LEAN FLOW AT NORTH CREEK NURSERIES: ESTABLISHING A CULTURE OF LEAN^©

In 2008, North Creek nurseries had its best year ever. Having built a business over a 20-year period, we had grown rapidly, eventually working on two farms. Realizing this growth, and being cramped for space, we felt that we needed to expand our operation. We knew this would allow us to remain relevant in an increasingly competitive marketplace. We felt the need to increase our production capacity and efficiency. In exploring our potential for expansion, we worked with a friend, Robert Hayter, a landscape architect. After pertinent discussions, he asked this question of us: “Had we ever analyzed our processes?” Our answer was that we had not done a thorough analysis, or the due diligence necessary to understand our work processes, product movement, or work flow. We came to the conclusion we needed to delve deeper into understanding our manufacturing processes.