Cosmetics are produced through manufacturing processes. Lean and Six Sigma are improvement methodologies that are useful in cosmetics production. We’ll look at Lean and Six Sigma applications in Brazil, the Philippines, and Italy and finish with a video example of skin cream manufacturing.

Six Sigma Project Enablers and Inhibitors: Brazil

In an article titled “The enablers and inhibitors of Six Sigma project in a Brazilian cosmetic factory,” authors Roberto Antonio Martins, Ricardo Coser Mergulhão, and Luiz Sérgio de Bortoli Júnior study a particular Six Sigma project to identify the enablers and inhibitors given the company’s deployment of Six Sigma.

The studied company manufactures cosmetics and has many plants located in Brazil.

The focus of the research was on the lipstick manufacturing process. The CTQ was the resistance of detachment of moisture stick from the tube.

The authors identify the enabling and inhibiting factors in each phase of DMAIC.

You can read the paper here.

Applying 5S in Cosmetics: Philippines

In a paper titled “Assessment on 5S System of Rules in a Cosmetics Manufacturing’s Central Weighing Area, Processing and Packaging Area for Creams, Liquids and Lotions (CLL) “ authors Ma. Erika R. Laguardia and Rachel C. Villanueva assess the implementation of 5S in the creams and lotions manufacturing line in a Philippines cosmetic factory.

The authors used the Five levels of 5S implementation in their assessment.

“The study aimed to improve the productivity of the line by determining the factors that contribute to the input  and  by  determining  the  factors  that  affect  the  efficiency  of  the  line  and  the  causes  of  delays  and downtime.”

You can access the article here.

Applying SMED in Cosmetics: Italy

In his master’s thesis from Politecnico Di Torino titled “Application of the SMED Technique to Reduce Set-Up Times in the Cosmetics Industry. The L’Oreal Case” Giorgio Manzi details the application of SMED to cleaning and technical changeovers in the L’Oréal Settimo Torinese plant.

You can read Giorgio’s thesis here.

Cosmetic Manufacturing Video Example: United States

We’ll finish with a video of a cosmetic manufacturing process for Udderly Smooth skin cream by Redex Industries.

Cosmetic Manufacturing Process Video from Science Channel.