The AME Excellence Award primarily recognizes manufacturing and health care organizations that have demonstrated excellence in manufacturing and business operations. The application requirement for 2019 is for a single plant or operating unit, including “maintenance, repair and overhaul” operations or a hospital in either the public or private sector. The AME Excellence Award criteria details a lean systems model for enterprise excellence. The primary focus of the award is to acknowledge continuous improvement, best practices, creativity and innovation. This award supports AME’s mission of inspiring commitment to enterprise excellence by identifying “Pearls of Excellence” or best practices to share with other AME members.
"Final feedback about the site visit…gives us the opportunity to have a professional and different point of view about our overall improvement journey. The auditors were constructive and focused on the people, and how people interact and live in our WCM [world class manufacturing] environment."
— 2018 AME Excellence Award Recipient
Application Requirements
To apply for the AME Excellence award, begin by completing the Intent to Apply and Plant Profile. Send the completed information to excellenceaward@ame.org
Your entire application consists of the:
- Intent to Apply form due February 22, 2019 - Deadline Extended!
- Plant Profile due February 22, 2019 - Deadline Extended!
- Self-assessment AME Lean Sensei® score or Self-Assessment AME Lean Sensei for Hospitals score due March 19, 2019
- Achievement Report using the AME Achievement Report Template due March 19, 2019
En espanol:
- Criterios de los Premios AME a la Excelencia 2019
- Guia de perfil de planta
- Guia de aplicacion reconocimiento a la excelencia
- Reporte de logros de excelencia template 2019
AME Lean Sensei
We suggest applicants gather their team and review the AME Lean Sensei questions. Keep in mind the Award Criteria as you reach consensus scores on the 60 Lean Sensei questions. Once you have gained consensus, complete the self-assessment using the Excel version of the AME Lean Sensei (Sensei).
Download the Excel version of the Sensei
Achievement Report
You support the scores in the Sensei with a written Achievement Report. Use descriptions and pictures to provide evidence to support your self-assessment score. Please use the Achievement Report template.
Download the Achievement Report template
Guidelines to Apply
Download the 2019 Guidelines to apply
AME Excellence Awards 2019: Eligibility, Fees and Timeline
About the Awards
Selection Process
The AME Excellence Award may recognize multiple North American recipients who demonstrate excellence against the award guidelines and evaluation criteria. Any applicant that submits the required materials will be considered for an award. A company’s achievement report will be evaluated by the AME Award Evaluation Team. For companies that score high enough in this achievement report review, a site visit will be completed. A site visit will generally last 1.5 to 2 days. Recipients of the Excellence Award will be selected based on the combined results of the achievement report review and site visit feedback.
If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact our vice president of awards and certification, Michael Bremer at michael@cumberlandchicago.com or 630-789-8262.
Nominate a company for the AME Excellence Award!
Often, companies that are achieving enterprise excellence are led by humble leaders, and humble leaders often don't seek award recognition on their own. To nominate a company, simply email nominate@ame.org with the name and contact information of the company as well as your name and contact information.