1. Factory Building Symposium on Lean Production January 29, 2007 Austin, Texas

2. Four Seasons Housing, Inc. Middlebury, IN Austin Baidas, CEO and President Level the Load

3. Four Seasons Housing  Started:1994  Location:Middlebury, IN  Home type(s):Primarily HUD Code  Price point:Moderate  Design:Limited customization  Production:10 floors/day  Market area:Northern US

4. Objective: Balance the Line  Eliminate non-value added (NVA) activity  Reduce cycle time variability › Station to station › Floor to floor

5. Strategy 1.Map product flow 2.Analyze data to identify causes of cycle time variability 3.Implement solutions that reduce NVA and control cycle time variability

6. Sources of Variation  Double vs. single floor stations  Variation in complexity from A to B half Tactic: Convert single floor stations to double floor stations

7. Then Raw Material Roof Ass’y Raw Material Mud Pit Raw Material Side Wall Jig End Wall Plumb & Tile Mud Pit Raw Material 5 Interior Walls 1A Frame 1B Post-Frame 2B Pre-Floor 2A HVAC, H 2 O, DWV 2C Decking3 Plumb, Util., Floor4 Cabinet Set 6 End, Side, Drywall & Electrical 7 Side, Drywall, Elec. 8 Marriage, Drywall & Electrical 9 Roof Set, Drywall & Electrical 10 Rough Roof, Exterior & Interior 11 Shingle, Siding & Interior 12 Sofit & Fascia 13 Mud, Dry, Prep Paint, Dry, Finish Heater Cabinet Shop Interior Walls Cabinet Tops Upper Cabinet Cabinet Shop Plumb & Tile HVAC Mezzanine

8. Now Interior Walls Cabinet Tops Upper Cabinet Raw Material Roof Ass’y Raw Material Mud Pit Side Wall Jig End Wall Mud Pit HVAC Mezzanine Cabinet Shop Plumb & Tile HVAC Mezzanine 2B Decking 3 Plumb, Util., Tile5 Interior Walls 6 End, Side, Drywall & Electrical 7 Side, Drywall, Elec. 8 Marriage, Drywall & Electrical 9 Roof Set, Drywall & Electrical 10 Rough Roof, Exterior & Interior 11 Shingle, Siding & Interior 12 Sofit & Fascia Paint, Dry, Finish 13 Mud, Dry, Prep Paint, Dry, Finish 13 Mud, Dry, PrepPaint, Dry, Finish 2A Floor Box Heater Raw Material 4 Cab. & Utility Set Buffer 2A Electrical 13 Mud, Dry, Prep

9. Future Raw Material HVAC Mezzanine Raw Material Roof Ass’y Mud Pit Raw Material Side Wall Jig End Wall 3 Decking Heater 8 Marriage, Drywall & Electrical 9 Roof Set, Drywall & Electrical 11 Shingle, Siding & Interior 12 Sofit & Fascia Paint, Dry, Finish 13 Mud, Dry, PrepPaint, Dry, Finish 13 Mud, Dry, Prep 2 Floor Box 4 Plumb Interior Walls Cabinet Tops Upper Cabinet Lower Cabinet Utility Prep. Plumb 6 Interior Wall Set 7 End, Side & Mate Wall 5 Cabinet Set, Tile & Utility Set 10 Rough Roof, Exterior & Interior

10. Results  Reduced through-put time 27%  All production within facility  Eliminated NVA protection for outside floors  Eliminated NVA moves  Identified real-time data collection requirements  Started a kaizen project list

11. Highlights  Lean initiative driven by business objective  Established lean process  Identified root cause  Listened to the data  Workers contributed mightily

12. Lessons  Lean cannot be forced by one person  Involve employees  Allow team to own the decisions  Lean is a process

13. Going Forward  Refine our lean process  Conduct kaizen events to improve efficiency in departments  Revise plant layout to convert to double floor stations

14. Lean Symposium

15. Manufactured Housing Research Alliance Jordan Dentz (212) 496-0900 x13 jdentz@research-alliance.org www.mhrahome.org Factory Building Symposium on Lean Production