World Class Manufacturing

The core focus areas of the World Class Manufacturing (WCM) programme are:

• Firm-level Benchmarking and expansion of a detailed database on the competitiveness and operating profiles of KZN CTC members;
• Newsletters;
• Benchmarking Focus Groups;
• Executive Seminar Series;
• Factory Tours;
• Measurement workshop;
• International Benchmarking;
• WCM Capacity Programme

Each of the key focus areas of the WCM programme are unpacked below:

Firm-level Benchmarking:

All KZN CTC members receive an annual firm-level benchmark. This encompasses the benchmarking of KZN CTC members using a specific ‘Market Driver’ benchmarking methodology which has been developed by Benchmarking and Manufacturing Analysts (KZN CTC's service provider). Over the past ten years B & M Analysts has become a leader in the field of benchmarking and competitiveness analysis through the development and utilisation of its cutting-edge benchmarking methodologies.

Using world-class methodologies and extensive competitiveness database, B&M Analysts provides a comprehensive benchmarking service for companies across a range of industry sectors and sub-sectors.

Each company receives a detailed report outlining its comparative performance of over 30 key measures in the areas of:

• Financial performance
• Cost control 
• Quality
• Value chain flexibility
• Value chain reliability
• Human resource development
• Innovation capacity
 

 

The analysis combines hard quantitative data with the qualitative findings of an expert consultant that visits the plant to conduct interviews and visual observations. This is in turn scrutinised and cross-referenced to a set of surveys from key customers and suppliers. This results in a comprehensive report that outlines the strategic and associated operational challenges/opporturnities for the firm. The outcome of this process is it promotes:
• The firm's ability to understand and meet customer demands
• The firm's ability to match and/or exceed competitor performance levels
• The firm's ability to improve its operational competitiveness
Importantly, all data that is received is treated with the strictest of confidentiality and under no circumstances is firm-level data released.

To download a sample:

  • Clothing benchmarking report please click here (1,364kb)
  • Textile benchmarking report please click here (750kb)
  • CMT benchmarking report please click here (764kb)

Newsletters

A newsletter is compiled and distributed to all members and non-members three times per annum. These newsletters explore the trends, opportunities and challenges in the KZN retail, clothing, textile and footwear industry. The core content of the newsletters emanate from the KZN CTC's research, workshops and best practice tours.

Benchmarking Focus Groups

The Benchmark Focus Groups (BFGs) are directed initiatives that grapple with key shop floor challenges affecting firms located in particular locations. The priority focus areas are identified during firm-level benchmark assessments and regional quantitative data analysis. Each focus group consists of companies that identify or experience a common competitiveness challenge in a particular geographic region e.g. The firms in the Prospecton area may identify Maintenance as their focus area for the BFG. The BFG conducts four intensive workshop sessions to identify they key tenets of best practice in the focus area, identify opportunities for learning from other focus group participants and conduct a factory tour to a elected firm that is identified as a example of best practice in that area.

Executive Seminar Series

One of the key lessons emerging from the years of engagement with firms that have embarked on a lean journey is that any improvement initiative must be driven from the Executive team down through the organisation – while simultaneously building capacity from the bottom up.

If this does not occur, most improvements will be delinked, area efficiency gains which often do not translate into sustained bottom line results. In order to address this, the Cluster has re-introduced the Executive seminar series.

The aim of the seminar is to ensure that there is a solid understanding of: WCM principles and tools for the Executive level, driving the importance to support top-level ‘buy-in’ from management.

The Executive series is divided into four half day sessions and will take place at the beginning of 2010.
 

Factory Tours

The World Class Manufacturing Executive Training is coupled with two factory tours, with another tour taking place separately.  These factory tours are invaluable in so far as they provide delegates with the opportunity to see firsthand the practical adoption of World Class Manufacturing at a firm level.  

Measurement Workshop

Measurement is the cornerstone of management, and yet the identification and collection of data on key performance indicators in line with World Class Manufacturing is a perennial weakness in the clothing and textile industry.  In order to enable firms to better understand what key performance indicators they should be measuring and how to do so this training session will be hosted to assist in developing this internal capacity and thus support the use of daily monitoring and measuring as a daily management tool which is a foundation for the implementation of any of the tools, techniques and principles of World Class Manufacturing. This will also enable firms to provide accurate benchmarking information and will therefore enhance their value addition to firms.

 

International Benchmarking

The data that is collected through the benchmarking programme has been collected over a period of six years and has lead to the establishment of a comprehensive local and international competitiveness database. Thus far, the data is from the following regions: Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, South Africa, Swaziland, Bangladesh, China, India, Vietnam, Colombia, Puerto Rico, United States of America and Brazil.  In 2010 we will be expanding out database to include more Chinese data as well as data from central and eastern Europe.  This database is used for the compilation of individual firm-level benchmarks, for guiding the WCM training programme and newsletter content, as well as the informing activities of the knowledge-sharing secretariat. Statistical and aggregated data is available for purchase. Please email Tamlyn Dennekamp at tamlyn@bmanalysts.com if you are interested in purchasing data. 

  

WCM Capacity Building Programme

In response to the 2009 Imbizo request for manufacturing upgrading support, the KZN CTC has submitting a proposal to the IDC CTCIP Grant fund.

The objective of the programme is to develop capacity within participating firms. All activities will take place in the participating firm’s factory, supported by shared peer group meetings and a best practice workshop to a top manufacturer in KZN. All workshops will be followed by expert support to the factories, while all firms will receive an extensive set of tools to support implementation.

The Proposal:

The proposed World Class Manufacturing Capacity Building Programme will run for a five-year period, from January 2010 to the end of November 2014. The programme is expected to increase from six firms participating initially, to involve up to 20 firms per annum, with each firm (in conjunction with external assistance) identifying up to 20 operators, two supervisors/team leaders, a middle manager and a “future trainer” to participate in the programme.  Frequent management reviews and mentoring will ensure that there is high level support and buy-in. The following benefits of the WCM Capacity Building Programme are envisaged:

  1. The skills and systems learnt will enable firms to roll out such systems once adopted and functioning in a pilot area
  2. Learners will be provided with improved organisational skills
  3. Learners will develop abilities to identify performance weaknesses and address these through the problem solving skills learnt
  4. “Future trainers” will be available within the firm, and potentially on a shared basis amongst industry participants
  5. The performance of the manufacturing team involved will improve, increasing productivity and therefore the sustainability of jobs within the team
  6. Shared experiences will create a learning multiplier amongst peer groups
  7. The skills learnt are transferrable to other firms within the clothing and textiles sector, thereby creating positive industry spill-over effects

All capacity building activities will be provided at the factory site, reducing travel and downtime for the firms involved, and ensuring support is practical, shop-floor oriented and includes operators.

Programme Overview:

The WCM Capacity Building Programme will consist of the following elements:

  1. Set-up workshops
  2. 4 capacity building training modules (out of 8 options)
  3. Expert support
  4. A best practice factory tour
  5. Peer group meetings
  6. Management reviews
  7. Internal mentoring
  8. A benchmark (funded through existing cluster funds is necessary as a baseline and monitoring mechanism on annual basis)
  9. An award ceremony

Back To Top