China Manufacturing Improvement Blog

Why do many Lean improvement projects fail to achieve their objectives? In good part, because the organization is held back by old habits and poor practices.

We wrote a few weeks ago about the most common types of internal failures in manufacturing, their impact for the manufacturer, and how simple software can be used as a preventive measure. Manufacturing managers tend to ask the same question on this topic: "How can this new approach help cut costs?" 

We'll be covering this question in our blog post today.

If you buy products from Chinese suppliers, you’ve most likely been horrified by some of the poor quality control systems you’ve seen. In some cases, we managed to identify over 20 things that could easily go wrong within a mere 10-minutes walk on the shop floor—on fabrication & assembly or even on just a single product!

Chinese New Year (CNY), the most disruptive event in China, officially begins on February 5^th, 2019. The rush, and subsequent slowdown, often much sooner than that depending on the facility.

Anyone involved in trade and manufacturing knows that the trade row between the United States and China is not good for business. Rising tariffs on both sides create price increases that are felt in almost every industry.

The idea of factory process improvement is something a lot of factory owners and managers in China are resistant to, but the truth is that improvement can be effectively managed and scaled up by simply starting out small.

In a move long overdue, China has made environmental compliance an integral part of its initiative to grow its economy, improve quality of life, increase manufacturing efficiency, and help create a better work environment for everyone.

This article highlights how Chinese factories that find themselves struggling to reduce emissions from their paint shops can take actionable steps to maintain environmental compliance in the wake of new environmental regulations.

How many times do you go to meetings that get nothing done?  

Why is so much time wasted?

Some planner, production manager, or even the boss leads the meeting and only coffee, and sometimes not even that, can keep you awake.

Do you often wonder, “Isn’t there a better use of my time?”

There is!

In this article, I’m going to share 3 easy tips you can put into action today to laser focus your factory meetings around your company’s most important goals: quality, cost, delivery, safety and morale.

Companies manufacturing in China are suffering.

Environmental regulations, social insurance and HR regulations are now being strictly enforced (often for the first time), taxes are being collected properly and ongoing trade disputes with the United States and other countries all are pushing factories out of business.

With so much pressure in today’s manufacturing landscape in China, we highlight 6 things companies must do to keep their heads above water and increase business.

Many factories will quickly offer the credentials, such as ISO certification, as proof of their production management systems. However, this is often (not always) a paper facade that masks the real systems and processes in the factory. Let's take a closer look at a recent factory visit to see how simple it can be to get beyond the veil and starting improving systems today.