A common saying about ‘consultants’ is that they will look into your watch to tell you the time…, and the Sri Lankan-origin Aminda Atthanayake, MD & CEO of the consultancy firm Spectrum Lanka Technology Solutions Limited (SLTS), does not shy away from accepting it. Aminda, who has spent five years in Bangladesh RMG sector as a professional and the subsequent 15 years as a consultant, has seen the sector weather several ups and downs. An ardent garment sector enthusiast, one can sense that Aminda has what it takes to imbibe the best practices in the factories to ensure operational excellence. In an exclusive interaction with Apparel Online, he speaks of his journey and his style of consulting…
AO: How did SLTS come into existence?
AA: I came to Bangladesh in 1995, to open up operations for a UK-based buyer, and within a year-and-a-half, I managed to transform it from the verge of a shutdown to one of the best operations in the world. It was all because there was not much technical know-how available with the manufacturers at that time and the term ‘Consultant’ was alien to the country. A part of my job was to help the industry improve its systems to get better quantities and on-time deliveries. Around the same time, I also helped BGMEA set up its training institute by designing its curriculum. Around the year 2000 I quit my job, and around September that year, began my career as a Consultant with SLTS. Gradually, SLTS has grown to embrace every challenge thrown at the Bangladeshi RMG sector – be it environmental compliance, workplace compliance or as of today the challenge of operational excellence. Today we are even running courses for corporates for operational excellence. A testament of our acceptance in the industry is the fact that SLTS has commissioned 350 projects till date.
AO: Even as the country enjoys the second largest share in global apparel manufacturing scenario, what is missing in Bangladesh today?
AA: The biggest wrong is that the efficiencies are still very low at 25 to 40 per cent which tells you the potential this country has. People don’t know their ‘wastages’ and if I tell them that they are losing money because of wastages, nobody will believe it. To prove myself, I would tell them Bangabazar, Islampur, Mirpur Market, Narayanganj Market…, all are selling second-hand exports, and these markets are much bigger than the entire garment industry surplus. So who is manufacturing for them? This is made with the fabric and material that you are wasting.” All the hard work put by the manufacturer is sold to the ‘muscle men’ at BDT 5-10. This is sheer wastage of resources, i.e. machinery, fabric, electricity and land. The other factor which bothers me is the missing production planning. The operator will be producing only 40 pieces in an hour from an expensive automat. And when I time him, it turns out that he can produce 300-400 pieces. When asked why he doesn’t usually perform at this level, his simple response is: “Sir, nobody has asked me,” which truly sums up the state of the affairs. Most companies have a production manager, who will take the garment in the hand and say, “Insha’Allah, I will give you 40 pieces.” This is the planning. But things are changing drastically, although not the way it should be as they are changing without a structure.
AO: What is your approach to projects?
AA: We have a blended methodology. We use all the tools of World Class Manufacturing – Kaizen, Kanban, 5S but we never use these names. Because, while the client may be well-versed with these principles, his team may not be qualified enough… And if we start explaining the jargon it will mean either the junior team would not understand the process in full or teaching these jargons to the management might bring discomfort to senior people, as they feel that they stand to lose their credibility. Whenever you go to implement a system, you have to take stock of other processes as well. How can you take care of it and not cause much harm. Honestly, there has been a lot of deficit in terms of skill development in this country at every level – be it operator or otherwise. We build the transformation in two phases – the first phase is preparations – where people illustrate acceptance, political walls are brought down as not many people like their territories to be invaded. The next is improvements. By the time we come to improvement, the barriers have been taken care of and the people are opening up to accept the change. Moreover, our consultants work full time with factories so that the persuasions and negotiations are done actively.
AO: Where do you think the industry will head in the times to come?
AA: In the next three years, the revolution would belong to ‘green’ buildings. Currently, most people set up a beautiful factory and expect operational efficiency and sustainability to fit into it. Soon, environmental sustainability will take centre-stage and people will start taking it scientifically. Even efficiency of the supply chain will gain prominence.