Global pharmaceutical company: Doubling the…

Millions of people around the world depend on the medical devices produced by our client to improve their quality of life. We helped the company exploit smart manufacturing technologies to optimise their production line and achieve an ambitious goal to double production volumes within three years.

Key successes

16+ smart technologies assessed
£5 million direct cost savings per annum
£200 million capital cost avoidance
£50 million revenue uplift

From innovation lab to production line

The company had already set up a digital innovation laboratory to explore the potential of technologies such as machine learning, digital twin, virtual reality, collaboration tools, remote diagnostics and real-time performance visualisation technology. We brought together a mix of experts – in manufacturing, supply chain, digital and data and analytics – to help bring these technologies out of the lab and into a live production environment.

Making the case for investment

Leading on the issues rather than the technology was key to our approach. So we spent time on the factory floor, understanding how process downtime, reliance on manual data capture and lack of real-time performance data were contributing to less-than-optimal performance. Our subsequent analysis of 16 different technologies focussed on understanding how they could resolve issues, deliver benefits and add value. By developing a series of pilots we produced evidence to underpin a robust business case that was instrumental in securing further investment.

Accelerating implementation

We turned to agile thinking to further develop and implement the pilots. This involved assembling multi-functional teams to lead initiatives and seeking rapid feedback from the factory floor. Within six months, our client had successfully implemented a wide range of transformational technologies, without disrupting the production line. We created a blueprint for scaling this approach across more factories, releasing significant capacity and making a planned £200 million investment in a new production line unnecessary.

Capitalising on smart technologies to improve manufacturing performance enabled our client to achieve a £50 million uplift in revenues. The business is also better placed than ever to meet demand for products that make lives better every day.