All Hands on Deck: Assembly Services Need Good Workers

When gas prices skyrocketed in the summer of 2008, demand for cars with large engines plummeted. A Toyota plant located in Huntsville, Alabama dedicated to producing V-8 engines, saw its numbers decline precipitously.

But no assembly workers were laid off. Rather, employees were kept on the payroll, and kept busy performing kaizan (self-improvement) activities and training.

After three months, the idle plant resumed production. Employees went back to work having spent 45,000 labor hours improving their processes.

Assembly Services Are Hands-on Operations
The above anecdote demonstrates a fundamental truth of organizations that excel at assembly: they respect the hands that feed them. They care about their workers. And as a result, their workers care about the products theyre assembling. Its a virtuous cycle.

When seeking a contract assembly provider, then, business decision-makers are well-advised to ask about assembly workers. Here are three areas of inquiry:

Assembly Services Training
Assembly services can always get better, but only if their workers are getting better. Assembly workers often need to learn how to do an existing job faster, and more efficiently.

Ask about the training programs of a potential assembly services provider. Those with solid training programs will be ready and willing to discuss exactly what they do to keep their employees learning and improving.

Contract assembly outfits that do not focus on training may find the question a little off-putting. At that point, it may be time to interview another assembly services vendor.

Assembly Services Safety
Depending on what is being assembled, there may be an element of danger within the workplace at an assembly services provider. Its a sign of excellence if strong safety measures are in place.

Its also a sign of compliance with the law. Most states have quite strict requirements about safety. Adherence to the safety code is essential for both moral and practical reasons.

Longevity
Most assembly services have certain workers who really make the assembly line hum. The goal is to employ as many of those hard-working employees as possible at any given time. But those people are in demand at other jobs, too.

In the real world, top assembly services workers are experienced. Due to the repetitive, yet detail-oriented nature of the work, it takes a while to work extremely quickly without sacrificing quality.

Ask the salesperson about his or her favorite assembly worker. How long has that worker been at the company? It may tell you something about the employer.

Be Realistic
Its unrealistic to assume that unappreciated assembly workers are going to do a superior job of assembling a product. Thats contrary to human nature. If workers are well-trained, safe, and experienced, an assembly service should be able to do a good job.

In this sense, there is no substitute for taking a walk around the facility during a busy day. See how workers are treated. See how workers treat each other.

Then decide.

Sources
The Huntsville Times
Assembly Magazine