Simultaneously with using polarizing films that are pre-housed in a container in an adhesion step, the processing rate of each mechanism in a cutting step is adjusted to allow a new container housing polarizing films that have been cut to liquid-crystal panel size to be transported in from the cutting step. While the cutting away of regions having defects in the polarizing films thereby continues in the cutting step, this process allows the time delay to be reduced by adjusting the processing rate of at least the cutting mechanism-side processing mechanisms, among the various processing mechanisms that are provided in the cutting step and the adhesion step.