staufen magazine 2019 | No.2

Success Story
Normally, it would have taken months
to develop at least one plan for this
Herculean task. Luckily, Alstom had
already successfully applied the right
solution: Shop Floor Management. In
2015, Alstom received the order from
Deutsche Bahn to deliver 13 entire
trains within 18 months. Thanks to its
use of Shop Floor Management, the
Salzgitter plant was not only able to
deliver on time but was also given the
“Supplier of the Year” award in 2016.
Just like in Lower Saxony, Alstom decided
to introduce Shop Floor Management
(SFM) together with Staufen AG
on the Arabian Peninsula.
In retrospect, Robert Farthmann, Partner
at Staufen AG, sometimes marvels
at what was accomplished in just nine
months in Riyadh: “We had more than
200 individual coaching sessions, 12
team building events with a total of
eight Staufen colleagues and conducted
several workshops on process visualization
and also implemented shop
floor boards in each installation area.”
The level of success is impressive. For
example, the time spent in meetings
was cut in half, creating room for
structured problem solving. In addition,
critical deviations are now reported to
the responsible authority everyday in a
fixed routine. “Despite the complexity
of the project, we now have very clear
information flows and can quickly
recognize where there are potential
difficulties and how to precisely target
them,” said Alstom Manager Anderiz.
It is important to her that is not about
more strictly controlling employees.
“On the contrary, with the current form
of communication, we have established
solid formats in which employees are
able to make contributions and offer
critizism.” She is therefore convinced
that the experience gained in Riyadh
will become the standard for Alstom
projects in the future.
And what has changed for the top
manager personally by implementing
Shop Floor Management? After all, this
method lives strongly on the fact that
executives act as role models. “Shop
Floor Management has helped me lead
in a more precise manner and also
channel emotions so that it really resonates
with my team,” reveals Cristina
Anderiz following her presentation at
the Engineering Summit. So a Spaniard
without emotions? “No, I would not
go that far,” says Anderiz with a wink
before flying back to Riyadh. After
all, there is a subway waiting to be
finished. ■
„Trotz unseres komplexen
Projekts haben wir jetzt sehr
klare Informationsflüsse und
erkennen nun sehr schnell,
wo Schwierigkeiten drohen
und wie wir sie zielgenau
abstellen können.“
“Despite the complexity of the project, we now have
very clear information flows and can quickly recognize
where there are potential difficulties and how to
precisely target them.”
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