How to Take Control of Technical Problems in Manufacturing Operations: Two Chartwell Experts Share Their Insights
6 minutes read · 29th August 2025
Technical Problem Solving Insights
If you’re leading manufacturing operations and feel like your team is constantly firefighting, you’re not alone. For many manufacturers, technical problem-solving can often feel like a relentless uphill battle. Particularly during periods of change — like ramping up a new production line — the sheer volume of problems can seem insurmountable. One week you might have 50 problems logged; a few months later, that number could balloon to over 250. Each day brings something new, and before long, you and your team feel like you’re drowning in a flood of issues, unable to see a way forward.
But the real issue isn’t just the volume. It’s the fact that manufacturing leaders don’t necessarily know which problem to tackle next —or how to deploy limited resources in the right way to get things moving again.
It’s an experience that Chartwell’s consultants see all too often — and one they’ve helped leaders navigate many times before.
We sat down with two of Chartwell’s consultants, Rob Fordham, Principal, and Ben de Jager, a Senior Consultant, to explore how manufacturers can regain control of technical problem solving, build confidence in their teams, and create a tangible, achievable path out of the spiral.
The Real Bottleneck: No Clear Process, No Resource Strategy
According to Ben, one of the biggest challenges manufacturing leaders face is that the process of problem-solving is a process in itself. And it starts with recognizing that the way problems are currently being solved may not be sustainable.
“It’s not uncommon to meet leaders who feel like they’re firefighting every day,” he explains. “They know there’s a mountain of issues, what they don’t have is a reliable way to prioritize and assign resource effectively. That’s the true bottleneck. Teams get stuck in reactive mode because they don’t have a problem-solving engine that works at scale.”
Rob agrees: “Often the problems have been building for weeks or months. A new line ramp-up is a perfect example. You expect some teething problems, but suddenly you realize it’s spiraling. You might have brilliant engineers and highly capable teams, but if you’re not solving the right problems, or if key blockers like missing technical drawings or unavailable equipment aren’t identified early, you quickly lose time and momentum.”
How Do You Solve the Seemingly Unsolvable?
Once you recognize that the process itself needs to change, what next? Rob and Ben are clear: you need structure. Chartwell approaches every manufacturing site with a tried-and-tested four-stage framework:
1. Bring the Facts & Data – What’s actually holding the operation back?
Identify all open issues and measure the real pain each one is causing. This moves teams away from gut feel and firefighting, and toward clarity. Not all problems are equal — some are holding back throughput, others are noise. Chartwell sorts them.
2. Structured Problem Solving – Understand the problem deeply
Map out the pattern of failure, trace back to the root cause, and ensure teams have access to everything they need: technical drawings, process data, supplier information, testing requirements. Many organizations fail here because they don’t have visibility of what’s missing.
3. Containment – Buy time to solve the next wave
Put short-term containments in place — temporary solutions that allow operations to keep moving while permanent fixes are developed in parallel.
4. Countermeasures – Root cause fixes, delivered at pace
Chartwell helps clients run parallel teams focused on root cause elimination. Every issue’s progress is tracked through these stages and highlight where it’s stuck.
“Trust the process of structured technical problem-solving,” says Rob. “There’s no shortcut to doing this properly. You need to break down the wave of issues into structured workflows. We do this through Fault Tree Modeling.”
That means identifying the real bottlenecks, not just what feels urgent, but what’s actually holding the operation back. It means assigning the right technical expertise to the right problems, having access to the full picture (technical drawings, supplier information, previous failure modes), and — crucially — actively deprioritizing lower-impact problems when necessary.
Ben emphasizes that one of the biggest wins is being able to track and show progress: “The pace of solving technical problems matters because it gives the team confidence. When you can show that you’ve solved 10, then 20, then 50 problems it changes the mindset from ‘we’re drowning’ to ‘we’re winning.’ That’s where momentum starts to build.”
The Secret to Solving at Speed: Resourcing the Process
Where Chartwell really adds power is in how we resource the problem-solving process itself.
Ben explains: “We constantly ask: where are things being held up? Is it early-stage analysis that’s too slow? Do we need more people conducting failure pattern reviews? Or is the block on the line—waiting for time and access to test a fix?”
Rob adds, “Each site has its own unique friction points. Some don’t have access to up-to-date drawings. Others have automation systems no one fully understands. We help each team identify their unique problem-solving steps and then put the most robust process around them.”
Because Chartwell understands problem-solving inside and out, we can take a top-down view tracking all issues across all stages, adjusting resources in real-time, and prioritizing problems based on the actual cost to the operation.
This dynamic, data-led approach enables our clients to solve problems faster, more predictably, and with less wasted effort.
How Leaders Can Take Control
For manufacturing leaders facing what feels like an insurmountable wall of technical problems, Rob and Ben offer a clear takeaway:
- Understand the pattern of failure. Get to root causes, don’t just treat symptoms.
- Build the full picture. Create a unified, prioritized list of problems everyone aligns to.
- Be honest about the scale of the challenge. Know how many problems you have, and the rate at which you’re solving them.
- Focus on the pace. Speed matters — not just for delivery, but for morale and confidence.
- Communicate progress. Let the team see the improvement, and build motivation along the way.
Ultimately, says Rob, “You need to give yourself the biggest fighting chance. Technical problems don’t solve themselves, and inaction only breeds more problems. But with the right process, the right expertise, and a clear focus, you can break the spiral.”
Your Next Step
If you’re losing sleep over technical issues that won’t go away, Chartwell can help you regain control. We bring deep technical expertise, proven methodologies, and the experience to guide your team through even the toughest technical and operational challenges.
Talk to us today about how we can help you unlock your plant’s full potential.
Improve your operations today
Get ahead of the competition and improve operations in your organization. Contact us to learn how we can help you redefine possible.
Contact