KENYA · GUIDE 0870 · EDITION 4.7
Decorative pottery making in Kenya: Operations and Quality Checks
Deliver the agreed result consistently
Offer decorative pottery with explicit intended placement and surface care, distinguishing display pieces from vessels customers may assume can hold food, water, or heat safely.
The operating sequence for this offer is:
- Agree whether the pottery is decorative or intended for another verified use, then define shape, dimensions and finish.
- Form and dry samples using competent technique, arrange appropriate firing, and track shrinkage, rejects and the finished dimensions.
- Inspect cracks, sharp edges and base stability, label non-food-use limitations where applicable, and pack fragile pieces with adequate protection.
Put acceptance into the job record
Stable pieces without cracks or sharp edges
Inspect the finished piece on a level surface for stability, cracks, sharp edges, and consistency with the approved shape and declared decorative use before packing.
Inspect at the point where a correction is still possible, then again at handover. Record rejected or incomplete output separately from accepted output. A completed task is not automatically an accepted task, and an invoice does not establish that the customer received the right result.
Measure real capacity
Time preparation, the main operation, transport, cleaning, approvals and correction as applicable. The slowest stage determines how much you can promise. Where two orders need the same person, space or equipment at the same time, resolve the conflict before confirming both deadlines. An additional enquiry should not erase a commitment already made.
| Operating checkpoint | Evidence for this business |
|---|---|
| Before starting | Offer decorative pottery with explicit intended placement and surface care, distinguishing display pieces from vessels customers may assume can hold food, water, or heat safely. |
| During delivery | Form and dry samples using competent technique, arrange appropriate firing, and track shrinkage, rejects and the finished dimensions. |
| At acceptance | Inspect the finished piece on a level surface for stability, cracks, sharp edges, and consistency with the approved shape and declared decorative use before packing. |
| At the pilot review | Document material and finish choices, intended use wording, firing defects, packing trials, buyer questions, and actual production time for forms considered for a repeat collection. |
Keep a correction and escalation rule
When inputs, access, specifications or customer instructions change, pause the affected work and confirm the effect on time and cost. Do not quietly lower the acceptance standard to avoid a delayed delivery. Keep rework caused by your error distinct from a customer-requested change of scope and agree the remedy clearly.
Customers may use a decorative vessel for water when its function is unclear, causing disappointment or damage even though the seller intended it solely for display.
Retain the minimum records needed to investigate a complaint without disclosing unrelated personal information. Use measured delivery and actual acceptance as the basis for expanding capacity, rather than the maximum theoretical output of a tool or production line.
Operating control points for this exact offer
| Sequence | Work method | Release checkpoint |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Draw the base, shoulder and neck at actual size and make one profile template. Ask the buyer to choose the colour sample and dry-stem opening. | Do not promise six identical wheel-thrown forms when the order is intentionally hand-built. |
| 2 | Use the chosen clay’s measured shrinkage trial with the studio to convert the target profile into a wet template. Weigh an initial portion and record the final trial mass. | The provisional 400 g per vase is a planning allowance, not a guaranteed body thickness or yield. |
| 3 | Form a stable base and add prepared coils or slabs using the studio’s joining method. Compress joins, check the profile and maintain a neck opening that can be finished without sharp edges. | A base that leans or a cracked join is corrected before the clay dries, not disguised with surface texture. |
| 4 | Mark pieces DV-01 through DV-06, dry under the studio’s instructions and use only the approved decorative finish. The kiln operator controls the process. | Provide clay/finish identity and keep unknown materials out of the firing load. |
| 5 | Check every foot on a flat surface, inspect rim and body for cracks and compare the six-piece silhouette set. Label dry decorative use and pack necks so they cannot strike one another. | Reject a structurally cracked vase; a dry-use label does not make a sharp or unstable piece acceptable. |
Do not substitute a tick for an observation: record the count, measurement, approved sample or evidence reference used at each checkpoint. Mark unresolved work as held and identify who can approve the recheck.
Diagnose a failure before repeating it
| Observed symptom to investigate | Check the cause | Proposed response |
|---|---|---|
| Neck opening collapses while drying | Check wall consistency and handling stage with the studio. | Revise the wet construction and drying support on the next sample; do not force a partly dry neck round. |
| Vase tilts on its base | Inspect the base template and early build alignment. | Correct before drying or reject after firing if a safe stable foot cannot be achieved. |
| Finish differs across the set | Compare finish identity, application and firing placement records. | Grade honestly against the approved sample and remake unacceptable outliers rather than altering photographs. |
These are diagnostic prompts, not proof of the cause in a real incident. Separate suspect output, record any correction and repeat the relevant acceptance check. Link rejected units, rework time, replacement materials, customer credits and collection delays to the actual job result.