SQDC Visual Management Wall Graphics: APM Terminals
Sweet Sign Systems designed and installed a four-panel dry-erase visual-management wall for APM Terminals — a reusable, on-brand SQDC system teams write, erase, and iterate on during daily stand-ups to drive performance and continuous improvement.
The Challenge
APM Terminals’ continuous-improvement teams needed a living daily-management surface for their stand-ups — one they could update in real time as metrics, actions, and kaizen work changed. A static printed board goes out of date the moment anything moves and can’t support the write-erase-iterate rhythm of visual management.
Our Approach
Sweet Sign Systems designed and installed a four-panel wall with a durable dry-erase surface, branded to APM Terminals and structured around the SQDC lean framework — an Action List, a Performance Management (SQDC KPI) board, an Improvement Management / 3-step kaizen board, and a Weekly/Monthly review board. The graphics hold the structure; the team owns the data.
The Results
The team loved the result. All four boards are genuinely functional — a reusable, on-brand system teams write on, wipe clean, and iterate on every shift, giving APM Terminals’ daily huddles a consistent home for tracking performance and driving improvement.
Built for Daily Visual Management
APM Terminals runs on continuous improvement — the kind of operation where teams gather at the wall for daily stand-ups to track safety, quality, delivery, and cost, surface problems, and iterate on solutions. A static, printed board can’t keep up with that rhythm: the moment a metric changes or a new kaizen action starts, a fixed graphic is out of date. The team needed a living management surface they could update in real time, every shift, without reprinting anything.
A Reusable, Write-and-Erase System
Sweet Sign Systems designed and installed a four-panel visual-management wall with a durable dry-erase surface, branded to APM Terminals and structured around the SQDC lean framework. Teams write directly on the boards, erase, and iterate as the work evolves — the graphics provide the permanent structure and headings, while the day-to-day data stays fluid and current.
The SQDC Framework, on the Wall
The four boards were laid out as a complete daily-management system: an Action List capturing description, owner, and deadline alongside a Recognition space; a Performance Management board tracking the SQDC pillars — Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost — with KPI trend charts; an Improvement Management board running the 3-Step kaizen model and Kaizen topics with owners and status; and a Weekly / Monthly performance review board. Together they turn a blank wall into the team’s operating cockpit.
Durable Where It Counts
Because the surface is written on and wiped clean many times a day, the panels were built to take it — a rugged, erasable finish that stays crisp through constant use and keeps the APM Terminals branding sharp. The result is a tool the team actually reaches for, not a poster they walk past.
The Outcome
The APM Terminals team loved the finished wall. All four boards are genuinely functional — a hands-on, reusable system that lets teams write, erase, and iterate on process improvements every day, giving their daily huddles a consistent, professional, on-brand home.
“The team loved them — a hands-on, reusable wall they write, erase, and iterate on every day.”
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