In the continuously evolving world of manufacturing, efficiency and adaptability are important to maintaining a competitive advantage and achieving sustainable growth.
Manufacturers face increased pressure to reduce costs, accelerate production, and deliver consistent quality, meaning many must revisit foundational operational theories to drive performance improvements.
One such framework is the Theory of Constraints (TOC). This management methodology revolves around the central premise that every system, regardless of its simplicity or complexity, has at least one constraint or bottleneck that limits its overall performance.
A constraint refers to any factor that prevents a system from achieving higher throughput. It could be a physical resource such as a specific machine or skilled labour, a policy such as inefficient scheduling, or even a market constraint resulting from limited demand.
For flexographic label printers, it’s easy to identify where constraints can and do exist. Downtime necessitated by complicated set-ups and frequent changeovers is an obvious example, as is the need for finishing to keep up with increasingly faster and wider presses.
TOC advocates a systematic approach to identify and manage constraints to improve the performance of the entire system. This relies upon a five-step process for constraint management:
- Identify the system’s constraint(s)
- Exploit the constraint (maximise efficiency with existing resources)
- Subordinate everything else to the constraint (support the needs of the constraint)
- Elevate the constraint (invest in increasing its capacity)
- Repeat the process (once one constraint is resolved, another will materialise)
TOC and modern manufacturing
In modern manufacturing environments characterised by high automation, complex supply chains, and just-in-time expectations, TOC offers a pragmatic lens through which companies can analyse and improve their operations.
Where lean manufacturing focuses broadly on waste reduction and Six Sigma targeting process variation, TOC zeroes in on the system’s weakest link, ensuring that efforts are concentrated where they will generate the greatest return.
TOC shifts the focus from cost-accounting metrics like unit cost or efficiency rates to throughput accounting, which prioritises the rate at which the system generates money through sales. By focusing on throughput, TOC aligns operational decisions directly with profitability.
By then identifying bottlenecks and adjusting surrounding processes accordingly, manufacturers can dramatically reduce work-in-progress (WIP) inventory and lead times. This not only frees up cash flow but also enables faster responses to customer demand and market fluctuations.
Further, by taking a holistic view of operations rather than optimising individual machines or departments in isolation, businesses are encouraged to make decisions based on the impact to the entire production flow.
TOC vs…
To understand the role of TOC in modern industrial toolkits, it can be compared with the well-established manufacturing philosophies of Lean, Six Sigma, and Just-In-Time (JIT).
Lean Manufacturing, derived from the Toyota Production System, seeks to eliminate waste and optimise value creation. While both TOC and Lean aim to improve flow, Lean takes a more holistic approach to waste elimination, whereas TOC focuses tightly on the constraint as the lever for change.
Lean sees many potential sources of inefficiency and addresses them all incrementally. TOC, by contrast, argues that most inefficiencies stem from a single dominant constraint and that improvements elsewhere have limited effect unless the constraint is addressed.
In practice, TOC can be blended with Lean principles to support the focus on throughput and constraint management.
Six Sigma on the other hand is a data-driven methodology that aims to reduce defects and variation in processes. While TOC and Six Sigma can work well together, their focal points differ – Six Sigma is about doing things right, while TOC is about doing the right things.
Six Sigma projects often require deep statistical analysis and a longer time horizon, whereas TOC provides more immediate impact by targeting systemic constraints. In some cases, Six Sigma may be used to optimise a constraint once it’s been identified through TOC analysis.
Lastly, JIT manufacturing focuses on reducing inventory and producing only what is needed, when it is needed. JIT requires highly synchronised operations and reliable suppliers.
TOC supports JIT objectives but adds a layer of realism by acknowledging that constraints must be respected in planning production schedules. Without recognising and managing constraints, JIT can lead to frequent line stoppages and missed deadlines, thus preventing label printers achieving the goal of On Time In Full (OTIF) performance.
Global manufacturers across a range of sectors – from automotive to food and beverage – have applied TOC principles with measurable success.
Automotive manufacturers use TOC to streamline final assembly processes by improving the flow through a single bottleneck, such as a painting booth or welding cell, while pharmaceutical manufacturers benefit by identifying regulatory review processes as constraints and adapting workflows to maximise documentation accuracy and approval throughput.
In the case of labelling and packaging operations, presses create constraints by requiring lengthy downtime during set-up and changeovers, as finishing lines struggle with capacity limitations. TOC helps to mitigate these through better scheduling and investment planning.
For example, the Pulse Monolox system tackles the downtime constraint head-on by simplifying anilox inventories and selection at the same time as reducing the requirement for time-consuming changeovers.
When flexo printers adopt fixed anilox printing for spot colours, they exploit the constraint. This in turn promotes system-wide efficiency by keeping presses running consistently and steadily and allowing upward and downward constraints to be identified and managed in pursuit of optimised throughput and production efficiency.
TOC offers a practical and highly focused methodology for improving business performance in modern manufacturing environments, as operated by 21st Century label printers. By identifying and addressing the most critical limiting factor in a system, TOC empowers manufacturers to improve throughput, reduce waste, and increase profitability.
Successful TOC implementation requires cultural buy-in across a business and demands a shift in mindset that transitions from departmental efficiency to systemic thinking. This often requires a willingness to challenge long-standing assumptions and a preference for existing success metrics such as Overall Equipment Efficiency (OEE). Rather, Right First Time (RFT) and On Time in Full (OTIF) must take precedence. Our earlier blog looks into this topic in more detail.
Manufacturers who embrace TOC not only gain operational efficiency but also position themselves to be more responsive, resilient, and profitable in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.
Find out more about the Monolox fixed anilox printing system and discover how it can revolutionise your work and deliver positive improvement to your entire operation.
