2020Case4KiernanStructuralSteelLimited

Contents Lean Construction Ireland Annual Book of Cases 2020 17 Case 4 Kiernan Structural Steel Limited (KSSL) is a family business that was established in 1989 by husband and wife team, Frank and Dolores Kiernan. Starting from very humble beginnings by manufacturing agricultural sheds, KSSL has become one of Ireland’s leading structural steel firms from its modern Longford-based plant. KSSL provides a wide range of services to the steel construction industry, including projects where clients request value engineering for their structural steelwork. Our services include: • Design Engineering • Steel Fabrication • Steel Erection • Cladding & Roof Metal Decking • Floor Metal Decking & Welded Shear Studding • Castellated Beams & Steel Trusses Manufacture • Fire Protection Painting This project was undertaken to improve the transfer of information across projects and departments, and to move away from a reliance on paper. The approach taken to the project was to use the A3 problem solving methodology and a cross-functional team for Kaizen events for the roll- out of process changes. A broad array of Lean tools was deployed. Issues were identified and countermeasures were implemented to eliminate waste and improve the utilisation of the safety, environmental, and tendering team’s time. The net potential saving of € 13,735 through time savings from the introduction of the electronic forms has also led to other savings not captured within this study, like, for example, increased customer satisfaction and better quality control. Whilst the primary goal of this project was the elimination of time waste and efficiency improvement through introduc- tion of electronic forms, it also demonstrated the potential benefits that can be realised by applying Lean principles across the organisation – including in support departments. There remain some limitations to the use of the system, and some departments still have not been fully brought into the system, but it is undoubtedly a move in the right direction for the organisation and has realised significant gains. The main focus of this project is the development of an electronic forms system to replace the company reliance on paper and the development of a means of speeding up information transfer and capture for use by the EHS Team as well as the Quality and Tendering Departments. In his role as Health, Safety, Environmental, Quality (HSEQ) Manager, Peter, as the primary driver of this project, began the process by researching the various options available for the creation and management of electronic forms. This research involved engagement with industry peers to under- stand what other contractors in the same working environ- ment as KSSL were using to see if we could learn from their experiences to speed up our process. From initial discussions, it was discovered that many con- tractors were using the same programme, and thus we downloaded and trialled it too. However, after some testing of that programme, it was found that although the app had many good features, it also had some fundamental flaws from a quality perspective. For example, a user could create a template for use – say, a weekly safety checklist – but in order to share this template with their fellow teammates, this document Company Overview Kiernan Structural Steel Limited kssl.ie Overview & Background to the Lean Initiative Peter Byrne Andy Brophy Authors Lean Initiative Undertaken – Lean Thinking, Tools, Techniques