Perspectives on making a difference

Charlie Smith owned and operated Combine World Inc. for 35 years, a leader in the reconditioning and sale of combines, tractors, headers, and light construction equipment. His focus for the last 15 years of running the business was on leadership development. From a crazy 7th of 7 children, Saskatchewan farm kid to hard rock miner, farmer, commercial pilot and guitar/banjo picker, Charlie’s life has been interesting. Join Charlie for a conversation around life and lessons learned building a successful business based on customer commitment, people development, and continuous improvement.

Rating: Beginner

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Building and maintaining the culture of Lean

In many organizations, most people don’t have the opportunity to realize their true talent. The day-to-day grind often absorbs a person's creativity and ingenuity. Learn how Duxton Windows & Doors is striving to instill a culture of continuous improvement every day, is celebrating improvements to encourage more of them and carrying the improvement spirit into the office. Hear how Duxton is getting everyone pulling in the same direction and how continuous improvement is changing the way business is done at Duxton Windows & Doors.

Rating: Intermediate

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44% of Owners Don’t Believe There is a Business Case. Who’s right?

VeriForm is a leader in providing precision sheet metal fabricated services. Hear the story and the numbers of VeriForm’s 16-year journey of sustainability in the office and on the shop floor. See how with a focus on sustainability VeriForm has increased production by 128%, taking on 40% more staff, cut maintenance costs by 43%, increased parts output per kilowatt by over 300% and discovered that every tonne of greenhouse gas costs them over $900 annually, far more than any carbon tax!

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With People, Performance and Culture at the core

At International Road Dynamics (IRD), success achieved through Continuous Improvement provides the employee with challenge, growth, and satisfaction, creating a foundation for long term mutual prosperity. As a low mix, low volume manufacturer, where Engineers and Field Service employees outnumber production by 5:1, IRD has taken a surgical approach with Lean and achieved success along the way. Hear about IRD’s journey and understand how daily support of Continuous improvement is the key to success. By committing to incremental change every day great things will eventually occur. “Continuous Improvement is better than delayed perfection!”.

Rating: Intermediate

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Culture is key for CI Success

Brunswick Steel is a second-generation family run business and the largest independent steel service centre in Manitoba, serving customers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Northwestern Ontario. Hear how Brunswick has used leadership and coaching to engage employees and create a positive shift in culture. Learn how Brunswick determines if issues stem from the employee or if it is the process that needs to be fixed. Hear how standard tools have been used to help execute plans with a collaborative team of stakeholders and how Lean systems have been improved without extensive time training.

Rating: Intermediate

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Surviving a Pandemic Through Employee Engagement

Tasty Catering’s employee “revolution” happened in late 2005, when seven employees met without any senior leaders to draft Tasty Catering’s core values, vision and mission. Ownership read the finished product and agreed to support them. Since then, year-over-year employee engagement scores have been over 90 percent, in an industry known for high employee turnover. With this high level of employee engagement, learn how Tasty Catering survived the pandemic and held on to almost all 150 full-time employees. Hear the story of how the Walter brothers decided no employee’s family would lose their home or go without food – and together they would figure this out.

Rating: Beginner

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Integrating Successful Improvement and Culture Change During Growth In A Non-Traditional Manufacturing Environment

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Founded in 1994 and with the head office in La Broquerie, Manitoba, HyLife has grown quickly to become Canada’s leading pork producer, exporting high-quality pork products around the world. Harnessing the power of Lean during rapid growth is challenging but rewarding. Hear how HyLife has integrated Lean principles into the design and operations of the expanded Neepawa pork processing plant and other acquisitions to successfully meet increased customer demand. Learn also how collaborative partnerships with both customers and suppliers, strong leadership and the practical use of typical Lean, communication and training tools has played a critical role in the success.

Rating: Advanced

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Why workplace safety is TMMC’s top priority.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada (TMMC) is a world-class automotive facility, producing the best-selling Toyota RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid and the Lexus RX 350 and RX 450h. Over the last five years TMMC has achieved tremendous improvements in workplace safety. Hear how a focus on safety culture not only improved safety, but also improved quality and productivity. Learn how TMMC measured safety culture and made a plan to improve, how simple activities implemented in a Lean environment can make a huge difference and how engaging the entire workforce in improving safety culture is the key.

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Own it, learn it, deliver it!

Metal Depot is a supplier of metal roofing and wall panels as well as a full-service custom fabrication shop. Innovate, educate, fabricate describes their "raison d'être". Hear the unique story of Metal Depot, a team of driven individuals who believe in building a great company with great people! Hear how the core values guide decisions and behavior every day; Own It, be personally accountable, Learn It, aways be learning and growing, Deliver It, get the job done, on time, on budget and on spec. Hear how the team at Metal Depot are challenged every day to focus on improvement, and some of the successes, challenges, and lessons they have learned along the way.

Rating: Beginner

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How a government program administration team cut turn-times by 90%

Hear how the Manitoba Government Department of Families coached the Income Supplement Program service delivery team processing hundreds of applications per month to achieve incredible results that sustained the eventual transfer of the coach to another department. Learn how an office team can be coached to embrace Lean principles and problem solving to make it a part of their everyday work culture and how the team leadership learned alongside their team to be able to support the culture change and performance improvements.

Rating: Beginner

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Office Lean journey through the stakeholder eyes

Loewen started their Lean journey like most other manufacturing businesses, in Operations. In 2019, however, Loewen started the Lean transformation of the Office. Learn about Loewen’s Lean transformation of the Office through the eyes and experience of stakeholders at various levels of the organization. Hear about the impact on roles, responsibilities and training, the strategy to meld continuous improvement into the culture and the "mile wide inch deep" vs "deep dive" approach.

Rating: Intermediate

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A unique journey through the implementation of Lean

Over the last number of years Rambler Metals & Mining has attempted to implement Lean principles at its underground mining and milling operations. But changing the culture is not easy and it can easily be derailed by a number of internal and external factors, like the collapse in the global copper market! Learn what is now driving Rambler towards success after a very challenging 2020. Hear how repairing, rebuilding, and expanding the operation all at the same time, has forced Rambler Metals & Mining back to basics, based on fundamental Lean Principles.

Rating: Intermediate

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Standard Machine

Standard Machine provides machining and manufacturing services to customers in a wide range of industries around the world. In 2013 the company went from being a successful Saskatoon based family run business to a small acquisition of a multi-billion-dollar American corporation. The company had a reputation for quality but was experiencing high employee turnover and poor safety. A new culture needed to be built from the ground up. Hear how empowerment and engagement of the employees was the foundation of this new culture, how holding people accountable was instrumental in motivating teams and how creating a clear vision that trickled down to each department was also key in moving the company forward.

Rating: Intermediate

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A Lean & Green approach to managing the whey from the cheese-making process.

Bothwell Cheese started in 1936 as a co-op of dairy farmers in New Bothwell, Manitoba. Dealing with the whey that is produced as a bi-product of cheese making is a big deal! Simply disposing of the whey from the process is not option. As production volumes have increased, the team at Bothwell Cheese have had to developed Lean & Green ways of dealing with the whey, including installing membrane units to extract value from the whey and decreasing the amount of whey sent to the lagoon. Learn what happened next when the team at Bothwell were challenged once again to think Lean & Green!

Rating: Advanced

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A reminder of the importance of three simple words

Dimatec is a leader in the design and manufacture of high-quality metal bond diamond products, drilling equipment components, and precision machined parts for mineral exploration, mining, geotechnical and energy sectors. Hear the Dimatec story and the importance of three simple words that have the power to bring about change and drive you, the people you serve and your company to succeed. These words are "Please", "Thank-you" and "Sorry". We trust you will be thankful for investing time in this session!

Rating: Intermediate

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Why workplace safety is TMMC’s top priority.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada (TMMC) is a world-class automotive facility, producing the best-selling Toyota RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid and the Lexus RX 350 and RX 450h. Over the last five years TMMC has achieved tremendous improvements in workplace safety. Hear how a focus on safety culture not only improved safety, but also improved quality and productivity. Learn how TMMC measured safety culture and made a plan to improve, how simple activities implemented in a Lean environment can make a huge difference and how engaging the entire workforce in improving safety culture is the key.

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If you can dream it, we can build it

Lafarge Precast Winnipeg is a member of LafargeHolcim, a world leader in the construction materials industry. Hear about the turnaround of the Lafarge Winnipeg operation and the success of the top improvement programs. Learn about the Idea of the Month program, providing a way to get management support and help make positive change, the Six S systematic approach to improving work areas across the facility, and the L.I.O.N - Lafarge Improvement Opportunity Notification program, focused on reducing cost of poor quality at all levels.

Rating: Intermediate

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The why and how to implement robotics in the workplace

Herd North America is a premium manufacturer of Truck Guards, Grille Guards and Cabguards. For many years Herd struggled to hire and retain staff that were prepared to do the demanding finite grinding and polishing work, core to the manufacturing process. Learn about Herd’s 5-year journey to automation using robotics, from the early trials and first robot cell to the six robot cells in operation today, four sanding and polishing, one welding and one development and six more in the works. Hear how automation has helped develop and get the best out of the workforce; Programmers learning the nuances of sanding and polishing, and Polishers learning how to run robot cells to produce the same high quality they were in the past.

Rating: Intermediate

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A Conversation on our Journey Initiating Lean from Ground Zero

The IPCO manufacturing facility has a long history of supporting the agricultural sector by providing safe crop protection products within a culture of safety and quality. Hear about the factors behind IPCO’s decision to adopt Lean Manufacturing, the road blocks encountered and the steps taken to keep moving forward. Learn how IPCO uses Hoshin Kanri to align the organization, 5S to create a safe and productive work environment and is using a Lean & Green strategy to improve environmental performance, while continuing to focus on engaging employees and improving the work culture.

Rating: Beginner

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Failure can be one of our greatest teachers

Based on beautiful Vancouver Island, British Columbia, VMAC has grown over 35 years to become a leader in the manufacture of air compressors. Learn about VMAC's journey to achieving a daily improvement culture using Toyota Kata coaching and process improvement practices. Hear how VMAC is using Kata to create a culture that embraces failure, continuous learning, and scientific thinking and create problem solvers at every level of the organization who can overcome obstacles as they arise, drive waste out of their processes and focus on delivering value to their customers.

Rating: Intermediate

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Come see how the cool kids at Zingerman’s Mail Order are doing this!

Zingerman’s Mail Order is an online and catalog company, purveyors of traditionally made, full flavored foods. Half of the business happens in the two weeks prior to the December holidays, when production is ramped up from 1,500 boxes a day to 22,000 boxes a day. Zingerman’s has developed a system that allows them to hire and quickly train 300 people every year for this busy holiday period. Hear how scientific thinking has been the cornerstone of Zingerman’s success, creating a different way of thinking and managing. Learn what scientific thinking is, what it is not and why Zingerman’s needs it. Learn also about the obstacles and strategies to learning, practicing and coaching scientific thinking.

Rating: Beginner

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Kata is not about change, it’s about evolution

IMP Aerostructures manufactures fight-critical assemblies and components, providing everything from program and engineering services to finishing and assembly. Learn how IMP Aerostructures has used Toyota Kata to create an environment where people are engaged and feel empowered to improve. Learn how it has evolved from one Kata board and two employees to multi-departmental empowered teams achieving results such as one-day turnaround of purchase orders and two-day assembly. It’s KATA-mazing!

Rating: Beginner

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It’s our nature to protect™

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Winpak is a leading manufacturer and distributor of high-quality packaging materials and innovative packaging machines, primarily used for the protection of perishable foods, beverages, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. Hear about Winpak’ s journey to sustainability, the history, growth and focus for reducing waste, becoming more efficient and finding ways to re-capture potential wastes before they become part of the waste stream. Learn how innovation tools have been leveraged to better communicate and educate the market about the growing number of sustainable offerings.

Rating: Intermediate

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An organizational refresh of methodology, practices and culture

Champ Metal Fabrication has always had a good reputation, maintaining a healthy customer base through excellent quality and customer service. However, its operational practices were dated, with minimal focus on data analysis, continuous improvement, process optimization or business development. Learn how the Champ team developed and launched a business-wide rebuilding plan to become current and sustainable in these practices, what change management practices were adopted and where the organization is currently on the transformation journey.

Rating: Intermediate

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A glimpse into the impact of employee engagement in sustaining high performing teams.

The COVID pandemic has brought into sharp focus the crucial role employee engagement has in deeply challenging work environments. Hear how through a person-centred leadership approach, maintaining a focus on continuous quality improvement was sustained at Danwood Manor through these tumultuous times. Learn through practical examples how person-centred leadership helped create a fulfilling and inspiring work culture. Hear how employee engagement reduced time loss days from workplace injuries, how coaching improved key performance indicators, and how communication and training were key factors in reducing COVID outbreaks and protecting those in our care.

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How Genoa keeps a Lean focus through high growth

Since 2012, when Genoa became a successful supplier under Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy, the company has grown exponentially to over 250 employees, spanning NL, NS, BC and the US. Hear how Genoa responded the skills gap by establishing an in-house training Academy and how they created an Innovation department in a constant pursuit to solve industry problems faster and better. Growth has brought challenges, but Genoa continues to strive for operational excellence. Learn how through living the company values, team members are engaged in sharing opportunities for improvement, no matter how big or small, and what staying Lean during high growth looks like!

Rating: Intermediate

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Lean meets Agile in a Service Environment

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Red River Mutual Insurance is a prairie success story, having protected families, farms, and businesses for over 145 years. Learn how Red River Mutual is using Lean tools and strategies to bridge and resolve system/process gaps that emerge or hinder software updates, upgrades, transitions, and enhanced feature deployments. Hear how a Lean minded approach to Service is helping ensure process and system solutions are driving the right value for the right customers and how Lean and Agile solutions can help small business leverage system functionality to support nimble adaptation.

Rating: Advanced

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Russel Metals

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Russel Metals is one of the largest metals distribution and processing companies in North America. Hear how people engagement is changing the culture at Russel Metals in Winnipeg, from an absence of trust and inattention to results, to working every day to become a more functional team. Learn how Russel Metals is breaking down barriers within the organization and hear about some of the countermeasures being used at the shop floor level to tackle each of the 5 Dysfunctions of a Team.

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A tactical look at what supportive leadership & tribal philosophy can do for you!

Argus Industries is a gasket and seal manufacturer that has been supplying the aerospace and industrial marketplace since 1962. TerraCab Industries manufactures industrial cabs for mining/ag/turf vehicles. Learn what twenty years of supportive leadership and a ‘tribal’ philosophy has done for these companies and how to turn a ‘surviving’ culture into a ‘thriving’ one. Hear practical examples of small changes that have had a big impact on the people and how to spark and grow an engaged culture!

Rating: Intermediate

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Experimenting with Models for Daily Improvement

The Boldt Company, headquartered in Appleton, WI, a construction company founded more than 130 years ago, is now a national leader in markets as diverse as healthcare, industrial, education and renewable energy. Hear how Improvement Kata and the Coaching Kata to is used to develop and enable employees to improve their processes, how they have added an element of fun and the lessons they have learned along the way.

Rating: Intermediate

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