I read a very interesting article today in 'Professsional Engineering' (dated 8/11/06) about Bentley and how they are celebarting 60 years at Crewe with a 10 fold increase in production since 2003 and in a profitable manner as well. They are managing to produce this 10 fold increase with just twice the number of people and the introduction of the Bentley Production System, which is based on ............ you guessed it - the Toyota Production System (TPS).
Basically the Bentley Training and Kaizen Manager is ex Toyota and has used the widely acknowledged TPS skills to cascade them within the Bentley workforce and manufacturing processes.
That is not to take anything away from Bentley - with VW's money, excellent products and the Toyota way they are clearly very successful and should be congratulated for this - especially as they continue to build in Crewe.
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I wonder if thats why they laid 120 odd blokes off last month to make the figures look good ;O)
It takes something like 10 hours to change a highlevel brake light on one of the current models, rear screen out and skipped, headlining out, fit bulb, refit headlining, new rear screen.
Would'nt like to pay that bill.
I've said it before, figures are there to be massaged and manipulated, then released to the public ;o)
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Basically the Bentley Training and Kaizen Manager is ex Toyota and has used the widely acknowledged TPS skills to cascade them within the Bentley workforce and manufacturing processes.
So how many thousand Bentlley's are they turning out a day then?
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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I never actually realised that dox - I though all was well at Bentley.
I presume the figures you are talking about above are to maintain the vehicle - which is obviously down to bad design - but are the factory laying off ? - because as you say that is at complete odds with the article I was reading.
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>>So how many thousand Bentlley's are they turning out a day then?<<
I make it 40 a day compared to the 4 a day 3 years ago - with twice as many people - that is good going for a company - if my sums are correct that equates to a 5 fold increase in productivity.
It's obvioulsy easy to criticise but credit should be given to the workforce for managing a 5 fold increase in productivity.
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iccheshireonline.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/southche...l
Gloom and doom from Sept this year, pretty sure the total was 120 temp positions. Other Creweites will confirm ;o)
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As with most good quality systems, they can trace their roots back to Japan. But it was an American, W E Demming that introduced Japanese manufacturers to his TQM system, after the war to, improve their processes and systems from the intolerably poor, cheap junk that they were then producing. This in turn, by proper and continuous improvement, helped lead the Japanese economy to the place it now enjoys.
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Your right and it was also Toyoda (with a d) that also studied American supermarkets to help him develop his just in time concept back in the 1950's.
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It is at least 40 a day. And they're going to be assembling the Flying Spur back in Germany for other markets too aren't they.
On my tour of the factory was surprised how many they build each day. But you see many finished each day... and they differ each day. So they are busy.
Back then there were two shifts per day (half day for Bentley on Fridays so no cars made) and I think 13 per shift. So it used to be 26 per day. Maybe three shifts for Mon to Thur now with the GTC and Flying Spur and so 39?
When I was there once there was an MG SV-R... they are renowned for taking apart other cars but why bother on an SV-R???
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Crewe was a Rolls-Royce factory.
Rolls Bentleys (30s 'silent sports cars' with RR engines) were made at Derby.
Original Bentleys (Le Mans winners, 8 litre leviathans etc) were built at Cricklewood.
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But Rolls-Royce Bentley was Crewe. And as soon as BMW secured the RR name everything RR was removed/sold including all classic and unique RR cars. Sad but true. No longer any RR cars in the museum at Pymms Lane. But I think it's a Monday morning, you get to see the Blower being driven around - it surprised me to see such an old car and to be told it was a regular occurance.
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>>When I was there once there was an MG SV-R... they are renowned for taking apart other cars but why bother on an SV-R???<<
A friend's son is a designer at Bentley and as you say he tells me they are always benchmarking different cars. What Bentley try and do is say test an S class and Ferrari back to back and try and achieve the best attributes from both cars (easier said than done).
Another little snippet - if you see a Bentley (not sure if it is still RR) with a number plate with the letters TU (e.g. 30 TU) it stands for Test Unit and is a Bentley test car.
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So now that a Toyota man is in place all the workers will be doing 27 hour days for £3.50 and a loaf of bread a month then?
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>jase1
So you don't read Aprilia's posts on Japanese workers then?
Rudeness deleted - DD
madf
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>jase1 So you don't read Aprilia's posts on Japanese workers then?
Erm, it was an attempt at irony, given the attitude of some others on here....
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given the attitude of some others on here....
Quite! You should know who you are, so kindly drop the attitude from your postings please. DD.
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No but as pointed out above he's making a difference by massaging the figures to improve statistics on efficeincy. I'll bet that agency staff that still work there are not in the figures either ;o)
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Oh and as the 120 Temps leave start another rumour that there another 380 to go a little later, nothing like a little fear to improve efficiency is there?
:o)
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40 a day? At Bentley?
That's practically mass production.
Is that really good for a brand that trades on exclusivity? I'd say they are at risk from a change in fashion, or a mild recession, because it sounds like they are now selling to people who earn money rather than to those who just have it. At the bottom of that slope is a "Baby Bentley" outsourced to TATA and sold to old dears with equity release plans.
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>>Oh and as the 120 Temps leave start another rumour that there another 380 to go a little later, nothing like a little fear to improve efficiency is there?<<
That is the trouble with German companies I suppose.
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