Our Unilever Manufacturing System has helped further improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness at our Indaiatuba factory in Brazil, increasing capacity by 20% and delivering €3 million in savings

Our Heilbronn site in Germany reduced waste by 55% in 2024, while our Sikeston factory in the US contributed 28.5% of the total waste net impact across all our manufacturing sites in 2024

Our Cavite factory in the Philippines improved productivity from 51% in 2023 to 66% by the end of 2024

Across our factory network, we’ve always had a strong focus on continuous improvement and operational excellence. This was formalised in 2013 when we adopted the World Class Manufacturing (WCM) framework, a benchmark for best practice.

But our business and the markets in which we operate are changing fast. So we’ve taken things to a whole new level with the roll-out of the Unilever Manufacturing System (UMS).

What is UMS?
UMS is an evolution of WCM. Tailored specifically to Unilever, it was developed through the collaboration of supply chain and digital and technology expertise to transform the way our factories operate.

The digitally enabled system helps factory teams consistently drive improvement, integrate technology and optimise operations, while also supporting them to develop strategic plans that align with business priorities.

Fuelling business growth
Manufacturing presents one of the biggest areas of opportunity for the business to unlock efficiencies and drive productivity further. From increasing production capacity and Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) to reducing waste and improving energy efficiency, it’s where our factories can make a huge contribution.

Ultimately, it’s about fuelling business growth.

Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)
OEE is how we track operational efficiency and net productivity improvement. A high OEE means our equipment is running at maximum potential. This not only boosts factory performance but also contributes to the wider business by lowering costs, increasing profitability and improving overall competitiveness.

UMS is now live in 124 factories. That’s 2,100 manufacturing lines covering over 75% of our total production capacity.

On average, across all factories where it has been deployed, we’ve seen an improvement of 3% in OEE, 5% in labour productivity and 8% cost savings.

“Training over 23,000 factory colleagues in digital skills and ownership across all functions and capabilities has been essential in the roll-out,” says Renato Miatello, Chief Product Supply Officer, Home Care.

“UMS is key to building a lean, agile supply chain and it is an essential catalyst for landing our GAP 2030 strategy – delivering faster growth through driving productivity and simplicity. In short, it’s giving us a competitive edge.”

Here are four examples of how UMS is making an impact in our factories.

Improving agility at our Home Care factory in Brazil

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