Consulting Proposal — Operations Efficiency Engagement for Castwell Components

Prepared for: Sarah Nkomo, Chief Operating Officer, Castwell Components Ltd Prepared by: James Holloway, Engagement Director, Meridian Advisory Date: 4 June 2026 Valid until: 4 July 2026

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1. Executive summary

Castwell Components is meeting demand but missing roughly 1 in 5 promised ship dates, and overtime has crept to about 14% of direct labour cost. Meridian Advisory proposes a 10-week operations-efficiency engagement to diagnose the bottlenecks on your two main production lines, redesign the affected workflow, and implement and coach the changes with your team. Our target outcomes are on-time delivery above 95% and a meaningful reduction in overtime, for a fixed fee of $96,000.

2. Situation and objectives

In our scoping sessions with you and your line managers, the picture was consistent:

• Situation: Order volume is up about 18% year on year, but the plant has not changed how work flows between cutting, finishing, and assembly. The result is a recurring queue at finishing, late shipments, and rising overtime to recover.
• Objective 1: Lift on-time delivery from ~80% to 95% or better.
• Objective 2: Reduce overtime from ~14% to under 8% of direct labour cost.
• Objective 3: Leave your supervisors able to run the new process without ongoing external support.

3. Proposed approach and methodology

We use a diagnose-design-implement method, working alongside your team rather than from a back office, so the changes stick after we leave.

• Diagnose — map the end-to-end flow, measure cycle and wait times at each station, and isolate the true constraints (Objectives 1 and 2). We use direct observation and your existing MES data, not assumptions.
• Design — redesign the workflow around the constraint, rebalance work across stations, and define new standard work and a simple daily management routine (Objectives 1 and 2).
• Implement and coach — pilot the redesign on one line, prove the numbers, roll out to the second line, and coach supervisors to own the daily routine (Objective 3).

4. Phased workplan and deliverables

Phase	Focus	Key activities	Deliverable	Timing
1	Diagnose	Process mapping, time studies, constraint analysis	Current-state map + bottleneck diagnostic	Weeks 1–2
2	Design	Workflow redesign, line rebalancing, standard work	Future-state design + standard work pack	Weeks 3–5
3	Implement	Pilot on Line A, measure, refine, roll out to Line B	Implemented process + before/after results	Weeks 6–9
4	Embed	Supervisor coaching, daily management handover	Daily management toolkit + handover sign-off	Week 10

5. Team and expertise

• James Holloway, Engagement Director — 14 years in operations consulting for mid-market manufacturers; leads the engagement and the weekly steering review.
• Priya Desai, Operations Lead — former plant manager; runs the diagnostic and the on-site redesign and coaching, on site three days a week.
• Governance: weekly 45-minute steering review with the COO; phase gates signed off before the next phase begins.

6. Fees and payment terms

This is a fixed-fee engagement covering all consulting time for the four phases above.

Item	Detail	Fee
Phase 1 — Diagnose	Mapping, time studies, diagnostic	$22,000
Phase 2 — Design	Workflow redesign + standard work	$28,000
Phase 3 — Implement	Pilot + two-line rollout	$34,000
Phase 4 — Embed	Coaching + handover	$12,000
Total		$96,000

Payment terms: 40% on signature ($38,400), 40% at the Phase 2 design sign-off ($38,400), 20% on completion ($19,200). Invoices due within 14 days. Reasonable travel billed monthly at cost.

7. Success measures

Measure	Baseline	Target	How measured
On-time delivery	~80%	95%+	Shipped-on-promise from your ERP, 4-week rolling
Overtime cost	~14% of direct labour	Under 8%	Payroll vs standard hours, monthly
Supervisor self-sufficiency	External support	Routine run unaided for 2 weeks	Handover sign-off in Phase 4

8. Assumptions and dependencies

• Read access to MES and ERP data, and time with line supervisors during shifts.
• A nominated client sponsor who can clear roadblocks within 48 hours.
• Pilot changes can be trialled on Line A during normal production.
• Out of scope: capital equipment purchases, ERP reconfiguration, and changes to supplier contracts.

9. Next steps

To proceed, sign below or reply to confirm and we will issue the engagement letter and schedule the Phase 1 kickoff for the week of 15 June.

Accepted by: ______________________ Date: ____________