BIOGRAPHY Richard G. Ligus is President of Rockford Consulting Group located in Rockford, IL., with over 30 years experience in manufacturing, procurement, transportation and distribution. He specializes in developing and implementing supply chain strategies. Rich is an author and a speaker, and has developed seminars with the American Management Association. He is certified by both the Institute of Management Consultants and the The National Bureau of Certified Consultants. Rich has a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and a master of business administration degree from Rutgers University. He is a member of CASA/SME, and has been listed in Jane\'s Who\'s Who in Aviation and Aerospace. He has been a speaker at IMTS, USCTI, APFA, NEPMA, MCAA, Hand Tools Institute, CASA/SME, and others. He has appeared several times on WREX-TV, Mid-Morning Magazine.
Recent Activity
To increase productivity and competitiveness, many companies have adopted Lean and Continuous Improvement philosophies. But there is a point that is reached that in order to make substantial gains in productivity and performance, new equipment is needed for various reasons such as faster cycle times and increased capacity. So just how can you write winning capital jutification proposal? This article describes how you can make this happen.
Lean Manufacturing is in direct opposition with traditional manufacturing approaches characterized by use of economic order quantities, high capacity utilization, and high inventory. In changing from a traditional environment to one of lean production, cultural issues emerge quickly, as well as resistance to change. A managing change program is needed to accompany the effort. But becoming a lean, world class company requires overcoming organizational inertia. Often overlooked are outdated cultu
The biggest single issue in ERP is the failure of a successful implementation. It is mind-boggling to continually encounter companies who make major ERP gaffes in this day and age, especially since most of the trials and tribulations of MRPII implementation were suffered and learned from in the early 1980's with alpha, beta and gamma releases. Industry statistics show that >60% of ERP implementation starts historically fail. Does this mean that you are doomed from the start?
Some companies are making substantial progress in becoming highly competitive. What is it that these companies have that makes the difference? The following characteristics seem to be consistent in companies who are able to radically transform themselves

