Behind the scenes of towel production, which is completed through the hands of various partner companies

IKEUCHI ORGANIC does not manufacture all processes in-house, but rather, the products are completed through the hands of various partner companies, and the traceability of these processes is disclosed to the public. Mr. Matsumoto of the Sewing, Inspection, and Shipping Section is the single point of contact with each partner company. We asked him to tell us what he is conscious of in his daily work in manufacturing management.

Sewing Inspection Division Matsumoto

Behind the scenes of towel production, which is completed through the hands of various partner companies

From the manufacturing floor to a job in manufacturing management

My name is Matsumoto, and I work in the sewing inspection and shipping section at the Imabari head office factory.

I joined IKEUCHI ORGANIC (then Ikeuchi Towel Co., Ltd.) in 2009. After that, I worked as a weaver for about five years. I have experienced all aspects of towel production, including helping with inspection in my spare time.

I have loved tinkering with machines since I was a child and chose a job in manufacturing as an extension of that love, but about four years ago, I left the manufacturing floor to take charge of manufacturing management.

At IKEUCHI ORGANIC, manufacturing is carried out by a variety of sources. Some are manufactured for sale in our own store, while others are commissioned by corporate customers. Each of these has its own set deadlines, and shipping by those deadlines enhances the company’s credibility.

Another important factor in manufacturing management is “man-hour management,” which determines how much manpower and time will be spent on a product. If man-hours are not properly estimated, there is an increased risk of deviations from the manufacturing plan and missed delivery dates.

The job of manufacturing management is to ensure that products are shipped exactly by the scheduled delivery date and with the scheduled man-hours. This is the job of production management.

When a new project comes in, Mr. Watanabe, head of the Production Department, first makes a rough estimate of the man-hours and budget. Based on that estimate, I make a manufacturing plan, coordinate with the company and partner companies, and keep track of whether there are any delays in the plan.

If the order is small in volume, we can complete most of the work in-house, but if the order is large in volume, the cooperation of our partner companies is essential. If the schedule for delivery is very tight, we need to follow the progress closely and keep updating the plan, which is a job that we cannot afford to let up on.

Reading the market and closing the schedule as much as possible

What is important in manufacturing management is how much you can read what is going to happen ahead of time. I call this “how well you read the market.

There are various processes involved in towel production, and if any process is delayed, it will affect everyone in the subsequent processes. Each process is handled by a separate subcontractor, so if something happens somewhere, we have to coordinate with each company individually.

This is a job that requires detailed coordination while anticipating unforeseen circumstances that may arise, and I experienced many failures when I first started working in production management. Each time I made a mistake, I was helped and taught by our partner companies in various ways, and I have made it this far thinking, “I will make the most of these mistakes the next time.

What I am particularly conscious of is to move things forward as much as possible. If we complete the work just before the shipping date, we will not be able to respond to unexpected events at the last minute; if we complete the work two or three days before the shipping date and have a spare day, we will have enough time to respond to any problems. In order to get closer to such a situation, we would like to improve our efficiency as much as possible to close the schedule.

However, even so, there are still many last-minute situations that make me keenly aware of the difficulty of this job. I am also in charge of shipping, and I am often relieved when I successfully ship a product.

This job makes me realize that IKEUCHI ORGANIC’s manufacturing is made possible by the cooperation of so many people. I would like to continue to make efforts in my own way to gain more trust from the people at the partner companies.

Using everything I have to support young people

I have been working for this company for more than 10 years, but for me, IKEUCHI ORGANIC is more like a house I live in than a company.

If there is something in my house that is not user-friendly, I will DIY it to make it easier to live in, and I think the same is true for the company. I feel that IKEUCHI ORGANIC is a company where I can work in my own way to make my work easier.

At the same time, unlike a house, it is meaningless for a company to be a comfortable place for one person to live. How can we make a house comfortable for everyone? I often think about this.

In particular, perhaps because I am now approaching retirement age, I have come to want to support the younger generation so that they will step forward more and more.

In order for the company to grow one or two times larger than it is today, the power of young people is of the utmost importance. I want young people to grow both technically and in terms of personality, and I want them to support IKEUCHI ORGANIC in the future. For this purpose, I want to listen to the opinions of young people and share my knowledge and experience with them.

What I pass on to the younger members of the current generation will be passed on to the next generation by them. If we can connect them, I believe we will be able to see the future.

IKEUCHI ORGANIC has set a goal to produce towels that babies can eat by 2073, the 120th anniversary of its founding, and I would like to see IKEUCHI ORGANIC in the future.