Techam’s Forest Hett took lean thinking to the National Symposium — showing how finding and fixing bottlenecks builds better systems for people and communities, not just manufacturing floors.

AI works best when the process supports it. Techam and sister company Optegrity Solutions are proud to support the AI in Manufacturing Workshop & Summit — November 10 in Wichita. Practical AI for manufacturing leaders.

Your bottleneck sets the output of your entire plant. Learn how to identify and fix manufacturing bottlenecks using lean and Theory of Constraints tools.

Reactive operations don’t have time for kaizen — because they’re too busy fighting fires that kaizen would have prevented. Techam breaks down the firefighting trap and what it takes to build a lean culture that gets out of it.

Every manufacturer has problems. The ones that win are the ones that know how to solve them, systematically, at every level of the organization. Walk into most manufacturing operations and you'll find the same pattern: a problem surfaces, a supervisor puts out the fire, and everyone moves on. The root cause never gets found. The corrective action never gets verified. And three months later, the same problem is back; wearing a slightly different face. This is not a people prob

Parts spend most of their lead time waiting, not being machined. Six lean steps to reduce manufacturing lead time in high-mix, low-volume job shops.

Lean manufacturing isn’t just for high-volume plants. Learn how machine shops apply lean thinking to cut lead times, setups, and scrap in high-mix work.

When Technology Becomes a True Enabler in a Lean Journey For years, manufacturers have been told that digital transformation is the answer to operational challenges. New dashboards, AI tools, MES systems, IoT sensors, automation platforms, and analytics software continue to reshape the manufacturing landscape. But here is the reality many organizations eventually discover: Technology alone does not create operational excellence. In many cases, technology simply accelerates th

This article describes the importance of standard work and helps define the current best way to perform work so organizations can operate consistently, improve deliberately, and scale confidently.

Introduction One of the core objectives for any manufacturer is maintaining high system efficiency and productivity to consistently meet customer demand. For companies producing multiple product variants on the same assembly line, this challenge becomes even more complex. Mixed-model production introduces variation in work content, cycle times, and labor requirements—and without a structured approach, this variation disrupts flow, increases waste, and reduces overall output.

This article explores the unique challenges faced by large organizations during transformation efforts, identifying key pitfalls.

Three key metrics explained—OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness), utilization, and TEEP (Total Effective Equipment Performance)

Learn when and why custom machines might be the better choice for your industrial needs, and discover real-world examples of their benefits

In this article, we summarize the misconceptions related to QMS and describe the main benefits.

This article aims to uncover why sidestepping automation could be a big risk for your business and why it is important to take a leap

A discussion on the importance of planning, focusing specifically on takt time, cycle time, and Overall Equipment Effectiveness.

Intertwining the Bill of Operations with the BOM offers a comprehensive perspective on production. This fusion leads to enhanced planning, s

This article gives a brief overview of what slot scheduling is and how it can be used in context of lean manufacturing.

In this article, we will cover the steps involved in implementing an automated system and the disadvantages of factory automation.

A guide through the process of determining if your industrial processes can be automated and how to implement an automated system.