The sunshine of 'Nai Disha' has breathed life into all three plants at Tata Steel Wire Division. With the processes streamlined, within a mere span of 40 weeks, the leader gets equipped with stupendous production capacity. Now, forging ahead at every level of plant operation, are - the strategic implementation and ownership. Tata Steel Wire Division races to the finishing line of 90% PI, where burgeoning market share is no more a threat. On the national and the global forefront, once again, the leader steals the show with its revived confidence levels.

Yet, the prowl continues. Tata Steel Wire Division aspires to be among the top five manufacturers in the world by FY 08.

As a result, 'Nai Disha' now dovetails into ASPIRE: Aspirational Initiative to Retain Excellence. This new endeavor effective since 2004 inherits strengths from Nai Disha, to reign new aspirations, across fourteen key divisions. With production operation at its core, the focus currently stays on: Sales, Marketing, Finance, IT, Human Resource Development, Production, Supply Chain, Engineering, and Quality Assurance.

The expertise of Renoir, their recommendations and unstinted support shall take the division through ASPIRE as well.

Overview:

The year 2004 commenced with the strategy workshop. Key initiatives were identified through CTQ exercise, which were then prioritized and allocated to the respective MATs (Management Acceleration Teams). Each MAT was assigned with targets pertaining to its 'drilled down' and 'aligned' key result areas. Moreover, these targets were translated into financial returns, thus reinforcing the total turnover.

The Management Action Teams were encouraged to identify lacunae in the prevalent systems and to devise improvement initiatives backing up their set of objectives.

ASPIRE, in steps of Nai Disha strongly believes in the review system.

The Target:

For the current fiscal 2004-2005, the expected annual turnover is Rs. 1,000 crore, with a scoop of profits worth Rs. 25 crore.

The Approach:

Improvement is initiated under two major categories:
* Problem Resolution,
* Preventive Measures.
For problem resolution, the sub-teams are formed under the MATs. Their approach though simple, adheres to effective steps of the DMAIC: Define the problem, Collate the data, Measure indices, Analyze the data, arrive at the best possible solution, Implement the solutions, control and sustain the achievements.

These initiatives together define the AQUIP (Annual Quality Improvement Program) deployed by Tata Steel Wire Division for the current fiscal.

Secondly, the TPM (Total Productive Maintenance), forms the safety net for recurring problems at every level.

Tata Steel Wire Division aims to channelize Total Productive Maintenance across the three manufacturing plants this year. In the beginning the division would be committed to the 5S technique. Currently, 1S and 2S techniques are being implemented at every plant, with the help of ongoing training programs. Each team is allotted a set of target, to drive home the desired change, within a specified timeframe.

The Process :

Two methodologies form the crux of ASPIRE, viz. 6-Sigma / DMAIC, and TPM. As Mr. Muthuraman, MD, Tata Steel Wire Division emphasizes: 'Aspire is a vehicle to accelerate, run faster and to fly'.

The Review System :

The three-tier review mechanism continues to speed up the action plan. Weekly and fortnightly meetings are followed by inspections, by respective chiefs. The project ASPIRE forges ahead as the CAT (Change Acceleration Team): comprising Mr. Sengupta, EIC, Tata Steel Wire Division and the members of senior management, act as a guiding force.

Now, every single unit at TATA Steel Wire Division aspires to greater possibilities. Only the tip of the iceberg is in the view today. However, ASPIRE Nai Disha awaits the roaring success.

" I sincerely hope the new MAT structures that have sprung up in every function of Wire Division will guide us on the road to increasing productivity and profitability, translating into a better future for us and increased value for our stakeholders " -Mr.Partho Sengupta, EIC, Tata Steel Wire Division

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