Rijvers

Rijvers | Weert (NL) 

– Founded in 1953 

– Processor of sheet materials 

– 25 employees 
 

The challenge 

As a supplier to the furniture and project industry, Rijvers has already invested heavily in innovation and creating involvement among employees. However, there was still a need for improvement. In terms of planning, they struggled with the production of smaller series in combination with the various isolated work processes that are typical of the company. The planning system at the time was not set up for this. This resulted in long lead times and a ceiling on output, which caused business growth to stagnate. Communication with customers was also difficult. It was not possible for Rijvers to correctly estimate when an order would be ready. 
 

The solution 

To tackle these challenges, Rijvers enlisted the help of a QRM consultant. The company soon introduced QRM concepts such as cross-training, the focus on time and employee involvement. In addition, QRM Planning was chosen via the QRM4.0 project. With this planning tool, employees have an overview of current and future orders at any time and they can optimize their planning themselves. 
 

The results 

• Planning the production steps is much more efficient and projects are delivered on  
   time 

• Lead time has been reduced by 50% 

• There is more peace and quiet both in the office and on the production floor 

• There is a feeling of togetherness and responsibility among the employees 

• Thanks to cross-training there is more flexibility and satisfaction 

• Rijvers remains competitive: more is produced with the same number of people 
 

QUOTE (Chris Wiermans, Director) “If you want to work with QRM, it is important that you give people the opportunity and responsibility to get started with it.”