Improvement of production efficiency and implementation of a new quality management system in a footwear company: the case of Galizio Torresi S.r.l.

This paper describes the analysis of production efficiency and the definition of process and product quality standards with reference to the work done during the internship period at Galizio Torresi S.r.l. The activity I carried out during my internship was aimed at making production more flexible and efficient through the study of working methods and their timing, and the definition of quality standards of production processes. Both phases of the project were concerned with identifying, analyzing, and reducing the costs of non-quality present throughout the production process, consequently pursuing other objectives related to this, such as eliminating waste of raw materials, minimizing waiting times, eliminating losses due to deficiencies in working methods. In the first chapter, the company Galizio Torresi S.r.l. is presented. A historical overview of the company, an analysis of its organizational structure, and the main characteristics of the reference market are provided. All the phases and processes that make up the entire production cycle of a shoe and the types of footwear developed and produced by the company are also accurately described. Finally, a SWOT analysis is presented to assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the company and then concludes with a discussion of the main future objectives. In chapter 2, the issues are framed from the theoretical point of view: it is presented an overview of the concepts of quality and total quality management and the tools used for its proper implementation. It is also proposed an introduction to the analysis of Times and Methods, its function within the company, its tools of use, and its methods of application with particular attention to the Bedaux chronometric method, used in the activity of time detection performed during the internship period. Having noted the main characteristics of the working environment, the third chapter aims to discuss the main problems that have made necessary the process of innovation and improvement that the company is pursuing. In particular, the chapter is divided into two parts, the first concerns the analysis of the current production performance, and the second the description of the current quality system. In the fourth chapter, the activity carried out during the internship period is exposed and the results obtained are shown. The study of the working methods has made it possible to identify the activities with value and those without added value with the aim of eliminating them and reducing production inefficiencies and production times. The production times of the individual operations were then recorded using the scientific method of the study of work. The analysis of the work cycle and the measurement of the times have allowed evaluating the productivity and the saturation of the workers and the problems they meet during their work. Quality requirements and the related controls have been formalized for each process of the production cycle and each type of product. Finally, group technologies have been generated that have allowed defining the working and control cycles per product family, as well as their standard working times.