Thursday, August 10, 2023

Industrial Engineering - Role of Engineering, Mechanization and Automation

 Book: Motion and Time Study: Design and Measurement of Work, Ralph M. Barnes

7th Edition

Chapter 18. Motion Study, Mechanization, and Automation

Man is making efforts to find easier and better ways to produce the goods and services he needs and wants. Originally, we can think that work was done with bare hands.  After some period, man discovered use of stones, branches of trees etc. as tools to help him. This evolved into shaping them into more useful tools. Then special efforts were done to create tools using wood and metals.

In the progress of technology achieved by man, machines appeared. Initially they were called simple machines with a pivot providing mechanical advantage and man is able to move bigger and bigger weight compared to his muscle strength or strength of many persons combined. Then, power driven machines appeared. The evolution of technology progressed to automatic machines, which can be given electric power with operation of switch and man need not bother about its working till it stops due to some problem.

To do a task in the most productive manner, the most efficient manual method (best manual method), best mechanized method and best automation method are to be compared and the most productive method has to be employed. This comparison has to be done at element or suboperation level.

In the chapter, Barnes gave the example examining, categorizing and packing eggs. He gave four methods starting from completely manual to automatic process of all the operations involved.

Barnes clearly clarified the limited role of motion and time study in industrial engineering discipline. 

Motion and Time Study is a part of Industrial Engineering.

Motion and Time Study is not the entire field of industrial engineering. In recent years, there has been a tendency in this direction.  P.6, Third Edition, 1949.

But industrial engineering curriculums have not created proper content for discussing and developing mechanization and automation in IE programs. Even now, proper focus is not being given. This gap was identified and machine work study was proposed.


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Industrial Engineering - Role of Engineering, Mechanization and Automation


In process improvement study or projects, to do a task in the most productive manner, the most efficient manual method (best manual method), best mechanized method and best automation method are to be compared and the most productive method has to be employed. This comparison has to be done at element or suboperation level.

Source: Book: Motion and Time Study: Design and Measurement of Work, Ralph M. Barnes, 7th Edition, Chapter 18. Motion Study, Mechanization, and Automation.


Jidoka - Automation and Mechanization - Process Engineering and Industrial Engineering in Toyota Production System

Jidoka, a pillar of Toyota Production Systems advocates automation with human touch in all operations of a process to increase productivity of operators as well as that of total systems.



How to implement Jidoka in Lean Manufacturing ? Autonomation

Knowledge Factory-Lean Six Sigma
"Jidoka, also known as automation with a human touch, comes from the Japanese word for 'autonomation'. It's about creating a system where machines, not humans, identify and resolve errors."


Manufacturing Automation Management

A Productivity Handbook

By Roger W. Bolz · 2012

Preview

https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Manufacturing_Automation_Management/oRaoBgAAQBAJ



Ud. 14.6.2023

Pub 24.9.2021

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