Towards a Feasible Production Strategy: The Development of a Lead-Time Practice at a Chemical Producer

Abstract: ChemCo is a high quality producer in the speciality chemical market, a market characterised by complex production and high variability. With limited system-support and limited data quality, delivery accuracy suffered, and so did production efficiency. ChemCo believed that this was due to poor lead-time performance, why they wished to research the problem. Research on setting lead-times has focused on objective positivist science, where many models are too complicated for practical use. The authors wish to provide ChemCo with a solution of high practical value that has a genuine base in theory, while also being adjusted for their context. This study aims at providing ChemCo with recommendations on feasible modelling of lead-times that is suited for their context. The researchers developed a detailed framework to guide research, based on the concept of an actors view and action research. The problem would be analysed based on the context at ChemCO, and research were to be developed iteratively in cycles. Through three approaches, the researchers finally recommend a new approach to production planning which would provide simple calculations for lead-times: ChemCo should implement cyclical production scheduling, adjusted for their context. The technique would reduce changeovers and allocate production time based on demand. Impact is expected in many areas, where production output showed to increase, further likely to affect the firm's KPIs.