Over the past 5 years I posted about sewing for Days for Girls International 28 times. What’s new? Last year I had the opportunity to change my shipments/deliveries to a new local team led by a long time friend. My work flow shifted as best described in Wikipedia as:
Lean manufacturing or lean production, often simply “lean“, is a systematic method for waste minimization (“Muda“) within a manufacturing system without sacrificing productivity, which can cause problems. Lean also takes into account waste created through overburden (“Muri“) and waste created through unevenness in work loads (“Mura“).
There is a second approach to lean manufacturing, which is promoted by Toyota, called The Toyota Way, in which the focus is upon improving the “flow” or smoothness of work, thereby steadily eliminating mura (“unevenness”) through the system and not upon ‘waste reduction’ per se. Techniques to improve flow include production leveling, “pull” production (by means of kanban) and the Heijunka box.
My emphasis has been on “improving workflow” in my attic sewing room.
My usual shipments to Iowa supported 40 kits with 10 items for each kit (Total=400).
With local delivery, I shifted to supporting 10 kits at a time (10 items for each kit/Total=100).
Although I still buy flannel 32 yards at time, 8 different colors/patterns 4 yards each…(this facilitates washing/drying impacting shrinkage)…which I cut into one yard lengths, which makes 10 flannel pads, which is very manageable and are placed in freezer gallon ziplock bags, which makes for easy counting and the ziplock bags are then provided in the finished DfGI kits.
I sew 80 flannel pads with 8 different colors/patterns combined into 10 ziplock bags. Then I make 20 liners with PUL, pockets and wings in 2 different color/pattern combinations (10 each in ziplock bags), which are delivered LOCALLY to be completed as 10 Days for Girls International Kits.
Local chapters pack sewn pads and liners with panties, wash cloth, soap, instructions in a sewn drawstring bag with the DfGI logo for delivery around the world. It is not just about sewing! Local chapters are encouraged to make deliveries. Our chapter delivered 50 DfGI kits to Haiti December 2018!
elfcroft 
Great post and excellent work. You are a real good person.