Case study · Manufacturing
API maker saves $10M+ a year after losing its largest customer
When its largest customer left the market, a maker of active pharmaceutical ingredients saw EBITDA drop sharply. USC, back more than a decade after a first project, cut batch times, maintenance costs and sourcing costs.
Results
$10M+
in annualized operating savings
Savings are annualized.
The situation
The company had grown through acquisitions and large, high-margin customers. When its largest customer left the market, EBITDA fell steeply.
What the assessment found
- Lab and production operations built for large jobs that no longer existed
- High batch and cycle times depressing yield
- Maintenance outsourced and raw materials bought without regard to cost
- Slow lab sample approvals holding up production
How the work was done
Batches: cut cycle times
Mapped each batch cycle step with engineering and lab teams, focused on critical-to-quality steps, and gave operators real-time visual targets.
Maintenance: bring it in-house
Rebuilt the maintenance planner role and trained in-house technicians to take over work from outside technicians, using the existing computerized maintenance management system.
Sourcing: buy for total cost
Set up a strategic sourcing plan weighing price, availability and vendor location for global raw materials.
Lab: speed up approvals
Added capacity planning and scheduling tools in quality control and quality assurance to cut lab-to-production times.
Lasting impact
The company reset its operations for a smaller customer base, with in-house maintenance, cost-based sourcing and faster lab approvals, and cut more than $10 million a year in cost.
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