Standardization is the consistent application of processes, procedures, specifications and systems across manufacturing operations.
This consistency drives reliability, which allows organizations to confidently meet production targets and ensure consistent quality. As operational complexity increases—driven by evolving regulations and workforce shortages—standardization has become more essential than ever.
Consider a recent report that found 76% of cases, industrial downtime costs up to $500,000 per hour. Standardization helps reduce this risk by creating a foundation for efficiency, quality, safety and continuous improvement.
In this piece, we’ll examine some of the most common standardization practices and explore six key benefits of standardizing operations.
What is standardization in manufacturing?
Standardization in manufacturing establishes clear policies and procedures for common workflows. Effective standardization strengthens alignment across people, processes and technologies, making it easier for companies to track and monitor asset performance over time.
Some common examples of standardization include:
- Standard operating procedures (SOPs)
- Maintenance workflows
- Equipment specifications
- Data collecting and reporting
- Safety protocols
It’s important to note that standardization is about repeatability, not rigidity. While certain tasks may require creating work instructions with step-by-step processes, others may take the form of guidelines; so long as staff achieve the desired goal, they are free to use their best judgment.
This approach also provides room for innovation and optimization. For example, if maintenance staff discover a more cost-effective way to complete repairs while remaining aligned with operational standards, they can submit this idea for review and approval, rather than being bound to obligatory operations.
Here are six benefits of standardized manufacturing processes.
Improved operational efficiency
Wasted materials and wasted time are expensive. Consider a manufacturing company with no standardized maintenance procedures. When equipment breaks, technicians are assigned the task of fixing the problem but aren’t given clear guidelines.
The result is variability. In some cases, equipment stays up and running for months. In others, it breaks again within the week. These failures can lead to products that do not pass quality control checks, in turn leading to costly reworks. They also mean more time and money spent on repair teams or paying overtime for staff to remake parts and reach production goals.
Taking a standardized approach offers four benefits that improve operational efficiency:
- Reduced cycle times through repeatable, proven processes
- Faster onboarding and training for new employees
- Fewer delays caused by confusion, rework or unclear procedures
- Easier scheduling, planning and resource allocation
Put simply, the use of standardized practices improves production speed without sacrificing consistency and supports the use of lean manufacturing techniques.
Higher product quality and process reliability
Minimal variability improves product quality and reduces the risk of defects. Standardization takes a data-driven approach to production: If X, then Y, which avoids Z.
Reduced variation leads to more predictable outcomes, which limits the scope of potential problems. While issues can still occur within a standardized framework, they’re typically smaller and easier to resolve.
Business process standardization also minimizes human error. Errors often occur when staff are unsure of next steps, but standardization offers a blueprint. In addition, standardized processes can be built from the ground up to align with quality assurance standards and customer expectations.
Finally, standardization streamlines root cause failure analysis (RCFA) by reducing the number and type of equipment failure scenarios.
Enhanced safety and compliance
Worker safety plays a key role in staff satisfaction and regulatory compliance. Injuries in the workplace can negatively impact productivity and put companies at risk of non-compliance with OSHA and other standards.
Standardization offers several benefits for safety, such as:
- Reduced risk exposure through the use of consistent safety procedures
- Improved compliance with OSHA and other industry guidelines, such as those published by ISO and NIST
- Simplified auditing and reporting
- Safer handoffs between shifts, teams and facilities
Consider an organization that runs a 24/7/365 production line. Every 8 hours, new workers come on-shift and must be briefed by those heading home. Standardized operational and industrial maintenance safety procedures ensure that all relevant information is clearly communicated to the next shift.
Lower costs and reduced downtime
As noted above, unplanned downtime is expensive. Standardization makes downtime less likely and helps companies better control costs during the production process.
Cost control is enabled by standardized procedures, which reduce the risk of mistakes and limit the number of reworks. Next are step-by-step maintenance practices that ensure repairs are handled the same way every time, in turn extending asset life.
When it comes to unplanned downtime, spare parts standardization minimizes the chance of inventory duplication while making sure that critical parts for common failures are always on-hand. Finally, standardization creates familiarity, which in turn enables faster troubleshooting and repairs.
Better scalability across facilities and operations
As manufacturing firms expand, scalability becomes essential. Standardization underpins multisite expansion.
Consider a company that has created, tested and implemented standardized maintenance and production monitoring processes across its facility. When current factories are expanded or new locations are added, these best practices can be replicated rather than created from scratch.
This enables faster ramp-up for new facilities and easier benchmarking between sites. At scale, this provides access to more consistent performance metrics across locations.
Stronger data, insights and decision-making
Data is a critical resource for manufacturers. From IIoT sensor data to information from PLCs, SCADA platforms, computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) and manufacturing execution systems (MES), data makes it possible for companies to act rather than react.
But data alone isn’t enough to drive value; clarity and consistency are required to make information actionable. To achieve this goal, companies must create standardized data input formats, reporting frequencies and key metrics across production line equipment and sensors. In practice, better data standardization enables:
- Accurate reporting and real-time analytics
- Improved visibility into performance, reliability and costs
- Support for advanced analytics, predictive maintenance and AI initiatives, such as the use of collaborative robots (cobots)
- Sets the stage for Manufacturing 4.0 strategies, such as the development of digital twins
Standardization as a foundation for continuous improvement
For companies to keep pace with manufacturing trends such as evolving AI technologies and changing customer expectations, they need a framework for continuous improvement. Without standardization, however, building this framework becomes increasingly more difficult.
Standards create a baseline for measurement and comparison. Without standardization, metrics are haphazard and lack interconnection, making it difficult to track progress. Standard work processes also make it easier to identify deviations from expected outputs and pinpoint opportunities for improvement. In addition, standard practices support reliability-centered maintenance programs such as lean manufacturing and Six Sigma.
Put simply, standardization processes support sustainable improvement rather than one-off benefits and short-term fixes.
Where manufacturers often struggle with standardization
It’s one thing to recognize the benefits of standardization. It’s another to implement standardized work practices across production lines and maintenance processes.
Common barriers to standardization include:
- Cultural resistance and fear of lost autonomy
- Legacy systems and inconsistent documentation
- Lack of ownership and governance
- Limited experience with change management in manufacturing
Addressing and overcoming these barriers starts with the C-suite. Leaders need to buy in by committing both time and resources to standardization efforts. Manufacturers also need to identify a standardization champion, that is, someone who takes ownership of the project from start to finish.
It’s also critical to prioritize cross-functional collaboration. Standardization is only as good as its scope; if different departments each take their own approach to standardizing processes, the result is a set of disconnected silos that make enterprise-wide consistency more difficult.
Getting started with manufacturer standardization
So, how do companies get started with manufacturer standardization? Follow these four best practices:
1. Prioritize high-impact, high-variability processes: First-line standardization should focus on high-impact processes that display significant variability. In practice, this might look like the creation of in-depth maintenance practices for critical production line equipment nearing its end-of-life and experiencing more frequent failures.
2. Involve frontline teams in defining standards: Standardization efforts are more successful with input from frontline staff. This is because frontline employees have a direct line to what’s working, what isn’t and what issues occur most frequently.
3. Document, train and continuously review these standards: Once standards are identified, documentation is essential. Next is training; make sure staff have access to updated operations and maintenance manuals, along with hands-on education for the practical skills needed to meet operational standards. Finally, ensure that standards are regularly reviewed and align with any production line changes.
4. Use technology to support consistency and visibility: The sheer volume and complexity of modern manufacturing standards require the use of technology to support consistent application, ongoing visibility and accurate reporting. Technologies such as AI-driven analytics paired with CMMS and enterprise resource planning (ERP) tools help enable all three.
Why standardization is a competitive advantage
In a manufacturing landscape driven by data and informed by AI, standardization is no longer optional.
Although essential, standardization is not a constraint to manufacturing strategy and success. Instead, comprehensive standards underpin resilience, scalability and innovation across production and operations. More importantly, this approach offers a competitive advantage because companies that create, manage and maintain clear standards are better positioned to enable long-term operational excellence that sets them apart from the crowd.
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References
ABB. (n.d.). Industrial downtime costs up to $500,000 per hour and can happen every week. https://new.abb.com/news/detail/129763/industrial-downtime-costs-up-to-500000-per-hour-and-can-happen-every-week
