JLG IndustriesJLG Industries

Challenges

Long manufacturing

lead-times

Excessive

inventories

Frequent stock-outs and

disruptions to

operations

Solutions

Embraced lean

manufacturing

techniques

Implemented Agility

Business Solutions’

Electronic KanBan solu-

tion

Results

Reduced manufacturing

lead times from 88 days

to less than 5

Became an industry

leader

About JLG Industries

A division of The Oshkosh Corporation, JLG Industries is a world leader in aerial

work platforms, industrial man lifts, and material-handlers. JLG

Industries is headquartered in Central Pennsylvania and operates

manufacturing and distribution facilities throughout the world.

Challenges

JLG’s primary customers are large, na-

tional construction rental companies.

These companies will place orders with

JLG as well several competitors, and

will accept the order from the first com-

pany that is able to fulfill it. This prac-

tice leaves slower manufacturers with

partially completed product with no

corresponding customer demand, ad-

versely effecting inventory levels and

profitability. The natural reaction was to

stockpile raw materials and component

inventories, in the hopes of filling

orders faster. This caused inventory

carrying costs to rise and yet their cu-

mula t i ve l ead t i mes d id no t

improve from 88 days.

Service parts are a very profitable part

of JLG’s product offering consequently

if a customer needed a replacement part,

and no parts were available on hand, the

desired parts would be pulled from pro-

duction inventories to fulfill the order,

causing out-of-stocks and material

shortages.

Agility Business Solutions | 7000 Fitzwater Road, Suite 220 | Cleveland, Ohio 44141 Office: 440.546.8384 | Fax: 440.546.9291 | www.agilitybiz.net | sales@agilitybiz.net

The Solution

Based on the recommendations of Agility Business Solutions’ manufacturing consultants, JLG undertook a sys-

temic overhaul of its manufacturing operations and implemented lean manufacturing practices. JLG’s management

chose to implement a continuous flow environment, and utilize visual queues and kanban methodology to trigger

orders on the shop floor.

JLG also implemented shop floor data collection to

ensure the timeliness and accuracy of the information

being fed to their primary planning system, which is a

critical component of a good lean implementation. Agil-

ity Business Solutions’ technical consultants created

programs to streamline the creation of manufacturing

and purchase orders as well as repetitive schedules,

dramatically simplifying the kanban reorder process.

A g i l i t y B u s i n e s s S o l u t i o n s ’ t e c h n i c a l

consultants also created a system to track and estimate

kanban usage and to anticipate and accommodate sea-

sonal demand, as well as irregular demand for service

parts.

The Results

Based on these and other improvements JLG

Industries has become a true world-class manufacturer,

having been recognized as one of “The 10 Best Run

Manufacturers in America” by Industry Week Maga-

zine, as well as being featured in Fortune, MSI and

many other leading publications.

Cumulative manufacturing lead-times were

reduced from over 88 days to less than 5 days. Carrying

inventory was reduced dramatically; in fact, an entire

warehouse of inventory was converted to additional

production lines. Because of their ability to fill cus-

tomer orders so rapidly, the company was able to sub-

stantially increase its market share and profitability.

Agility Business Solutions | 7000 Fitzwater Road, Suite 220 | Cleveland, Ohio 44141 Office: 440.546.8384 | Fax: 440.546.9291 | www.agilitybiz.net | sales@agilitybiz.net