Kiln Centerline Management
Working smarter, not harder.
Good centerline management tools should be a top priority for any process. Centerlining is a philosophy or methodology that utilizes established settings to ensure consistency. Knowing and developing centerlines as one works through processes makes it possible to troubleshoot and be proactive about possible outages. Documenting and controlling all the parts of the process can also simplify work and make work and firing more manageable. At times, variables may introduce themselves in many different ways, but with good centerline management toward a goal, the journey to that goal can be more enjoyable. At the wood firing of the Bill Moon wood kiln at Imagine Peace Pottery, I saw good centerline management in play.
All the safety gear in Bill’s kiln shed was in place and easy to find. Everyone knew where the first aid kits were and the emergency numbers. All the paperwork and expectations were in one place in a book and very well organized. All the safety expectations were well-known and followed. In the kiln shed, all the work and tools were organized. Everything had a place, and there was a place for everything. This is something that I lack in my own pottery. Personally, I always spend time looking for tools and gear. Much effort loss is added to the processes at my studio due to not having the correct tools in the correct places when needed. After working at the wood firing, I realized I needed to get organized to be safe and more efficient and reduce effort loss.
The kiln log books were amazing as they listed all the dampers and peephole placement, temperature, and stoke times. Also, there was plenty of room for notes in the log book. It seemed the log book was created specifically for this kiln. Looking through, it was quite easy to see where things got off track and were corrected, where testing was done, where shift changes happened, what dampers were moved, and when. This made the firing process more organized, as more things seemed to be done from planning rather than from reacting. There were for sure many reactions as the many variables changed, but having a good centerline management in the kiln book with recording information of the process, changes, and progress, the firing progressed smoother than what I had been using in the past. I may need to make custom kiln log sheets. Personally, I may back them up digitally, but hopefully, having a written copy and a backup will save them from being lost.
The kiln itself was labeled. Even a visitor such as myself could find the peephole and other parts of the kiln, as they were clearly marked. The dampers had markings to measure how open or closed the peephole ports were numbered, and even the bricks for the door were numbered as a more efficient way to close up the work inside the kiln. The placement of cones was set the same way in each peephole to avoid confusion. However, in one section, they were not, and more attention needed to be given, but it was noted to avoid confusion. Observing the labels, I realized I could be more efficient by doing much of the same. Even for my gas kilns, I fire here at my studio. When my own kiln is rebuilt, I need to use the labeling and centerline management system on the kiln itself to monitor and find things more easily.
Also, the work teams were centerline. It was clear who the team leader was and who to take direction from. It was clear who was to do what in the process and when. If there were outages, changes could be made. If you had a bad time completing the task, you would be helped or sent to make coffee or to take a break. The raw materials and wood were stacked together, so there was not too much effort loss in going through a pile to find what piece to stoke with. Each piece that was stoked was laid out beforehand to make the stoking more efficient and less work.
I learned that I might need to tighten up my centerline processes more as I tend to work harder and not smarter. I realized that in my own firings here with the gas kilns and creating pots, I had a lot of effort loss that I could eliminate. Working a full-time job and making the pots demand I be efficient so that I can complete the key activities in the best way possible to get some good-looking pots. Bill would tell you himself, I’m sure that there are things he would like to improve as he moves his work and process forward. For sure, everyone runs their processes and firings differently, and everything we do is practice.
What about you? Do you have good centerline management tools in place to make your work more efficient? Do you try to record the many different processes or techniques you try to learn to make things easier? Or are you like me, with things scattered about? Feel free to let me know. I need to go now and start organizing and cleaning my own studio to make it better. No need to do everything all at once. Work on your centerline management a little each day, and it will all add up. I hope you do good work today and create some amazing pots.
