Textile Engineer Mehmet Can, founder of SGD System Development Consultancy, said that there are millions of dollars of productivity losses in textile factories due to reasons such as incorrectly constructed production systems and planning mistakes. Underlining that big profit increases can be achieved with small touches, Mehmet Can noted that companies should take steps for process improvement studies without wasting time.
Textile Engineer Mehmet Can, who has been working at various levels from production planning manager to apparel manager in Denizli textile industry for 30 years, and who has been providing consultancy services to Denizli’s leading companies for a while, said that textile companies should question himself about efficiency.Mehmet Can, who stated that the garment installations were made wrong from the beginning in many factories, said that their costs increased, their profitability decreased and productivity losses of millions of dollars were experienced due to the production systems that were not correctly analyzed and not set up correctly.Noting that companies need process analysis, work study and system development, Mehmet Can, the founder of SGD System Development Consultancy, said:“There are productivity losses in textile companies and it is possible to eliminate these losses with simple measures. The biggest reason for inefficiency is the inability to create the right process flows. The work is not planned correctly and is not carried out in a certain systematic way. Especially in the garment production lines in the enterprises, there are problems due to line balancing and the incorrect distribution of workloads.While the garment lines are being set up in the companies, the process is not analyzed very well, an installation is made to meet the current needs. Most companies set up a garment line first. Then they grow as 2nd Line, 3rd Line, 4th Line. Since the system is installed according to a single line, it cannot adapt to the changing needs and increasing production over time and does not function properly. When the system grows, the issues that cause inefficiency settle into the whole system as a habit.
Textile Companies Should Question Their Efficiency
The first thing that companies should do is; Analyzing production processes with the right techniques and application expertise. Profitability can be increased a lot with the arrangements made after a good analysis. Even with a small touch, a 5% increase in efficiency can be achieved. When you create the system; With the same number of people, you have the chance to increase the efficiency of the lines between 25 and 50 percent. Since apparel is a labor-intensive industry, increasing labor productivity increases the competitiveness of the company. Even a small increase in productivity can increase profits of millions of dollars, as business is carried out with high numbers and turnovers.A healthy result can be obtained if the application ability, skill and technical knowledge of the person who will analyze the system is appropriate and sufficient. This needs to be done with external support, and this system needs to be implemented internally from the top management to the worker level and turned into a production philosophy. Employees in the production also need to own this.
Losses Can Be Overlooked Inside
Defects, mistakes and inefficiencies in businesses can be noticed from time to time. However, I think they have difficulties in accepting and correcting this.Due to business blindness or existing stereotyped working systems, 5% and 10% losses in companies are ignored. Revealing these is not put forward as they may be the failure criteria of those working in the system. This is the root of the problem. Because there are disturbing facts. And most people don’t want to hear troubling truths. Those who notice that something is wrong and inefficiency are usually in the middle tierbecome managers. However, since they can be held responsible for the mistakes themselves, they cannot find a solution to convey this to the senior management or to correct the problems.For this, companies need outside support. We, the consultants, are able to analyze the system independently, away from all dogmatic thoughts, away from system coercion, away from managerial pressures, away from economic concerns. This gives us freedom of thought and resolution. We can use our creativity.One of the most important problems in companies is that the authorities and responsibilities are not fully defined and the job descriptions are not made correctly. When administrators want to make changes in the system, obstacles may come their way.
How is the application done?
We take out the workflow of any product from the entry to the exit of the factory. Depending on the general workflow, we make detailed business analyzes and studies, and we measure time. Then we reveal the numerical data of the lines and systems that need to be optimally created. We make an improvement by comparing what needs to be done with what has been done. On the other hand, we present suggestions and solutions related to the organizational chart based on business process analysis. We conduct surveys and analyzes on personnel abilities and competencies.During the application, we go down to the lowest worker position and give them training. We are holding meetings. And we produce solutions together in the field. As part of the solution, we realize change and development together.The process improvement and efficiency studies we carry out in companies take an average of 6 months. In the first 3 months, system analysis and determination of the system’s failing points, and the establishment of a trial prototype production line in the second 3 months, application studies are carried out. In short, we first carry out the detection and diagnosis, then the implementation phase. Finally, a production report on the lines that have been studied and comparison reports with 6 months ago are issued.
There Are Firms Resisting Change and Development
The most important factor that determines the success criteria is the company culture and structure. In a company that is really ready for change, this process can run on the schedule we have determined, but if the company has a resilient structure, this process may take longer if the middle and upper level employees, especially those working in the system, are not open to development and change. Problems arise of resisting change, not evaluating incoming reports, pushing the work done into the background, and not taking into account the suggestions brought by the employees.
We hear the following sentences from employees and managers at resistance points:“We have tried this before”, “We wrote the book for this in 15 years”, “What you say will never happen, it cannot be done”, “Order numbers are low, it won’t work for him”, “Let’s think about it and evaluate it in the coming period”, “Employees They don’t know the job, we can’t find staff”, “Materials always arrive late”, “Boss does not accept this”, “This machine does not have that system (it actually does)”…
Goal: Low Cost High Efficiency
Trending concepts in the world are lean manufacturing, 6 sigma and kaizen applications. When you look at the infrastructure of all of these, the concepts that come up when you examine these systems; the correct definition and measurement of the system, its implementation, reporting, the continuity of change and the elimination of all production losses, the termination of activities that do not create value. Another concept is to create participatory, solution-producing organizations in terms of human resources. If you do not create this structure inside, you cannot achieve a permanent change. The common goal of the applications is; high efficiency and low cost.This is what we aim for in our work. However, there is no package improvement application for companies. It is necessary to produce solutions according to the structure and dynamics of the company. Applying a stereotyped system to every company
