Expertise Areas

 
NEPA is about helping manufacturing businesses improve productivity. We ultimately want to help you reduce cost, waste and/or lead time, free up bottlenecks or achieve a combination of these.

We can help make an immediate impact with process and physical shopfloor changes. But we can also specifically assist with the following areas:

Productivity

We can carry out a Productivity Needs Diagnosis (PNA) which provides a starting point to developing a plan that will increase productivity in specific areas of your business. Through this activity, we can help you take a strategic approach in improving your overall productivity.

Material yield

We can provide advice on how to maximise your material yield by identifying your company’s material usage and using practical and proven problem-solving techniques.

Design Issues

We have extensive links to the region’s network of university and professional expertise. This also means we can help you work on product and process design issues using some of the latest digital technologies available.  

Research

The NEPA Engineering Research Fellows programme has a group of highly experienced industrialists who are carrying out cutting-edge academic research in manufacturing processes to benefit companies in the region. These industrialists are available to support companies in areas such as advanced maintenance, production planning and improvement methodologies.

Training

NEPA works with the Learning and Skills Council and local training providers to upskill the region’s workforce. Training from NVQ 1 to NVQ 4 and a foundation degree in Operations Improvement and Maintenance are available.

Factory layouts

Through NEPA Digital Factory, we have the capability to simulate proposed factory layouts so that a company can see the end result of proposed changes in an operation before anything is moved.

Maintenance 

Why not tap into our know-how and experience in advanced maintenance techniques? We can support you with plant maintenance issues by providing practical advice that will work for your business.

Technical Support

Together with our partner, Manufacturing Advisory Service, we can offer you an experienced engineer to work alongside you or your staff to tackle technical problems (eg. labels peeling from product or doors not aligning properly). We will work with you directly to help you solve the problem or broker support from someone who can.