Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

Road Rescue Implements A Continuous Process Improvement Framework, John Olson, Paul Savory

John Olson

Continuous improvement programs traditionally focus on making small incremental improvements to a system. Unfortunately, their success can be limited due to the rapid changing environment within which most small companies operate. Improvement efforts should be flexible enough to capitalize on incremental and radical changes to a system. This paper presents a case analysis of how Road Rescue, an ambulance manufacturer, uses a continuous improvement framework to capitalize on both radical and incremental improvement opportunities. Results include a 10% increase in throughput, reduced cycle time of 44%, increased customer satisfaction, and higher quality.