A Texas-Sized Expansion
They say everything is bigger in Texas. According to the Guinness World Records book, Texas is home to 550 records for the biggest stuff including pizzas available to purchase and, this may not come as a surprise, the biggest belt buckle.
We can’t say that we are aiming for a spot on that list for one of our products (unless, of course, the record is for best quality, parts, and service), but with our growth and persistent demand, it’s time for us to embrace the spirit of the Lone Star state and get bigger to improve efficiency and better serve our customers.
We sat down with Aaron Lian, Senior Vice President of Operations at Multiquip for a conversation about the importance of Multiquip’s facilities in Lewisville, just north of Dallas, and why it makes the most sense to expand our Texas operations.
What does Multiquip’s footprint in Lewisville, TX look like and how has it changed recently?
AL: We started with one warehouse in Lewisville and recently have been operating with two locations there. The original facility handled Power Equipment (PE) production and distribution of our construction equipment (CE) products. About four and a half years ago, we opened a second facility that focused on refurbishing MQ Power Generators. At that point, we were only doing refurb at our [former] facility in Carson, CA and the expansion to Texas enabled us to better serve our customers nationwide.
We later moved the CE distribution into a brand-new facility in the nearby Bison Grove business park and shifted refurb into the primary Lewisville facility. Now all generator work is done under one roof.
Why is Muliquip expanding to a third facility in Lewisville?
AL: In the last few years, we’ve experienced a sharp increase in demand across all product lines. We needed to increase capacity to meet customer demand.
[When thinking about a third location] we knew we had to make a dramatic increase to our production of ride-on trowels and looked closely at what would need to be done to increase our production of ride-on trowels.
In order to do that we realized we would need to shift our trailer frame production out of Boise to allow ride-on trowel production to increase. Lewisville was the clear choice because a majority of our generators are mounted to trailers and it’s better from a transportation and logistics standpoint for our customers on the East Coast.
We now have a third building to handle our trailer frame production, which is currently under construction and we plan to start moving in January 2024.
MQ Power generators are modified to meet customer needs
What changes were made to the production process to increase capacity and efficiency at our original Lewisville location?
AL: We worked with the team from the Boise project to figure out how, with our existing footprint, to best increase capacity.
The goal of that project was to change the way MQ Power builds generators in Lewisville. For example, we saw an opportunity to improve efficiencies on our modification line which was using batch processing to handle customization requests. Our team identified ways to improve their processes and expedite the product to final assembly and trailer mounting.
We shifted to a process with three different production lines, so now generators flow through production more efficiently. The lines are based on the number of hours the necessary modifications will take. Some mods may be simple and take two or three hours while others are complex and will take 20 or more hours. This enabled us to reduce build times and get products to customers faster.
What role has technology played in these efficiency changes?
AL: Technology has played a big role. Along the generator production line, we’ve added large monitors that display real-time build information so the team is on the same page to keep production moving.
High-density pallet rack storage with semi-automated Pallet-Mole® system
We also added high-density pallet rack storage with a semi-automated Pallet Mole® system which allows for loading and unloading of inventory from either side, so you don’t have to send a forklift down multiple rows of storage racks. The Pallet Mole autonomously goes and picks up materials and moves them while indexing items to where you need them. It enables us to essentially squeeze racking together which allows for better use of storage space and more room for production.
Vertical Lyft Modules (VLMs) reduce time spent searching for parts and increases order accuracy
In addition to the high-density pallet racks, we invested in three Vertical Lift Modules (VLMs) that are used to retrieve parts automatically and accurately. One VLM supports our production line and the other two are dedicated to our parts department. Instead of having to manually search rows of racks holding spare parts, we are now able to simultaneously improve the accuracy and efficiency of our parts fulfillment process.
How will Multiquip’s customers benefit from the expansion in Texas?
AL: We are committed to being a good partner to our customers and being in a position to better meet their needs. Our expansion efforts are positioning us to be able to continue to grow with our customers. It also allows us to reduce lead times and respond to unexpected demands we see following natural disasters.
Locally, our customers will benefit tremendously from the implementation of a ServicePlus™ location in the Dallas market. Customers will be able to have their Multiquip equipment serviced by MQ professionals conveniently at our shop which is something we haven’t had in the past.
Overall, having a stronger presence in the central part of the country will allow us to better serve customers nationally and we look forward to having everything up and running very soon.
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