by a searcher
from University of Minnesota - Carlson School of Management
in Seattle, Washington, USA
2mos ago
Anyone with experience standardizing and scaling manufacturing operations?
Looking for expert advice on the opportunities / challenges associated with standardizing and scaling a manufacturing operation of a niche product company.
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by a searcher
1mo ago
from University of Toronto
in Toronto, ON, Canada
Hey Namue, a lot of this is context dependent, but the general principles hold. The experience already shared in this thread is a gold mine.
I work closely with Canadian manufacturers in wood (millwork and wood products) and steel fabrication (custom work and pressure vessels). In both verticals, standardization that scales isn't on the shop floor first, it's in narrowing product and spec variation and getting the process out of a few key operators' heads and into documentation. The traits that make a niche product valuable, customization and craftsmanship, are often the same ones that resist standardization, so the real work is deciding where to standardize and where it would erode the moat. Happy to compare notes if useful.
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by a professional
2w ago
in Dallas, TX, USA
Hey there, Namue - Our company does just that. All via AI and LOB Automation Workflows. If this is still a challenge you're facing, we'd be happy to grab 30min with ya to show you what we're doing with other construction & Manufacturing companies.