| Last Updated:11 Jul 12 Alba towards launching a Six Sigma Academy in Bahrain  Chief Executive Officer, Laurent Schmitt (third from right), Chief Financial & Supply Officer Tim Murray (fourth from right), Chief Support Functions Officer, Basem Al Sharqi (third from left), Operations Excellence Manager, Mohd Shuja (second from right), senior officials and members of the Alba team that received the Six Sigma Green Belt Certification. The first promotion of 12 Alba employees received the Six Sigma Green Belt Certification from international certifying body Rath & Strong
Six Sigma was introduced as part of Alba SmartWay in 2009 to achieve improved competitiveness, enhance operational efficiency and achieve a sustainable annual saving of US$ 250 million by end 2012
Alba aims to establish a Six Sigma training academy that will cater to companies in Bahrain and the region
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C., (Alba) made a major leap in bolstering the company's efforts in transforming continuous improvement initiatives into a significant element of its work culture as the first promotion of 12 Alba employees recently received their Six Sigma Green Belt Certification from international certifying body Rath & Strong.
Alba has been a strong proponent of Lean Six Sigma Methodology since it was introduced as a key component of AlbaSmartWay - a series of initiatives undertaken by Alba since 2009 to achieve improved competitiveness, enhance operational efficiency across the organisation, and generate a sustainable yearly saving of US$ 250 million by the end of 2012.
A second batch of 13 Alba employees has already started its Green Belt Training and is working on a variety of cost-saving projects whose implementation is planned by end of 2012. This will bring a total of 25 Six Sigma Green Belt Certified Specialists from Alba within a one-year period.
Commenting on the Green Belt Six Sigma certification for Alba's employees, the company's Chief Executive, Laurent Schmitt said:
"Since the introduction of Six Sigma in 2011, we have witnessed qualitative change not only in the operational processes but also in laying the groundwork for achieving substantial cost savings across various areas. The implementation of Six Sigma is crucial in enabling the company to continue its goals for operational efficiency and global competitiveness as well as boost all of our continuous improvement initiatives. I would also like to congratulate the Alba team for receiving the Green Belt certification. I am confident that their success will have positive impact across the organisation, and also provide the expert workforce for the proposed Six Sigma academy at Alba that will, no doubt, prove beneficial for industries in Bahrain and the region."
The first batch of Alba's Green Belt certified employees were assigned to six projects and were expected to yield a total of US$ 10 million savings for the first phase, which was named "AlbaSmartWay Lean Six Sigma Wave 6". The projects covered various operational areas; dross management, product mix, net billet recovery and pot room metal purity and have now been successfully implemented.
Its success prompted the Alba's Executive Management to approve seven new projects - with savings worth more than US$ 10 million - for the second phase or "AlbaSmartWay Lean Six Sigma Wave 7". It included logistics optimisation, power plant efficiency, and calcination process efficiency.
Alba has been consistently ranked as one of the largest aluminium smelters in the world, and is known for its technological strength, global competitiveness and innovative policies. Alba produces more than 860,000 metric tonnes per annum of aluminium which meet or exceed the industry standard for purity, with products including standard and T-ingots, extrusion billets, rolling slab, properzi ingots, and molten aluminium. It has also maintained a strong track record of operational safety and environmental compliance.
For further details, please contact Investor & Public Relations Officer, Fatima Al Saleh
Tel:(973) 17 837989 (direct)
(973) 39 296177 (mobile)
Fax: (973) 17 833822
E-mail:fatima.alsaleh@alba.com.bh
RATH & STRONG LEANS ON AMAZON KINDLE’S WIRELESS PORTABLE READER Lexington, Massachusetts (May 28, 2009) – Rath & Strong LLC, a global leader in business process improvement and cost reduction initiatives and author of the Wall Street Journal’s best-selling Rath & Strong’s Six Sigma Pocket Guide, is pleased to announce the release of its Lean, Integrated Lean Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma Champions, Six Sigma Team and Six Sigma Pocket Guides on Amazon Kindle™. “While our Pocket Guides have enjoyed top selling popularity with organizations and individuals in the deployment of their Lean and Lean Six Sigma initiatives, we are now excited to see our Pocket Guides on Amazon’s high-tech wireless reading device, Kindle” comments Dan Quinn, President and CEO of Rath & Strong. “In today’s tumultuous economy, the concepts of lean and business process improvement are increasingly critical to achieving rapid and sustainable cost reductions. This is a simple and lean approach – getting hands-on practical information delivered immediately and wirelessly at low cost. We look forward to lean initiatives being kindled and re-kindled.” Kindle is the “iPod of books”, adds Quinn, “and we were delighted when Amazon asked us to be one of the first books included because of our long history of high sales on Amazon.” Packed with tools, methodology and clear instructions, the Rath & Strong pocket guides are created from a rich history of innovation and are grounded in years of practical experience across many industries. The step-by-step and hands-on approach has led to these being a “must have” with managers, employees, and trainers implementing lean and lean six sigma initiatives in service, transactional and manufacturing businesses worldwide. Designed to be small, light and portable these Pocket Guides lend themselves to the Kindle, which is defined by its portability, availability, and ease of use. The Pocket Guide hardcopy versions are still available for purchase from www.rathstrong.com while the Kindle versions are available for purchase directly from the Kindle device for download. The Kindle application for iPhone and iPod Touch also lets users bring the Pocket Guides with them wherever they go. |