Industrial Engineering Knowledge Center: Process Improvement - Industrial Engineering - Process Charting, Mapping, Analysis and Improvement

Monday, April 18, 2022

Process Improvement - Industrial Engineering - Process Charting, Mapping, Analysis and Improvement

Three Major Channels of Process Improvement.

1. Process Redesign by Process Planning Team.

2. Process Improvement Study by Industrial Engineering Team.

3. Continuous #Improvement by Involving Shop Floor Employees and All Employees.

FUNDAMENTALS OF INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING ONLINE ON-DEMAND

IISE Training Program

OVERVIEW

This seminar that enables you to create process improvement and performance enhancement for your company.

Learn how to improve processes, methods, tools, facilities, plans, and work environments for increasing effectiveness with the same resources (productivity increase = More effectiveness from the same measure of input of resources. Effectiveness from unit remains the same, but more units are produced due to productivity from the same resources hence increase in total effectiveness from the same inputs.).

Whether you work in manufacturing or service in private or government concerns, this course shows you how to use industrial engineering techniques as competitive tools to improve your organization.

https://www.iise.org/TrainingCenter/CourseDetail/?EventCode=FIO (22 April 2021)

INTRODUCTION TO INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING

Chapter 10: THE IE APPROACH

While the definition of industrial engineering says “the design or improvement” of a system, most IEs are involved in improvement. The IE approach is to continually improve the system.

A process can be described as any activity or group of activities that takes an input, adds value to it, and provides an output to an internal or external customer.

Process flow diagram or flowchart. A flowchart is a visual representation of the steps involved in the process being studied. If a product is being manufactured, the flowchart shows the operations done by different workers on that product. If a service is being produced, the flowchart shows the steps performed by different workers for that customer. Usually a flowchart should follow the product or the customer.

https://uta.pressbooks.pub/industrialengineeringintro/chapter/the-ie-approach/ (22 April 2021)

Process Industrial Engineering

by K.V.S.S. Narayana Rao (Author of Principles of Industrial Engineering, Functions and Focus Areas of Industrial Engineering)

Industrial engineering defined as system efficiency engineering has application in all branches of engineering.

Productivity improvement is needed in engineering systems of all branches and therefore industrial engineering needs to be used in all branches of engineering. It needs to be taught in all engineering branches.

Product and Process Industrial Engineering are two engineering areas of industrial engineering (10 Focus areas of industrial engineering)

Industrial engineering carried on processes to do productivity improvement and reduce cost is termed as process industrial engineering. Product industrial engineering and process industrial engineering, redesign of products and processes for productivity improvement and cost reduction are the core engineering activities in industrial engineering.

http://nraoiekc.blogspot.com/2017/02/process-industrial-engineering.html (22 April 2021)

Process Mapping - 1915 - Prof. Diemer's Concept

https://archive.org/stream/industrialorgan00diemgoog/industrialorgan00diemgoog_djvu.txt

INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT

HUGO DlEMER, B.A., M.E.

Professor of Industrial Engineering, Pennsylvania State College;

Consulting Industrial Engineer; Author of Factory Organization and Administration

La Salle Extension University, Chicago

Page 44

Process-mapping

Process-mapping consists of the charting of the general processes involved in the industry. Naturally, analytic manufacturing would present a different type of process-mapping from that of synthetic manufacturing. Similarly, an industry employing consecutive processes would present an entirely different process-mapping from that of an industry in which simultaneous processes are the rule. For instance, a linseed-oil factory is an extractive or analytic industry and would require an entirely different process-map from the one needed by a cement mill, which is a synthetic industry. Again,, a rail mill is a continuous process and requires entirely different process-maps from those of a sewing-machine factory, which typifies simultaneous processes followed by assembling.

Preliminary general process-maps can be made for a given industry by listing first the general operations. If these are all consecutive, we shall have the list in one column, if some are simultaneous, they will be in several columns. Then we can decide definitely, from our knowledge of the processes, which of them require separate buildings and which can be housed together, also which processes must be on the ground floor and which may be on upper floors. For example, it is easy to decide that painting agricultural machinery by the dipping process should be in a separate building from the machine work on the metal parts, and that assembling large boilers must be done on the ground floor.

We can now roughly sketch a phantom-perspective view of a building or group of buildings devoted to processing, for the present omitting power-plant and all service equipment. We may indicate in colored crayons or colored inks the various principal processes and the paths for the flow of materials; supplies, and work in process, as well as by-products and waste, if any. Figures 10, 11, 12, and 13 are simple forms of preliminary process- maps.

Routing of Individual Parts or Classes of Materials

Routing is different from process-mapping in that it traces the path of a single part. For instance, in making a process-map for an automobile factory, we have before us an entirely different task from that required if we route a crank case to be made in that same factory. To route the crank case, we inspect the blue-print and list the separate operations to be done. Process-mapping is a generalized survey of the whole industry. Routing is a detailed investigation which, when thoroughly built up, may materially modify preliminary process-mapping. A well-organized system of routing and a good stock of routing records covering the product form the very best basis for an intelligent process-map. Of course, in starting an entirely new industry the experience and judgment of the men in charge of the productive end of the enterprise form the only basis for process-mapping. Figure 14 is a typical routing card giving the operations to be performed on an individual part.

Process Improvement - Gilbreths' Process Chart

Frank Gilbreth developed process analysis and improvement also along with motion study. In 1921, he presented a paper in ASME, on process charts.

PROCESS CHARTS: FIRST STEPS IN FINDING THE ONE BEST WAY TO DO WORK

By Frank B. Gilbreth, Montclair, N. J. Member of the Society

and L. M. Gilbreth, Montclair, N. J. Non-Member

For presentation at the Annual Meeting, New York, December 5 to 9, 1921,

of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 29 West 39th Street, New York.

https://ia800700.us.archive.org/5/items/processcharts00gilb/processcharts00gilb_bw.pdf

The procedure for making, examining and improving a process is, preferably as follows:

a. Examine process and record with rough notes the existing process in detail.

b. Do studies

1. Process improvement studies. (working of machines and equipment).

2. Motion study (human effort)

3. Micromotion studies and chronocyclegraphs for recording very rapid motions.

c. Develop slides of process charts and results of various studies and show them in executives' theater to executives and workers.

d. Involve all in improving the process.

The improvement in process is measured through time and cost.

http://nraoiekc.blogspot.com/2017/02/process-industrial-engineering.html

ASME - Gilbreth Process Chart

Gilbreth proposed summarizing the data recorded on a process into process chart for providing the comprehensive starting point for process analysis for productivity improvement. Each step shown in the process has addition charts and data associated with it for detailed study and analysis by the productivity analysis and improvement team. Recording of data and preparation of process chart can be done by a limited number of persons. But productivity analysis team can be big and also they can be displayed so that more number of persons in the organization provide their suggestions for productivity improvement.

ASME appointed a committee to standardize the chart and the committee recommended the following steps.

Operation (Processing: Material Processing) - Inspection - Transportation - Delays - Storage

Each step has engineering knowledge and management (planning and control) knowledge associated with it. To do engineering process improvement for productivity, basic engineering knowledge and basic management knowledge are required.

In the area of manufacturing and machinery operation processes we can see the requirement of following subjects.

Material processing or machinery operation - Manufacturing processes, machinery operations manuals (For example hydraulic machinery, automobile engineering)

Inspection: Drawings, Specifications, Metrology and Measurement, Automated inspection

Transportation: Factory layout, Work station layout, Manual handling, Mechanical handling, Automated handling

Delays - Production quantity planning and control, Project planning and control, Maintenance, Rework

Storage: Storing parts, subassemblies, picking, kitting, issue procedures (Warehouse design, operation and management)

Process Industrial Engineering uses the process charts as the primary visualization devices for examining processes for industrial engineering (productivity engineering) them. The analysis of industrial engineering for process productivity improvement goes up to the lowest level like tool angles of a cutting tool. But the comprehensive process industrial engineering of a process begins by the creation of the process chart and its examination by each operation. That way to complete process is analysis without missing any operation.