Plant Tour: Milliken & Co.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Milliken
& Co., Gilliland Plant -- Laurens, SC
Milliken & Co., Gilliland Plant Located in Spartanburg, South
Carolina, Milliken is one of the largest privately held textile and chemical
manufacturers in the world. Milliken is widely acknowledged as an international
leader in research technology, innovation, and customer service. The company
strategy is focused on combining textile and chemical technologies in unique
ways to serve a vast array of markets.
Chosen as one of Milliken's Plants of the Year in 2003 and Fabric Formation
Plant of the Year in 2004 & 2005, Gilliland Plant has won the TPM Prize and
was the first manufacturing location in South Carolina to be VPP certified.
Gilliland is also certified in ISO 9000, TS 16949, and ISO 14001 and has won
many excellence awards in quality, delivery, and safety within its division.
The plant is driven by self-directed work teams that, in the last 2 years, have
completed over 28 safety FMEA's, 30 focused improvement projects, and 100
kaizens. Gilliland's success in safety has resulted in 6.7 years since the last
lost work case. Gilliland utilizes the MQSP and R3 process on a daily basis to
support the safety process while assisting our associate-driven process through
the utilization of audits, committee meetings, safety tracking sheets, and risk
assessments. Gilliland produces over 200 different products in support of 7
business units across Milliken & Company providing fabrics that are used as
reinforcement substrates in a wide array of construction applications ranging
from the single ply roofing membranes to flexible air ducts. The plant runs up
to 7 days a week 24 hours a day.
What You
Will See on the Tour:
A clean, organized work environment
Visual controls on each piece of machinery
No supervision, teams in place
One of the safest work-places in all industries
Feedback & communication boards
Additionally, the agenda includes a presentation on "Creating a Sustainable
Continuous Improvement Culture" by learning from the Milliken Performance
System.
Tour
Departure Location:
Hilton Greenville
45 West Orchard Park Drive
Greenville, SC 29615
Schedule:
Attendees will choose one of the following schedules at time of registration:
Morning
7:00 am -- Continental Breakfast
8:00 am -- Milliken Performance System presentation
9:00 am -- Departure for Gilliland Plant
12:30 pm -- Estimated arrival back to Hilton Greenville
Afternoon
11:00 am -- Milliken Performance System presentation at Hilton
Greenville
12:00 pm -- Lunch at Hilton Greenville
12:45 pm -- Departure for Gilliland Plant
3:45 pm -- Estimated arrival back to Hilton Greenville
Appropriate
Dress Code: No watches, rings, or loose jewelry permitted in
the plant. Neckties must be tucked in between the second and third button of
the shirt. No high heels or opened toe shoes allowed in production areas. Long
hair (below shoulder length) must be pulled back in a ponytail.
Note: No cameras or pictures allowed.
Preclusion statement: IW
may be required to preclude attendees from taking part in your selected plant
tour. This step will be taken solely by IW at the request of our host plant
based upon the proprietary nature of information that is to be presented. The
host plants' decisions are final and will be communicated to attendees in
advance. If this occurs, attendee will be refunded the full registration fee.
Some participants on the tour may be asked to complete a Non Disclosure
Agreement (NDA).
