General Motors signs landmark renewable energy deal, Kalmar outlines OPEX strategy, North Star invests millions in digital transformation – PEX Community News

PEX Network’s weekly news bulletin rounds up the latest from the process community including operational excellence, digital transformation, business process management (BPM), process mining, artificial intelligence (AI) and much more.

This week includes:

• General Motors signs landmark renewable energy deal
• Kalmar outlines long-term strategy to enhance operational excellence
• APQC releases new version of the Process Classification Framework
• North Star invests over £5 million in digital transformation
• Process mishaps in the spotlight
• Renewable Fuels Association welcomes MISTRAS Group to support biorefinery operational excellence
• DHSC recruiting to “radically transform” digital transformation function
• PEX Network features renowned end users in operational excellence leadership list

General Motors signs landmark renewable energy deal

General Motors (GM) announced a 15-year renewable energy purchase agreement with NorthStar Clean Energy for three assembly plants to reduce its carbon footprint and meet sustainability targets. NorthStar’s Newport Solar project in Newport, Arkansas, will support the electricity needs of GM’s Lansing Delta Township Assembly and Lansing Grand River Assembly in Michigan, and the Wentzville Assembly site in Missouri by adding renewable energy directly to the grid it sources from, according to a press release. It is the company’s largest power purchase deal yet and an important milestone in its goal to be carbon neutral by 2040, it added.

“By expanding our renewable electricity portfolio, we are taking a major step forward in reducing our carbon footprint and advancing our broader sustainability goals,” said Rob Threlkeld, GM director of global energy strategy. “This facility not only supports our renewable electricity strategy, but also demonstrates our dedication to a sustainable future for all.”

Recent data from Scheider Electric cited sustainability as a key driver of digital transformation and AI investments.

Kalmar outlines long-term strategy to enhance operational excellence

Global material handling equipment and services company Kalmar Corporation revealed its new driving excellence initiative targeting efficiency gains across its operations. Emphasizing the importance of continuous improvement, the driving excellence initiative is a crucial step towards achieving Kalmar’s long-term performance targets, the firm stated. “Kalmar is planning to reach approximately EUR 50 million [over US $55 million] gross efficiency improvements by the end of 2026. These efficiency improvements enable enhanced investments in sustainable innovations and service growth.” The main measures are related to commercial and operational excellence actions that include active pricing management, supply chain and process optimization and continuous focus on competitive operational cost-base and faster decision-making, Kalmar added.

“Making continuous improvements across Kalmar is fundamental and a key enabler in our journey towards excellence and a service driven company,” commented CEO and president Sami Niiranen. “Commercial and operational excellence, competitiveness and unlocking shareholder value are our key priorities. We have a strong foundation and the right capabilities in place to further invest in sustainable innovations, growing services and driving excellence.”

Pradheep Kileti, director at National Grid, discusses balancing operations and innovation

APQC releases new version of the Process Classification Framework

The American Productivity & Quality Center (APQC) published a new version of the Process Classification Framework (PCF). The PCF is a taxonomy of business processes that allows organizations to objectively track and compare their performance internally and externally with organizations from any industry. It also forms the basis for a variety of projects related to business processes, and organizations can use the PCF’s common terminology to name, organize and map processes. Furthermore, it is  helpful as a tool for explaining a business in terms of horizontal processes rather than vertical functions.

The APQC is a leading authority in benchmarking, best practices, process and performance improvement and knowledge management. Madison Lundquist, principal research lead, process and performance management at APQC, will be speaking at All Access: BPM 2024, PEX Network’s upcoming free webinar series (taking place September 10 – 11). Lundquist will be presenting new research and discussing findings on the key elements of team structures, effective measurement techniques, essential process roles and the integration of change management to support process efforts.

North Star invests over £5 million in digital transformation

Offshore infrastructure support vessel operator/service provider North Star has invested more than £5 million (over $6.5 million) in new business support software systems to drive operational and sustainability efficiencies across its operations, whilst also boosting seafarers’ wellbeing. “This £5 million investment in our digital capabilities is key to underpinning the strength and efficiency of North Star, making use of the best available business systems and technologies to support our continued focus on sustainably scaling our operations,” said Fraser Dobbie, chief financial officer (CFO) at North Star.

The investment in the ShipSure software platform, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution developed by V.Group, is an important step in North Star’s digitization strategy, the company added. “ShipSure will improve safety, increase the efficiency of vessel crewing, inform procurement strategies and help us to further improve the reliability of our vessels’ performance through planned maintenance,” Dobbie said.

Process mishaps in the spotlight

Process failures and challenges will be the focus of discussion at an upcoming event held alongside the International Conference on Process Mining in Copenhagen.

The in-person session, hosted by process mining expert Lotte Vugs (left), will feature anecdotes from process professionals on mistakes that shaped their process mining journeys and the valuable lessons they learned. “We believe that by sharing these experiences, we can all grow and improve together,” said the organizers.

Speaker submissions are open and the categories include:

• How hard can it be?
• Garbage in = garbage out
• Losing the forest for the trees
• Process visualizations gone wrong
• Correlation is not causation

Renewable Fuels Association welcomes MISTRAS Group to support biorefinery operational excellence

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), the leading national trade association for America’s ethanol industry, announced that solutions provider MISTRAS Group joined as a new associate member. The collaboration highlights RFA’s dedication to enhancing the efficiency, safety and sustainability of the renewable fuels industry, the company stated.

“RFA is excited to welcome MISTRAS Group to our membership, and we look forward to working together to move the renewable fuels industry forward,” said RFA president and CEO Geoff Cooper. “Ethanol producers operate in a fast-paced, highly complex regulatory environment. The landscape for renewable fuels is quickly evolving, and companies like MISTRAS bring valuable expertise and solutions to the table to enhance safety, regulatory compliance and operational efficiency.”

DHSC recruiting to “radically transform” digital transformation function

The UK’s Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is recruiting two new deputy directors (DDs) to help it “radically transform the digital transformation function” of the organization. “Digital teams in DHSC are transforming health services by unlocking the potential of digitized services for the health and care workforce and the public,” according to the job descriptions. It is recruiting for two senior roles – DD of digital transformation front door and DD of digital delivery and capability.

The first is a “high-profile” area of work, influencing across DHSC and the health family to set direction and drive improvement across multiple work-streams, the posting stated. “It is a new approach for DHSC, and you will be the face which people in the business most associate with digital support, as you will lead the digital business partnering function.” The second will enable the delivery of quality digital services across DHSC. “You will collaborate with and support DD of digital front door, to ensure the timing and structure of the digital portfolio meet the expectations of the digital board, while also ensuring the board are aware of constraints,” the job description added. Both full-time roles offer an annual salary of £75,000 (just shy of $100,000).

PEX Network features renowned end users in operational excellence leadership list

PEX Network featured renowned industry leaders in the new 25 operational excellence leaders to watch in 2024 list.

The list acknowledges thought and business leaders for achievements in key areas of operational excellence including advanced technologies, digital transformation, sustainability, research and change management. It includes people from all over the world in academia, manufacturing, technology and science, among other sectors.

The end users featured include:

• Nao Antony, senior manager OPEX at Commonwealth Bank.
• Lee Bogner, AI and ecommerce executive at Mars/professor and generative AI educator.
• Ekaterina “Katie” Curry, managing director and head of operations, multifamily/leasetrack at Millennial Specialty Insurance.
• Ricardo Henriques, transformation leader at EDP/business automation professor at Católica Lisbon School of Business and Economics.
• Vineet Mehra, senior platform product owner at Maersk.
• Doug Shannon, global intelligent automation and generative AI thought leader.

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