TS Conductor: Building the Standard While Building the Plant

TS Conductor manufactures an innovative advanced conductor designed to increase the capacity and efficiency of the electrical grid. During the visit, Brad will provide an overview of the technology and manufacturing processes behind the company’s aluminum-encapsulated composite core conductor and explain what differentiates it from traditional transmission conductors.

But the real OpExChange story is what is happening inside the operation as it ramps up.

From Tribal Knowledge to Standardized Work

As the Hardeeville team began learning processes transferred from TS Conductor’s California operation, they encountered something familiar to many manufacturers: different people had developed different ways of performing the same work.

Rather than simply replicate those variations, the Hardeeville engineering and operations teams are using the startup as an opportunity to capture tribal knowledge, identify the best methods, and create clearer, more consistent standardized work — standards intended not only for Hardeeville, but ultimately for use across TS Conductor operations.

Brad will share how the team is:

• Developing standardized work across four core manufacturing processes
• Creating consistent work-instruction formats
• Establishing a Safety → Quality → Delivery → Productivity → Cost operating philosophy
• Training new employees using an “I do, we do, you do” approach with documented qualification
• Building processes that can scale as employment grows from roughly 10% of planned staffing toward more than 460 employees
• Developing layered process audit (LPA) methods to help sustain the standards once they are established

A Work in Progress — By Design

This isn’t a tour of a mature operation where every system has already been perfected.

It’s an opportunity to see a manufacturing organization building those systems in real time — and to discuss the decisions, challenges, and lessons that come with creating a scalable manufacturing culture from the ground up.

That also creates an opportunity for OpExChange members to do what the network does best: share experiences, challenge ideas, and learn from one another.

We’ll conclude with a Plus/Delta discussion where attendees can share observations, ideas, and experiences that may help the TS Conductor team as they continue their journey.