Visitors to the Linear Plastics plant, just outside Pontypridd, South Wales, can witness the process at work, in terms of visual management, work and organisation methods and the sense of purpose that accompanies any given activity in the factory.
It is perhaps no accident to find that nearly half of the company’s management board are women: The Linear Plastics business culture is distinctly familial, communicating responsibility and accountability in everything it does.
And - in common with all successful families – every one of the 110+ employees has a part to play; none are overlooked and all are mindful of the benefits in the two way street between individual and employer.
‘We try and provide structures here that give people every chance to be their best possible working selves,’ says Donna Owens, Financial Controller.
This process is made clear from the very start: Donna explains that ‘all our recruitment interviews make it clear that we are looking for stayers; people who are committed to developing a career in manufacturing – and who are in for the long term. There are no casual or ‘zero contract’ hours here.’
Donna says that ‘once we see that quality in candidates then we can more than match it here in terms of our provision for training, education and personal development. We like to really get to know the individual and all of their interests at interview. We also ensure that they get to know us via a factory tour and other materials such as our company literature and videos.'
‘The vast majority of all our new recruits pass the induction and training procedures,’ says Donna.
Within a short space of time, candidates will find themselves choosing technical vocational training and programmes and also learning the fundamentals of good business. ‘After that, the sky’s the limit,’ says Donna, ‘with plenty of scope for career progression through the company – and to the highest qualifications at Masters Degree level.’
Proof of the pudding comes in Linear Plastics increased investment in the Government’s Business Improvement Techniques (BIT) and in Performance Manufacturing Operations (PMO).
‘This applies to all our staff,’ says Donna. No matter what job title you may wear at Linear you are extremely likely to join a cross-functional team that will be guided by Linear Plastics expert partner – More Training – in a hands-on approach to improving the company’s operations and business.
‘Teamwork is really a fundamental part of what we do here,’ echoes Tracy Watkins, Purchasing & Environmental Manager.
Responsible for all aspects of Linear’s environmental activities, Tracy was promoted to handle all purchasing activities outside of polymer supply for the business in March 2020. ‘In theory the pandemic intervened just at that time’ she says, ‘but in practice our ongoing workload as an essential manufacturer is such that we have hardly touched the ground.’
For some ten years now Tracy has kept Linear Plastics successfully qualified to the environmental standard ISO 14001. The company is also more recently a signatory to the Government’s Climate Change Agreement (CCA) and is therefore steadily reducing its use of energy, utilities and carbon emissions in accordance with CCA protocols.
All of which requires rigorous systems – and timetables - to be embedded within Linear Plastics manufacturing and working practices. The ISO environmental auditors, for example, visit Linear every six months as a standard procedure in order to renew the ISO 14001 certification. These audits have access to all areas of the business and Tracy’s meticulous inspections and housekeeping helps ensure that Linear Plastics passes with flying colours every time.
Tracy’s new purchasing responsibilities provide a different kind of workload: ‘Standards work is black or white, pass or fail,’ she notes, ‘but the purchasing function offers more shades of grey, with the opportunity to set terms, negotiate prices and to try other suppliers.
Whatever happens we have to ensure safe levels of stock for all of our customers and we find an inventory of six weeks of supply is sufficient. Once that level is reduced, however, my role is to bring it back on track.’
She adds that ‘the purchasing role requires mastering a similar level of procedural expertise – the same as the environmental work. However, purchasing is more of a balancing act whereas standards work is definitely more cut and dried.’
The work of Karen Dobbs, Quality Assurance Manager, in product quality management might appear to belong only in the cut and dried category but Karen notes that quality issues are wide and varied.
‘Everything we do is driven by the customer,’ she says. ‘And every customer is different and therefore – although the basics of quality management are the same – we have to flex and ‘speak their language’ at all times.’ Many Linear Plastics customers, for example, are accustomed to visiting the business and to reviewing their quality and production with the Linear Plastics team in set areas of the factory floor. Part of Karen’s job is to ensure that such meetings and review go smoothly.
She explained: ‘Our job can be very data heavy, and a big part of my team’s work is to make it intelligible and meaningful. Another large part of my job function is to effectively communicate quality needs and issues with all other parts of the business; from design and toolmaking to moulding and assembly work.’
When things go wrong successful mastery of these business interfaces can be critical. For Karen, every part of the manufacturing process – from product design through moulding to assembly, packing and shipping – needs to be subject to a quality audit trail. ‘Years of trouble shooting have confirmed to us the importance of having interdisciplinary teams and regular updates between us. ‘The days of the specialist quality department, housed in a separate office department are no longer. My job increasingly involves management of different factors – data, equipment and technology, measurement techniques and, most of all people.’
Karen is also responsible for the successful management and audit process in relation to the company’s ISO 9001 qualification for design and manufacture. Linear Plastics sets great store by this international standard and Karen ensures that all goes smoothly throughout the year and for the duration of the independent audit.
The robustness of all Linear Plastics people - and its management processes has been very successfully tested against two modern phenomena in recent months – issues of cyber security and the Covid 19 pandemic.
Donna says that ‘all of our staff have been systematically included in the awareness training about cyber crime and fraud. Such crimes – involving insurance or purchasing or other methods – grow more sophisticated by the day.’
She adds that ‘unfortunately this is a feature of life today. Company vigilance must always be maintained, since any slip up could prove to be very costly.’
More prescient is the Pandemic. From the get-go Linear Plastics was very well placed to incorporate all aspects of Covid 19 planning into its regular systems of workplace organisation.
The company culture of regular meetings and consultation together with constant continuous improvement methods proved to be fertile ground for embedding training, systems and policies related to the pandemic.
Donna, Tracy and Karen were all involved in the management board’s preparations and systems against the virus.
Says Donna ‘we felt that the thoroughgoing nature of our existing management systems meant that our business was already more than halfway there – and we could achieve very little disruption to regular business systems.’
The nature of Linear Plastics core injection moulding process and the separation of many manufacturing functions on site - such as CAD design, tool making and plastic moulding - helped in the organisation of people and the basic requirement for social distancing.
Linear Plastics was also completely ready when the Government inspector called to assess it for Covid 19 security.
‘The January 13 was unscheduled and unannounced,’ recalls Tracy, ‘but we were able to conduct the HSE official through a detailed and successful factory tour.’
On leaving there were several exemplary features in Linear Plastics new working practices that the Inspector was going to recommend to HSE colleagues as being useful to other manufacturers in the coming months.
Karen also notes that ‘through last year’s pandemic we were called on to step up to a number of new Covid-related medical manufacturing projects, including the production of parts for ventilator systems, for oxygen delivery mechanisms and also a new project that involves clip on extensions to shielding visors.
Donna adds that ‘these projects bring it home to us – that we are directly involved in the Covid 19 fight back and that our manufacturing expertise can make a difference, not just to ourselves at Linear Plastics but to society and to the world at large.’