The March 26, 2013 Business Leader Post article recommends visiting suppliers as often as feasibly possible. The main reasons appear to be relationship building and the opportunity to discuss cost/scrap/quality and other production details that may be problematic.
We would also suggest carefully looking at the production floor itself. Some questions should be on a list of what to look for:
1) How does anyone know what the item is that’s being worked on and just what is to be done? Do these instructions appear adequate and easily available?
2) How do the people know if they are making the “right” thing? What is measured at each work station? If gauges are needed, are they handy and clearly identified? Is calibration involved and up to date?
3) If the item’s manufacture involves multiple steps or cells, how does each successive one know they are receiving a properly made item? Does the movement of batches of parts and materials appear to be efficient?
4) Do you see evidence of work being set aside in order to permit some other work to be done? This suggests some work has priority over other work. You may be interested in when this happens.
5) Does the production area appear reasonably tidy? Are inventories and in-process items stored in such a way as to be easily identifiable?
When people answer these questions you’ll get an immediate indication of the attention paid to the things the supplier believes are important. Do these standards conform to yours?