Industrial Engineering Knowledge Center

Industrial Engineering is System Efficiency Engineering. It is Machine Effort and Human Effort IE. 4 Million Page View Blog. 200,000+ visitors. (36,000+ pv, 25,500+ visitors in 2025.)------------------ Blog Provides Industrial Engineering Knowledge: Articles, Books, Case Studies, Course Pages and Materials, Lecture Notes, Project Reviews, Research Papers Study Materials, and Video Lectures. 2025 - New Project - Effective Industrial Engineering and Productivity Management.

Saturday, May 2, 2026

Practice Areas of Industrial Engineering

Productivity Science - Determinants of Productivity

https://nraoiekc.blogspot.com/2017/10/productivity-science-determinants-of.html

Frameworks for Productivity Science of Machine Effort and Human Effort

Rao, Kambhampati Venkata Satya Surya Narayana.IIE Annual Conference. Proceedings; Norcross (2020): 429-434.

https://www.proquest.com/openview/5786c4e6edff56abf808b4db26f083b3/1.pdf

Product Industrial Engineering

The major techniques that constitute product industrial engineering are:

1. Value Analysis and Engineering

2. Design for Manufacturing

3. Design for Assembly

4. Design for Additive Manufacturing

5. Design to Cost

6. Design to Value

7. Design to Target Cost

8. Engineering Product Design Optimization

9. Six Sigma for Design Improvement - Robust Design (Video)

10. Life Cycle Cost Analysis based redesign

11. Design analysis done during Process Industrial Engineering

12. Lean Product Design Concept

https://nraoiekc.blogspot.com/2012/09/product-design-industrial-engineering.html

Process Industrial Engineering

Process Machine Effort Industrial Engineering - Methods and Techniques

Identifying, Analyzing and Installing High Productivity Equipment and Machines
Identifying, Analyzing and Utilizing High Productivity Special Processes
Developing special purpose machines
Installing accessories for productivity improvement
Using Jigs and Fixtures
Using more productive tools -
Using new lubricants
Using new cutting fluids
Cutting parameters optimization
Process parameters optimization - Six Sigma - Tolerances
Assembly line balancing - Redesign of work stations to facilitate balanced load on work stations and matching the line to tact time.
SMED
Poka Yoke
Method Study
Digital Transformation of Processes
Machine Work Study
Operation Analysis
Process Analysis
Electric power consumption analysis and reduction
Predictive maintenance
Preventive maintenance https://www.emaint.com/works/optimize-preventive-maintenance/
Total Productive Maintenance
OEE improvement https://www.oee.com/improve-oee.html
Lean Manufacturing
Manufacturing Cost Policy Deployment (MCPD)
Six Sigma
Equipment Replacement Study and Decision

Process Industrial Engineering - Case Studies and Examples

https://nraoiekc.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-function-of-methods-efficiency.html

Operations Research - An Efficiency Improvement Tool for Industrial Engineers

Problem Areas for Applying Operations Research

Loading machine centers for maximum utilization of equipment.

Controlling raw materials and in-process inventories.

Planning the minimum production costs schedules through the sequencing and allocation of men and machines.

Minimizing waiting times between operations

Determining the true incremental benefits of adding new production equipment.

Scheduling direct labour.

Determining the most favourable preventive maintenance plans.

Assigning individuals to specific jobs

Specifying least-cost shipment patterns in multiplant multivendor purchasing situations.

Locating warehouses so as to minimize freight and production costs.

Allocating advertising budget in the most efficient manner.

Source:

"Operations Research", Chapter 9-3 in Industrial Engineering Handbook, H.B.Maynard (Ed.) 2nd Edition

http://nraomtr.blogspot.com/2011/12/operations-research-efficiency.html

Statistics and Industrial Engineering

Book: Industrial Statistics: Practical Methods and Guidance for Improved Performance

Anand M. Joglekar

ISBN: 978-0-470-49716-6 April 2010 288 Pages

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. BASIC STATISTICS:

1.1. Capital Market Returns.

1.2. Sample Statistics.

1.3. Population Parameters.

1.4. Confidence Intervals and Sample Sizes.

1.5. Correlation.

1.6. Portfolio Optimization.

2. WHY NOT TO DO THE USUAL t-TEST AND WHAT TO REPLACE IT WITH?

2.1. What is a t-Test and what is Wrong with It?

2.2. Confidence Interval is Better Than a t-Test.

2.3. How Much Data to Collect?

2.4. Reducing Sample Size.

2.5. Paired Comparison.

2.6. Comparing Two Standard Deviations.

2.7. Recommended Design and Analysis Procedure.

3. DESIGN OF EXPERIMENTS: IS IT NOT GOING TO COST TOO MUCH AND TAKE TOO LONG?

3.1. Why Design Experiments?

3.2. Factorial Designs.

3.3. Success Factors.

3.4. Fractional Factorial Designs.

3.5. Plackett–Burman Designs.

3.6. Applications.

3.7. Optimization Designs.

4. WHAT IS THE KEY TO DESIGNING ROBUST PRODUCTS AND PROCESSES?

4.1. The Key to Robustness.

4.2. Robust Design Method.

4.3. Signal-to-Noise Ratios.

4.4. Achieving Additivity.

4.5. Alternate Analysis Procedure.

4.6. Implications for R&D.

5. SETTING SPECIFICATIONS: ARBITRARY OR IS THERE A METHOD TO IT?

5.1. Understanding Specifications.

5.2. Empirical Approach.

5.3. Functional Approach.

5.4. Minimum Life Cycle Cost Approach.

6. HOW TO DESIGN PRACTICAL ACCEPTANCE SAMPLING PLANS AND PROCESS VALIDATION STUDIES?

6.1. Single-Sample Attribute Plans.

6.2. Selecting AQL and RQL.

6.3. Other Acceptance Sampling Plans.

6.4. Designing Validation Studies.

7. MANAGING AND IMPROVING PROCESSES: HOW TO USE AN AT-A-GLANCE-DISPLAY?

7.1. Statistical Logic of Control Limits.

7.2. Selecting Subgroup Size.

7.3. Selecting Sampling Interval.

7.4. Out-of-Control Rules.

7.5. Process Capability and Performance Indices.

7.6. At-A-Glance-Display.

8. HOW TO FIND CAUSES OF VARIATION BY JUST LOOKING SYSTEMATICALLY?

8.1. Manufacturing Application.

8.2. Variance Components Analysis.

8.3. Planning for Quality Improvement.

8.4. Structured Studies.

9. IS MY MEASUREMENT SYSTEM ACCEPTABLE AND HOW TO DESIGN, VALIDATE, AND IMPROVE IT?

9.1. Acceptance Criteria.

9.2. Designing Cost-Effective Sampling Schemes.

9.3. Designing a Robust Measurement System.

9.4. Measurement System Validation.

9.5. Repeatability and Reproducibility (R&R) Study.

http://nraoiekc.blogspot.com/2012/07/statistics-and-industrial-engineering.html

Engineering Economics - An Efficiency Improvement Tool for Industrial Engineers

http://nraomtr.blogspot.com/2011/12/engineering-economics-is-efficiency.html

Human Effort Industrial Engineering

Relevant Principles of Industrial Engineering

Human effort engineering for productivity - Principle of Industrial Engineering

In the resources used in engineering systems, human resource is important because all economic activity is to satisfy needs of various categories of persons. Human resources employed in engineering systems have their own needs. Industrial engineers are unique in engineering disciplines in taking up the engineering of human effort. They have to synthesize the theories of human sciences, some of which are developed by industrial engineering also, to design human work for an optimal combination of productivity, income, comfort, health, safety and satisfaction of the employed.

Motion economy - Principle of Industrial Engineering

Operators use motions to do work directly or indirectly through machines. Principles of motion economy were developed by Frank Gilbreth initially. The set of principles is being extended by further research studies. They need to be employed in all industrial engineering studies in the redesign of human work in engineering systems of all branches.

Operator comfort and health - Principle of Industrial Engineering

As human effort engineers, industrial engineers are also concerned with comfort and health of operators. The productivity improvement should not lead to discomfort, fatigue and musculoskeletal disorders. Each human effort redesign project must be accompanied by an assessment of the comfort, fatigue and health dimensions

Selection of operators - Principle of Industrial Engineering

Different types of engineering trades and work require different types of proficiency from operators. Industrial engineers as well as managers have to identify the proficiency required and select persons for specific operations. Science provides the basis for identifying the proficiencies required for a trade and also the method of evaluating various persons.

Training of operators - Principle of Industrial Engineering

Industrial engineers have to train the operators in the new machine methods proposed by them and in the new man motions. The need to demonstrate the expected output from new methods by specially trained IE department operators is to be emphasized for acceptance of the new methods and resulting higher output.

Practice Areas

Motion Study

Use of the Human Body in carrying out Processes

Arrangement of the workplace

Design of tools and equipment

Predetermined Motion Time Systems

Rest allowances to prevent fatigue

Safety Aids and Engineering

https://nraomtr.blogspot.com/2011/12/motion-study-human-effort-engineering.html

Industrial Engineering Data and Measurements

Work Measurement

Productivity Measurement