Quality Manufacturing Is A Team Sport

As an engineer, my job has never been to built it and sell it. If the product isn’t any good, you build no brand loyalty and don’t boost brand identity. But the job is not mine alone. From engineer to manager to production technician to the guy that sweeps the floor, quality begins with the figurative low man on the totem pole. To me it’s very much like the butterfly effect or ripples on a pond. One thing ties to the next, ties to the next. It’s all very synergistic. And that’s no exaggeration. Now I’m not saying every facility should be as clean as a hospital, but if you start here it begins to build a “culture” within the facility. If the facility is allowed to lose its luster, the workers will soon lose the sense of pride they took in their environment. When this happens, they don’t put as much value in the work they do. This leads to timeline issues and production problems and pretty soon, the entire facility is engulfed. The worst part is, now the virus spreads to the customers and another environment is impacted by poor quality. This may seem extreme, but this is as real as anything you could imagine.

Now, if you have the opportunity to run a facility, my suggestion would be to start from the bottom and create an environment for change. Unfortunately it usually has to happen one of two ways: 1. If you’re brilliantly motivating, you can inspire change by your impact on people and the example you set, or 2. for the remaining 90% of us, it takes hard work and a really good team. You’ll have to hire the right people in management to drive this new culture. To many people this idea will be a welcomed change and they will be ready to support your philosophy. However, others won’t be as easily converted. Unfortunately, that is the mindset that has become American manufacturing. It takes relentless leadership and strong will to get these individuals to join the team. But, they have to join the team or find another team to play for. It will be hardest to implement change in the floor technicians.

Above that, it’s pretty easy to get people like engineers to understand the value in a quality culture, but they also have to be salesmen and women and promote the new culture. The production supervision will play a very similar role. It’s their job on a daily basis to sell this system to their wards if you will. And to enforce the rules that keep the system viable. The trickier part is picking the right people for these positions. A pointer would be that these people have to be enthusiastic and believe in what you’re trying to do. If you interview someone that seems like a status quo individual, pass them by. You know who you need.

Ultimately, managing for quality means you can’t do it alone. The analogy I like to use most is like a coach team. You know, the horses that pulled a wagon, like a bank wagon in the old west. No matter who’s driving the team, if they aren’t all hitched to the center rail, they’ll absolutely pull the wagon apart. Of course, that’s where you come in or you wouldn’t be reading this article.