SAINT_GOBAIN_REGISTRATION_DOCUMENT_2017

An efficient and responsible Group Operational excellence policies

The WCM path of an industrial 2.1.2 site Achieving industrial excellence is a demanding measure that requires gradual implementation, pillar by pillar, with methodology and constancy. The benefits in terms of competitiveness, improvement of customer service and employee commitment can be measured at each stage of the site path. Tools and methods are therefore made available to the sites to construct their own roadmap and to define their stages of application. Training programs are applied, in advance for managers and as projects are implemented for each site employee. More than 5,800 managers are trained today in the WCM program and 60% of employees of the industrial sites are involved in the application of this program. The site preparation stage is essential. It may take one to three months depending on the sites and allows for a team to be formed and brought together around the program, priorities to be identified based on the identification of losses and an initial pilot project to be defined. The implementation of the pilot project constitutes the second stage of the program. This period of 6 to 9 months is a stage of application of training, of training programs deployment and the application of the methods on site from management to the operators. The WCM is then applied pillar by pillar. Regular audits make it possible to assess the maturity of the program by site and acknowledge major milestones in the implementation of the program: first audit: the site has finalized the pilot stage and started „ the deployment; the “Bronze” level is confirmed at the end of the learning „ process; the “Silver” level is reached when 80% of the site’s critical „ processes are covered by the WCM program and are delivering a high level of performance; lastly, on achieving the “Gold” level, the site has „ incorporated the WCM methods, Digital and Industry 4.0, is delivering stable, world-class performance and is independent to continue its progress.

From continuous improvement to 2.1.3 industrial excellence Today, more than 740 industrial sites in more than 47 countries have initiated this program. They represent more than 80% of the industrial sites of the Group and around 90% of the sales of the industrial Sectors. Almost half of the sites included in the process have been audited and already more than 18% have reached the Bronze level. Of those sites with more than 80 employees, more than one-third have achieved this level. 25 sites have signed off on a Silver level of excellence. The journey to the Gold level is underway. The appropriation of this culture of operational excellence common to the Group allows for greater efficiency in the exchange of good practices, and more opportunities for career mobility among the Group’s various Activities, particularly for some technical experts. Initiated in 2014, the World Class Supply Chain program supports Saint-Gobain in achieving operational excellence by extending the WCM for optimization of the value chain of an Activity covering several sites in a region or a sector of global activity. This program is already producing very substantial results with roll-outs executed in Performance Plastics Activities, Saint-Gobain Glass and Saint-Gobain Sekurit, mainly in Europe and in South America, where the program has been extended to all the Group’s activities. Beyond the economic gains expected from inventory optimization, logistics and capital employed, the World Class Supply Chain is above all a customer service excellence differentiation program with a target response time and delivery period adapted to the market need. Moreover, the Net Promoter Score, a tool for measuring customer satisfaction (see Chapter 3, Section 4.1.2) forms part of the performance indicators monitored in the program. Thanks to the WCM program and its extension to the supply chain, Saint-Gobain is continuing its effort to achieve industrial excellence, on all its sites throughout the world. This change of culture and management system provides a higher level of customer service, competitiveness and efficiency in a better health and safety environment for the Group’s employees and partners. It also favors people commitment and employee mobility. It is an essential prerequisite to ensure the digital transformation of the factories (see Chapter 3, Section 2.3). The WCM program is accelerating the introduction of the Saint-Gobain sites to Industry 4.0, with the digitization of the WCM processes and the provision of digital applications for production and maintenance operators.

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