Omron STI

Source: Manufacturing Digital

Date :08/05/2008 06:18:59

Exec talks to Jim Ashford, COO of Omron STI, and discovers the difference the right safety expert can make on your manufacturing floor

Written by Ian Armitage and Produced by Pat Harlow

On September 18th 2006, Scientific Technologies Inc.’s safety products business group became part of OMRON, creating a global leader in the industrial safety market - Omron Scientific Technologies, Inc. (or OSTI).

Today this entity is one of the world’s leading providers of automation safeguard products and services.

“Customers rely on us to provide completely integrated machine safeguarding solutions and strategic consulting services to maximize productivity without compromising on employee safety. As a result, we have a strong presence in the North American market,” says Jim Ashford, who has served as President, COO and a Director of OSTI since the time of the merger.

Late adopter

Due to a low awareness level of customers and significant untapped potential, the North American machine safety market has been a late adopter of technology. However, times have changed.

Today, forward-thinking manufacturers clearly realize the new role of increased safety on the factory floor. In this hugely promising market, Omron STI has differentiated itself from its industry peers with demonstrated efforts in technological excellence and an innovative strategy. It has also consistently exceeded customer expectations by delivering solutions that positively impact customer profits and drive customer value and satisfaction.

“OSTI continues its relentless focus on customers,” says Ashford. “We are clearly customer driven and have adopted and refined our structured strategic planning process. We have hired a new Vice President of Sales, rationalized the leadership in product development and marketing and continue to invest in developing the service side of the business.”

These moves have helped OSTI develop the premier distribution channel in North America – a channel that is the most sought after in the factory automation market. “We have gained significant up tick in sales activities for the company in North America,” says Ashford. “We have established a dedicated safety team and are enjoying significant growth in the safety business.”

Importance of safety

So why is safety important? “It depends where you are in the world,” Ashford says. “For North America, there are a lot of drivers of the business. Productivity comes from tailored solutions where safety becomes integrated into a product process which allows humans to interface with machines in a very effective way. That reduces the stress of the employees, gives them peace of mind and increases the flexibility of the processes, if it is done properly. Safety can lower insurance costs, and we can also help customers ensure they are compliant with the required regulatory standards.”

Ashford is right; if applied properly, machine safety can improve productivity. If it is not applied correctly, it will have a negative impact on productivity. This makes it vital to perform a risk assessment and risk reduction strategy based on operator frequency of access to the hazardous area. The assessment will help in determining the correct safety strategy.

“It can keep companies compliant with OSHA requirements, prevent ergonomic exposures, lower product liability insurance costs, lower workman compensation costs and comply with regulatory standardization,” says Ashford.

Fragmented market

“Awareness today is much higher than it was ten years ago,” says Ashford. “In North America particularly, that is due to Omron STI and what we did to bring that awareness to our customers’ minds and influence their behavior. Behavioral changes come back to a value system and that is going to drive those behaviors which are going to drive the culture within these clients’ companies. That is an ongoing process.”

Omron STI’s capability to provide integrated machine safety solutions and its ability to introduce innovative products reinforces its position as the preferred partner for a wide range of customers.

The North American machine safety market is a fragmented area, which makes the establishment of a strong brand name an uphill challenge. Omron STI has successfully leveraged its 35 years presence, comprehensive product portfolio and its technological expertise to enhance customer experience and satisfaction, establishing an extremely strong brand. Indeed, Omron STI enjoys superior customer confidence and loyalty of global industry leaders like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Ingersoll Rand, Chrysler, Ford, Harley-Davidson, Whirlpool, Toyota, Honda, Alcoa, Seagate and Johnson & Johnson.

“The machine safety market is the transition from a component based business to an integrated solution offering,” says Ashford. “How will this affect us? Most of the competitors are adopting measures to be more customer focused and demand driven, but Omron STI’s efforts are in driving customer value by providing total integrated machine safety solutions, from risk assessment to mitigation of risk and complete system integration.

“We are able to provide automation solutions along with machine safety, making us the most preferred partner among competitors. Customers have experienced the added advantage of relying on a one-stop shop solution provider, which helps them choose products that suit their needs and improve their overall process safety and efficiency.”

Future improvements

In hiring a new VP of sales, rationalizing the leadership in development and marketing, and continuing to invest in developing the service side of the business, Omron STI is well placed for future success. Many new processes will also be introduced into manufacturing to leverage the vast experience of OMRON factories worldwide.

“OSTI will invest in significant automation going forward,” says Ashford. “New back office systems have been installed and future plans include the further adoption of other productivity enhancing tools. Many Kaizen programs are underway as well as several ‘tiger teams’ focusing on processes and markets.”

OSTI has invested about $300,000 in training in FY07 to upgrade the skills of its workforce. This includes sales training, negotiation training, leadership training, management training, and advance degree programs for selected individuals.

“We also invested in automating the assembly one of our flagship products - the F3SJ,” says Ashford. “This process yields remarkable flexibility, low cost and improved quality. It has functioned as the kernel or nucleus of future manufacturing processes to be developed for all new products under design.

OSTI has even taken advantage of the remarkable buying power of the Omron Group. “This has resulted in cost savings on many components used in its products,” Ashford points out. “OMRON has been able to take advantage of OSTI’s unique manufacturing and sourcing engine in South East Asia to augment OMRON’s huge factory in mainland China. The combination of the two has resulted in a significant improvement in cost management and streamlined logistics.”

Omron STI has achieved fantastic success, recognized by the fact it has been given a Frost & Sullivan 2008 Company of the Year Award. This award is given to ‘the company that has exhibited excellence in technology and achieved market share leadership through implementation of various strategies to win in market place.’

Indeed, OSTI has excelled in different market dynamics including the identification of market challenges, drivers and restraints, as well as anticipating the future market needs. It has consistently addressed these challenges by enhancing the customer value through delivering value added solutions. Future success, therefore, will undoubtedly follow Omron STI.

Click here to view the corporate brochure on Omron STI