It’s a beautiful thing to watch New Mexico companies grow. To that end, New Mexico MEP provides assistance to our state’s manufacturers in the areas of manufacturing expertise, enhancing processes, and growth strategies. Our mission is to help the existing manufacturing and business communities strengthen their industry competitiveness while developing a globally competitive workforce. We provide results-driven methodologies, best practices, and innovative technologies to manufacturers to transform them into lean and efficient engines of growth. Before another year begins, we celebrate 2016’s successes with a few highlights.
$25 Million Saved
When BioLime, a maker of lime-based stucco, plaster and paint, decided to move manufacturing operations to the US and expand its market to the Southwest US, the company found itself at a crossroads: It could rely on source materials from either coast, but that put its newest target market farther than the 250-mile maximum required for green building certification. New Mexico MEP’s business coaching and discovery of local materials and existing manufacturing facilities saved the company almost $25 million in avoided investment costs related to site, equipment and professional fees.
Major Account Landed
Private Label Select (PLS)’s clients include Walgreens, Target, Estée Lauder, and The Honest Company. The Taos manufacturer of natural and organic cosmetics has been steadily increasing its client list and growing at an annual rate of 40 to 50 percent. New Mexico MEP helped PLS implement quality management systems and elevate supply-chain management expertise. MEP also helped the company design its new plant, which PLS moved into without pausing production. Karl Halpert, the company’s CEO, credits New Mexico MEP’s ongoing assistance with helping PLS land a major account with Colgate, and he found invaluable the organization’s help with recertifying the new facility to meet USDA Organic and FDA guidelines.
Productivity Increased 20%
Rader Awning & Upholstering employs 20 people in its Santa Fe and Albuquerque locations and processes over 70 orders each month during the busy season. The company’s rapid growth began to reveal a disconnect between the sales and production teams. New Mexico MEP worked with a team of employees to evaluate the front office processes, first helping them identify all the steps in their production, from sales to installation. After a review process, New Mexico MEP generated an action plan based on the team’s improvement ideas. Through Value Stream Mapping and the implementation of recommended visual tools, Rader Awning was able to realize 20% improvement in productivity for each salesperson, reduce production defects by 15%, and reduce rework at installation by 25%.
Manufacturers Rock
Manufacturing Day in New Mexico was celebrated during the entire month of October this year. Fifty events ranging from facility tours to presentations and workshops took place in 16 communities. We are grateful to the 32 participating companies and organizations, and we are thrilled that New Mexico students, numbering in the thousands, had the exposure to real-life manufacturers — their work, their stories, and their community impact.