Food Processing - December 2007 - (Page 24)

especially with local engineers, we can implement systems quickly.” One of the company’s biggest strengths, according to Emberger, is the ability to bring new technology from pilot plants to Mars processing and packaging lines. “We are well resourced,” he says. “That enables us to bring products to market fast.” Engineering’s other primary focus is on developing more efﬁcient production – increasing the ﬂow-rate on processing lines and the throughput of packaging systems. Lean is the mean The Mars manufacturing organization is quick to embrace modern manufacturing concepts that ﬁt the ﬁve principles of the Mars culture: Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efﬁciency and Freedom. “We take a lean manufacturing approach,” says Emberger. “We use lean tools to maximize efﬁciency and create value.” Among those tools are Total Productive Maintenance principles; SMED (Single Minute Exchange of Dies) principles for quick changeover and reduced downtime; and Kaizen continuous improvement techniques. Best practices are not silver bullets, Emberger emphasizes. “Supply chain excellence is the product of a lot of little things. Rarely is there one ‘breakthrough’ idea,” he says. “It’s the little steps you take every day that add up. The good news is that we have lean teams that help with knowledge transfer across our factory network. We’re strong in tap- ping our global knowledge.” Mars’ high-powered marketing organization has not overshadowed the importance of its manufacturing operations. “Manufacturing has high status in the Mars organization,” Emberger emphasizes. “Our executives are visible in our factories and very much attuned to what is happening in them. Mars is no different than top European or Asian companies in that respect. Placing high value on manufacturing is very much a part of our culture.” MY M&M’S: A GLIMPSE OF THE FUTURE? Mars is a company of iconic brands and category-leading products such as Snickers and M&M’S. But nothing in the organization has generated the excitement of the Mars Direct venture brought to fruition with the 2004 introduction of My M&M’S, personalized printed versions of the candy-covered chocolates available in 17 of the 22 M&M’S candy colors. The concept this year advanced with the personalization of Dove premium chocolate wrappers with 17-character, three line print capability. “The business model of ‘make-to-order’ is extremely different than what Mars does as a core competency,” notes Jim Cass, general manager of My M&M’S. “All the functions are handled within Mars Direct so we can focus entirely on this business.” Customer care is critical to the success of the operation. “If we don’t get it right, the customer will ﬁnd me – and I hope they do,” he says. “We must have exceptional execution every time. We must get orders through the system that are personalized and addressed in 24 to 36 hours. “We have a craftsman mindset,” he continues. “Every order is unique. We punch an order up to 10 times during Special dimpled conveyor belts cradle the M&M’S so the pieces manufacturing. Everyone assumes full responsibility and acare properly oriented prior to countability. Every person in the organization can reject a printing the “m” – or the custom product if it doesn’t meet their standards of quality, and lettering – on each candy shell. we recognize that these can be very subjective standards as every order is different. It all goes back to the ‘Quality’ principle of Mars. We hold it in the highest esteem.” Automated equipment is used to screen product, principally for size. Rigorous standards are applied to product color and shell quality. All Mars workers also are responsible for visual inspection of product. The business also rests on an e-commerce business model: Orders are handled almost entirely over the Internet. Cass credits increased security in e-commerce transactions with growing consumer comfort with on-line transactions. The company has leaped tremendous hurdles to make Mars Direct work and has invested heavily to create the assets to bring the operation as close to perfection as possible. “I can’t overemphasize the importance of training,” says Cass. “It is everything.” The creativity of Mars employees has also been critical to its success. “Four years ago, a group of talented R&D associates came up with the idea of putting a personalized message on M&M’S,” recalls Cass. “Because they had such a pioneering spirit, the company challenged them and a group of engineers, logistics folks, IT personnel, manufacturing people, website developers and marketing representatives to develop the printing, coating, fulﬁllment, logistics … the whole works, and to do it in 90 days! And in less than 90 days, they had ﬁlled their ﬁrst order. “Everyone knew it was a good idea, but to see it come to fruition with that pioneering spirit was inspiring.” WWW.FOODPROCESSING.COM Simple Safety Solution. 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Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Food Processing - December 2007

Contents Editor's Plate NewsBites Rollout Food Biz Kids Processor of the Year: Mars Snackfood U.S. Mass Production Meets Custom Manufacturing Product Development: Bone appetit! Show Report: Pack/Process Expo and Worldwide Food Expo New Product Profiles Toops Scoops

Food Processing - December 2007

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