Star
Manufacturing International, Inc.
| COMPANY/LOCATION: |
Star Manufacturing International, Inc., Smithville, Tennessee; St.
Louis, Missouri |
| PRODUCT: |
Cooking equipment, griddles, fryers, hot plates, popcorn machines,
hot dog grillers, roll steamers, and broilers |
| YEARS IN BUSINESS: |
71 |
EMPLOYEES:
ANNUAL SALES: |
211
$27 million |
| SITUATION: |
Star Manufacturing uses cold rolled steel griddle plates from a mill
in Chicago in the manufacture of griddles. The plates are brought to Smithville,
Tennessee, where the griddles are assembled. A problem developed because
the griddle plates were rusting, either in shipment or while stored prior
to production. Removing the rust caused production delays. To prevent rusting,
Star Manufacturing asked the supplier to coat the plates with animal fat,
which helped prevent rusting but presented a fire hazard a worse problem.
In addition, the fat coating had to be removed before the splash guard
could be attached to the griddle plate, another cost factor. |
| PROJECT: |
How to get the griddle plates from the supplier to the factory floor
without rust was the problem Star Manufacturing brought to engineers at
the Center for Industrial Services at the University of Tennessee. The
UT center opened the project and referred the company to the Oak Ridge
Centers for Manufacturing Technology. A welding engineer and a corrosion
resistance expert from ORCMT traveled to Smithville, toured the Star plant,
and recommended the use of special paper that inhibits rust. This material,
which looks like a grocery bag and is approved by the FDA, is now used
to cover the griddle plates prior to shipment. The griddle plates can now
be stored at Star's plant and will be rust free at the time of assembly.
In addition, ORCMT engineers are working with the company to determine
if there is an alternative to welding for joining the plates and the splash
guards. |
| RESULTS: |
Star saw immediate results in a direct savings of $25,000 in reduced
labor costs and a productivity increase of 30 percent. An additional 5
to 10 jobs have been added at the plant because of product improvements
and lowered costs. Doug Vogt, plant manager, said that "because of Star
Manufacturing's consultation with the Oak Ridge Centers for Manufacturing
Technology, the company is able to offer a higher quality product at a
reduced price, which has generated a considerable amount of business. I
believe that without the help of the ORCMT engineers, our product growth
would have been considerably slower. As it is, this product line has
grown 50 percent in the first year. Other benefits have been less
downtime, more capacity, and a higher level of confidence that a quality
product is being produced." |
Technical assistances provided to the private sector by the Oak Ridge
Centers for Manufacturing Technology (ORCMT) and its manufacturing extension
partners throughout the United States.
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