What kind of shift leaders does a factory need?

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Work teams are the direct creators of a factory’s profits. As the core, the capabilities of the team leader are directly related to factors such as production volume, quality levels, and the stability of the workforce. How can one become an excellent team leader? Here are 6 suggestions – powerful tools for on-site management: ① Team leaders should know how to manage tasks and be willing to do so, persuading others with logic. ② Make proper preparations before production begins. ③ Manage the production process effectively. ④ Team leaders should have an understanding of digital management techniques. ⑤ Proactively implement 5S management practices. ⑥ Actively identify the causes of problems to prevent the same mistakes from occurring again. 01 Team leaders should know how to manage tasks and be willing to do so, persuading others with logic. Team leaders should focus on the tasks at hand, treating matters objectively rather than personally, and avoiding bringing their personal preferences into work. The team leader proactively provides technical guidance to employees and organizes the work processes in an orderly sequence. In daily life, one should not shirk dealing with struggling employees; instead, be willing to help them and pay attention to the thoughts and emotions of each team member. When there are fluctuations among the workers, the team leader should be good at communicating to solve the issues together. 02 It is crucial to make proper preparations before production. Starting from the moment the production order is received, whether adequate preparations are made prior to production has a direct impact on quality stability and increased output. How can a team leader carry out the preparatory work before production? 1. Study the requirements of the production process, prepare samples before production, and communicate with the workshop and the technical department to resolve any issues that arise during sample preparation. On the one hand, check whether the process sheet matches the sample garment? If there is any mismatch, it must be verified carefully ； On the other hand, by examining the sample, one can understand the requirements of the sewing process and the difficulty level of various steps, while also resolving any uncertainties one may have. 2. Preparation of materials. Strengthening communication with the cutting workshop and inventory management team helps to know the dates when cut pieces will be available and when accessories arrive at the warehouse. It also allows for the reporting of any issues, so that they can be resolved. This facilitates smoother coordination of production plans, enhances efficiency in production, and helps ensure that production plans are fulfilled and orders are completed. 3. Considerations on the breakdown and scheduling of processes. Following the principle of assigning tasks based on the skill level of team members, and by applying IE principles, the cycle time is calculated, the tasks are carefully divided up, and the appropriate types of machines and workers are assigned. A process scheduling table is also prepared to form an efficient assembly line, preparing for adjustments to the time requirements of each process during actual production. 03 Management and Control in Production 1. Concepts of assembly line layout. When arranging the production processes, the team leader requires that the tasks be divided as finely as possible, with each worker assigned a relatively fixed set of tasks. A batch of fabric pieces moves from the first process to the last process one after another, through a sequential assembly process. Under normal circumstances, it is not possible to have a nested arrangement of classes within classes or groups within groups. 2. Balanced flow. The calm, steady flow like that of a river is a basic requirement for the arrangement and regulation of production processes. When one processing step affects the flow of another, variations occur to varying degrees, and as a result not many finished products can be produced. Only when the output of each processing step is roughly the same can it be considered an efficient production line. 3. Production with color and code separation. Since the cut pieces flow out as finished products in packs, it is required that they be produced one color at a time, one size at a time. No production of any color or size is allowed on the production line. There must be either just one color and one size, or in the pre- and post-processing stages, there should be one color and one size being subjected to size conversion or color change. The goal is to avoid defective products caused by code mixing or color shift. 4. Measure working hours to determine efficiency and exceed the target production volume. With the established quota output, by calculating the required working hours and adjusting the sequence of processes, the 7-day quota can be completed in 6 days. Therefore, team leaders need to think of ways to speed things up or extend working hours to meet the production schedule. 5. Strengthen the management of the quality of semi-finished and finished products. Not only are random inspections conducted regularly on the quality of semi-finished and finished products, but due attention is also paid to implementing any quality improvement suggestions put forward by group inspectors and patrol inspectors. It must be ensured that merely stating something isn’t equivalent to actually doing it; the key is to verify whether the necessary corrections have been made. 6. Monitor the work quality of inspectors in the supervision team. Finished products are produced on the same day, repaired on the same day, and group inspection is completed on the same day, thus avoiding backlogs and ensuring sufficient production time for workshop operations. Think about it: if the sewing is done, can the product be shipped if the pressing and packing aren’t completed? It takes time to complete the task, so the sewing team needs to leave enough time for subsequent production steps – it’s the simplest principle. 7. Keep a proper “Team Work Log”. It’s better to write things down than to rely on memory. Keeping a diary of the various events that occur in the team throughout the day – categorizing them by production volume, quality, members’ opinions, work discipline, and 5S workplace management – is very helpful for reviewing one’s own work performance, clarifying thoughts, and improving management skills. 04 Team leaders should have an understanding of digital management. Digital concepts are not just empty slogans; they represent a scientific basis for measuring outcomes and persuading people with logic. 1. Used to increase production ----- For each order, the processes involved are defined, and the time or man-hours required for each process can be measured. Thus, the production volume of the finished products becomes relatively predictable. Two numbers appear here: working hours and quota output ； Due to differences in the skill levels of team members and variations in efficiency, the amount of time required for work varies. Therefore, team leaders *regularly measure the time taken for tasks, and use the average time as a guide to help those members who work more slowly or are less efficient improve their skills and productivity. This ensures that the team meets its production targets. With these targets in place, any remaining issues can be identified and resolved, thereby enabling the team to meet or even exceed its production goals. 2. Used to control quality – the proportion of rework in sample inspections of semi-finished products and group inspections of finished products serves as a standard for measuring product quality. Therefore, a team leader is not only responsible for organizing the production process and finding ways to increase output; it is also their important duty to control quality and reduce defective products. On the one hand, it is necessary to continuously strengthen random inspections of semi-finished products, checking the quality of each batch of semi-finished products at every production stage, and recording the proportion of products that require rework; meanwhile, team members should be informed and assisted on how to operate in order to prevent defective products from being produced ； On the other hand, the supervision team monitors the quality of inspection work and keeps track of the proportion of defective products requiring rework. Any quality issues found in newly produced items must be addressed immediately; otherwise, once a large quantity of defective products are produced, it will be too late to rectify them, leading to serious consequences where rework becomes impossible. Improving quality isn’t just an empty promise; it is achieved by genuinely controlling the rework rate of semi-finished products and reducing the rework rate of finished products. This is done through downstream units supervising upstream ones, with each level being accountable to the one above it. 3. To reduce waste—the actual number of pieces cut by the cutting machine serves as the basis for determining the amount of sewing work to be done by the team. Basic requirements for team leaders corresponding to the actual sewing quantity and the number of stitches. As a team leader, it is necessary to know how many fabric pieces are received for this order, how many finished products will be produced, and to check whether the numbers match There is no reason here for the amount to be less than the actual amount imposed. If there are quality issues with the cut pieces, they can be replaced; if a pack of cut pieces is incomplete, the cutting machine can be used to address the issue ； If the actual count is less than the expected number, it means either that defective cut pieces were left unmatched and scattered around, or that someone took the finished garments. Therefore, the team leader must have a clear understanding of the numbers in order to oversee the daily work of the team. 05 Team leaders should take the initiative to implement 5S. What is 5S? Organize, tidy up, clean, keep things neat – good manners. It is necessary to help team members develop the habits and awareness of maintaining a clean and tidy working environment, keeping tools and fabric pieces neatly arranged, and properly managing hazardous items such as scissors and needles. A good team leader will regularly supervise and promote 5S in the production area, and never give up until the team members develop the habit. On one hand, this is a image-building initiative that **helps the factory secure orders**; on the other hand, it is an effective measure to reduce contamination of cut pieces and prevent mix-ups in sizes. 06 Take the initiative to find the causes so that the same mistakes won’t happen again. Everyone makes mistakes; it’s not the mistakes themselves that are scary, but rather the failure to identify their root causes. If those same mistakes occur again, it’s because no action was taken to address them. When a problem occurs, ask several “whys”? Keep asking until the root cause is identified, and then address it; only in this way can the problem be solved and prevented from occurring again in the future. The problem has been identified: the inspectors and team leaders are not fulfilling their duties properly. Providing technical guidance and conducting random inspections at each stage of production is something that team leaders should do on a daily basis. Since they fail to do this, it’s necessary to repair these batches of goods. After everyone works together to complete the production, the inspectors and team leaders need to improve their skills, pay attention to every detail, so as to prevent such issues from happening again.