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A subsidiary of Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc., Toyota Racing Development (TRD) designs and builds Toyota racing engines. TRD's Indy Racing League (IRL) engine division and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is home to four engine dynamometers, an engine assembly workshop, an engine design studio, and several specialized workshops including one devoted to electronics and electrical wire harness assembly. Because of their continued growth, TRD reached a point where they were running out of room in most of their departments, as well as running out of patience with disorganized storage. | |
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"It was a mess," said David Pyle, Senior Manager of TRD's Engine Build Group. "Each guy had his own toolbox from home, so there was no uniformity. Also, we used small bolted-together workbenches that were not that sturdy. Overall, when you look at throughput, space management, and aesthetics, we were lacking." | |
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Steve Wickham, TRD's Senior Manager Electronics and Product Engineering observes, "Thanks to our decision to go with a range of Lista products, things have changed dramatically."
TRD looked at a number of suppliers of storage and workspace equipment, and Lista stood out in terms of both quality and racing industry experience. Lista has been a primary supplier to the racing industry for decades, and Pyle and Wickham were both very familiar with the company's reputation for quality.
TRD outfitted its entire facility with a wide array of product from Lista – stationary, mobile, stacked – some set up as storage, some as permanent workstations, others used as tool transporters carts and all holding a tremendous range of engine parts, and tools and equipment.
In Pyle's engine assembly workshop, 45 engine technicians each use a workstation that features two Lista cabinets with different drawer combinations, and butcher block worksurfaces. "Typically, each technician will have tools in one cabinet, and spare parts in the other," explained Pyle. "We also have mobile tool transporters in this department for rolling out precision measurement tools like air gages directly to the application. Plus we have stationary cabinets that hold some of the equipment we use less frequently, like pressure testing equipment and the large dummy heads we use to replicate cylinder heads."
The electronics department also reaps many space management benefits from Lista's cabinets and workbenches. "We have five double-sided workstations with a workspace for a technician on either side and boards for pinning drawings in the middle," Wickham explained. "We've customized the cabinets below the worksurface with appropriately sized Lista drawers and, inside the drawers, we've created custom compartments using dividers and foam inserts. We not only have enough space for all of our small parts and hand tools, but everything is stored in the most logical, time-saving manner."
Working primarily with Lista systems has stabilized things at TRD, in more ways than one. First off, there's the stability that comes with working with top-quality, rugged steel equipment. Pyle raved about the sturdiness, saying, "These things are so stable, its amazing." Wickham agreed: "The Lista product is a robust product that has a solid feel to it, especially if you're using it every day. It's extremely well engineered."
Then there's the stability that comes from uniformity from product to product and department to department. "Right now we have a uniformity that gives us the ability to lay out the shop in a meaningful fashion," Pyle said. "So we have a lot better space management, everything looks more organized, and our entire process makes logical sense."
Everyone at TRD was not only impressed by the quality of the Lista products, but also by the quality of the Lista service. "Lista's sales team spent a considerable amount of time helping to lay out our shop," recalled Pyle. "They not only gave us a great deal of design input, they actually physically helped us lay out the equipment. Their suggestions definitely helped us save money, because they said, 'Look, if we utilize this piece of equipment, you can get more volume of tools in the drawer.' Their design assistance, which was free of charge, was invaluable." | |
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TRD is seeing a dramatic improvement in space efficiency. "We really weigh down the drawers with a lot of heavy tooling and hand tools," said Pyle. "We appreciate the quality of the cabinets, because our technicians tend to bring them to full capacity. Also, the drawer helps us in terms of space management. We have a relatively small shop. We're able to keep our tooling easily accessible in tight quarters because of the strength of the drawers."
Overall, it's clear that the Lista storage solution has had a tremendously positive impact at TRD. "We understand that it's a premium product," said Wickham. "We're in the premium product business ourselves, so its a natural match." "We pretty much have everything we need right now in terms of workspace and storage equipment," concluded Pyle. "But, should we ever need to purchase additional equipment, we're sticking with Lista." | | |
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