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In order to guarantee that its infrastructures are running optimally, Metalcolor relies on an internally developed computerised maintenance management system (CMMS). This planning and response tool also contains a wealth of information that plays a key role in employee training and quality control.

Developed by Mikhaïl Pinot, Maintenance Manager at Metalcolor, the CMMS platform inventories all scheduled and completed equipment maintenance activities. Introduced in 2015, the system already contains 26,000 entries! It also specifies 2,200 spare parts and can locate them along with all necessary information, such as inventory status, restocking and suppliers. “This platform allows us to monitor maintenance activities with great precision”, explains Mikhaïl.

He is in charge of a team that includes a project technician, a locksmith, three production line technicians, one infrastructure technician and a shop floor manager. The team is mainly involved in upgrades (51%) or prevention activities (34%). Since these kinds of activities have increased, the need for corrections and repairs has reduced drastically.

The CMMS contains an index of over 400 preventative measures. These are applied according to a schedule in line with the service life of each item of equipment. A dashboard shows each technician their various tasks for the week. “The specialist can then work according to set priorities, starting with the risk level for employees or the extent to which production will be impacted”, explains Mikhaïl.

Although the platform is designed to keep equipment running smoothly, it is also a fantastic training tool. “Plus, if a batch delivered to a customer were ever to be flagged as non-compliant, we could look back at the activities carried out during the relevant production phase to find the root cause of the problem. This helps us provide our customers with the best possible service.” The CMMS is one of the key elements on which Metalcolor bases its certification: ISO 9001 (quality) and ISO 18001 (safety) and, through the optimisation of its infrastructure, ISO 14001 (environment) and 50001 (energy). It also contributed to the obtention of a label by the Energy Agency of the Swiss Private Sector (EnAW).

Jean-Luc Renck
Documentary Writer

Alongside investment in infrastructures designed to ensure sustainable productivity, the philosophy Metalcolor applies to its resources and activities is based on the twin pillars of well-being and competitiveness.

“One of Metalcolor’s core values is its employees’ strong involvement. They know the equipment and operations first-hand and are thus best placed to suggest any improvements”, explains Denys Kaba, Co-General Manager of Metalcolor. He is eager to point out that “only together can we design the optimisation of our infrastructures and processes, only together can we track down even the smallest amount of waste in terms of energy, raw materials, transport, actions, time, etc. This inclusive process values the experience and solutions contributed by our operators to improve their own working conditions as well as the company’s reliability and use of resources.”

In this way, Metalcolor’s operators played a major part in redefining the procedure for a lacquering line with the aim of reducing start-up times when switching to a different colour, thereby improving productivity and saving energy. Meanwhile, the slitting unit is supervised by a team who – in a manner inspired by the Ferrari F1 team – continuously strives to make the unit’s working conditions more convenient and efficient. Similarly, streamlining forklift movements saves both energy and time, which can then be used for other tasks.

Supplementing the large-scale structural measures, this global streamlining approach draws on two sources. One of these is Lean Management, a concept developed by Toyota founder Toyoda Kiichiro in 1936, and the other is “Kaizen” – or “continuous improvement” – which focuses on small actions to identify simple improvements that can be implemented quickly.

“In contrast to top-down reforms imposed by management who do not work “on the ground”, Kaizen establishes a state of mind with more of a horizontal approach, engaging and motivating employees at all levels. This enables us to sustain and even boost our employees’ energy, reduce the volumes of resources required and in turn shrink our ecological footprint: in other words, we’re consolidating our drivers of competitiveness and promoting Metalcolor’s steady growth”, concludes Denys Kaba.

Jean-Luc Renck
Documentary Writer

Metalcolor’s internal management system and staff training programme are both controlled by electronic document management (EDM). The scope of this invaluable online reference and sharing tool has been extended to ensure the versatility of our operators and the continuity of our production and services in all circumstances.

Developed in-house by our Maintenance Manager Mikhail Pinot, the platform brings together not just all the documentation relating to our internal management system (IMS) and our staff training programmes, but also the internal audits carried out regularly for each position in our production lines.

Every position is subject to a number of standards recorded in the form of instruction sheets. These sheets describe the position and the activity involved, and are also supplemented with instructions on health and safety at work, quality, environment and energy-related aspects.

Upon entry into the factory, each new staff member is attached to a position in the EDM. A training plan is then generated automatically. This plan lays out the basic instructions associated with the particular position, additional training for greater versatility, outside training relating to safety – mainly first aid – and the regular audits to which the staff member will be subject, accompanied by an expert trainer. The audits are conducted on the spot with the help of tablets, and the information is fed directly into the EDM, which saves time and boosts efficiency”, says Mikhail Pinot. “Staff members can then verify their level of training online at any time, thanks to a matrix that is fed with data depending on the actions and audits carried out”. Reminders are generated by the EDM/IMS in order to ensure that every training course will be followed up in due time.

While contributing to time-saving and greater efficiency at work – and even to savings in paper consumption, our digitally managed follow-up of training displays and highlights all the additional capabilities of our staff members. This makes it easy for us, depending on the circumstances, to make up for an absence or to complete a team, thereby ensuring the proper continuity of our production and our services.

Morgane Bourdon
ISO & IMS Coordinator

At Metalcolor, no item is a detail when it comes to energy efficiency. Since 2018, 90% of the old factory lighting has been replaced by new, high-performance LED lighting.

Metalcolor’s new production hall was inaugurated in 2019 and of course equipped with LED lighting from the start. The next move was to modernise the lighting in the enormous warehouse, the administrative building, as well as outside. This project was entrusted to a local company. LED lighting currently represents 90% of the light sources at the Metalcolor site. It is supplemented by automatic devices such as motion detectors, time switches and twilight sensors. In addition, since the autumn of 2021, electricity is provided in the daytime mainly by our 5940 square metres of photovoltaic solar panels.

Energy consumption attributable to lighting has therefore declined by half, which helps to meet the commitments made by Metalcolor for its ISO 50001 certification (energy management), and under its target agreement reached with the Swiss Confederation with the aid of the Energy Agency of the Swiss Private Sector (ENAW).

These energy-related measures also form part of the company’s continuous drive for qualitative improvement. The new lighting significantly improves work environments, especially for teams working at night. Moreover, the resulting savings increase the potential for investment in equipment and preventive maintenance, which is a guarantee of the reliability of our production lines at all stages.

Denys Kaba
General Manager
Manufacturing & Development