As published in the August 2016 edition of the IPI Newsletter.
This issue of the newsletter we are focusing on the Anamosa Housekeeping Laundry division. Since we last
visited them in 2010, it has been very busy.
In July of 2015, IPI’s Lean Training Specialist Steve Forbes
led a 5S Lean project in the shop. Along with staff from other
areas of IPI, we were fortunate to have the help and expertise
of lean facilitators from
Rockwell Collins. The event was held
in preparation for the return of the chemical products lines
that had recently been manufactured at our Mitchellville
facility. By January of 2016, the Lean changes were finished;
this allowed us to provide an almost seamless transition for
our customers of the products into Housekeeping & Laundry.
With a lot of work and determination, the shop was also
able to be in a position to deliver on the influx of fiscal year
end orders.
Along with the 5S Lean project, Housekeeping & Laundry
was the first Anamosa shop to implement
Prison Industries Manufacturing System (PIMS) metrics boards. Since then,
the shop has developed several process improvements to
excel at customer service.
Tammy Luchtenburg is the Production Coordinator for
both the Housekeeping & Laundry division and the Filters
division. She brings 23 years of experience with IPI to
the position, 18 of which are in this and the filter division.
Technician Jared Ash spends part if his time in the shop as
well; Jared has been part of the IPI team since 2012. Todd
Pearson is the Supervisor of this division. The shop typically
has 15-20 incarcerated individuals and work skills developed range from
mixing chemicals, inventory control, packaging and shipping
to workplace safety and lean manufacturing.
As we move forward, we are adding updated bottling capacity
to meet customers’ needs today and for growth in the
future.