An Out-of-School VisitOne Day at Kilews

On May 7, our class went to a factory in Xinzhuang on an out-of-school visit. Since hearing the news that we would have a chance to visit a real factory, our whole class had been very excited and was looking forward to this day.
The factory we went to is Kilews, founded in 1984, which designs and produces electronic tools such as power screwdrivers and torque meters.
On that day, we all wore formal suits, and some girls even wore high heels. This was the very first time that we had been given an opportunity to see what a real factory looked like and how it actually worked, so everybody was nervous but cheerful. We arrived at 9 a.m., and Kilews€?staff welcomed us to sit in a meeting room. First, a Kilews official gave a welcoming speech; then their staff gave us a brief introductory presentation about Kilews. From the introductory video, we learned about Kilews€?history and their operating conditions. Also, we found out that Kilews is not just a common factory because Kilews has very strict regulations about management and control, and they also set high standards for themselves.
After watching the introductory video, we were separated into two groups, and Kilews€?staff served as our guides. Our group started on the third floor, where products and materials are circulated and inspected. On this floor, we could see that Kilews has really high demands for themselves. They have every product placed and labeled clearly, and all the boxes on the shelves are packed neatly and well-organized. From the working site, we could see they had whiteboards written with plenty of information for the staff to check. The factory director told us that these whiteboards could help staff easily understand their immediate working conditions without needing to take out their worksheets to look for the information they wanted, which improved their working efficiency.
Afterwards, we moved to the second floor, where the products are manufactured. In the manufacturing site, we could see that there were many numbers labeled on the walls. The factory director told us those were the numbers of their production demands, which meant the staff needed to meet that quantity of demand within the week. Also, they even had a shelf for staff to place their water bottles. They couldn’t take their water bottles to their seats because the water might have spoiled the products they were working on. From these regulations, we learned that Kilews had strict standards not only for their staff, but also for their products.
Finally, we visited the first floor, where their sales representatives took orders and contacted customers. The factory director told us every sales representative had the ability to speak English and could communicate with foreign customers. Some people could even speak Japanese and French. Kilews takes orders inside and outside the country, and they also have periodical sales targets and performance analyses.
After touring every floor of Kilews, we came back to the meeting room and had a discussion and Q&A. Our teacher had assigned two students to be the interpreters between Kilews€?staff and the students. During the Q&A, we asked questions about the SWOT and 4P of Kilews, about their competitors and vision, and about the qualifications needed to enter Kilews. Kilews said that every person was like a blank piece of paper when entering the company, and that employees learned everything from the very beginning, but every staff member was a precious treasure of the company. Therefore, as long as you were willing to learn, everyone was welcome. In the Q&A section, we also learned that although Kilews had very strict regulations for their staff, they also offered the staff good benefits. They had set a clear rule, so if you met their demands, you would receive the bonus you deserved. As they said, every worker is a precious treasure of Kilews. From this factory tour, I learned not only the real way a factory works, but also what a great relationship between the employer and employees looks like.