It's wonderful to be able to go into the woods, pick berries and return
home to make jam. But it's also a lot of work. These days most people don't
have the time to grow and process their own food. In fact, food production
is a huge industry.
Almost every food item you purchase at the grocery store has gone through
a processing operation.
Production supervisors oversee production, in the food industry and in
many others. They make sure the end product is clean and safe.
Len Filek is the general manager of a company that manufactures jams and
syrups. He says production supervision is a vital role at the plant. "The
supervisor is basically in charge of the employees on the line," he says.
"You're in charge of the machinery, but you have to make sure that the
employees know what they're doing."
This operation involves five to six people in an assembly line overseeing
machinery that washes bottles, fills them and caps them. "The production supervisor
has to figure out how much of a run of syrup is needed to keep feeding the
machines for a week at a time," says Filek.
Problem solving -- often done on the spot -- is a key part of being a production
supervisor. "There are breaks in the system, either with machines or with
the people, and the production supervisor has to find solutions," he says.
Although coming up with creative and often quick solutions can be stressful,
it's also enjoyable. "There's a great deal of satisfaction that comes from
solving problems and getting a system running smoothly," says Filek.
"It can be repetitious when things are running smoothly. Bottle after bottle
goes through, and it's the same thing for 10,000 bottles. But when something
breaks down, you have to be ready to work under pressure."
Filek says that good production supervisors can work under this pressure,
enjoy dealing with machines and people and have common sense. "You often have
four or five things to do at once, and you have to know which to do first.
A good production supervisor can figure that out."
Colin Cooper's recipe for job satisfaction is to take the most stressful
part of his work, add a little challenge and watch the sense of accomplishment
rise.
Cooper is a production manager for a modular building manufacturer.
It's his job to be in the plant and follow the modules from beginning to end,
making sure they're built in accordance with the design plans.
The buildings are anywhere from eight to 14 feet wide and up to 64 feet
in length. When complete, they are ready to move into immediately.
The most difficult aspect of Cooper's job is keeping everything organized.
He often has four to six projects on the go at once.
"One may be in the proposal stage, one may be in production and another
at the site stage," he says. "I have to provide the purchasing department
with detailed lists of makes and models. We may have to order things weeks
in advance, even though the job doesn't start for another month."
Once he's placed his order with the purchasing department, Cooper puts
it out of his mind and carries on with other work. "Sooner or later, that
job comes back to me. When it does, I can't look at it and say, 'Oops, I forgot
to order a certain item.' That is the most stressful part of my job."
It's also, however, one of the most rewarding. "[It is] the accomplishment
of having got all that done. The very best part is when you go to a job site
and it's done. Then you know what the stress you've been through for the past
two or three months was all about. That's the satisfaction."
There's also the satisfaction of knowing the product you helped put together
is of some value to a community or individual. Cooper's company has built
entire schools, hospital extensions, gymnasiums, office buildings and residential
homes.
One of the most rewarding jobs was building 100 modules for emergency relief
shelters to aid earthquake victims in Kobe, Japan.
"It's nice to know that you have played a role in something that important,"
says Cooper. "You've made a difference in someone's life."