting 'cutter' and the conveyor support structure.
The harsh operating environment for the harvesters on the salt pans in northern WA required extensive use of 3CR12 steel, and an onerous surface treatment specification.
Kador’s Occupational Health and Safety - and Environmental Systems Accredited
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- Published on Sunday, 01 February 2009 11:10
Kador's integrated management system was recently audited by SAI Global as complying with ISO 14001:2004 (Environmental management systems) and OHSAS 18001.2007 (Occupational health and safety management systems).
ISO 14001:2004 is the international Standard that specifies requirements for a structured and systematic approach to environmental management. The Standard applies to those environmental aspects which the organisation can control and over which it can be expected to have an influence. As such is provides a sound basis for organisations to meet their environmental challenges.
OHSAS 18001.2007, the Occupational health and safety management systems standard, shares common management systems principles with ISO 14001. This Standard sets auditable criteria for an occupational health and safety management system and includes guidance on how those criteria may be achieved. It encompasses the requirements of AS/NZS 4801:2001, the Australian and New Zealand Standard for Safety Management.
In recent years, Kador's clients have placed greater emphasis on the safety and environmental management systems in place at their suppliers workshops, and in response, Kador commenced work to adopt these standards, in late 2006.
Kador's Managing Director, Philip Smith said "The success of these audits is a reflection of the significant improvements in safety and environmental performance that our work crews have achieved in recent years. We look forward to further and continuous improvement in the future."