BICKERDYKEMANUFACTURING ADVISORY
Manufacturing problem solving · Houston & Texas, Atlanta & Georgia

The problem that keeps coming back has a cause. I find it.

Fifty-five years on the shop floor, from a machinist’s apprenticeship to running plants and their ERP systems. I help small and mid-sized manufacturers fix the scrap, setups, late jobs and cost overruns that everyone has learned to live with.

Email me about your problem Call (832) 874-1234
JOB TRAVELERPart 4471-B · Qty 250
OPOPERATIONROUTED HRSACTUAL
10Saw cut1.51.6
20CNC turn – setup1.03.8
30CNC mill6.26.5
40Deburr & inspect2.02.3
?The routing says one hour, every time. The floor says nearly four. Is it the fixture, the tooling, the program, or the standard? That gap is where I start.
Example for illustration
Approach

Most problems cross three places. Most people only look in one.

A machinist sees the machine. A manager sees the schedule. The ERP team sees the data. I’ve done all three jobs, so I follow the problem wherever it goes.

AT THE MACHINE

Method

Setup, tooling, workholding, operation sequence, the CNC program and cycle time. What the operator actually does, compared with what everyone thinks they do.

ACROSS THE PLANT

Flow

Bottlenecks, queues, handoffs, rework loops and inspection. Where jobs wait, where they come back and where the work gets done differently from shift to shift.

IN THE SYSTEM

Data

Routings, standards, BOMs, labor reporting and job cost. Why the ERP says a job made money when the floor knows it didn’t.

Where I’d start

Pick the problem you’re living with.

Here is the first question I’d ask, and the first places I’d look.

FIRST QUESTION

At the machine

    Across the plant

      In the system

        Services

        Small, defined pieces of work. No long contracts.

        You don’t need another full-time hire. You need the problem solved and the fix to hold.

        Start here

        Manufacturing Problem Diagnostic

        One problem that keeps coming back. I look at it on the floor and in your data, talk to the people doing the work, and give you a short written report with the likely root causes and what to fix first.

        SCOPEOne agreed problem, one part family or one process
        TIMEA fixed number of days, agreed before we start
        YOU GETRoot causes, prioritized corrective actions, and a way to measure the result
        THENFix it yourselves, or I help you implement and verify

        CNC & Machining Process Review

        Machine choice, operation sequence, setup, tooling, workholding, programs, inspection and cycle time.

        Routing, Standards & Job Cost Review

        Quoted against actual for material, setup, labor, secondary operations and scrap, and where the ERP disagrees with the floor.

        Continuous Improvement Review

        Follow a process end to end to find waste, bottlenecks, rework, poor handoffs and weak controls.

        Implementation Support

        Assign the actions, test the changes, measure the result and make the better method the standard one.

        Manufacturing Advisor

        A few hours a month as an outside set of eyes for an owner or plant manager.

        Training, Mentoring & Second Opinions

        Practical sessions for supervisors, programmers and planners, or an independent check before a big machine, CAM, ERP or sourcing decision.

        How it works

        Routed like a job.

        OP 10

        Talk

        You describe the problem. I ask how long, how often, and what changed.

        OP 20

        Observe

        On the floor with your people, then the drawings, routings, programs and job history.

        OP 30

        Report

        Symptoms separated from causes. A short list of practical changes, in order.

        OP 40

        Verify

        We measure whether the fix holds. If it doesn’t, we go back to Op 20.

        David Bickerdyke, Principal, Bickerdyke Manufacturing Advisory
        David BickerdykePrincipal, Bickerdyke Manufacturing Advisory
        Background

        I started on the Shop Floor at Fifteen.

        A five-year indentured apprenticeship at Lucas Aerospace in Bradford, England, then more than 55 years making metal and plastic parts in small and large quantities, on manual lathes, mills and grinders, legacy machines and CNC.

        I have worked as a toolroom machinist and production supervisor in South Africa, a works manager in the UK, and a CNC programmer, manufacturing engineer and manufacturing manager in the United States, for companies including Wyman Gordon, Harley-Davidson, Norriseal and Winchester Interconnect.

        I set up Bickerdyke Manufacturing Advisory to put that experience to work for small and mid-sized manufacturers: finding the real cause of the problems that keep coming back, and making sure the fix holds.

        1. Lucas Aerospace, UKFive-year machinist apprenticeship
        2. Pretoria and Cape Town, South AfricaSix years: toolroom machinist, then production line supervisor on diesel engines
        3. Deighton Manufacturing, BradfordWorks manager; food machinery and components
        4. Wyman Gordon, HoustonCNC programming for aircraft-engine parts in titanium and Inconel
        5. Ellwood Texas Forge, HoustonCNC programming for large punch dies
        6. Harley-Davidson, MilwaukeeManufacturing engineer; redesigned the flywheel cell
        7. Norriseal, HoustonSenior manufacturing engineer in a 19-machine CNC shop
        8. Winchester InterconnectManufacturing manager and IT for 11 years
        Full career history on LinkedIn →
        55+years in manufacturing, at the shop-floor level
        CNCmachining and programming, including extensive Edgecam
        Mgmtmanufacturing and works management
        Enghired as a Manufacturing Engineer for breadth of knowledge
        Business systems: Microsoft Dynamics 365 (long-term), Epicor 10.2, and Oracle through the Dover migration.
        Results

        What it looked like when the fix held.

        Selected results from my career, before Bickerdyke Manufacturing Advisory.

        HARLEY-DAVIDSON · 2006

        A new machine, brought into a working flywheel cell

        Challenge

        A newly purchased machine sat idle, not yet commissioned or integrated into the flywheel production cell.

        What I did

        Commissioned and programmed the machine, then integrated it into the cell’s existing flow.

        Result

        The cell could produce every flywheel assembly Harley-Davidson had ever made, complete, in a single cell.

        NORRISEAL · HOUSTON

        Fewer machines, more capability, faster delivery

        Challenge

        A 30-machine shop with ageing equipment, no formal scheduling, and pressure to improve efficiency while outsourcing was being considered.

        What I did

        Made the case for keeping manufacturing in-house. Replaced nearly 20 old machines with around 9 new multi-function CNC machines, including twin-spindle turn-mill machines that finish many parts complete. Rebuilt the DNC system from manual to automated, wireless delivery, and introduced Jobpack scheduling and labor tracking.

        Result

        • 70%shorter lead times
        • 40%improvement in on-time delivery
        • ~175%average return on machine investment, tracked quarterly
        • ~40%revenue growth during my time there
        WINCHESTER INTERCONNECT

        From monthly stock adjustments to controlled, visible production

        Challenge

        Two separate business systems. Material was not issued to jobs, so inventory was corrected by monthly counts and adjustments. An ageing machine shop, and no visibility of upcoming work.

        What I did

        Consolidated onto one business system and introduced material issuing to jobs. Added 17 new CNC machines while retiring older equipment. Introduced Jobpack AIR scheduling and labor data collection, shown on large screens on the floor.

        Result

        • <2%inventory variance
        • 0monthly stock adjustments needed
        • ~40%revenue growth during my time there

        Machinists could see and plan their own upcoming work.

        Contact

        What problem keeps coming back?

        Call or email with a short description. If I can help, I’ll tell you how I’d approach it. If I can’t, I’ll tell you that too.

        Email David Call (832) 874-1234 WhatsApp LinkedIn
        David Bickerdyke
        Principal, Bickerdyke Manufacturing Advisory
        SERVING
        Houston & Texas, Atlanta & Georgia