FINAL INSPECTION DEPARTMENT
1. What does the start of your workday look like?
Our workday begins by checking whether production is on schedule. We walk through the production area and set priorities for which orders to inspect first, which depends mainly on their shipping deadlines.
2. What are your main responsibilities during the day?
Our main responsibility is to select books from each order as samples for the client and are free of defects.
The final inspection monitors each order directly at the machine, the in-process inspection monitors orders throughout the entire production process, and the shipping inspection monitors orders intended for selected customers. We select the best samples for both clients and the store. Everything must comply with the parameters and specifications in the production instructions. However, this isn’t always the case. We must be strict, so we often communicate with the operators and the team leaders and try to “save” the orders so that the books maintain high quality and, ideally, no time is lost. We resolve such internal discrepancies primarily to prevent external complaints. We work with process engineers to identify the causes, focus on them during inspections, and strive to prevent them.
In addition to inspections, the quality department also handles system management, which is a necessity in such a large company. We establish rules, guidelines, and instructions that we must constantly keep up to date. These are essentially our laws. We need them for various audits and certifications, without which we would have little chance of securing further orders.
3. What might others not even realize about your job or department?
The annual customer requirement is approximately 15,000 samples (signals) per inspector. Before they select the best ones, they sometimes handle up to three times that number.
4. Who do you work with most often during the day, and why?
We work most closely with machine operators, logistic team, the girls in manual work, foremen, and process technicians.
However, when creating rules, we must collaborate with the managers of all departments.
5. Have you ever had a workday where something went wrong? What was it like?
We have days like that, too. We try to handle them calmly and with composure.
We usually keep a positive attitude, and if we’re in a pinch, we treat ourselves to something sweet.
6. What is essential to your work?
Our work wouldn’t function without a great team where we help each other out.
7. What do you enjoy most about your work?
The variety of the work, and the fact that we’re able to resolve everything in the end.
BOOKBINDING DEPARTMENT – GATHERING LINE
1. What does the start of your workday look like?
The gathering process is handled by two teams. Each team is assigned two machine operators. In the morning, the operator on duty turns on the computer and checks the production schedule to get an overview of the day’s workload. They then start up the machine, turn on the compressors, and clock in.
At six in the morning, the workers sign in to a logbook, where they note for each order which channels each gathering line worker is assigned to. They then set up the channels and prepare the order for production.
2. What are your main responsibilities during the day?
Our work involves gathering. Our task is to stack the sheets in the correct order so that all sides align properly. We also pay close attention to quality.
3. What might others not realize about your work or department?
Although it may not seem like it, since we have a large number of members in team, the work on gathering line is very physically demanding.
4. Who do you work with most often during the day, and why?
We all help each other out; we’re a well-coordinated team, and everyone knows what they need to do at any given moment and when to lend a hand to someone else.
5. Have you ever had a workday where something went wrong? What was it like?
A few times we’ve encountered situations where, for example, sheets were placed incorrectly on a pallet. We then had to fix it, which delayed us and prevented us from achieving the productivity we’d hoped for.
6. What is essential to your work?
Our work couldn’t do without the people we need.
Handlers are essential to us. Without them, our work would be much more difficult.
7. How does the end of your workday look?
The machine operator stops production and counts how many units were produced. He then enters all the administrative data into the computer.
The workers blow out the machine and sweep around it, empty the trash cans, and do all the necessary cleaning.
