Lime green uniforms flap in the breeze as they hang from the patios of attractive apartment buildings in Jiaxing Haining, next to one of Sunon's massive factory complexes. They are the unofficial “flags” of Sunon, a rags-to-riches success story that has catapulted this company into prominence as the largest office furniture maker in China — and in a few short years it could be one of the largest in the world.
The green uniforms are ubiquitous here, found on every one of the 1,200 employees that work at the Sunon factory complex between Hangzhou and Shanghai. The only difference in the uniforms is the collars. Those with yellow collars are the quality control specialists; those with gray collars are the floor managers and leaders.
Strolling along the roads that connect the plants, pairs of workers laugh and joke with each other, surrounded by copious amounts of greenery and fruit trees and huge wind turbines. It is a shockingly bucolic setting, more park than factory. Those visiting the Sunon complex expecting smoke-spewing stacks and lax safety conditions are in for a surprise. If not for the Chinese signs and workers speaking Mandarin, visitors might mistake it for any clean, efficient plant in Europe or North America.
Sunon is a Chinese office furniture maker that takes environmental issues seriously, treats its employees well and runs one of the most efficient plants you will find in this industry, anywhere. Maybe that's why Sunon has a loyal workforce, many of whom have worked in this factory complex for more than 10 years, an eternity in the history of the office furniture industry in China.
The huge factory buildings covering three million square feet of manufacturing space are filled with the latest furniture making machinery. Let's just say it would be a very good job to be the Sunon sales rep for Homag. The complex makes everything from laminate furniture to cubicles, sofas and chairs.
The workers are busy on cutting, CNC and edge-banding machinery. Sunon has one of the few four-sided, edge-banding machines. It uses lasers instead of glue to adhere the edge band. Other workers assemble the company's products and ship them to all parts of China and Asia and fill shipping containers for the world beyond.
The lime green clad workers work eight-hour shifts, typically from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 to 5:30 p.m., with a two-hour break midday. They work five or six days a week, depending on the output needs of the factory, and some overtime is common. The hourly rate is nowhere near their North American or European counterparts, but it is a good wage in China. The company also pays bonuses for ideas that help make the plant run more efficiently and holds contests for workers. During a recent visit, the sewing department was having one for the most efficient worker, with the top prize being a 1,000 RMB bonus (about $150).
While many in the U.S. have an “idea” of how a factory might look or operate in China, it is often wrong. Sunon uses the latest ERP system to manage the production of everything it makes. QR codes are attached to every product and scanned throughout the production process, letting the company know where everything is at all times.
The misconceptions about “Made in China” often include that the products are cheaply made or lack the same quality as furniture made in North America or Europe. Sunon, though, has an output quality control system where random inspections of its products are made.
It is important to Sunon that everyone knows how its products are made. At the back of one factory, a group of salespeople from throughout the company were being tested on assembling Sunon products. “If we don't know how to assemble our own products, how can we sell them?” said Derek Chien, who works on the company's North American sales team. “If we don't know the product's structure, there is no way we can sell them.”
And sell they do. During a visit to the manufacturing facility, a sales manager in charge of the Huawei project in Paris, France, was making sure the products were being made on time and to specification.
Sunon adheres to the Six Sigma philosophy, a measure of quality that strives for near perfection. Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects (driving toward six standard deviations between the mean and the nearest specification limit) in any process — from manufacturing to transactional and from product to service.
Though many have an idea of what a Chinese office furniture plant is and is not, a visit to Sunon proves that Chinese manufacturing has come a long way. The best examples, like Sunon, would fit perfectly in North America or Europe.
