Abstract

RAMDASS, K.R.  and  MOKGOHLOA, K.. An exploration of effective supervisory engagement in the clothing industry through activity sampling technique. S. Afr. J. Ind. Eng. [online]. 2022, vol.33, n.4, pp.165-176. ISSN 2224-7890.  http://dx.doi.org/10.7166/33-4-2670.

The gradual decrease in income through national and international competition led around 50% of South African clothing manufacturers to shut down their businesses in the past decade. In the struggle to improve their productivity, organisations are evaluating human assets for further value-add. Industry 4.0 embraces the total interaction of technology and human resources to create a multi-skilled environment. In this endeavour, first-line managers (supervisors) in the clothing manufacturing industry play a critical role in eliminating non-value-added activities. The meteoric rise of technology-driven processes driven by Industry 4.0 has disrupted almost all business models, and the clothing sector is not immune to these winds of change. It lacks the drive to undertake continuous improvement owing to an impasse in the skills-driven improvement and the application of industrial engineering principles. Organisations are seeking improvement opportunities in multi-skilling the workforce. In this study, supervisory activities were evaluated to determine value-add in the production process and to evaluate supervisory engagement to identify non-value-added activities and to lay a foundation for leveraging human capital as a competitive advantage. The research adopted the application of activity sampling analysis through a case study at a clothing manufacturer. Direct observation and informal discussions on the factory floor were used as the primary means of data collection. The outcome of the research points to gaps between the machine age, which was characterised by a command-and-control authority, and the conditions of the digital age, which requires a new role for shop floor coaches, in which the supervisor motivates and leverages the symbiotic relationship between employees and technology in producing goods.

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