On April 7, 2022, the MBA 05th intake of Vietnam Japan University paid a visit to Flint Vietnam Company Limited and worked there. By witnessing the machines in action and listening to the factory’s managers introduce themselves, the students gained a better understanding of the production management and operation of the Japanese precision machining firm situated in Thua Thien Hue province.
Flint Vietnam was founded in September 2013 and is headquartered in Hanoi. The firm is now headquartered in Huong Thuy town, Thua Thien Hue province, Vietnam, at Lot C-1-4, Phu Bai Industrial Park. The company’s primary focus is on the design, manufacture, maintenance, and repair of stamping molds (Presses) of all types with complex structures, high accuracy, and durability guaranteed by Japanese standards; processing and manufacturing mold components and accessories, as well as high-precision mechanical products, using modern machinery, equipment, and technology; and providing all Press products with high accuracy and durability, particularly simple to complex structures on a continuous basis.
Although Flint Vietnam processes a large number of complex components, it does so using cutting-edge technology – 100 percent machines such as the AMADA DV1, MITSUI HTMSG-250M, MITUTOYO MF, SEIBU MM50A, and SODICK AQ550L. The firm has saved significant labor expenses and currently employs all 09 personnel, including engineers and office staff while being completely compliant with the Japanese parent company’s regulations.
The process is split into the following steps: Metal ingots are rough ground and rough milled prior to heat treatment. Following that, this workpiece is flattened and then cut in accordance with technical designs. The next stages are polishing and quality assurance.
Flint’s production management is unique in that it allows for flexibility in controlling each department since each Vietnamese department head is taught in Japan for four to five years before returning home; they then maintain contact and make periodic reports to the heads of departments in Japan. Flint Vietnam’s corporate structure has been designed to be as small as feasible in order to save expenses.
Flint Vietnam products usually have a very low mistake rate, all the way down to the final step, which is an intriguing feature worth studying. Japanese corporate philosophies emphasize engagement, frequent reporting by engineers, and fast issue resolution.
Currently, the facility is experiencing logistical difficulties as a result of its geographical limitations and the difficulty of connecting to supporting industrial zones. All raw materials must be imported through a trading business from Hanoi, and export goods must be carried from Hue to Noibai International Airport. This is time-consuming and involves several dangers during shipping.
However, given the city’s aim of concentrating growth efforts on infrastructure. This issue will very certainly be rectified in the near future.
Besides the issue related to the city’s macroeconomics and this cannot be changed by Flint, improving the internal business is an issue that Flint should pay attention to, specifically there are a number of issues as follows:
- Increasing the application of Kaizen to improve the process. Although with a small number of employees, only 09 people, and the required output from the parent factory is not high, the application of Kaizen in the production process will help promote many advancements and improve operational efficiency. of the factory.
- Actively apply 6S to production management and general operations of the factory and office. One point that was noted during the observation of the plant is that 6S activities have not been implemented clearly. A point where 6S activities can be observed, specifically Seiri (整理 Sort), Seiton (整頓 Arrange), Seiso (清掃 Clean up), Seiketsu (清潔 Care), and Shitsuke (躾 Ready), Safety very vivid and detailed. In particular, Seiketsu activities need to be paid more attention to, for example, strengthening the labeling and annotation at the factory, the office department…
- Apply lean management throughout the operation process. Specifically, control the wasteful costs of the business. Waste due to Transportation, Inventory, Motion, Waiting, Over Production, Over-processing, Defect. For each type of waste, it is necessary to have a specific analysis of the business to clearly see what type of waste needs to be overcome.
Due to the limited time, the research team could not delve deeper into the production and business activities of the enterprise, so we can only make the above general suggestions, hoping to contribute a few ideas. ideas for Flint so that it can improve certain parts of its process.
In addition, visiting and learning from the company’s staff has brought us a lot of useful knowledge. Hopefully, in the future, the company will continue to expand and develop more.
References
http://www.flint-sk.jp/company.html