Marine Fabricator July/August 2022 - 42

Shop Talk Interior
SHOP PROCESS ADJUSTMENTS
Here's a short list of some of the changes and adjustments in
the sewing, upholstery and installation areas of our shop that
we have put in place since moving into our new location.
* Mobile air filtration system. The importance of fresh/
clean air cannot be overstated. Due to the age of our new
location's building, it was diffi cult to add ductwork to areas
of the shop to vent fumes from spraying glue, using hot
knives and carrying out other manufacturing processes. A
mobile industrial air cleaner was the right solution for this
problem. It can be moved around the shop depending
on where it's needed and has the compacity to cycle
all the air in a 2,000-square-foot room in fi ve minutes!
See photos
on page 41.
* Sewing tables. Space was always a constraint in past
locations but it's plentiful now. Our new primary sewing
table on the third fl oor is a rectangle that is 36 feet long
by 15 feet wide. It fi lls the space of the six steel support
posts that run through each fl oor. There are three
stations with Juki DNU-1541S lockstitch sewing machines
and the fourth is for a Juki MO-6816S overlocker.
* At our shop, we overlock stitch raw edges rather than hot
knife the fabric, and by having an overlocker on the same
table as the primary sewing machines, we can easily
pass the fabric between the two machines. We have a
similar table alignment on the second fl oor, but with a
Durkopp Adler Long Arm and Juki Double Needle LU-1560N
sewing machine. We added smaller 10-by-6-foot layout
tables for preparing and organizing work that needs to be
completed or for fi nished products ready for installation.
* Mobile carts. An ongoing challenge has been transporting
completed projects from the sewing room to the customer's
boat. This task is now even more challenging because the
sewing room is on the third fl oor with access via stairs or
an old freight elevator. We came up with a simple solution:
laundry and hotel valet carts. The laundry carts are perfect
for transporting cockpit covers, travel covers and bimini
tops, and the valet carts are used to hang enclosure panels.
The carts transport the goods to the freight elevator, keeping
them protected, and then the carts are loaded directly
into our work truck. The carts are unloaded at boatyards
or marinas and are rolled right to the boat for unloading.
This process better protects customer projects during
transport and also speeds up the installation process.
don't require a monthly subscription
cost. Employees can even stream
their own music over the speaker!
* Weekly team meetings. Our team
reviews production reports by
project type, which allows everyone
to understand the different types
of work being done. Employees
can bounce ideas back and forth,
and discuss and prepare for
upcoming projects, deadlines
and past project successes.
* Cross-training/mentoring. Custom
fabrication work is unique, as every
project is different and is a daily
learning experience. All sewers at
Chicago Marine Canvas come from
a production work background
and they like the challenge of new
projects in our line of work. My
employees have their individual
areas of expertise, but they also
assist others outside of it. It could
be a canvas sewer helping with an
upholstery project, the upholsterer
assisting with an install, or an
installer getting behind a sewing
machine. This has helped with
cross-skill education, with employee
engagement and in fi lling gaps
during vacations.
At Chicago Marine Canvas, we are
still settling in and fi nding new ways to
improve our processes. To help in this
journey, we have taken advice from
another MFA member and have hired
our fi rst college intern for the summer.
So far so good!
Vince Innocenzi is the owner of Chicago
Marine Canvas, which services the Chicago,
Ill., area for custom marine-related canvas and
upholstery products. His company has been
in business for seven years and is a team of
seven fabricators.
For more information, visit:
marinefabricatormag.com
Search " shop organization "
42 Marine Fabricator | July/August 2022
http://www.marinefabricatormag.com
Marine Fabricator July/August 2022

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