Manufacturing Industry Dilemma: What's the Ideal Worker-to-Supervisor Ratio?

Ratio of Workers to Supervisors in Manufacturing Industry

In a manufacturing industry, what is the ratio of workers to supervisors? How many workers should be appointed per supervisor?

Regards

Before I answer your query, I want you to understand the role of a supervisor in your organization based on requirements or KPA and KPI. An individual taking charge as a supervisor should have the ability to handle their team, understand their team members, and guide them towards the right path.

A "supervisor" means not just supervising to what extent individuals are carrying out or delivering their responsibilities at the workplace within the stipulated timeframe. It's something more than supervising; you have to find out supervisory skills in your supervisors.

Based on my views, you are requested to define the ratio and please try to avoid assigning excess workload to any of your supervisors beyond their capacity, which may slow down productivity.

With profound regards,

For example, we have 14 shift supervisors in our foundry. In one shift, we have a capacity of 18 tons melting. Can you tell me if one supervisor in the moulding section can handle 20 workers?

I regret that I can't answer your query because only you can judge your supervisor's caliber and much more, as I am not available onsite to advise you on the best solution. How much distance does a supervisor need to travel to monitor 20 workers? This is a routine job that must be performed within an 8-hour shift. Kindly study this. Evaluate the paperwork to be carried out before the end of the shift. Based on these points, you can decide further. You can enhance the ratio gradually if the supervisor has less workload.

With profound regards,