Leader of the futon-making team. He works the comforter sewing machine and edge-binding machine processes, coordinates the floor, and is responsible for training newcomers.
My two machines
In the workshop I mainly run two machines — the comforter sewing machine (comforter sewing machine) and the edge-binding machine (edge-binding machine). At the same time, as leader of the futon-making team, I have to keep the whole floor running smoothly, so every machine and every process stays in rhythm.
Making products customers can’t help recommending
We care intensely about the quality of our futon — the aim is the kind of product “a customer can’t help telling someone about.” That is no slogan; it is built from countless tiny judgements in every process. One machine’s tension is a touch tighter than yesterday’s; one batch of fabric differs slightly in weight from the last — these details must be checked every day.
Training is the workshop’s baton
I am also responsible for training newcomers and colleagues still unfamiliar with the work. The hard part is not “teaching the motions” but “teaching judgement” — when to stop and check, when to speed up, when to call a senior for help. That judgement is built through workshop experience, and I hand it to the next generation.
Cross-team cooperation
Our colleagues cooperate across teams quite naturally — on a day I am short-handed, someone from the firm-cotton team or logistics team comes over of their own accord; and vice versa. “Put safety and reassurance first” is the eternal first principle of the floor, busy day or not. That reassurance is something the customer never senses — and something the workshop will never let them lose.