I subscribed to this topic as I have been dealing with the same problem with 2 separate plants with a 3rd that is pending to be added to the program. I'm sharing my experience below as it may stimulate some thought, good or bad.
I set up basic blade control - 1 for 1 exchange with Supervisor. We received a non-conformance for someone using a knife from home leaving us to specify approved knives only. In response, we added a shadowbox for utility knives at each workstation (1 per person). These were to be used during the shift and returned at the end.
Plant #1 has been most successful. The Supervisor runs through the workstations every morning installing new blades before the shift starts. This cuts down on random people needing new blades during the shift. I must mention that this Supervisor does have a food related background so a little understanding goes a long ways. The biggest problem I see at this plant is people forgetting knives in their pockets when leaving which do not get returned or replaced until Supervision sees it is missing and the occasional person that carries their own unauthorized knife.
Plant #2 has more turnover, and a Supervisor that has been in and out with health issues. They started the actual program but insisted on additional knives in the shadowboxes to reduce the need to change blades. It worked for a little while but due to Supervisor medical leave, the program has completely flopped even upon his extended return. I have instructed the Supervisor to reduce the # of knives at workstations and mirror Plant #1 but am at my wits end with all of it.
As mentioned above, without senior management commitment and discipline my simple program doesn't work all the time and in some cases not at all. It is all about culture change which is easier said than done. In addition, we have removed ourselves from certification and maintaining an internal HACCP based program. The fact that we do not have an upcoming audit in the foreseeable future makes it an even harder sell to enforce the program.
