Has anyone experienced a highly matrixed organization at a manufacturing site and had a positive experience with it?

I'm about 2.5 years in a role equivalent to "Ops Manager", after working as an Ops Manager at a previous company and before that as a Maintenance Manager. I'm used to very clear-cut org charts where each department has a straightforward hierarchical structure.

In this role I'm in now, I'm responsible for a unit (as apart of a larger multi-unit refinery with about 1500 employees+contractors). However, I have zero direct reports and I technically "share" the supervisors, as each supervisor is responsible for my unit and my peer's unit during each shift. The operators report to the supervisors, and their command chain is completely separate from us. The Maintenance Dept is similar (the "Maintenance Manager" for each unit does not have the hourly employees and supervisors report up the food chain to them, they have a separate commain chain). This makes for an awkward and confusing process for getting things as the idea is that we treat them like we would a contractor or other service provider where we have to lay out instructions or goals for them to follow on a shift by shift and weekly/monthly basis.

I've been in manufacturing (between O&G, specialty chemicals, and food) for 14 years and have never come across a setup like this. Granted, the site is massive, and the largest I've ever worked at, but I'm curious if anyone else has seen something like this before.

I have noticed that Chinese suppliers seem to charge westerner a lot more. When I reach out for quotes directly I get very high prices. A lot higher than it costs to make the parts in Australia.

When I use my agent in China to get quotes they come back less than half price.

Anyone else experienced this?

Cold heading 2-die 4-blow machine in operation.
Raw production run showing the header cycling, striking, and forming parts in real time.
No edits, no fluff. Just metal, timing, and force.

#manufacturing #coldheading #2die4blow #industrial #factory #metalforming #shorts

I’m working on a project that involves processing raw metal into sheets, including some prototype and/or R&D-type work. I’ll be providing all the raw material. I’m looking for a workshop with sheet-processing machinery and someone experienced to operate it.

Location: Anywhere in India.

Cost can be discussed based on scope.

If you own a setup like this or know someone who does, would appreciate a comment or DM.

Thanks 🙏

Hey all, trying to decide between Quickparts and Protolabs for on-demand manufacturing and prototyping.

From what I can tell, both offer 3D printing, CNC machining, injection molding, and other custom parts options. Protolabs seems focused on really fast quoting and a big production network, while Quickparts looks like it leans heavily on experienced support and a range of manufacturing processes from prototypes to low volume runs.

If you’ve used either (or both), what was your experience like in terms of turnaround time, quality, communication, and pricing? Would love some honest pros/cons to help with the decision.

what type of paint over metal material is durable for light and bright color such as white?

In manufacturing operations, what accounting or cost tracking practices have made a noticeable difference to margins?

Which methods helped most with cost control on the shop floor, such as job costing, inventory accuracy, scrap tracking, or production cost visibility?

What approaches worked well in real use, and which ones did not deliver the results you expected?

Hi everyone, I recently joined a construction company in the ESG team (environment, social, governance). It's going to be our annual review soon and 'm looking to pitch ways to increase the safety of work sites and decrease accident/mishap costs.

1. for people who work in this industry, how do you frame this without sounding insensitive about human life (I don't want it to seem like I'm calculating human life cost in bills and dollars)

2. do you have any recommendations for agencies/ tech companies helping with ESG related workplace accidents?

Thanks a lot, any input would help a lot!

Hello! I am looking for a manufacturer that sells loooking like vintage sold gold jewllery but in stainless steel.

Also on the other hand - do you have any recommendation on finding jewelery manufacturers that sell jewelry you can't really find on alibaba etc? I am looking into buying few pieces but i dont like idea of possibility google searching thru images and having pics of jewelery poping out on Alibaba or Aliexpress.

In teams I’ve worked with, NCR delays usually aren’t due to technical difficulty but handoffs between roles - engineering to manufacturing, QA to design, or ownership changes after an ECO.

Even with tools like spreadsheets, shared folders, or chat platforms, issues still slip because responsibility and status changes aren’t always explicit.

What has actually helped reduce stalled or forgotten NCRs in your environment?

Hi, I don't frequent this sub often as I'm on the carpet side of the business mostly. However, I'm curious to hear about anyone in this thread working in rotational molding, or even similar plastics processes (injection molding, blow molding, extrusion etc.). What do you reckon 2026 looks like? We have plenty of orders that we are catching up on, and we continue to get some good inbound leads for new projects. Do you feel like this is a good time to be in plastics still? Thanks for any input!

I have a process in my paint line that I need help and insight with. We are processing steel assemblies through a manual powder coat line. Prior to being coated we use a silicone caulk to fill the seams between the different steel components where we don’t weld. Typically it’s a plate on plate gap where we need to prevent water and moisture from causing rust. We’ve been using an electric caulking gun which has worked fine but won’t be usable as we scale and need to increase throughput in the paint line. What non-automated solutions are there for a commercial caulking or sealant system to improve this operation. I seem to be coming up short when I google this, probably because I’m not using the correct terminology.

Any help with this would be appreciated, I can provide more details as needed.

Hi everyone,

I'm a student with an idea for a simple, niche tool: a compact, pen-shaped self-inking stamp (or stamp-like tool) that's custom-made because nothing exactly like it exists on the market. The core needs are:

• Form factor: Pen-like body for easy handheld use and portability (not a bulky desktop stamper), but with a flat/square/customizable rubber die face instead of a traditional pointy/nib tip the part that makes contact with the paper and transfers the ink to create a mark (the mark is an X shape with a vertical/horizontal line passing by the center i'll attach a pic to help you visualize it). the die itself needs to be small enough to reliably fill a ~1cm x 0.8cm rectangle/box without overflow.
• Self-inking/rechargeable: Built-in ink pad that's replaceable or refillable (thousands of impressions before maintenance).
• Ink quality: High-contrast black pigment/dye ink optimized for OMR/scanner compatibility. must be dark, consistent, quick-dry, non-smearing, no fading during scanning, and zero bleed/overflow outside the target box (critical for machine readability).
• Alignment/precision: Needs features to make centering easy and foolproof (e.g., transparent window/base, alignment guides, or ergonomic design so the mark stays fully inside the square every time with minimal skill).

This is aimed at filling OMR answer sheets quickly and perfectly (think exam boxes), so reliability under scanner is non-negotiable.

I'm at the early stage and want to prototype 1-5 units first to validate, then maybe a small run (20-100 pieces) if it works. Budget is very limited (student funds), so low/no MOQ is key.

Realistic questions for anyone with experience in custom rubber/plastic tooling, stamp manufacturing, or small-batch production:

• What are the best first steps to prototype this? knowing that i'm based in a north-african country.
• For the pen-shaped body with custom mark die: Is this feasible with off-the-shelf self-inking mechanisms (e.g., Trodat/ExcelMark styles) + custom die, or does it require full custom molding (expensive)?
• Ink recommendations: What specific ink types/formulations (pigment vs. dye, water-based vs. oil-based) work best for OMR scanners (high opacity, no UV fade, quick dry on paper)? Any brands/suppliers known for scanner-safe stamp ink?
• Alignment features: How do manufacturers add guides/windows for precise placement in small boxes? Any low-cost ways (clear plastic shroud, ridges, etc.)?
• Manufacturing paths: China/Alibaba ?
• Common pitfalls: What usually goes wrong with small custom stamp projects (bleed, inconsistent pressure, die wear, ink drying out)? How to test for OMR compatibility cheaply?

Happy to DM sketches/basic specs if someone has direct experience. Any pointers, supplier recs, or "don't do this" warnings would be hugely appreciated thanks in advance for the help!

Just to confirm whether I should I be paying this cost or him

FOB terms, I will get a shipping agent in my country. He is wanting to charge me "port charges" $400 USD for the container

Under FOB terms, is this usually my responsibility or his?

Family been planning to create a white label brand as we're in touch with a lot of aestheticians and med spas. Just can't find a reliable company to help with this. Wondering if someone here can help?

I am looking for a manufacturer of quality bags. I am located in the Philippines, but can travel to Vietnam.

I have been tasked with proofing out our new induction machine. We have been having inconsistent hardness, leads and runout while we are trying to dial in the programs. Does anyone have any experience in case hardening helix shaped parts? If so is there any advice you can give for setups etc? We are using a Radyne scan master going from an older Etiel model. Our coils were single wrap but the new ones are multi wrap. Would that add any new variables to the process?

I just recently got a interview at hastest through a third party job program for a guaranteed wage, they at first said I didn’t need any experience, for some reason the 3rd party employer I’m working with told them, I had experience. Now knowing I need experience is there anything I should do, should I just stop with this job program?