About Us

The Paranet Process

The Interest & Experience Survey:
Our assessment process is simple and effective. We work with you to identify those issues critical to the progress of your operations. We survey you to discover your areas of high interest as well as experience levels in over 300 manufacturing topics. We then create an individual plan of action that allows you to maximize the benefits of Paranet membership through access to other manufacturing companies and executives who can help you the most.

The Lean Assessment:
The Lean Assessment tool is conducted by member teams to assist members in determining where they are on the lean implementation journey. Members can benchmark themselves against other Paranet members and use their rating as a means to measure improvement. Assessments are conducted one per year and improving companies are recognized at our annual Lean Implementation Awards Event.

Advisory Group Meetings:
Advisory groups are organized by peer level, function and/or process. Consisting of about 15 companies each, these groups will meet on an ongoing basis throughout the year. There are no competitors allowed in the groups, and Paranet is sensitive to customer and supplier relationships. Meetings are held at member facilities with each member having an opportunity to host. These are 1/2 day meetings with an agenda driven by member issues. An important part of the meeting is the facility tour. This is a hands on, no questions barred tour with honest feedback from the group. Hosts will hear what was good and bad about their facility and opportunities for improvement.

Networking & Database Research:
Poll our database for trends on what's hot in manufacturing. Interest and Experience Surveys are conducted constantly to keep information current. What would you like to know? Paranet's customized database enables you to source specific companies and specific executives who have faced or are facing issues that are important to you. We use this unique resource and an ongoing process of peer-to-peer communication to get answers to your manufacturing questions. We can tell you who else is interested in the topics and issues you are interested in, and we know who has experience in those areas.

ParaTours:
From time to time it will become important to visit other manufacturing facilities to support your change endeavors and educate your people on new processes, structures and ideas. We will set this up for you and your team. This is what Paranet is all about, getting you and your people out to see what others are doing.

Special Interest Groups:
This is an excellent opportunity to get together with Paranet members to talk about a particular topic in a facilitated environment. These are typically small ad hoc meetings consisting of other interested companies and one or two expert resources. Expert resources can be Paranet members or outside resources. You and other members of your management team can participate in these events. Typically the only restriction is based on room size.