SK Food Group partnered with Arizona State University (ASU) to leverage the skills and innovation of MBA students working towards their Green Belt in Lean Six Sigma. The collaboration involved five motivated students who undertook a capstone project aimed at improving the efficiency and quality of one aspect of SK Food Group’s end packaging process. This endeavor began in December 2022 and concluded successfully in April 2023.
The partnership began when SK Food Group reached out to ASU to tap into a fresh perspective from aspiring professionals learning Lean Six Sigma principles. This methodology focuses on measuring and analyzing process improvement and waste reduction, making it highly applicable in the food manufacturing industry. The five MBA students selected for this project were eager to put their knowledge into practice and make a real impact.
Before diving into their project, the students underwent essential training in safety and food safety. This training ensured that they could navigate the facilities safely and adhere to the strict regulations governing the food industry. After completing this necessary training, they were granted access to the production floor, where they observed SK Food Group’s operations and homed in on a specific aspect of their process.
“It was really cool to see these students so excited to get trained and walk the facility floor in smocks and hairnets,” said Tracy Atkinson, SK Food Group’s Sr. Manager of Training and Development person. “In most projects like this, students starting out their careers never get a chance to see how a product is made, packaged, and delivered. You could see they were really enjoying the experience,” she said.
The focus of their project was on a new, never before implemented Automated End pack system, designed to ensure that open seals were fully sealed before products were distributed. The Automated End pack was, at the time, recently installed and in the process of commissioning when the students began working with SK. Through careful observation, the students identified a small but important gap in the packing process that could make the process even better. While SK prides itself on quality assurance, any additional risk mitigation strategy would be welcomed because the gap was not only a potential source of customer complaints, but also posed risks to product quality and safety, leading to food waste and increased rework on the production line.
With the insights gained from their observations, the students created data sets and analyzed the situation with an eye towards improvements and recommendations focused on the end packing process. As part of their final capstone assignment, they presented their findings to SK and were met with overwhelming positive comments.
“It was really cool to see these students so excited to get trained and walk the facility floor in smocks and hairnets,” said Tracy Atkinson, SK Food Group’s Sr. Manager of Training and Development person. “In most projects like this, students starting out their careers never get a chance to see how a product is made, packaged, and delivered. You could see they were really enjoying the experience,” she said.
“Their enthusiasm for the project resulted in some great new findings as seen from a fresh perspective,” said, Tolleson Plant Director, Damon Dalgleish. “The project presented an exciting opportunity to integrate Lean Six Sigma principles into a real-world setting and make an immediate impact in SK Food Group’s operations.”
The participation between SK Food Group and ASU students was a resounding success. The students had a chance to use their new Lean Six Sigma knowledge, allowing them to identify a key area for improvement and introduce their concepts to senior management along the way. The collaboration was so successful SK is now entering into a new partnership with Ohio State University and its Columbus operations.
As for the ASU students, Kyle Humble an MBA graduate student, shared: “My opportunity at SK Foods allowed me to put my academic knowledge of supply chain management into real life operational practice. The people that make up SK Foods are welcoming and supporting. They allowed my team and I to collect data and follow where our findings took us. The partnership between ASU and SK Foods enabled my team and I to test our skills and have a meaningful business impact through our lean six sigma project.”
Cole Holmes, another student wrote: “SK Food Group’s commitment to our project as well as their responsiveness to feedback made partnering a worthwhile, effective, and extremely rewarding experience. They gave us the opportunity to take risks, implement new ideas, and acted as a “best-in-class” example in translating classroom learnings into real life practices.”
Graduate school partnerships with large corporate entities exemplify the value of industry-academia collaborations, providing students with real-world experience while offering companies like SK Food Group an opportunity to enhance their operations. As the project wrapped up in April 2023, the benefits of this collaboration will undoubtedly continue to be felt in the improved efficiency and quality of SK Food Group’s products.
