Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Institute of Systems and Industrial Engineers - Areas of Expertise


ABOUT IISE

Systems world view. Productivity. Efficiency.                   These are words that describe the distinctive attributes of industrial engineering, and IISE is the world's largest professional society dedicated solely to the support of the industrial and systems engineering profession and individuals involved with improving quality and productivity. Founded in 1948, IISE is an international, nonprofit association that provides leadership for the application, education, training, research, and development of industrial and systems engineering. ISEs figure out a better way to do things and work in a wide array of professional areas, including management, manufacturing, logistics, health systems, retail, service and ergonomics. They influence policy and implementation issues regarding topics such as sustainability, innovation and Six Sigma. And like the profession, ISEs are rooted in the sciences of engineering, the analysis of systems, and the management of people. Join today!   
(http://www.iienet2.org/Default.aspx  Accessed on 30 August 2016)

Systems world view indicates that industrial engineering take care of productivity and efficiency at the system level that is enterprise level.

The basic area of application of industrial engineering is engineering activities in any concern. To improve productivity and efficiency, industrial engineering improve technical processes. They also examine management processes being used in the engineering activities to assess the contribution of management processes to low productivity. If the productivity is low, they need to study the management process to identify better ways to improve productivity.  Industrial engineering was used by organizations in non engineering activities also. Experienced industrial engineers were successful in increasing productivity of non-engineering activities also. But it is essential to stress that primary job of industrial engineers is to improve engineering activities using engineering knowledge and knowledge in mathetatics, statistics, social sciences, engineering economics and human sciences.

Sustainability movement which stress resource efficiency is an area where industrial engineers can contributed once again especially in engineering concerns.

Industrial engineers are innovators as they redesign products and processes. So innovation is a subject of interest for industrial engineers.

Six sigma is a two decade old optimization technique based on statistical data collection and analysis. Industrial engineering discipline recognized the utility of six sigma in improving productivity and made the technique part of IE tool kit.

Thursday, August 11, 2016

Productivity, Industrial Engineering and Cost Reduction in Automobiles


Value Engineering of Automobiles



2012
https://www.atkearney.com/automotive/ideas-insights/article/-/asset_publisher/LCcgOeS4t85g/content/frugal-re-engineering-innovatively-cutting-product-costs/10192?_101_INSTANCE_LCcgOeS4t85g_redirect=%2Fautomotive%2Fideas-insights


Cost-effective continual re-engineering (or continuous improvement in manufacturing parlance) of a product is the essence of frugal re-engineering.

For example, plastic parts can be redesigned to be made of polypropylene instead of costlier fiber-reinforced plastic, and low-temperature specs can be relaxed for window-channel grease in temperate regions that don't have harsh winters.



2003

NISSAN CONTINUED TO LEAD THE INDUSTRY IN PRODUCTIVITY IN FISCAL
YEAR 2003. ITS PLANTS ARE CONSISTENTLY THE MOST PRODUCTIVE IN
JAPAN, THE US, AND EUROPE. WITH NISSAN PRODUCTION WAY,

The Nissan Smyrna Plant set a new benchmark for productivity in fiscal year 2003, according to Harbour Report North America. The Report noted that the plant, located in Tennessee state and which
produces the Altima, reached the figure of 15.74 labor hours per vehicle—the highest ever in the history of the Report.

In a remarkable seventh year running, Nissan’s Sunderland, UK plant was ranked number
one in Europe, according to the World Markets Research Centre. And Nissan remains the productivity leader at home in Japan.

Productivity alone is not the goal, of course. Through Nissan Production Way (NPW) , the company continues to work towards true Douki-Seisan—a build-to-order system schedule that is synchronized
with the customer’s needs, to provide a higher level of service, more individualized choice, and swifter product production and delivery. The NPW sets out two “never ending” goals: to continuously work for the synchronization of Nissan’s manufacturing with customer needs, and an ongoing
quest to identify problems in the manufacturing process and to put solutions in place.

http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/DOCUMENT/PDF/AR/2003/ar2003_10.pdf


Updated 13 August 2016,  17 June 2015

Monday, August 8, 2016

August Second Week - Industrial Engineering Knowledge Revision

Methods Efficiency Engineering - Analysis of Working Conditions and Method





Work is done most effectively and efficiently under good, comfortable working conditions.

Questions. The industrial engineering, during operation analysis, should consider the following points :

1. Is light ample and sufficient at all times?

2. Are the eyes of the operator protected from glare and from reflections from bright surfaces?

3. Is lighting uniform over the working area?

4. Has lighting been checked by an illumination expert?

5. Is proper temperature for maximum comfort provided at all times?

6. Is plant unduly cold in winter, particularly on Monday mornings ?

7. Is plant unduly warm in summer?

8. Would installation of air-conditioning equipment be justified?

9. Can fans be used to remove heat from solder pots, furnaces, or other heat-producing equipment?

10. Could an air curtain be provided to protect operator from intense heat?

11. Is ventilation good?

12. Are drafts eliminated?

13. Can fumes, smoke, and dust be removed by an exhaust system?

14. Is floor warm and not damp?

15. If concrete floors are used, can mats or platforms be provided to make standing more comfortable?

16. Are drinking fountains located near by?

17. Is water cool, and is there an adequate supply?

18. Are washrooms conveniently located?

19. Are facilities adequate and kept properly clean?

20. Are lockers provided for coats, hats, and personal belongings?

21. Have safety factors received due consideration?

22. Is floor safe, smooth but not slippery?

23. Is wooden equipment, such as work benches, in good condition and not splintery?

24. Are tools and moving drives and parts properly guarded?

25. Is there any way operator can perform operation without using safety devices or guards?

26. Has operator been taught safe working practices?

27. Is clothing of operator proper from safety standpoint?

28. Are workplace and surrounding space kept clear at all times?

29. Do plant, benches, or machines need paint?

30. Does plant present neat, orderly appearance at all times?

A brief discussion of a few of the principal factors:

Light, Heat, and Ventilation. 


Light, heat, and ventilation are matters to be designed by the illumination and heating engineers. But, the industrial engineering can tell by personal observation when these conditions are bad, and he can point out the effect that they have on production. Accurate work, for instance, cannot be done in the dark  and improper lighting conditions have to be corrected. In many communities, the utility companies provide experts who will survey lighting conditions and make recommendations without cost. Advantage should be taken of this service even where lighting to the untrained observer appears fairly good. Eyestrain is a serious matter and can and should be eliminated.

It has been shown conclusively by researchers that good working conditions pay. Although it is often difficult to measure directly and immediately the saving brought about by the installation of a new lighting or heating system, it is a good policy to recommend their provision wherever the present systems are found to be inadequate. Throughout industry, it is found that the plants which provide the best working conditions are those which are leaders in their field. This alone would indicate that the provision of good conditions is a profitable investment.

Safety


Safety engineering and methods engineering are closely related. The methods engineer is interested in labor efficiency and effectiveness. In order to work effectively, the operator must be able to concentrate upon the work at hand. If an accident hazard exists, however, he must divide his attention between doing the job and keeping out of danger. Therefore, the methods engineer is interested in the elimination of accident hazards.

As the result of his detailed study of all aspects of production,  industrial engineering is in an excellent position to discover accident hazards and to make suggestions for their elimination. He studies every move made by the operator, and hence he discovers the moves that carry parts of his body into a danger zone. He "can then either eliminate the moves by changing the motion sequence or take steps to have the danger zone guarded.

A kick press equipped with a safety device  and the operation analyst was informed that the device was foolproof, that it was the best safety device in the department. The analyst observed the operation of this safety device along with all the other factors of the job. In order to operate the kick press, the operator had to place the material in position, grasp the two bars, and swing them to one side. He then stepped on the treadle of the machine and performed the operation.

The operation appeared clumsy and inefficient to the analyst. Because the material could not be held in place by the operator, it tended to slide out of position. Clips were provided to hold it down, but to use them required so much time that the operator preferred not to do so. As a result, the material did slip out of position occasionally, and scrap was produced. The movements necessary to operate the bars carried the hands of the operator out of the danger zone, but they were fatiguing and time-consuming. A further investigation showed that the safety device could be circumvented very easily. If after making a stroke with the press, the operator did not allow the treadle fully to return to the off position, the bars rested in a position and there was plenty of room to draw material through the die. When the treadle was depressed again, the bars slid to the position in which small and inconspicuous block of wood affixed to the treadle of the machine would prevent it from returning to its off position, and hence the operation could be done easily without using the safety device.

The industrial engineers and the safety engineer,  then proceeded to devise a new  guard . This guard really is foolproof. The operator cannot get his fingers under the die in any way, but he has complete control of the operation at all times. As a result, the operation is safer and much faster than it was before.


Other Working Conditions


Space is provided on the analysis sheet for comments about any factors that affect the operation that have not previously been considered. The following list of questions will indicate the kind of items that should be considered at this point:

1. How is the amount of finished material counted?

2. Is there a definite check between pieces completed and pieces paid for?

3. Can automatic counters be used?

4. Is pay-roll procedure understandable?

5. Is the design of the part suitable to good manufacturing ' practices?

6. What clerical work is required from the operator to fill out time cards, material requisitions, and the like?

7. Can this work be delegated to a clerk?

8. What sort of delay is likely to be encountered by the operator, and how can it be avoided?

9. How is defective work handled?

10. Should operator grind his own tools, or should this be done in toolroom?

11. Should order department be requested to place fewer orders for larger quantities?

12. What is the economic lot size for the job being analyzed?

13. Are adequate performance records maintained?

14. Are new men properly introduced to their surroundings, and are sufficient instructions given them?

15. Are failures to meet standard performance requirements investigated?

16. Are suggestions from workers encouraged?

17. Do workers understand the incentive plan under which they work?

18. Is a real interest developed in the workers in the product on which they are working?

19. Are working hours suitable for efficient operation?

20. Is the utilization of costly supply materials checked?

It will be seen from the general nature of the questions listed above that the methods engineer recognizes his responsibility toward everything connected with the job he is analyzing. It will not satisfy him to say that the designs are made by the engineering department or that the shop routine is set up by the management. He realizes that his own intimate knowledge of shop methods and conditions gives him an advantage which many other members of the organization do not possess, and he therefore feels it his duty to question all phases of manufacture in the hope of revealing possibilities for improvement.

For example, a designer who is making a drawing of a steel shaft, having in its length several different diameters, knows how to lay out the shaft, taking into consideration strength, size, and suitability of purpose. He probably knows in a general way that the shaft will be turned on a lathe and that at the junction of two sections of different diameters it is better from the standpoint of ease of machining to call for a fillet with radius r as ia (a), Fig. 105, rather than to specify a squared-out corner as shown in (&) of the same figure. What he may not realize, however, is that for reasons of manufacturing economy, the fillet is machined with a specially ground tool, known as a "radius tool" which is the exact size of the radius to be turned. Therefore, if there are several fillets to be turned on the same shaft, he may call for, say one 1/4-inch radius, two 3/8-inch radii, and one  1/2-inch radius, being governed largely by the difference in the diameters of the adjacent sections.

If this incorrect and unnecessary feature of design is allowed to pass unchallenged, it means that three radius tools must be used instead of one. When the shaft is turned on an engine lathe, time for two extra " change tool " operations must be allowed. This is unnecessary and wasteful, and the design should be changed.

From the nature of the many examples of operation improvements that have been given throughout this book, it will be seen that if the analyst is to do his work so as to bring about maximum manufacturing economy, he must concern himself with every detail connected with every job he studies. Common sense, of course, must be used in interpreting this statement. In practical work, it means that the analyst should consider, at least briefly, every detail that is likely to affect operation time.

Method. 


All analysis work is done for the purpose of improving the method by which the operation is done. The various factors that affect method directly or indirectly are considered in detail, and improvements are made wherever possible. As a result, many economies are made that eliminate motions and reduce costs.

Before the study can be considered complete, however, the motions that remain and that appear to be necessary must themselves be studied in considerable detail. It is not enough to say that a part is to be obtained by picking it out of the gravity delivery chute. The location of the end of the chute should be such that the hand can move between it and the point where the material is worked upon with the shortest and lowest class motion. The height of the chute should be such that the transport motions can be made without a change of direction. The motions used for grasping must be worked out so that the fewest possible are employed. If two parts are required, it must  be decided whether they are to be grasped and transported together or separately. The best position of the hand and of the material in the hand must be determined so that no time is lost in positioning the material at the place of work.

In short, every motion must be analyzed in detail for the purpose of shortening it and making it as effective as possible. This, a secondary form of analysis, is known as motion study. Motion study is itself a detailed procedure which will require as lengthy a discussion as the subject of operation analysis. Therefore, it will merely be mentioned here that motion study is the next logical step in the methods study after operation analysis.

Full Knol Book - Method Study: Methods Efficiency Engineering - Knol Book



Modified and unpdated on 10 August 2016
Updated 4 July 2015, First published 24 Nov 2011

Monday, August 1, 2016

August First Week - Industrial Engineering Knowledge Revision








In this month's revision plan the focus is on production process improvement which also includes management of processes. If management is responsible for poor productivity, industrial engineers have to propose changes in management methods, practices and tools to improve productivity.

Process Efficiency Improvement

Technology Efficiency Engineering
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First Week

   The Function of Methods Efficiency Engineering
   Approach to Operation Analysis as a Step in Methods Efficiency Engineering

   Scope and Limitations of Methods Efficiency Engineering
    Operation Analysis Sheet

    Using the Operation Analysis Sheet
    Analysis of Purpose of Operation

    Analysis of All Operations of a Process as a Step of Each Operation Analysis
    Analysis of Tolerances and Inspection Standards

    Analysis of Material in Operation Analysis
    Tool Related Operation Analysis