Page 24 - RB-78-16-3

CZECHIA
the detailed attention to the Bandag process given by Engineer Kura.
Kura visited a Bandag plant operating at that time in Zlín. He was impressed by the process, and the backdrop of Zlín as well as the history of Bata shoes and the way the planned development of that company had created the modern town of Zlín. Here, he thought, was a blend of ideas that he could
recorded in a rainbow manual by Kura. The system adds value to the business and to the customer by, for example, detailed analysis of the cpkm and how the best return can be gained from the tyres used by proper management. This also applies to the tools and equipment used throughout the process.
In most offices there will be some form of control of staff and operations, but often, today, it will
and tentatively agreed to build the systems management approach that Kura was developing into the wider Bandag franchise package. The work gained Kura his Ph.D for his research and his development of the project, however Martin Carver sold Bandag to Bridgestone in late 2008, and the system never made it any further.
Kura did take the package to Bridgestone but they had other plans for Bandag and developing along the lines that Kura had been discussing with Carver was not on their radar.
The system management developed by Kura is such that he believes that if taken, along with the Bandag franchise, or perhaps a similar system, could be used as a tool to build new businesses. It is a repeatable tool for a wider reaching franchise operation. However, as of now, it sits, like so much research work, on the shelf awaiting the day someone else buys into the idea. Kura says. “Today, I am more than ever convinced that this is a full methodology for developing the Bandag retreading franchise, or indeed any similar operation. It fully describes and clarifies the business, metamorphosing it from a simple franchise to a complete business package that is repeatable.
Going back to that first visit to the plant in Zlín, the home of Bata, Kura recalls meeting the son of Thomas Bata and discussing the systems management with him. He said, “Can you imagine how I felt talking to Bata about systems management? The son of the man
The company has four of its own main outlets, plus another nine smaller shops covering the whole region of Moravia and Silesia. PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s. is involved in ERA Euro Recovery, which gives transport assistance throughout Europe. This operates through the TMC Logistic – Tyre Management Logistics Centre that reaches out to our own customers and end users connecting them with the highest level of support through this system.
PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s. employs 50 staff altogether.
The Bandag operation used at PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s.is “by the book”, naturally, and every tyre goes through shearography, but Kura is considering upgrading to a more modern and more accurate version of the shearography machine offered by Bandag. “Pro North is open to developing new technology at our factory, but always we will work to a proper management system.”
On the subject of Chinese tyres Kura takes a more philosophical view of the challenge. “The issue is philosophical, as to how we see the Chinese tyres. The problem is on us, not just the Chinese. We need to look at how we deal with the subject. We are, too often, taking the short term view and perhaps the answer lies in a longer term approach. Chinese tyres could be a good “slave” to the retreader. If we put the Chinese tyre in a place where we can make good use of it, then it becomes less of a problem. However, by taking a short term view, we risk giving the
Shearography is a must for all Bandag plants
make work.
He then visited Bandag at Zaventem and took out a licence, not for the obvious Prague, but for Třinec. At the time he realised that this border town would one day be at the centre of a European central zone where there were no borders and free trade. This vision drove Kura to build one of the most successful Bandag plants in the region.
However, the story does not simply end with the signing of the Bandag franchise agreement. Kura is a systematic man. He is someone who likes to have things done properly, at the correct time, in correct way.
Pro North’s building is one big advert for Bandag. The most prominent sign on the building Bandag, the yellow and blue of Bandag are everywhere. The Bandag logo is everywhere, the posters, the flyers, the tread examples. This is a Bandag house. A tour of the PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s. plant is interesting in the level of detail, the layout, the colour scheme, the stores, the staff areas, the back office, the training room and the warehouse are all meticulously planned.
However, so too is every aspect of the business. The whole system is recorded and set out in a systems manual. From answering the telephone, through to delivering the goods, every step along the way has been analysed, and
be digital. PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s. has a digital operation, for sure, but there is also a schematic version on a huge magnetic whiteboard in the back office.
Each van, each machine has its column, and a date line and in every square there is the ID tag, labelled with the skills of the employee and what task he is to be doing, where and when. At a glance, anyone can see who should be doing what and where. If they are not where they should be, they are asked to give an explanation. Additionally, there is a “Training Board” and here the names of staff undergoing training are listed with their progress – or otherwise. A, B and C tags against names indicate whether they need training, are getting training, or, unfortunately, if there is a C against a name, they know that if they don’t up their performance there is a good chance that they will need to find their way to the exit. In today’s soft approach to staff management in the west this might seem a little harsh, but stepping back from our high moral ground and looking at this in a different light. It is giving people notice that they have an opportunity, they are being given a chance and that they can sort themselves out.
This manual was discussed in 2004 with Martin Carver on a visit to PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s. Carver was impressed by the concept that Kura was working on
Pro North run an open day for staff and local families every year to promote the benefits that retreading and Pro North bring to the area
the
is
24 Retreading Business
who built the biggest shoe company in the world based on a complete management system. Today, PRO NORTH CZECH, a.s. produces around 10,000 tyres per annum. Over half are sold on cpkm contracts and half are sold through sales representatives.
Chinese tyres the dominant position, they become the “boss” and we are at their mercy. So, I think that we need to look to the long term and establish how we can make the advent of cheap Chinese tyres work for us rather than against us.”