The Problem
In the face of relentless competition and escalating cost of goods sold (COGS), our Client found their flagship product under threat. With profitability waning, the quest to safeguard their market position was a key priority. The centrifugation step, identified by the production team as critical for enhancing margins, posed a significant challenge—how to extract further value from a process already boasting an impressive 95% yield or more. This effort to boost profitability, against the backdrop of high COGS for one of their bestsellers, presented a significant uphill battle, resonating deeply with many companies striving to maintain their competitive edge.
The Solution
Aizon’s solution to our Client’s mounting challenges was to leverage the power of Unify’s multidimensional analysis, a sophisticated approach that enabled us to dissect and understand the complexities of the interrelated unit operations and process steps like never before. By meticulously analyzing the inputs and outputs of each stage of the process—from initial hold-up volume and harvest operation to centrifugation and clarification—we gained a holistic overview of the optimization of the yield and unearthed the root causes that were silently eroding profitability.
The Results
Our Aizon Predict solution played a pivotal role in uncovering key insights in each of the centrifugation process stages and providing specific actions to improve yield. From analyzing material hold-up volumes, for example, the Aizon platform brought awareness of product loss and adapted the process to recover all the process material, minimizing waste and adding millions per year in savings. Refining operational timings for the centrifugation step achieved a remarkable yield increase of over 1.5%. This precision-engineered optimization was not just about immediate gains; it translated into more than $20 million in annual savings for our Client, showcasing the substantial financial impact of our solutions.
But our commitment to drive value did not stop at a single site. We introduced a real-time dashboard, enabling us to replicate our achievements across multiple sites, ensuring consistency and sustained improvement. This increased process understanding and site visibility resulted in substantial yield improvements for our Client, revitalizing their capacity to boost profitability and regain a competitive advantage in an increasingly challenging market landscape.
