What does efficiency mean? I asked myself this question and came back with another: “Why when the company asked ME to write an article, did I decide to write about efficiency?” I started by asking my fiancé what his definition of efficiency is. 

As the Manufacturing Manager at RBB Systems, I oversee the manufacturing of complex circuit boards and custom electronic assemblies, making sure they are built to IPC Standards and are ISO 9001 certified.

I began my journey with RBB Systems in the summer of 2010. My first home was in the stockroom prepping components and pulling orders for the many different jobs that came through the shop. The one thing I learned very quickly was that no two jobs were the same and the customers were ever changing – benefits to being a small batch electronics manufacturing experts. This was my first experience with this type of work environment. Previously it was mass production. Same parts, same customers. But this was something new that I had never dealt with: many different parts and many different customers.

At RBB Systems we work with a wide variety of customers that present us the opportunity to build a wide variety of electronic assemblies. This requires us to master a variety of different methods and techniques to manufacture products. Over the past few months the manufacturing department has taken great strides to understand how common and costly mistakes happen, and how to prevent them in the future. This has led us to refine what we have termed the “Kickoff” process.

The Biomedical MEMS and Sensors Conference 2013 held April 16-18 at Lorain County Community College brought presenters, exhibitors and attendees from around the US and the world to focus on MEMS technologies for biomedical applications (BioMEMS).

Inventory Accuracy in a Small Batch Job Shop

Inventory accuracy impacts many different aspects of a successful manufacturing business, especially a Job Shop. Typical consequences of inaccurate inventory are:

Since working in Market Development at RBB, I have been a part of implementing our company's digital marketing plans. Through these online efforts we manage leads, connect with prospects, and develop relationships, while also nurturing and interacting with current customers. All of this is by way of website offers, blog interaction, Facebook updates, tweeting, creating YouTube videos and participating in LinkedIn conversations. Pretty crazy!

Ringing The Bell For New Customers

I know it sounds cheesy; it’s the cheesy that makes it good! My wife Donna and I were on a weekend getaway when we picked up a very cool, wall-mounted antique brass bell. Sometime earlier I had begun wondering how we could alert everyone in the company when we landed a new customer relationship.

The Job Shop Evolution

I was invited to a meeting the other day to discuss the most efficient way to adapt our processes and procedures for our newest customer. As I looked around the table at the other participants, sales staff, engineers, purchasing, it struck me just how far RBB had come since I was hired in 2005.