Volume: 36,000pcs per month
Material: Customer specific (low carbon with alloying), heat treated
Finish: Plain/ zinc plating.

Justification: The cost to produce this part was continuing to increase due to US wages, tooling, quality requirements, and increases in material price while the volume of the part gradually increased from 10,000 pieces per month to 36,000 pieces per month. The current manufacturing method was not able to allow the growth necessary to produce the volume to fulfill customer demands. In order to reduce overall cost, CSP decided to produce blanks for these parts offshore, and automate all finishing processes in Detroit. A new machine was purchased which allowed CSP to achieve their goal of full automation, a reduction in labor from 6 people to 1 person, and an increase in overall output. SPC was performed, logged, and utilized to determine and optimize production in a lights-out environment. Overall cost of the part was reduced to the customer while production quantities and quality were increased.