Picture a Factory making Ladies Jackets, Trousers, Skirts, Pleated Skirts and Dresses, changing style on many of its 18 teams at least once a week.
Around 180 styles are manufactured during a typical half-year season within the product range above.
The Technical Structure includes a Technical Manager, A Technical Assistant for each of two buildings (Dresses and Jackets were made in one annex unit and Skirts and Trousers in the main unit) and a Pattern Technician
The Work Study Department included three practitioners and two Bonus Clerks who gave clerical support to the Work-Study team.
A Supervisor, aided by ‘Fixed Location’ and ‘Roving’ Quality Inspectors manages each Team.
The Supervisors report to a Production Manager and the Quality Controllers report to the Technical Manage
The ‘Style Change’ process begins when the factory receives, in the post, a pack from the Central Design & Technical Area, containing a Copy Pattern, a Sample Garment and a basic Design Specification.
The factory Technical Managers prime role is to focus on pre-production of all new styles and to focus on preparation of all new styles for production. The first step being to have two garments made which replicate the Design Sample and to send them to the London Buying Office for Sealing.
How do they cope?
Under the leadership of the Technical Manager, A team of three, dedicated to the role of Style Change preparation, included herself, a full time work-study practitioner and the Head Mechanic.
The Factory Production Manager supports the process through the planning and logistical role of ensuring that everything was in place for cutting.
Two Machinists are dedicated to aiding the making of the garments for Sealing.
The Training Supervisor, working with the Team Supervisors is focused on ensuring that any Skill Shortages are provided for, by re-training the team operators ahead of the style change.
One whole wall in the work Study Office contained a Skills Matrix containing all Operators and all ‘Job Skills’ for the whole factory. The records are updated weekly, for easy establishment of skill shortages when planning a new style.
The Planning Process.
The Production 'Feed-On Plan' determines the priority.
On receipt of the Sample Garment, the Work-Study person develops an operation sequence or breakdown in the context of the intended production line with the Technical Managers assistance. This is agreed with the team supervisor ahead of the style change.
GSD values are assigned to each Operation.
Team Operator / Manning requirements and Output Targets are calculated.
The Operators in the team are assigned specific operations and their specific skills are checked against the information on the Skills Matrix.
A Training Plan is prepared for each operator who has a skill shortage
The Training Plan is given to the Team Supervisor and the Training Supervisor to arrange pre style change training of the identified operators.
The Sealing Process
Once the Pattern Technician has approved the master pattern for the factory, the cutting room will cut the two garments for sealing.
The Technical Assistant, walks the seals through the process or, if the styling has non-standard features, through the two special machinists.
The experience gained by making the Seals is fed back to the work study person who modifies / updates the sequence if required.
Positioning Markers, Guides etc are defined for the Pattern Technician and Head Mechanic to prepare.
The Style Change.
During the Planning Phase, the groundwork was completed in terms of defining the production team, the skills needed and the equipment requirements.
The Training & Production Supervisors cover the skills training so that in the worst case scenario, the operator will be familiar with the method required.
This Example takes place in a progressive bundle environment where the work progresses through the team in Bundle Trucks. The quantity of garments in each truck was around 15 units, sometimes mixed colours.
There is no requirement to make pilots as the factory standard is known and trusted.
The role of the Technical Manager, Technical Assistant, The Production Supervisor, The Head Mechanic and the Work-Study now swing solidly into style change mode.
If the style is only going to run for a week or so, the change over has to be effective, and a performance build in terms of hourly targets set by the work study person is used to measure the effectiveness.
The first Bundle is taken through the Team by the Technical Team. It is their role to change over each operator as they complete the last bundle of the previous style.
It is the role of the Supervisor to ensure that the Cut Work and the Components are at the workplace ready for the changeover.
The Technical Manager will use, ether a personal demonstration, or watching the operator of as many garments it takes to get operator acceptance of the method, the standard and the speed.
Once the operator is set away, the supervisor takes over the responsibility for the operators conforming to method, quality of output and speed of production. The Technical Manager moves onto the next operation and the next Style Change.
Where the machine needs to be changed or set up, the head mechanic, as a permanent part of this Style change team, is working ahead of the Technical manager.
The Work-Study person follows up the effectiveness by following the change over a bundle or so behind the Technical Manager.
The Team stays with the style change until the change over is complete to the satisfaction of the Production Manager.
Because of the pressure of multiple style changes, the full responsibility for maintaining operational output falls on the production supervisor, the other work study people, the maintenance team and the quality inspectors.
There are no diversionary responsibilities or activities assigned to this Style Change Team. The focus applied to their work allows them to provide the best shot at style changing.
The Factory Production Manager monitors the progress of each style change during the normal round of managing the factory.
Background 2
Consider the same factory operating the same processes, but style changing Teams working in the configuration of The Toyota Sewing System, where each operator in the team has a single garment as their bundle size and no buffer stock between each operation.
The teams are designed to be self-managing, but a supervisor supports each three teams.
The demands of this process at Style Change is that if the change over for each operator takes longer than the operation SMV, then the subsequent operators will stop and wait for work until the style change arrives at their workplace. In no time at all the whole team would have stopped working.
The approach to preparation changed to include two new factors.
An additional member was added to the style change team.
In the Run up to the Style Change, the Team Split and Buffer stock was built to cushion the change over time.
The Role of the Additional Team Member
The most expert makers of garments are not the technicians; they are the operators on the line.
Using this belief, one operator in the team is assigned the role of Style Change Facilitator.
It is their responsibility to organise the operation sequence; to test the methods by making garments and defining any machinery or training needs outside of the perceived needs identified by the skill matrix.
In the Toyota system it is possible for this person to use the same machines that are on the team to make test garments, albeit in the wrong thread shades. During this activity, all potential problems are identified and the Organisational and Mechanical needs are quantified and updated by work-study and actioned by the Style change team.
Generally 3 to 6 garments will be made as soon ahead of the style change as is possible; remembering that in most cases these teams will change styles once a week
Two approaches operate using the role of facilitator.
The facilitator is a non-productive person and is assigned to operate over 3 teams in the case of skirt and trouser production.
The facilitator is a productive person assigned to one team and operates within the team between style change preparation.
The facilitator’s role was self-financing through the rapid build back to optimum utilisation and a significantly reduced drop off in utilisation at the next style change.
The Run up to a Style Change.
To avoid the effect of a slow style change on the first operation, draining the team of work, the day of the style change the team will split to over produce on the first operations, slowing down the end of the team.
This is achieved by having, say, half of the operators working on the first third of the operations, leaving the other half to work on the last two thirds.
The style change commences once the first operators work is completed. The buffer between the rest of the team provides more time for the first operator to become proficient at her operations as demonstrated by the facilitator who works with her.
Immediately a few garments are ready the facilitator pulls the next operator from the old style and sets her onto her operations.
If the change over is successfully executed, the buffer will build on the new style and be maintained until all operators have completed the previous style and the new style has changed over. (The process was nicknamed ‘Snowing’ liking it to drifting snow moving along the team.)
The issue of when to change was predicted by the work study person who used a graph to set the hourly target for the team during this period.
Block Scheduling the Pre Production Processes up to ‘Feed On’ to the Sewing Teams
Ahead of the style change are various activities outside of the team, which will prevent the team from style change.
To ensure that the preparation for each teams style change was achieved, the production planner for the factory, in this cases the Production Manager, personally calculated the Block Schedule and personally drove the achievement of each activity.
This Gantt Chart formatted critical path for each team began with delivery to the factory of Usable (approved) Bulk Fabric.
The other stages included, Delivery of all trimmings, achieving approved seals, Pattern Grading, Marker Making, bulk cutting, preparation, feed onto the teams.
These activities were given a total of 15 days for completion.
It had to be said that the Quick Response nature of this planning placed significant back pressure on the Central purchasing, Fabric QC and Production Planning Management.
In the early days of developing this way of working, a plea for respite delayed the implementation of more teams to give them breathing space to redirect the focus of their activities to achieving the Block Schedule critical dates.
It was a case of ‘When you drain the ‘Work in Progress’ lake, the crocodiles come and bite your bum’
If the chain failed, a team would stop work in less than an hour and stay stopped until the flow commenced again.
Style Change in the Proposed Company
How does all of this translate into a proposal for the introduction of New Styles into the Proposed Company factories?
Compare these scenarios with that of the Marks & Spencer prescribed environment.
Consider them in the context of fewer style changes, where a factory team manages a process, which commences with the supply of a Sealed Product.
Recognise that the Management and Technical resource is far stronger than in the example above with a separately managed quality system.
Comparison would show the weakness in the Work-Study and Local Planning and Progress Monitoring / Chasing functions due to lack of numbers or total non-availability of a resource.
An observation would be that the Technical Team and the Supervisory Teams are both chasing or fire fighting technical issues in stock.
The M&S procedure implies that a factory is required to conduct different pre production activities such as making Test Lots and Pilot Lots to prove that the style is manufacturable before starting Bulk production.
It does not take account that in reality, this cannot be achieved without some ‘fiddling of the processes’.
Proposal for a Different Approach to Style Change
Contract Sealing Change of Priority.
When the new Contract Sealing system was introduced it was with the objective to speed up the process of getting new products to market.
The significant step in relation to style change was removing the need to take Green Seals from Pilots and relegating the pilot to something that was done as the first production, from which Rack Samples could be taken.
If an M&S Technologist wanted to visit a factory to view pilot production, they would need to visit during first production if they were not to see the chaotic manner with which pilots are currently treated.
It has to be said that even during the old rules era, it was a rare occasion that a pilot was either ready in time or good enough to take Contract Seal from.
Again picture the scene where the focus of attention is on manufacturing the current style.
When, along comes this new style, in a new fabric, a different colour, needing different machinery settings, a different sequence, some different skills, all in a product that had at that point only been made by the design team.
It was a highly disruptive event and no wonder it:
Did not achieve a Green Seal-able product quickly.
Did not prepare the team for the style change to follow some weeks later.
Often the pilot was never finished or finished to the required standard, and no wonder.
In fact the style was often placed on a different team to the one that piloted the style therefore any learning benefit to the team was lost.
Now that in the New Contract Sealing process, the pilot is an event after sealing, but still not the first production.
Currently it is rare to do a Pilot of more than a few garments and becoming more frequent to only make two or sometimes none at all.
Eliminate the Pilot as we eliminated the Test Lot
We currently call the Test Lot, the garments made by the Garment Technical Team to ensure that the garment is manufacturable.
We can equally call the First Production the Pilot, provided that it is used for perfect Style Change.
Focusing the technical team on perfect Style Change through Perfect Preparation will achieve the goal.
Utilise the Management and Technical Resources to Focus on First Production as a Pilot.
The Culture change required freeing up the resources necessary to provide the focus would require:
Introduce or re focus the local factory Critical Path Management / Planning and Progress Chasing for the pre production activities. (The Block Schedule) Through the Production Manager
Separate the roles of the Supervisory Team to focus on Current Production and Associated Quality and Technical Issues.
Separate the role of the Technical Team to provide dedicated factory Style Preparation and Style Change Management.
Provide the focused support of a work-study person to provide dedicated preparatory measurement and organisational planning.
Provide the focused support of the Senior Machinery Engineer with the authority and capability to have all necessary equipment ready and working before the style change.
Introduce the use of the Skills Matrix and focus the role of the Training Supervisor to include pre style change skills training.
Re Define the Roles of each Function in the run up to and including the Style Change
Production Manager
Plans the style change dates through controlling the Block Schedule of Pre Production Activity
Agrees the Style Change Team Plans and supports the achievement of the plan through management.
Agrees the plan in the run up to the style change and the output targets for each day through the style change
Work Study Practitioner
Prepares the initial, revised and final breakdown suitable for the planned team.
Sets the output target for the style change based on a pre determined utilisation drop and build up and optimum output chart.
Calculates the manning requirements and matches the operator by name to the operations.
Consults the skills available and produces a training plan to meet the needs of the style.
Factory Technical Manager
Focuses the team technician to make up garments ahead of the style change to assure the methods and determine the machinery set up requirements with the head mechanic.
Signs off the preparation completed through the work study, mechanical and technical input
Manages the Style Change with the Team Technician
The Team Technician
Make up the test garments.
Approve the mechanical plan and the training plan.
Demonstrate the operations to each operator during the style change
Get agreement with the supervisor that each operator is capable of achieving the quality and output criteria.
The Head Mechanic
Check the availability of the equipment t on the nominated team to complete production.
Provide any missing machines ahead of the style change.
Identify and make ready any set up changes in readiness for the style change.
Have ready any guides, jigs and work aids needed for the style and have the Technician test their suitability to achieve the optimum quality and output through ease of use.
Be on the Team for the duration of the style change having no other priority or calls on time.
The Training Supervisor
Agree a process with the Team Supervisor to achieve the preparitory training identified from the skill matrix.
Carry out the training as required.
On completion, update the skills matrix with approval of the work study person.
Develop a Style Change Methodology which Optimises the Focus Team Effort
The basic process goes something like this, however it is good psychology to give the nominated team a chance to plan how to make the process effective.
Set up the Team for say Factory 1.
The Core Team would include Technical Manager as Leader, with a Production Manager in support.
Each of the Team Technicians would take on the role of Facilitator / Style Change Manager
The Head Mechanic or a Nominated Next Best Mechanic would join the team and relinquish any other diversionary responsibilities to the other mechanics.
One Work-Study person would be dedicated to the process of team planning with no other diversionary responsibilities.
The Line Supervisors would be briefed that their responsibility included output, in style technical issues and quality.
The Training supervisor would be given the remit to prioritise in line re training ahead of style change.
The production manager would agree the local Block Schedule / Critical Path was achievable and press the ‘Go’ button.
At the point of deciding that a style was going onto the line, the team led in this case by the Work-Study person and the Technical Manager would gather the style data from Garment Tech. I.e. Call the pre production information.
Both would work on the initial breakdown, involving the line technician, gaining approval from the line supervisor
The work study person calculates the SMV and, either the number of people required in the tem to make the target output, or the out put potential of the existing team size
Work is allocated to Named Operators by operation type. (Manning requirement)
The skills are matched to the operator names by the Work-Study person, establishing any skill shortages. (Training Plan)
Work so far is agreed with the Production and / or Factory Manager.
Production Manager confirms that the Pre Style Change Critical Path is on time for all activities / components
The Garment Technician is given a copy of the initial Breakdown complete with SMV and operator names.
Say three garments are cut complete with all components, preferably in the correct fabric, but the testing process should not be held waiting for late running supply chain items in other areas. (Must establish quickly any technical issues, as this will be the last chance to make alterations.)
The team will now Sign Off the Operation Breakdown and confirm SAH etc.
Garment Technician and Mechanic confirm the Jigs, Production Templates and any machine attachments are available and have been proven to actually work.
At an appropriately planned time ahead of the style change all of the components for the first Size / Bundles to be provided are to be in place at the head of the team
On conformation the team front end is reconfigured to release the first operator in the New Plan from the tail of the previous style, allowing the mechanic to reset the machinery.
The Line technician then will demonstrate the sewing / pressing of at least 3 garments to prove the method and gain the operators confidence.
The buffer provided between the first and second operator must be sufficient to allow the operator to then demonstrate the method learnt to the Team in attendance, which will probably include the line supervisor at this stage.
The second operator will be released at this stage, the supervisor having reallocated her work to maintain the buffer.
Repeat this process to the end of the team and work out the buffer back to the planned balance.
The line technician will only remain with the operator until the method and quality is proven over a limited number of garments. Yes she can go back to check all is well but must keep progressing forward and hand over responsibility for the style to the supervisor. Success will be testament to the preparation of method, equipment and Skills availability.
I am sure that there will be many ‘can’t be done’ views. It has been done and the possibility of designing a workable system to replace the ineffective ‘Pilot’ with ‘Effective First Production’ within a Proposed Factory is there for the taking.
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Frank Lomax
20th September 2001