Prepare for the Road Ahead
Jim King 12.30.2015
“Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice, and discipline.” This quote was authored by Jim Collins in his best-selling book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t. There’s no doubt that the great majority of manufacturers excel in the area of daily discipline and consistent hard work. The working prowess of the customers we meet on a daily basis is always an inspiration. But hard work is only one factor in determining long-term success. As we enter the new year, now is a great time to put some focus on the matter of “conscious choice.”
Envision Future Opportunities
Of course we all make conscious choices as we respond to the day-to-day demands of keeping a business running. But the more promising horizon reveals itself when we look down the road a bit. It’s important to take some time to envision future market opportunities for your company. Can you picture growth markets that fit your core competencies? Are you positioned to capture these opportunities? If not, what would it take to get there? Will you choose to take that road?
A Conscious Choice
A few years ago Okuma looked down the road and made a conscious choice to ramp up and serve anticipated growth markets. We envisioned shops that needed to be served with enhanced responsiveness from us a machine tool builder. In 2012 we leveled an existing manufacturing facility – to the ground – and in its place we constructed a state-of-the-art facility called DS1, the first in a series of “Dream Site” facilities. At DS1 we’ve been able to double productivity and cut manufacturing lead-times in half. This has become especially important for industries such as aerospace, which needs to build capacity quickly. Today we stand ready to serve their urgent needs.
Prepare for the Road Ahead
We never could have positioned ourselves for this if we haven't planned ahead (plants aren't built in a day!). This required a process of looking forward and anticipating the opportunities, then walking that path by conscious choice. The same principle holds true for any shop, or any company for that matter. Hard work alone won’t get you there. Long-term success depends on preparing for the road ahead.
Jim King is President & COO, Okuma America Corporation.
More: Watch the video Okuma’s New High-Efficiency Factory – Dream Site 1 to learn more about the exceptional achievements of this manufacturing transformation.
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