ILO Book Introduction To Work Study

INTRODUCTION
TO
WORK
S TUDY
Edited by George Kanawaty
Fourth (revised) edition
International L ab ou r Of f ic e G enev a
Fou rth edition c opyright International L ab ou r Organisation 1992
First pu b lished 1957
Fou rth edition 1992
Pu b lic ations of the International L ab ou r Of f ic e enjoy c opyright u nder Protoc ol 2 of the Univ ersal Copyright
Conv ention. Nev ertheless, short exc erpts f rom them may b e reprodu c ed withou t au thorisation, on c ondition that
the sou rc e is indic ated. For rights of reprodu c tion or translation, applic ation shou ld b e made to the Pu b lic ations
Branc h (Rights and Permissions), International L ab ou r Of f ic e, CH-1211 G enev a 22, S witzerland. The Interna-
tional L ab ou r Of f ic e welc omes su c h applic ations.
Kanawaty, G . (ed.)
Introduction to work study (f ou rth edition)
G enev a, International L ab ou r Of f ic e, 1992
/Tf extb ook/, /Work stu dy/, /Theory/, /Tec hnic al aspec ts/s. 12.04.5
IS BN 92-2-107108-1
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Preface
to the fourth (revised) edition
Du ring the 12 years that hav e passed sinc e the third (rev ised) edition of this
b ook was pu b lished, many dev elopments hav e taken plac e. Tec hnology has
b rou ght ab ou t prof ou nd c hanges in methods of operation, whether at the
f ac tory or in the of f ic e. Innov ations in produ c tion management hav e b rou ght to
the f ore a whole array of new and promising approac hes to methods of work.
There has b een a c ontinu ed growth in the serv ic es sec tor, mostly at the expense
of the indu strial and agric u ltu ral sec tors. S imu ltaneou sly, new and dif f erent
arrangements of working time were introdu c ed in a mu ltitu de of enterprises.
Work stu dy c ou ld not remain indif f erent or aloof to su c h c hanges. If one
of its aims is to improv e methods of work, it c annot ac hiev e that goal in
isolation f rom c u rrent thinking and f u tu re trends that relate to operations
tec hnology. Fu rthermore, adv anc es in tec hnology, partic u larly in the f ield of
inf ormation systems, c an b e harnessed to b ec ome a powerf u l tool of work
stu dy.
With this in mind, the present edition was prepared. S ix new c hapters
dealing with produ c tion management approac hes and their relation to work
stu dy were added (Part Three), as well as a new c hapter on method stu dy at the
of f ic e. The part dealing with work measu rement (Part Fou r) was rev ised so as
to enc ompass the whole spec tru m of tec hniqu es ranging f rom mac rosc opic
systems su c h as stru c tu red estimations to mic ro approac hes su c h as
predetermined time standards. S ec tions on the u se of inf ormation systems and
c ompu terization in work stu dy were inc orporated in the text alongside more
traditional approac hes. The c hapters on working c onditions and new f orms of
work organization were also rev ised in line with c u rrent thinking in these areas.
We hope that with this new orientation the b ook will c ontinu e to enjoy the
wide popu larity and su c c ess with whic h it met in dev eloping and indu strialized
c ou ntries alike. In f ac t, to date and sinc e it was f irst pu b lished in 1957 ov er
300,000 c opies hav e b een sold, so that Introduction to work study easily heads
the list of b est-selling b ooks pu b lished b y the IL O. The prev iou s editions were
also translated into many langu ages.
The original 1957 edition was intended mainly as a training manu al f or
u se b y people attending c ou rses in work stu dy at management dev elopment
and produ c tiv ity c entres in the nu merou s c ou ntries to whic h IL O tec hnic al
c ooperation missions were attac hed. It also aimed at prov iding b asic teac hing
material f or memb ers of the staf f of these c entres. This original edition was
prepared b y the late C. R. Wynne-Rob erts, at the time Chief of the v
INTRODUCTIONTOWORKSTUDY
Management Dev elopment Branc h of the IL O, in c ollab oration with E. J.
Ric hes, f ormer Treasu rer and Comptroller to the IL O. S ev eral memb ers of IL O
management dev elopment teams working in the f ield helped to prepare detailed
and v alu ab le c omments, among them Hans Fahlstrm, L . R Ferney, Hy Fish,
C. L . M. Kerkhov en, J. B. S hearer and S eymou r Tilles. S ev eral others su c h as
F. de R Hanika, Winston Rogers and the late T. U. Matthew c ontrib u ted
v alu ab le c ritic ism and c ommentaries.
The sec ond rev ised edition was pu b lished ten years later. Certain aspec ts
of the b ook, partic u larly the part on work measu rement, were strengthened
while the original intention of keeping the b ook as an introdu c tory text to b e
u sed mainly f or edu c ational pu rposes was adhered to. This edition was
prepared b y R. L . Mitc hell, then an of f ic ial of the IL O Management
Dev elopment Branc h. This rev ision b enef ited f rom the adv ic e and
c ollab oration of J. B. S hearer.
The third rev ised edition, pu b lished in 1979, was intended to reorient the
pu b lic ation so as to make it equ ally u sef u l to the work stu dy prac titioner,
teac her and stu dent. S ev eral new c hapters were introdu c ed, and other c hapters
modif ied su b stantially to ac c ommodate dev elopments in work stu dy and also to
illu strate how work stu dy c an c ontrib u te b oth to produ c tiv ity improv ement and
to a saf e and satisf ying working env ironment. The editor of this edition was
G eorge Kanawaty, then Chief of the IL O Management Dev elopment Branc h,
who also wrote sev eral parts of the new, material. Usef u l and v alu ab le
c ontrib u tions were made b y J. Bu rb idge, F. Ev ans, R. L indholm, L .
Parmaggiani and P. S teele.
The c u rrent edition was again c onc eiv ed and edited b y G eorge Kanawaty,
Consu ltant and f ormer Direc tor of the IL O Training Department, who wrote
many c hapters of the new material while u pdating others. Partic u lar
ac knowledgement is du e to John Heap, of L eeds Polytec hnic in the United
Kingdom, f or his v alu ab le c ontrib u tion to the present text and his earlier
rev iew of the prev iou s edition. S ev eral c olleagu es of the IL O Working
Conditions and Env ironment Department c ontrib u ted the rev ised c hapter on
working c onditions. They inc lu de K. Kogi, J. Thu rman, D. G old, J. C. Hib a,
S . Mac hida, G . Trah, S . L i and N. V . Krishnan. Thanks are also du e to Rolf
L indholm f or u pdating the c hapter on work organization. Klau s North of the
IL O Entrepreneu rship and Management Dev elopment Branc h rev iewed the
prev iou s edition and c oordinated the preparation of the present one.
L ast b u t not least, a work of this natu re requ ires c onsiderab le tec hnic al,
administrativ e and sec retarial b ac k-u p. Ac knowledgements are in order to the
staf f of the IL O Editorial and Doc u ment S erv ic es Department, partic u larly
R. Beattie and L . Neil, and to D. Klingler, F. Kau f mann and C. Pett f or
their helpf u l and v alu ed administrativ e and sec retarial assistanc e. The index
was c ompiled b y P. Nash.
V I
Contents
Preface to the fourth (revised) edition V
Part One. Productivity, work study and the human factor
1. Productivity and the quality of life 3
1. Basic needs, quality of life and productivity 3
2. What is productivity? 4
3. Productivity in the individual enterprise 5
4. The task of management 6
2. Work study and productivity 9
1 . Howthe total time of a job is made up 9
2. Interrelationship of the various methods used to reduce ineffective time 1 3
3. Work study, the approach 1 7
1 . Why is work study valuable? 1 7
2. Techniquesof work study and their relationship 1 9
3. Basic procedure of work study 21
4. Work study and production management 21
4. The human factor in the application of work study 25
1 . The human factor in enterprise operations 25
2. Work study and management 26
3. Work study and the supervisor 27
4. Work study and the worker 29
5 . The work study practitioner 32
5. Working conditions and the working environment 35
1 . General considerations 35
2. Occupational safety and health organization 36
3. Safety criteria 37
4. The prevention of industrial accidents 39
5 . Working premises 42
6. Good housekeeping 42
7. Lighting 45
8. Noise and vibration 5 0 VII
INTRODUCTIONTO WORKSTUDY
9. Climatic conditions 5 5
1 0. Exposure to toxic substances 60
1 1 . Personal protective equipment 61
1 2. Ergonomics 62
1 3. Working time 65
1 4. Work-related welfare facilities 70
Part Two. Method study
6. Method study and the selection of jobs 75
1 . The approach to method study 75
2. Selecting the work to be studied 76
3. Limiting the scope of the work to be studied 79
7. Record, examine, develop 81
1 . Record the facts 81
2. Examine critically: The questioning technique 94
3. Develop the improved method 1 05
8. Movement of workers in the working area 1 09
1 . Movement of workers and material 1 09
2. The string diagram 1 09
3. The worker-type flow process chart 1 1 6
4. The multiple activity chart 1 20
5 . The travel chart 1 32
9. Methods and movements at the workplace 1 39
1 . General considerations 1 39
2. The principles of motion economy 1 40
3. Classification of movements 1 43
4. Further notes on workplace layout and simplification of movements 1 43
5 . Noteson the design of jigs, tools and fixtures 1 48
6. Machine controls and displays of dials 1 49
7. The two-handed process chart 1 49
8. Micromotion study 1 5 5
9. Other recording techniques 1 5 6
1 0. The development of improved methods 1 5 6
1 0. Evaluate, define, install, maintain 1 5 9
1 . Evaluating alternative methods 1 5 9
2. Defining the improved method 1 61
3. Installing the improved method 1 62
4. Preparing to make the changes 1 64
5 . Controlling the change-over 1 67
6. Maintaining the new method 1 5 7
VIII 7. Conclusion 1 68
CONTENTS
1 1 . Method study in the office 1 69
1 . The importance of method study in the office 1 69
2. The procedure for improving methods of work in the office 1 70
3. Design and control of forms 1 76
4. Office layout 1 81
5 . Quality control in the office 1 84
Part Three. Selected production management techniques
1 2. Production design and materials utilization 1 87
1 . Product design 1 87
2. Utilization of materials 1 92
1 3. Quality control 1 95
1 . Meaning and scope 1 95
2. Statistical quality control 1 96
3. The Taguchi approach 1 98
4. Total quality control 1 99
5 . Work study and quality control 200
1 4. Layout, handling and process planning 201
1 . Layout 201
2. The handling of material 206
3. Developments in manufacturing technology 21 1
4. Process planning 21 5
5 . Work study, layout, handling and process planning 21 7
1 5 . Production planning and control 221
1 . The scope of production planning and control 221
2. Production planning and control in continuous production 222
3. Production planning and control in intermittent production 222
4. Planning and control of special projects 224
5 . Work study and production planning and control 227
1 6. Inventory control 229
1 . The nature of the inventory problem 229
2. Traditional approaches to inventory control 229
3. Just-in-time inventory method 232
4. Work study and inventory control 235
1 7. Maintenance 237
1 . The scope of maintenance 237
2. Organization of maintenance 238
3. Work study and maintenance 240
IX
Part Four. Work measurement
18. General remarks on work measurement 243
1 . Definition 243
2. The purpose of work measurement 243
3. The uses of work measurement 246
4. The basic procedure 247
5 . The techniques of work measurement 247
19. Work sampling and structured estimating 249
1 . The need for work sampling 249
2. Afew words about sampling 25 0
3. Establishing confidence levels 25 0
4. Determination of sample size 25 2
5 . Making random observations 25 4
6. Conducting the study 25 7
7. Rated work sampling 260
8. Group sampling techniques 260
9. Using work sampling 261
1 0. Structured estimating 262
20. Time study: The equipment 265
1 . What is time study? 265
2. Time study equipment 265
3. Time study forms 270
4. Other equipment 280
21. Time study: Selecting and timing the job 281
1 . Selecting the job 281
2. The approach to the worker 282
3. Steps in making a time study 286
4. Obtaining and recording information 286
5 . Checking the method 288
6. Breaking the job into elements 289
7. Deciding on the elements 291
8. Sample size 292
9. Timing each element: Stop-watch procedure 294
22. Time study: Rating 297
1 . The qualified worker 297
2. The "average" worker 299
3. Standard rating and standard performance 301
4. Comparing the observed rate of working with the standard 305
5 . What is rated? 306
6. Factors affecting the rate of working 307
7. Scales of rating 309
CONTENTS
8. How the rating factor is used 31 1
9. Recording the rating 31 2
23. Time study: From study to standard time 31 3
1 Summarizing the study 31 3
2. Preparing the study summary sheet 31 4
3. Extension: The calculation of basic time 31 5
4. The selected time 31 6
5 . Completing the study summary sheet 323
6. Electronic time study 323
7. How many studies? 324
8. The analysis of studies sheet 327
9. Work content 328
1 0. Allowances 329
1 1 . Calculation of allowances 330
1 2. Relaxation allowances 331
1 3. Other allowances 333
1 4. The standard time 336
1 5 . Work measurement in the office 337
24. Setting time standards for work with machines 343
1 . Plant and machine control 343
2. Restricted work 346
3. One worker and one machine 348
4. Calculation of relaxation allowances 35 0
5 . Unoccupied time allowance 35 3
6. Multiple machine work 35 6
25. Example of a time study 361
26. Predetermined time standards 381
1 . Definition 381
2. Origins 382
3. Advantages of PTS systems 383
4. Criticisms of PTSsystems 383
5 . Different forms of PTSsystems 384
6. Use of PTS systems 387
7. Application of PTS systems 394
27. Standard data 409
1 . Major considerations 409
2. Developing the standard data 41 0
3. Use of PTS systems to develop standard data 41 7
4. Externally sourced standard data 426
5 . Computerized measurement systems 427 XI
28. The use of time standards 431
1 . Definition of the work covered by time standards 431
2. The work specification 432
3. The standard unit of work 434
4. Production planning and the utilization of plant and human resources 435
5 . Estimating production costs 436
6. Standard costing and budgetary control 437
7. Incentive schemes 437
8. Organization of an information system associated with work
measurement 438
Part Five. From analysis to synthesis
29. Combining methods and tasks: New forms of work organization 443
1 . Method study and work measurement: Basic tools for job design 443
2. Design of individual work roles 445
3. Design of group work in production 45 2
4. Design of product-oriented organizations 464
5 . Design of enterprise-oriented organizations 466
6. Criteria of good work organization: Some concluding remarks 471
Part Six. Appendices
1 . Glossary of terms used 477
2. Check-list of useful questions in developing a new method of work 483
3. Example of tables used to calculate relaxation allowances 489
4. Conversion factors 499
5 . Selected bibliography 5 03
index 5 07
Figures
1 . Role of management in coordinating the resources of an enterprise 7
2. How operational time is made up 1 0
3. Basic and added work content 1 4
4. How management techniques can reduce ineffective time 1 5
5 . Work study 20
6. The approach to work study 22
7. The four basic methods of controlling occupational hazards classified by
decreasing order of effectiveness 38
8. Arrangement and storage of tools 44
9. Mounting of general lighting units 47
1 0. Need for generaliighting 47
XII 1 1 . Maximum recommended spacing for industrial-type units 47
CONTENTS
1 2. Factors influencing the degree of glare produced by a given diffusing fitting (or
a bare fluorescent lamp unit) 48
1 3. Relativecost of incandescent and fluorescent lighting 49
1 4. Recommended ranges of reflection factor for main interior surfaces 5 0
1 5 . Distance at which the normal voice can be heard against background noise 5 2
1 5 . Temporary hearing threshold shift in dB as a function of duration of exposure to
wide-band noise 5 3
1 7. Limits of heat exposure 5 6
1 8. The operator/machine interface 5 3
1 9. Ergonomie display design 64
20. Ergonomie design of controls 5 6
21 . Method study symbols 85
22. Switch rotor assembly 86
23. Outline process chart: Switch rotor assembly 88
24. Some charting conventions 90
25 . Flow process chart: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing 92
26. Flow process chart Material type: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing
(original method) 93
27. Flow diagram: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing 98
28. Flow process chart Material type: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing
(improved method) 1 00
29. Flow diagram: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (original method) 1 03
30. Flow process chart: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (original method) 1 04
31 . Flow diagram: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (improved method) 1 06
32. Flow process chart: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (improved
method) 1 07
33. A string diagram 1 1 0
34. A simple movement study sheet 1 1 1
35 . String diagram: Storing tiles (original method) 1 1 4
36. String diagram: Storing tiles (improved method) 1 1 5
37. Flow diagram: Serving dinners in a hospital ward 1 1 8
38. Flow process chart Worker type: Serving dinners in a hospital ward 1 1 9
39. Multiple activity chart: Inspection of catalyst in a converter (original method) 1 21
40. Multiple activity chart: Inspection of catalyst in a converter (improved
method) 1 23
41 . Multiple activity chart Worker and machine: Finish mill casting (original
method) 1 24
42. Multiple activity chart Worker and machine: Finish mill casting (improved
method) 1 25
43. Combined team work and machine multiple activity chart: Crushing bones
(original method) 1 28
44. Crushing bones: Layout of working area 1 29
45 . Combined team work and machine multiple activity chart: Crushing bones
(improved method) 1 31
46. Travel chart: Movements of messenger in office 1 33
47. A simple study sheet 1 35 XIII
48. Weighted travel chart: Material handling 1 36
49. Normal and maximum working areas 1 42
5 0. Semi-circular and circular working arrangement 1 44
5 1 . Recommended dimensions for seated tasks 1 45
5 2. Various bins and motion-economy devices 1 46
5 3. An example of a workstation layout 1 47
5 4. Two-handed process chart: Cutting glass tubes (original method) 1 5 2
5 5 . Two-handed process chart: Cutting glass tubes (improved method) 1 5 4
5 6. Standard practice sheet 1 63
5 7. Atypical learning curve 1 66
5 8. The hierarchy of office systems, procedures and methods 1 72
5 9. An example of a specimen chart 1 73
60. A procedure flow chart 1 74
61 . AnX-chart 1 78
62. A personnel record form 1 79
63. From idea to final product 1 89
64. Computer-assisted design (CA) 1 90
65 . Reducing component parts in product design 1 91
66. An X-chart: Process within control limits 1 98
67. An X-chart: Process drifting 1 98
68. Types of layout 202
69. Developing the flow for a number of products, using the cross chart 204
70. Manoeuvrability of robots 209
71 . Different possibilities of handling the same object 21 0
72. Developments in manufacturing technology 21 1
73. The evolution of car painting 21 3
74. Computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) 21 4
75 . Changing functional layout to a line or product layout 21 7
76. A block diagram in line manufacturing 21 8
77. A flow diagram in line manufacturing 21 9
78. Planning and control for line production: Master production plan 223
79. Bar diagram or Gantt chart 224
80. CPM activities 225
81 . A network diagram using normal times 226
82. A network diagram using crash times 228
83. The relationship between total costs to order and to carry and the number
of orders placed 230
84. Re-order point and buffer stock 232
85 . A simplified JIT (Kananj scheme 233
86. A simplified illustration of Kanban movement 234
87. Work measurement 248
88. Proportional distribution of "heads" and "tails" (1 00 tosses of five coins ata
XIV time) 25 0
CONTENTS
89. Distribution curve showing probabilities of combinations when large
samples are used 25 1
90. Curve of normal distribution 25 2
91 . Nomogram for determining number of observations 25 5
92. Example of a simple work sampling record sheet 25 9
93. Work sampling record sheet showing machine utilization and distribution
of idle time 25 9
94. Work sampling record sheet showing distribution of time on ten elements of
work performed by a group of four workers 25 9
95 . A decimal-minute stop-watch 267
96. Time study boards 269
97. An electronic stop-watch 270
98. An electronic study board 271
99. General-purpose time study top sheet 272
1 00. Continuation sheet for general-purpose time study (front) 274
1 01 . Simple type of short cycle study form 275
1 02. Short cycle study form (front) 276
1 03. Short cycle study form (back) 277
1 04. Study summary sheet 278
1 05 . Analysis of studies sheet 279
1 06. Distribution of times taken by workers to perform a given job 300
1 07. Effect of ineffective time on performance 304
1 08. Effect of payment-by-results incentive on the time taken to perform an
operation 305
1 09. Effect of extension on the time of an element 31 7
1 1 0. A graphical method of selecting basic time 321
1 1 1 . An example of a study summary sheet produced using electronic capture
devices 325
1 1 2. Cumulative average basic times for a constant element 326
1 1 3. Allowances 331
1 1 4. How the standard time for a simple manual job is made up 337
1 1 5 . Explanatory diagram of machine time 345
1 1 6. Result of method study on milling operation 347
1 1 7. Milling operation: Improved method 349
1 1 8. Four operations with machine elements 35 2
1 1 9. Machine interference 35 8
1 20. Card giving details of elements and break points 362
1 21 . Sketch of part and of workplace layout 363
1 22. Timestudy top sheet 364
1 23. Time study continuation sheet (page 2) 366
1 24. Time study continuation sheet (page 3) 368
1 25 . Working sheet 370
1 26. Study summary sheet 372
1 27. Extract from the analysis of studies sheet 374 XV
1 28. Calculation of relaxation allowance 376
1 29. Machine time and allowances 379
1 30. PTS data levels: Basic motions 385
1 31 . Base assembly 397
1 32. Base assembly workplace layout 398
1 33. MTM-2 analysis sheet, base assembly 399
1 34. Restricted walking 41 4
1 35 . Base times for cross-cutting wood of varying width and thickness 41 5
1 36. Base curve for cross-cutting wood 2 cm thickness and of varying width 41 7
1 37. Factor curve for cross-cutting wood of varying width and thickness 41 8
1 38. Sequence of elements in a power press operation 421
1 39. Basic elements of power press work 422
1 40. Power press work: Example of TRA/VSPORTelements and distances 422
1 41 . Power press work: Example of standard data determined by MTM-2 (tabular
presentation) 423
1 42. Power press work: Example of standard data determined by MTM-2 (algorithmic
presentation) 424
1 43. Power press work: Standard data application form 425
1 44. Compilation of computerized standard data: A schematic representation 427
1 45 . Deriving a computerized standard time for an operation 428
1 46. MEZA scheme for developing standard data 429
1 47. PLAZETscheme for deriving standard times of operations 430
1 48. Some examples of the building of buffer stock in manufacturing operations 45 0
1 49. Machine-paced line 45 4
1 5 0. Worker-paced line 45 5
1 5 1 . Automated process 45 6
1 5 2. Concentrated operation 45 7
1 5 3. Assembly of motor car engines 45 9
1 5 4. Line grouping and parallel grouping 460
1 5 5 . Schematic diagram of a flow-oriented group 462
1 5 6. Flow group for the manufacture of pump axles 463
1 5 7. Layout for a heat exchanger unit 466
1 5 8. Manufacture of electric motors 467
Tables
1 . Properties of various industrial floor surfaces 43
2. Recommended minimum values of illumination for various classes of
visual task 46
3. Recommended maximum lighting intensity ratios 46
4. Duration of continuous noise exposure which should not be exceeded to ensure
the prevention of occupational deafness amongst the majority of workers 5 4
XVI 5 . Control of working climate 5 8
CONTENTS
6. Pareto analysis step 1 77
7. Pareto analysis step 2 78
8. The most commonly used method study charts and diagrams 82
9. Classification of movements 1 43
1 0. Critical path method: Normal and crash times and costs for performing
activities 227
1 1 . Proportional distribution of "heads" and "tails" (1 00 tosses of five coins at a
time) 25 1
1 2. Table of random numbers 25 6
1 3. Determining the sequence of time for random observations 25 7
1 4. Rated work sampling recording sheet 261
1 5 . Number of recommended cycles for time study 294
1 6. Specimen performance distribution 301
1 7. Examples of various rates of working on the principal rating scales 31 0
1 8. Final calculation of relaxation allowance 378
1 9. Computation of standard time 379
20. Components of a basic PTS 382
21 . Scope of application of data 386
22. MTM-2 data card 388
23. Fitting a nut and washer on a stud 396
24. Methods-Time Measurement application data in tmu 401
25 . Restricted walking 41 3
26. Base times for cross-cutting wood of varying width and thickness 41 5
27. Standard data elements in light engineering and assembly work 41 9
28. Minimum data required for work measurement and labour control records 439
XVII
PART ONE
Productivity, work study
and the human factor
CHAPTER 1
Productivity and the
quality of life
1. Basic needs, quality of life and productivity
In 1950 the world popu lation stood at 2.5 b illion. By the year 2000 it will reac h
6.2 b illion, an inc rease of 250 per c ent in ju st 50 years. Ov er 90 per c ent of that
inc rease has oc c u rred in dev eloping c ou ntries. By the year 2000 c lose to
1 b illion people will b e liv ing b elow the pov erty line and stru ggling to meet
their b asic needs. These b asic needs are:
D Food
Enou gh f ood ev ery day to generate the energy needed f or liv ing and
working.
D Clothing
Enou gh c lothing to af f ord protec tion f rom adv erse weather c onditions and
to permit b odily c leanliness.
D Shelter
A shelter that prov ides protec tion u nder healthy c onditions and that is
equ ipped with c ertain hou sehold equ ipment and f u rnitu re.
D Security
S ec u rity against v iolenc e and against u nemployment, and that prov ides
f or one's personal needs in sic kness or old age.
D Health and essential services
S af e drinking-water, sanitation, ac c ess to energy u se, medic al c are,
edu c ation and a means of transport.
For b etter-of f segments of the popu lation, the aspiration is to raise their
standard of liv ing f u rther and improv e their qu ality of lif e. This is f oreseen as
an improv ement in the qu ality of these b asic needs, and in the range and
qu antity av ailab le so that a person exerts the option of c hoic e among v ariou s
alternativ es, f or example in hou sing, c lothing or f ood. Hu man aspirations also
extend to a desire f or a healthier and c leaner env ironment, c u ltu ral ac tiv ities,
the ab ility to hav e and make u se of leisu re time in an enjoyab le manner, and an
inc ome that wou ld allow a person to su pport these v ariou s endeav ou rs.
For a soc iety or a nation to raise the standard of liv ing of its popu lation, it
mu st striv e to maximize the retu rn f rom its resou rc es or improv e productivity
so that the ec onomy c an grow and su stain a b etter qu ality of lif e.
2. What is productivity?
Produ c tiv ity may b e def ined as f ollows:
OUTPUT
PRODUCTIV ITY = ^j
This def inition applies in an enterprise, a sec tor of ec onomic ac tiv ity or
the ec onomy as a whole. The term "produ c tiv ity" c an b e u sed to assess or
measu re the extent to whic h a c ertain ou tpu t c an b e extrac ted f rom a giv en
inpu t. While this appears simple enou gh in c ases where b oth the ou tpu t and the
inpu t are tangib le and c an b e easily measu red, produ c tiv ity c an b e more
dif f ic u lt to estimate onc e intangib les are introdu c ed. L et u s take an example.
A potter working eight hou rs a day produ c es 400 pots a month u sing a
wood-f ired kiln.
D L et u s assu me that as a resu lt of a c hange in the method of work he was
ab le to produ c e 500 pots a month instead of 400 with the same equ ipment
and hou rs of work. His produ c tiv ity c alc u lated in terms of nu mb er of pots
produ c ed will then hav e inc reased b y 25 per c ent.
D L et u s now assu me that as a resu lt he was u nab le to sell all 500 pots and
had to lower his pric e f rom $2 a pot to $1.80 a pot. If he wants to assess
his produ c tiv ity gain, the potter may b e more interested in u sing monetary
terms rather than simply the nu mb er of pots produ c ed. He c ou ld then
argu e that the v alu e of his ou tpu t u sed to b e 400 X 2 = $800 a month and
is now 500 X 1.80 = $900 a month. His inpu t has not c hanged. Henc e his
produ c tiv ity gain is ^
9
P
0
Q
~?
Q (
^= 12.5 per c ent.
$800
From this delib erately simple example, one c an make two ob serv ations.
First, produ c tiv ity was u sed to measu re inc rease in ou tpu t expressed in
nu mb ers of pots produ c ed, in the f irst c ase, and in monetary terms in the
sec ond, giv ing dif f erent v alu es in eac h c ase. In other words, depending on what
one is interested in measu ring, the natu re of the ou tpu t and inpu t will v ary
ac c ordingly. S ec ond, while ac tu al production inc reased in this example f rom
400 to 500 pots, productivity in monetary terms did not show the same
c orresponding inc rease. This means that we hav e to distingu ish b etween
inc reased produ c tion and inc reased produ c tiv ity, whic h in this example was
measu red in terms of monetary gains.
L et u s c ontinu e with ou r example and assu me that the potter dec ided to
replac e his wood-f ired kiln b y an oil-f ired kiln. This c ost him an
inv estment of $6,000, whic h he rec kons shou ld b e amortized ov er ten
years. In other words, the c ost of this inv estment will b e $600 a year f or
ten years, or $50 a month. He also wou ld need oil that wou ld c ost him
$50 a month more than what he wou ld hav e paid f or the wood. L et u s also
assu me that his produ c tion remained c onstant at 500 pots a month.
Measu red in monetary terms, the v alu e of his ou tpu t is 500 X 1.80 = $900
per month, f rom whic h will b e dedu c ted $50 f or c apital inv estment and
$50 f or f u el, or $100. Thu s his monetary gain is $900 - $100 = $800.
PRODUCTIVITYANDTHE QUALITYOF LIFE
In this c ase his produ c tiv ity expressed in monetary gain has not improv ed
sinc e, while originally he was produ c ing only 400 pots, he sold them f or
$2 eac h arriv ing at the same f inanc ial f igu re.
D Howev er, ou r potter may wish to argu e that as a resu lt of the new kiln his
qu ality has improv ed, that he will hav e f ewer rejec ts retu rned and that the
u sers' satisf ac tion will inc rease ov er time so that he may b e ab le to
inc rease his pric e again. Fu rthermore, his own sense of satisf ac tion at
work has improv ed, as it has b ec ome mu c h easier to operate the new kiln.
Here, the def inition of the ou tpu t has b een enlarged to enc ompass qu ality
and a relativ ely intangib le f ac tor, that of c onsu mer satisf ac tion. S imilarly,
the inpu t now enc ompasses another intangib le f ac tor, that of satisf ac tion
at work. Thu s produ c tiv ity gains b ec ome more dif f ic u lt to measu re
ac c u rately b ec au se of these intangib le f ac tors and b ec au se of the time lag
that needs to b e estimated u ntil u sers' satisf ac tion will permit an inc rease
in pric es of the pots produ c ed in the new kiln.
This simple example helps to show that the f ac tors af f ec ting produ c tiv ity
in an organization are many, and of ten interrelated. Many people hav e b een
misled into thinking of produ c tiv ity exc lu siv ely as the produ c tiv ity of lab ou r,
mainly b ec au se lab ou r produ c tiv ity u su ally f orms the b asis f or pu b lished
statistic s on the su b jec t. It also b ec omes ev ident how, in a c ommu nity or a
c ou ntry, improv ing produ c tiv ity or extrac ting the b est possib le yield f rom
av ailab le resou rc es does not mean exploitation of lab ou r b u t the harnessing of
all av ailab le resou rc es to stimu late a higher rate of growth that c an b e u sed f or
soc ial b etterment, a higher standard of liv ing and an improv ed qu ality of lif e.
In this b ook, howev er, we will b e restric ting ou rselv es to produ c tiv ity issu es
and more spec if ic ally to work stu dy as it applies to the indiv idu al enterprise.
3. Productivity in the individual enterprise
Produ c tiv ity in the indiv idu al enterprise may b e af f ec ted b y a series of external
f ac tors, as well as b y a nu mb er of def ic ienc ies in its operations or internal
f ac tors. Examples of external f ac tors inc lu de the av ailab ility of raw materials
and skilled lab ou r, gov ernment polic ies towards taxation and tarif f s, existing
inf rastru c tu re, c apital av ailab ility and interest rates, and adju stment measu res
applied to the ec onomy or to c ertain sec tors b y the gov ernment. These external
f ac tors are b eyond the c ontrol of any one employer. Other f ac tors, howev er, are
within the c ontrol of managers in an enterprise and these are the ones that will
b e disc u ssed.
The output and input factors n an enterprise
In a typic al enterprise the ou tpu t is normally def ined in terms of produ c ts or
serv ic es rendered. In a manu f ac tu ring c onc ern, produ c ts are expressed in
nu mb ers, b y v alu e and b y c onf ormity to predetermined qu ality standards. In a
serv ic e enterprise su c h as a pu b lic transport c ompany or a trav el agenc y, the
ou tpu t is expressed in terms of the serv ic es rendered. In a transport c ompany
this may b e the nu mb er of c u stomers or tons of c argo per kilometer c arried.
In a trav el agenc y it c ou ld b e v alu e of tic kets sold or av erage v alu e of tic kets
per c u stomer, and so on. Both manu f ac tu ring and serv ic e enterprises shou ld
equ ally b e interested in c onsu mers' or u sers' satisf ac tion, su c h as nu mb er of
c omplaints or rejec ts.
On the other hand, the enterprise disposes of c ertain resou rc es or inpu ts
with whic h it produ c es the desired ou tpu t. These are:
D Land and buildings
L and and b u ildings in a c onv enient loc ation.
D Materials
Materials that c an b e c onv erted into produ c ts to b e sold, b oth as raw
materials or au xiliary materials su c h as solv ents or other c hemic als and
paints needed in the proc ess of manu f ac tu ring and pac kaging material.
D Energy
Energy in its v ariou s f orms su c h as elec tric ity, gas, oil, or solar power.
D Machines and equipment
Mac hines and equ ipment nec essary f or the operational ac tiv ities of the
enterprise, inc lu ding those intended f or transport and handling, heating or
air c onditioning, of f ic e equ ipment, c ompu ter terminals and the like.
D Human resources
Men and women trained to perf orm the operational ac tiv ity, to plan and
c ontrol, to b u y and sell, to keep trac k of ac c ou nts and to perf orm other
operations su c h as maintenanc e or administrativ e and sec retarial job s.
Another f ac tor of produ c tion or inpu t is that of capital whic h, while not
explic itly def ined here, is implic itly inc lu ded sinc e it is u sed to f inanc e the
pu rc hase of land, mac hinery, equ ipment, materials and lab ou r, and to pay f or
the serv ic es rendered b y hu man resou rc es.
The u se whic h is made of all these resou rc es c omb ined determines the
productivity of the enterprise.
4. The task of management
The management of an enterprise is responsib le f or seeing that the enterprise
resou rc es mentioned ab ov e are c omb ined in the b est possib le way to ac hiev e
the highest produ c tiv ity.
In any c onc ern larger than a one-person b u siness (and to some extent ev en
in a one-person b u siness), harnessing and c oordinating these resou rc es and
b alanc ing one resou rc e against another is the task of management. If
management f ails to do what is nec essary, the enterprise will f ail in the end. In
su c h a c ase, the f iv e resou rc es b ec ome u nc oordinated like the ef f orts of f iv e
horses withou t a driv er. The enterprise like a driv erless c oac h mov es
f orward jerkily, now held u p f or lac k of material, now f or lac k of equ ipment,
b ec au se mac hines or equ ipment are b adly c hosen and ev en more b adly
maintained, or b ec au se energy sou rc es are inadequ ate or employees u nwilling
to c ontrib u te their b est. Figu re 1 illu strates this management f u nc tion.
PRODUCTIVITYANDTHE QUALITYOF LIFE
Figure 1 . Role of management in coordinating the resources of an enterprise
INPUTRESOURCES
Management
obtains the facts,
plans,
directs,
coordinates,
controls,
motivates
in order to
produce
OUTPUT
Products and services
In its qu est f or higher produ c tiv ity, an ef f ic ienc y-minded management
ac ts to inf lu enc e either one or b oth of the two f ac tors, the ou tpu t (i.e. produ c ts
and serv ic es) or the inpu t (i.e. the f iv e resou rc es at its disposal). Thu s
management may b e ab le to produ c e a larger qu antity of , and/or b etter-qu ality
or higher-v alu e, produ c ts or serv ic es with the same inpu t, or it may ac hiev e a
b etter resu lt b y c hanging the natu re of the inpu t su c h as inv esting in adv anc ed
tec hnology, inf ormation systems and c ompu ters or b y u sing an alternativ e
sou rc e of raw material or energy.
It is rare, howev er, that one manager or a small team of top managers c an
b y themselv es attend to the normal ru nning of an enterprise and at the same
time dev ote enou gh thinking and energy to the v ariou s issu es inv olv ed in
improv ing produ c tiv ity. More f requ ently they will rely on spec ialists to assist
them in this task, and among them is the work stu dy prac titioner. In the next
c hapter, we shall see how work stu dy and produ c tiv ity are related.
CHAPTER 2
Work study and
productivity
In the prev iou s c hapter, we mentioned that management f requ ently c alls on
spec ialists to assist it in improv ing produ c tiv ity. One of the most powerf u l tools
they c an u se is that of work stu dy.
Work study is the systematic examination of the methods of
carrying on activities so as to improve the effective use of resources
and to set up standards of performance for the activities being
carried out.
1
Work stu dy then aims at examining the way an ac tiv ity is b eing c arried
ou t, simplif ying or modif ying the method of operation to redu c e u nnec essary or
exc ess work, or the wastef u l u se of resou rc es, and setting u p a time standard
f or perf orming that ac tiv ity. The relation b etween produ c tiv ity and work stu dy
is thu s ob v iou s. If work stu dy resu lts in c u tting down the time of perf orming a
c ertain ac tiv ity b y 20 per c ent, merely as a resu lt of rearranging the sequ enc e or
simplif ying the method of operation and withou t additional expenditu re, then
produ c tiv ity will go u p b y a c orresponding v alu e, that is b y 20 per c ent. To
apprec iate how work stu dy ac ts to c u t down c osts and redu c e the time of a
c ertain ac tiv ity, it is nec essary to examine more c losely what that time c onsists of .
1. How the total time of a job is made up
The time taken b y a worker or a mac hine to c arry ou t an operation or to
produ c e a giv en qu antity of a c ertain produ c t may b e c onsidered as made u p in
the f ollowing manner, whic h is illu strated in f igu re 2.
There is f irst:
The basic work content of the product or operation
2
Work c ontent means, of c ou rse, the amou nt of work "c ontained in" a
giv en produ c t or a proc ess measu red in "work-hou rs" or "mac hine hou rs".
' This def inition dif f ers somewhat f rom that giv en in the British S tandards G lossary. S ee British
S tandards Institu tion (BS I): Glossary ofterms used in management services, BS 3138 (L ondon, 1991).
2
The word "operation", whenev er u sed, applies also to non-manu f ac tu ring ac tiv ities su c h as
transport serv ic es or of f ic e operations. 9
Figure 2. How operational time is made up
Basic work
content
Total time
of
operation
under
existing
conditions
Total
ineffective time
Basic
work
content
of product
and/or
operation
Work
content
added by
poor product
design or
materials
utilization
Work
content
added by
inefficient methods
of manufacture or
operation
Ineffective
time
resulting from
human resources
contribution
10
WORKSTUDYANDPRODUCTIVITY
A work-hour is the lab ou r of one person f or one hou r.
A machine-hour is the ru nning of a mac hine or piec e of plant f or one
hou r.
The b asic work c ontent is the time taken to manu f ac tu re the produ c t or to
perf orm the operation if the design or spec if ic ation of the produ c t or serv ic e
prov ided were perf ec t, if the proc ess or method of operation were perf ec tly
c arried ou t, and if there were no loss of working time f rom any c au se
whatsoev er du ring the period of the operation (other than legitimate rest pau ses
permitted to the operativ e). The basic work content is the irreducible
minimum time theoretically required to produce one unit of output.
This is ob v iou sly a perf ec t c ondition whic h nev er oc c u rs in prac tic e,
althou gh it may sometimes b e approac hed, espec ially in line manu f ac tu ring or
proc ess indu stries. In general, howev er, ac tu al operation times are f ar in exc ess
of it on ac c ou nt of :
excess work content
The work c ontent is inc reased b y the f ollowing:
A. Work content added by poor design or specification of product or its
parts, or improper utilization of materials
There are sev eral ways in whic h u nnec essary time and waste (resu lting in
higher c ost of the produ c t) c an b e attrib u ted to poor design of the produ c t or its
parts, or to inc orrec t qu ality c ontrol.
A.l. Poor design andfrequent design changes
The produ c t may b e designed in su c h a way that it may requ ire a large
nu mb er of non-standard parts c au sing a lengthy time of assemb ly.
Exc essiv e v ariety of produ c ts and lac k of standardization of produ c ts or
their parts may mean that work has to b e produ c ed in small b atc hes, with
time lost as the operator adju sts and shif ts f rom one b atc h to the next.
A.2. Waste ofmaterials
The c omponents of a produ c t may b e so designed that an exc essiv e
amou nt of material has to b e remov ed to b ring them to their f inal shape.
This inc reases the work c ontent of the job and wastes material as well.
Operations requ iring c u tting in partic u lar need c aref u l examination to see
if the resu lting waste c an b e redu c ed to a minimu m or reu sed.
A.3. Incorrect quality standards
Q u ality standards that are too high or too low c an inc rease work c ontent.
In engineering indu stries, insisting on sometimes u nnec essarily tight
toleranc es requ ires extra mac hining and a c orresponding waste of
material. On the other hand, setting toleranc es too loose may resu lt in a
large nu mb er of rejec ts. Dec iding on the appropriate qu ality standard and
the method of qu ality c ontrol is an important ef f ic ienc y c onsideration.
B. Work content added by inefficient methods of manufacture or
operation
Inef f ec tiv e time and higher c ost c an resu lt f rom a poor method of c arrying
ou t the operations, resu lting in u nnec essary mov ements of persons or materials. 11
.. *
S imilarly, su c h inef f ec tiv e time c an b e du e to inappropriate handling methods,
poor maintenanc e of mac hinery or equ ipment resu lting in f requ ent
b reakdowns, or poor inv entory c ontrol c au sing delays b ec au se of an ab senc e of
produ c ts or parts or higher c osts as a resu lt of ov erstoc king.
B.l. Poor layout and utilization ofspace
The spac e u sed f or any operation represents an inv estment. Proper
u tilization of spac e is an important sou rc e of c ost redu c tion, partic u larly
when an enterprise is expanding and needs an inc reased working area.
Fu rthermore, a proper layou t redu c es wasted mov ement, time and ef f ort.
B.2. Inadequate materials handling
Raw materials, parts and f inished produ c ts are inv ariab ly b eing mov ed
f rom one plac e to another throu ghou t a produ c tion operation. The u se of
the most appropriate handling equ ipment f or the pu rpose c an sav e time
and ef f ort.
B.3. Frequent stoppages as production changes from one product to
another
The proper planning and c ontrol of produ c tion operations c an ensu re that
one produ c tion b atc h or order f ollows immediately on another so that idle
time of mac hinery, equ ipment or lab ou r is eliminated or minimized.
B.4. Ineffective method ofwork
A sequ enc e of operations may b e well planned b u t eac h or some of them
done in a c u mb ersome manner. By examining the way a c ertain operation
is c arried ou t and dev ising a b etter method, inef f ec tiv e time c an b e
redu c ed.
B.5. Poor planning of inventory
In ev ery operation, raw material is u su ally ordered and stoc ked ahead of
time and at ev ery stage of the operation an inv entory of so-c alled
"materials-in-progress" or semi-f inished produ c ts and v ariou s parts are
temporarily stoc ked waiting to b e proc essed. These v ariou s inv entories
represent a tied-u p inv estment. A proper inv entory c ontrol system when
installed c an minimize su c h an idle inv estment while ensu ring that the
operators do not ru n ou t of the material needed.
B.6. Frequent breakdown ofmachines and equipment
Poor maintenanc e resu lts in mac hinery and equ ipment that are of ten ou t
of ac tion, and idle time ensu es while waiting f or repairs. Installing a
prev entiv e maintenanc e system and mou nting maintenanc e c ampaigns
wou ld ensu re the smooth f u nc tioning of mac hinery and equ ipment.
C. Work content resulting mainly from the contribution of human
resources
Workers in an enterprise c an inf lu enc e the time of operations v olu ntarily
or inv olu ntarily as f ollows:
C.l. Absenteeism and lateness
If management f ails to prov ide a saf e and satisf ying work c limate,
workers c ou ld respond b y ab senteeism, lateness or delib erately working
12 slowly.
C.2. Poor workmanship
If workers are improperly trained, the resu lting poor workmanship c an
mean that the job has to b e done again. L osses may also oc c u r b ec au se of
wasted material.
C.3. Accidents and occupational hazards
If management f ails to prov ide a saf e and healthy plac e to work, ac c idents
or oc c u pational illnesses c an oc c u r, with resu lting ef f ec ts on morale and
inc reased ab senteeism.
The impac t of all the f ac tors mentioned ab ov e u nder headings A to C is
shown in f igu re 3. If these f ac tors c an b e eliminated (an ideal situ ation whic h,
of c ou rse, nev er oc c u rs in real lif e), as shown in f igu re 4, the minimu m time
and c ost f or the produ c tion of a giv en ou tpu t and henc e the maximu m
produ c tiv ity is ac hiev ed. It c an theref ore b e seen that the work stu dy spec ialist
has to keep all these in mind when examining an operation and trying to
dev elop an improv ed method. In Part Three we expand on these methods and
tec hniqu es that c an b e u sed to redu c e c osts, c u t inef f ec tiv e time and dev elop a
b etter method of work.
2. Interrelationship of the various methods used to
reduce ineffective time
None of the methods disc u ssed ab ov e c an b e properly applied in isolation.
Eac h one has an ef f ec t and is af f ec ted b y others. It is impossib le to plan
programmes of work withou t standards prov ided b y measu ring the times of
operations. At the same time produ c tion planning will b e made easier if a
sou nd personnel polic y and a well-applied inc entiv e sc heme enc ou rage
workers to perf orm reliab ly. S tandardization of produ c ts or parts will make the
job of inv entory c ontrol easier b y demanding less v ariety of materials to b e
b ou ght and held in stoc k.
* * *
It will b e seen that in ou r disc u ssion in this c hapter we hav e gradu ally
mov ed f rom a stu dy of produ c tiv ity of the enterprise as a whole to the
produ c tiv ity of a c ertain part of it, namely the produ c tiv ity of c ertain operations
and of lab ou r. We hav e looked b rief ly at some of the methods and tec hniqu es
that c an b e u sed to prov ide inf ormation on how produ c tiv ity may b e improv ed.
Work stu dy u ses this type of inf ormation, whether manu al or c ompu terized, to
dev elop new methods of work and to measu re workloads and du ration of tasks.
In Part Three of this b ook these v ariou s tec hniqu es will b e disc u ssed in more
detail.
13
Figure 3. Basic and added work content
Total work
content
1 4
Poor design and
A.I frequent design
changes
A.2 Waste of materials
. Incorrect quality
M.O ctQnHarHc
standards
Poor layout
B.I and utilization
of space
R
Inadequate
ti
-
materials handling
Frequent stoppages
R
as production changes
b
-
:j
from one product
to another
_ . Ineffective
ti
'
4
method of work
R
Poor planning
B
-
b
of inventory
B.6
Frequent breakdown
of machines and
equipment
C.I
Absenteeism
and lateness
C.2 Poor workmanship
_ Accidents and
ôccupational hazards
Work content added by
poor product design or
materials utilization
Work content added by
inefficient methods of
manufacture or
operation
Work content
resulting mainly from
the contribution
of human resources
Figure 4. How management techniques can reduce ineffective time
Total time if
all techniques
perfectly
applied
Basic
work
content
Ineffective time
totally eliminated
if all techniques
perfectly applied
Product development
A.I reduces work content due
to poor design
Proper materials
A.2 utilization
reduces and utilizes waste
Quality control ensures
A.3 proper standards and
inspection methods
Better layout and process
B.I planning reduces
unnecessary movements
Materials handling
8.2 adapted to activity reduces
time and effort
Production planning and
B.3 control reduces ineffective
time
Methods study of an
g , activity reduces work
' content due to poor
methods of work
Inventory control defines
g 5 appropriate and most
economical inventory
levels
Preventive maintenance
g ensures longer life and
' continuous run of
machines and equipment
Proper management and
personnel policy can
C-1 create a satisfying working
environment
P Training can develop
appropriate skills
^C.3
Better working
conditions
improves morale and
reduces absenteeism
1 5
CHAPTER 3
Work study, the
approach
1. Why is work study valuable?
There is nothing new ab ou t the inv estigation and improv ement of operations at
the workplac e; good managers hav e b een inv estigating and improv ing ev er
sinc e hu man ef f ort was f irst organized on a large sc ale. Managers of
ou tstanding ab ility geniu ses hav e always b een ab le to make notab le
adv anc es. Unf ortu nately, no c ou ntry seems to hav e an adequ ate su pply of
c ompetent managers. The prime v alu e of work stu dy lies in the f ac t that, b y
c arrying ou t its systematic proc edu res, a manager c an ac hiev e resu lts as good
as or b etter than the less systematic geniu s was ab le to ac hiev e in the past.
Work stu dy su c c eeds b ec au se it is systematic b oth in the inv estigation of
the prob lem b eing c onsidered and in the dev elopment of its solu tion.
S ystematic inv estigation takes time. It is theref ore nec essary, in all b u t the
smallest f irms, to separate the job of making work stu dies f rom the task of
management. Fac tory managers or su perv isors, in their day-to-day work, with
its many hu man and material prob lems, are nev er f ree f rom interru ption f or
long. Howev er c apab le they may b e, managers c an rarely af f ord to dev ote a
long time, withou t interru ption, to the stu dy of a single ac tiv ity on the f ac tory
f loor or in a working area. This means that it is almost always impossib le f or
them to ob tain all the f ac ts ab ou t what is happening in the c ou rse of that
ac tiv ity. Unless all the f ac ts are known, it is impossib le to b e su re that any
alterations in proc edu re whic h are made are b ased on ac c u rate inf ormation and
will b e f u lly ef f ec tiv e. It is only b y c ontinu ou s ob serv ation and stu dy at the
workplac e or in the area where the ac tiv ity is taking plac e that the f ac ts c an b e
ob tained. This means that work stu dy mu st always b e the responsib ility of
someone who is ab le to u ndertake it f u ll time, withou t direc t management
du ties: someone in a staf f and not a line position.
1
Work stu dy is a serv ic e to
management and su perv ision.
We hav e now disc u ssed, v ery b rief ly, some aspec ts of the natu re of work
stu dy and why it is su c h a v alu ab le "tool" of management. There are other
reasons to b e added to the ab ov e. These may b e su mmarized as f ollows:
(1) It is a means of raising the produ c tiv ity of a plant or operating u nit b y the
reorganization of work, a method whic h normally inv olv es little or no
c apital expenditu re on f ac ilities and equ ipment.
1
People in "line" positions exerc ise direc t su perv isory au thority ov er the ranks b elow them. "S taf f
appointees, on the other hand, are stric tly adv isers with no power or au thority to pu t their rec ommendations
into operation. Their f u nc tion is to prov ide expert inf ormation. 17
(2) It is systematic . This ensu res that no f ac tor af f ec ting the ef f ic ienc y of an
operation is ov erlooked, whether in analysing the original prac tic es or in
dev eloping the new, and that all the f ac ts ab ou t that operation are
av ailab le.
(3) It is the most ac c u rate means yet ev olv ed of setting standards of
perf ormanc e, on whic h the ef f ec tiv e planning and c ontrol of produ c tion
depends.
(4) It c an c ontrib u te to the improv ement of saf ety and working c onditions at
work b y exposing hazardou s operations and dev eloping saf er methods of
perf orming operations.
(5) The sav ings resu lting f rom properly applied work stu dy start at onc e and
c ontinu e as long as the operation c ontinu es in the improv ed f orm.
(6) It is a "tool" whic h c an b e applied ev erywhere. It c an b e u sed with
su c c ess wherev er work is done or plant is operated, not only in
manu f ac tu ring shops b u t also in of f ic es, stores, lab oratories and serv ic e
indu stries su c h as wholesale and retail distrib u tion and restau rants, and on
f arms.
(7) It is relativ ely c heap and easy to apply.
(8) It is one of the most penetrating tools of investigation available to
management. This makes it an exc ellent weapon f or starting an attac k on
inef f ic ienc y in any organization sinc e, in inv estigating one set of
prob lems, the weaknesses of all the other f u nc tions af f ec ting them will
gradu ally b e laid b are.
This last point is worth f u rther disc u ssion. Bec au se work stu dy is
systematic , and b ec au se it inv olv es inv estigation b y direc t ob serv ation of all
the f ac tors af f ec ting the ef f ic ienc y of a giv en operation, it will show u p any
shortc omings in all ac tiv ities af f ec ting that operation. For example, ob serv ation
may show that the time of an operativ e on a produ c tion job is b eing wasted
throu gh hav ing to wait f or su pplies of material or to remain idle throu gh the
b reakdown of the mac hine. This points at onc e to a f ailu re of material c ontrol
or a f ailu re on the part of the maintenanc e engineer to c arry ou t proper
maintenanc e proc edu res. S imilarly, time may b e wasted throu gh short b atc hes
of work, nec essitating the c onstant resetting of mac hines, on a sc ale whic h may
only b ec ome apparent af ter prolonged stu dy. This points to poor produ c tion
planning or a marketing polic y whic h requ ires looking into.
Work stu dy ac ts like a su rgeon's knif e, laying b are the ac tiv ities of a
c ompany and their f u nc tioning, good or b ad, f or all to see. It c an theref ore
"show u p" people. For this reason it mu st b e handled, like the su rgeon's knif e,
with skill and c are. Nob ody likes b eing shown u p, and u nless the work stu dy
spec ialist displays great tac t in handling people he or she may arou se the
animosity of management and workers alike, whic h will make it impossib le to
do the job properly.
Managers and su perv isors hav e generally f ailed to ac hiev e the sav ings
and improv ements whic h c an b e ef f ec ted b y work stu dy b ec au se they hav e
18 b een u nab le to apply themselv es c ontinu ou sly to su c h things, ev en when they
WORKSTUDY, THE APPROACH
hav e b een trained. It is not enou gh f or work stu dy to b e systematic . To ac hiev e
really important resu lts it mu st b e applied continuously, and throu ghou t the
organization. It is no u se work stu dy prac titioners doing a good job and then
sitting b ac k and c ongratu lating themselv es, or b eing transf erred shortly
af terwards b y management to something else. The sav ings ac hiev ed on
indiv idu al job s, althou gh sometimes large in themselv es, are generally small
when c ompared with the ac tiv ity of the c ompany as a whole. The f u ll ef f ec t is
f elt in an organization only when work stu dy is applied ev erywhere, and when
ev eryone b ec omes imb u ed with the attitu de of mind whic h is the b asis of
su c c essf u l work stu dy: intolerance of waste in any form, whether of
material, time, effort or human ability; and the ref u sal to ac c ept withou t
qu estion that things mu st b e done in a c ertain way "b ec au se that is the way
they hav e always b een done".
2. Techniques of work study and their relationship
The term "work stu dy" emb rac es sev eral tec hniqu es, b u t in partic u lar method
stu dy and work measu rement. What are these two tec hniqu es and what is their
relationship to one another?
Method study is the systematic recording and critical examination
of ways of doing things in order to make improvements.2
Work measurement is the application of techniques designed to
establish the time for a qualified worker to carry out a task at a
defined rate of working.
2
Method stu dy and work measu rement are, theref ore, c losely linked.
Method stu dy is c onc erned with the redu c tion of the work c ontent of a job or
operation, while work measu rement is mostly c onc erned with the inv estigation
and of any inef f ec tiv e time assoc iated with it; and with the su b sequ ent
estab lishment of time standards f or the operation when c arried ou t in the
improv ed f ashion, as determined b y method stu dy. The relationship of method
stu dy to work measu rement is shown simply in f igu re 5.
As will b e seen f rom later c hapters of this b ook, b oth method stu dy and
work measu rement are themselv es made u p of a nu mb er of dif f erent
tec hniqu es. Althou gh method stu dy shou ld prec ede the u se of work
measu rement when time standards f or ou tpu t are b eing set, it is of ten nec essary
2
These def initions are those adopted in the BS I: Glossary of terms used in management services,
BS I3138 (L ondon, 1991). 19
Figure 5 . Work study
^
Method study
To
simplify the job
and
develop more economical
methods of doing it
Work measurement
To
determine
how long it should
take to
carry out
20
to u se one of the tec hniqu es of work measu rement, su c h as work sampling (see
Chapter 19), in order to determine why inef f ec tiv e time is oc c u rring and what
is its extent, so that management c an take ac tion to redu c e it b ef ore method
stu dy is b egu n. Again, time stu dy may b e u sed to c ompare the ef f ec tiv eness of
alternativ e methods of work b ef ore dec iding on the b est method to install.
These tec hniqu es will b e dealt with in detail in the c hapters dev oted to
them. For the present we mu st c onsider the b asic proc edu re of work stu dy
whic h applies to every stu dy, whatev er the operation or proc ess b eing
examined whether in indu stry, in a serv ic e enterprise or in the of f ic e. This
proc edu re is f u ndamental to the whole of work stu dy. There is no short cut.
3. Basic procedure of work study
There are eight steps in perf orming a c omplete work stu dy. They are:
(1) Select the job or proc ess to b e stu died.
(2) Record or c ollec t all relev ant data ab ou t the job or proc ess, u sing the
most su itab le data c ollec tion tec hniqu es (explained in Part Two), so that
the data will b e in the most c onv enient f orm to b e analysed.
(3) Examine the rec orded f ac ts c ritic ally and c hallenge ev erything that is
done, c onsidering in tu rn: the pu rpose of the ac tiv ity; the plac e where it is
perf ormed; the sequ enc e in whic h it is done; the person who is doing it;
the means b y whic h it is done.
(4) Develop the most ec onomic method, taking into ac c ou nt all the
c irc u mstanc es and drawing as appropriate on v ariou s produ c tion
management tec hniqu es (explained in Part Three), as well as on the
c ontrib u tions of managers, su perv isors, workers and other spec ialists with
whom new approac hes shou ld b e explored and disc u ssed.
(5) Evaluate the resu lts attained b y the improv ed method c ompared with the
qu antity of work inv olv ed and c alc u late a standard time f or it.
(6) Define the new method and the related time and present it to all those
c onc erned, either v erb ally or in writing, u sing demonstrations.
(7) Install the new method, training those inv olv ed, as an agreed prac tic e
with the allotted time of operation.
(8) Maintain the new standard prac tic e b y monitoring the resu lts and
c omparing them with the original targets.
S teps 1, 2 and 3 oc c u r in ev ery stu dy, whether the tec hniqu e b eing u sed is
method stu dy or work measu rement. S tep 4 is part of method stu dy prac tic e,
while step 5 c alls f or the u se of work measu rement. It is possib le that af ter a
c ertain time the new method may prov e to b e in need of modif ic ation, in whic h
c ase it wou ld b e re-examined again u sing the ab ov e sequ enc e.
These eight steps (f igu re 6) will b e disc u ssed in detail in the c hapters
dev oted to method stu dy and work measu rement. Bef ore doing so, howev er,
we shall disc u ss the role of the work stu dy prac titioner and the hu man f ac tor in
the applic ation of work stu dy.
4. Work study and production management
When work stu dy emerged in the early part of this c entu ry as a tec hniqu e
aimed at rationalizing and measu ring work, the emphasis was on ec onomy of 21
Figure 6. The approach to work study
22
SELECT
the job to be studied
RECORD
by collecting data or
by direct observation
EXAMINE
by challenging purpose, place,
sequence and method of work
DEVELOP
new method, drawing on
contributions of those concerned
EVALUATE
results of different
alternative solutions
DEFINE
new method and present it
INSTALL
new method and
train persons in applying it
MAINTAIN
and establish control procedures
motion and mov ement. Bec au se of that it was c alled time and motion stu dy.
L ater on, it b egan to enc ompass other aspec ts of ob serv ing and analysing work,
and the earlier term was ab andoned in f av ou r of "work stu dy". S imu ltaneou sly,
in the late 1940s and later on in the 1960s, other disc iplines were dev eloped,
namely indu strial engineering and produ c tion management respec tiv ely. These
disc iplines dif f ered f rom work stu dy in the sense that they were dev oted to
inc reasing the ef f ic ienc y of a produ c tion operation as a whole, not ju st the
methods of work. Thu s modern produ c tion management looks at v ariou s
aspec ts of produ c tion su c h as produ c t design, qu ality c ontrol, layou t and
materials handling, produ c tion planning and c ontrol, maintenanc e management
and inv ariab ly work stu dy. These tec hniqu es may b e applied, singly or in
c omb ination, in the enterprise. Fu rthermore, with time many of them b egan to
rely inc reasingly on sophistic ated qu antitativ e methods su c h as operations
researc h to solv e ev er more c omplic ated operational prob lems. Adv anc es in the
f ields of c ompu ters and inf ormation systems helped to b oost produ c tion
management tec hniqu es to the lev el attained at present.
While work stu dy has c ontinu ed to b e a relativ ely simple and c heap
method of rationalizing methods of work, it has also c ontinu ed to dev elop.
Thu s, many work stu dy trained spec ialists realize that sev eral of the existing
produ c tion management tec hniqu es c an also b e u sed adv antageou sly b y them
to help dev elop improv ed methods of work. In a sense they prov ide an array of
tec hniqu es that c annot and need not b e ignored. For this reason. Part Three of
this f ou rth (rev ised) edition of Introduction to work study explains in a simple
manner the v ariou s new tec hniqu es that are now at the disposal of work stu dy
spec ialists to assist them with their analysis and dev elopment of improv ed
methods of work. It c an also b e seen that the c areer of a work stu dy prac titioner
c an now ev olv e in two direc tions: f irst, a more prof essional path where he or
she c an c ontinu e to dev elop knowledge and skills in these new operational
f ields to b ec ome a produ c tion management spec ialist or, sec ond, a managerial
path where he or she c an ac qu ire a high-lev el position b y v irtu e of spec ialized
training.
23
CHAPTER 4
The human factor in the
application of work
study
1. The human factor in enterprise operations
The hu man f ac tor is one of the most c ru c ial elements in enterprise operations,
f or it is throu gh people that management c an c ontrol the u tilization of its
resou rc es and the sale of its produ c ts or serv ic es. To giv e the b est of their
ab ility, employees mu st b e motiv ated to do so. Managers mu st b e ab le to
prov ide a motiv e or a reason f or doing something, or make people want to do
it. It is of little u se f or management to prepare elab orate plans or giv e
instru c tions f or c arrying ou t v ariou s ac tiv ities if the people who are su pposed
to c arry ou t the plans do not wish to do so ev en thou gh they may hav e to.
The resu lt wou ld b e half -hearted ef f ort and sloppy workmanship. Coerc ion is
no su b stitu te f or ac tion that is taken v olu ntarily and willingly. Thu s, employees
at all lev els mu st f eel a sense of b elonging to the enterprise; they shou ld
dev elop a sense of sec u rity, and the f eeling that they are working in a saf e,
healthy and enric hing working env ironment. When this happens they will
c ontrib u te not only their lab ou r b u t also many u sef u l su ggestions that c an lead
to produ c tiv ity improv ement, and assist willingly the work stu dy person in
dev eloping improv ed methods of work.
One of the greatest dif f ic u lties in ob taining the ac tiv e c ooperation of
workers is the f ear that raising produ c tiv ity will lead to u nemployment.
Workers are af raid that they will work themselv es ou t of their job s. This
anxiety is greatest when u nemployment is already high and a worker who loses
his or her job will f ind it hard to f ind another. Ev en in indu strialized c ou ntries
where the lev els of u nemployment are relativ ely lower than dev eloping
c ou ntries, this f ear is v ery real to those who hav e already experienc ed
u nemployment.
S inc e this is so, u nless workers are assu red of adequ ate assistanc e in
f ac ing their prob lems, they may resist any steps whic h they f ear, rightly or
wrongly, will make them redu ndant, ev en temporarily.
Ev en with written gu arantees, steps taken to raise produ c tiv ity c an meet
with resistanc e. This resistanc e c an generally b e redu c ed to a minimu m if
ev eryb ody c onc erned u nderstands the natu re of , and the reason f or, eac h step
taken and is inv olv ed in its implementation. Workers' representativ es shou ld b e
trained in the tec hniqu es of inc reasing produ c tiv ity so that they will b e ab le
b oth to explain them to their f ellow workers and to u se their knowledge to
ensu re that no steps are taken whic h are harmf u l to them. Many of these 25
saf egu ards c an b est b e implemented throu gh joint produ c tiv ity c ommittees and
works c ou nc ils.
If work stu dy is to c ontrib u te seriou sly to the improv ement of
produ c tiv ity, relations b etween management and workers mu st b e reasonab ly
good b ef ore any attempt is made to introdu c e it, and the workers mu st hav e
c onf idenc e in the sinc erity of management towards them; otherwise they will
regard it as a way of getting more work ou t of them withou t any b enef it to
themselv es. If management is ab le to c reate a satisf ying working env ironment
at the enterprise and a c u ltu re that welc omes and enc ou rages produ c tiv ity
improv ement, then a work stu dy dev elopment programme may b e seen as
"owned" jointly b y managers, su perv isors and the workf orc e.
2. Work study and management
It was said ab ov e that one of the princ ipal reasons f or c hoosing work stu dy as
the su b jec t of this b ook is that it is a most penetrating tool of inv estigation.
Bec au se a well-c ondu c ted work stu dy analysis is ru thlessly systematic , the
plac es where ef f ort and time are b eing wasted are laid b are one b y one. In order
to eliminate this waste, the c au ses of it mu st b e looked f or. The latter are
u su ally f ou nd to b e b ad planning, b ad organization, insu f f ic ient c ontrol or the
lac k of proper training. S inc e memb ers of the management and su perv isory
staf f s are employed to perf orm these f u nc tions, it will look as if they hav e
f ailed in their du ties. Not only this, b u t the inc rease in produ c tiv ity whic h the
proper u se of work stu dy u su ally b rings ab ou t may appear to emphasize this
f ailu re f u rther. Applying work stu dy in one working area c an start a c hain-
reac tion of inv estigation and improv ement whic h will spread in all direc tions
throu ghou t the organization: to the plant engineer's department, the ac c ou nts
department, the design of f ic e or the sales f orc e. S killed workers may b e made
to f eel like nov ic es when they f ind that their methods, long prac tised, are
wastef u l of time and ef f ort, and that new workers trained in the new methods
soon su rpass them in ou tpu t and qu ality.
Any tec hniqu e whic h has su c h f ar-reac hing ef f ec ts mu st ob v iou sly b e
handled with great c are and tac t. People do not like to b e made to f eel that they
hav e f ailed, espec ially in the eyes of their su periors. They lose their self -
c onf idenc e and b egin to ask themselv es whether they may not b e replac ed.
Their f eeling of sec u rity is threatened.
At f irst sight, this resu lt of a work stu dy inv estigation may seem u nf air.
Managers, su perv isors and workers, generally speaking, are honest, hard-
working people who do their job s as well as they c an. They are c ertainly not
less c lev er than work stu dy spec ialists. Of ten they hav e years of experienc e and
great prac tic al knowledge. If they hav e f ailed to ob tain the most f rom the
resou rc es at their disposal, it is generally b ec au se they hav e not b een trained in,
and of ten do not know the v alu e of , the systematic approac h whic h work stu dy
b rings to prob lems of organization and perf ormanc e of work.
This mu st b e made c lear to ev eryb ody f rom the v ery b eginning. If it is not
26 made c lear, and if the work stu dy person is at all tac tless in handling people, he
THE HUMANFACTOR
or she will f ind that they will c omb ine to pu t ob stac les in the way, possib ly to
the point where the task is made impossib le.
If the applic ation of work stu dy in an enterprise is to su c c eed, it mu st
hav e the u nderstanding and the b ac king of management at all lev els, starting at
the top. If top management, the managing direc tor, the managing agent or the
president of the c ompany do not u nderstand what the work stu dy person is
trying to do and are not giv ing him or her their f u ll su pport, it c annot b e
expec ted that managers lower down will lend their su pport either. If the work
stu dy person then c omes into c onf lic t with them, as he or she may do in su c h
c irc u mstanc es, he or she may well lose the c ase, howev er good it may b e, if an
appeal is made to the top. Do not f orget that in any organization people lower
down tend to take their attitudes from the person at the top.
The f irst grou p of people to whom the pu rpose and tec hniqu es of work
stu dy mu st b e explained is theref ore the management grou p, the managing
direc tor or managing agent and, in large c ompanies or organizations, the
departmental heads and assistant heads. It is the u su al prac tic e in most
c ou ntries to ru n short "apprec iation" c ou rses f or top management b ef ore
starting to apply work stu dy. Most work stu dy sc hools, management
dev elopment institu tes, tec hnic al c olleges and work stu dy organizations also
ru n short c ou rses f or the managers of c ompanies who are sending staf f to b e
trained as spec ialists.
Here it is nec essary to giv e a word of warning. Ru nning ev en the simplest
and shortest c ou rse in work stu dy is not easy, and newly trained work stu dy
spec ialists are strongly adv ised not to try to do so b y themselv es. They shou ld
seek adv ic e and assistanc e. It is important that an enterprise's work stu dy staf f
take an ac tiv e part in the c ou rse, but they must know their subject and be
able to teach it.
If a c ou rse f or management is to b e ru n, howev er, the work stu dy
spec ialist mu st try as hard as possib le to persu ade the person at the top to
attend and, if possib le, to open the proc eedings. Not only will this show
ev eryone that he or she has the su pport of top management, b u t departmental
and other managers will make ef f orts to attend if they think their "b oss" is
going to b e there.
3. Work study and the supervisor
The work stu dy spec ialist's most dif f ic u lt prob lem may of ten b e the attitu de of
su perv isors. They mu st b e won ov er if he or she is to ob tain good resu lts f rom
work stu dy; indeed, their hostility may prev ent him or her f rom doing any
ef f ec tiv e work at all. S u perv isors represent management to the worker on the
shop f loor, and ju st as departmental managers will take their attitu des f rom the
top manager, so the workers will take theirs f rom their su perv isors. If it is
ev ident that the su perv isor thinks that "this work stu dy stu f f is nonsense", the
workers will not respec t the spec ialist and will make no ef f orts to c arry ou t his
or her su ggestions, whic h, in any c ase, hav e to c ome to them throu gh their
su perv isor. 27
Bef ore the work stu dy prac titioner starts work, the whole pu rpose of work
stu dy and the proc edu res inv olv ed mu st b e v ery c aref u lly explained to the
su perv isor, so that he or she u nderstands exac tly what is b eing done and why.
Unless this is done, the su perv isor is likely to b e dif f ic u lt, if not ac tu ally
ob stru c tiv e, f or many reasons. Among them are the f ollowing:
(1) S u perv isors are the people most deeply af f ec ted b y work stu dy. The work
f or whic h they may hav e b een responsib le f or years is b eing c hallenged;
if , throu gh the applic ation of work stu dy methods, the ef f ic ienc y of the
operations f or whic h they are responsib le is greatly improv ed, they may
f eel that their prestige in the eyes of their su periors and of the workers
will b e lessened.
(2) In most f irms where spec ialists hav e not b een u sed, the whole ru nning of
a c ertain operation planning programmes of work, dev eloping job
methods, making u p time sheets, setting piec e rates, hiring and f iring
workers may hav e b een done b y the su perv isor. The mere f ac t that
some of these responsib ilities hav e b een taken away is likely to make him
or her experienc e a loss of statu s. No one likes to think that he or she has
"lost f ac e" or "lost grou nd".
(3) If dispu tes arise or the workers are u pset, su perv isors are the f irst people
who will b e c alled u pon to c lear matters u p, and it is dif f ic u lt f or them to
do so f airly if they do not u nderstand the prob lem.
The sou rc es f rom whic h su perv isors are rec ru ited dif f er widely in
dif f erent parts of the world. In some c ou ntries su perv isors are f requ ently
selec ted on a b asis of seniority f rom among the b est-skilled persons in the
enterprise. This means that they are of ten middle-aged and may b e set
in their ways. Bec au se most su perv isors hav e prac tised their oc c u pation or
skills f or many years, they f ind it dif f ic u lt to b eliev e that they hav e anything to
learn f rom someone who has not spent a v ery long time in the same
oc c u pation.
S u perv isors may theref ore resent the introdu c tion of work stu dy
spec ialists into their departments u nless they hav e had some training to prepare
them f or it. S inc e su perv isors are nearer to the prac tic al side of the job than
management, and so are more intimately c onnec ted with work stu dy, the work
stu dy c ou rse that they take shou ld b e longer and more detailed than that giv en
to management. S u perv isors shou ld know enou gh to b e ab le to help in the
selec tion of job s to b e stu died and to u nderstand the f ac tors inv olv ed, shou ld
dispu tes arise ov er methods or time standards. This means that they shou ld b e
ac qu ainted with the princ ipal tec hniqu es of method stu dy and work
measu rement, and the partic u lar prob lems and situ ations in whic h they shou ld
b e applied. G enerally speaking, c ou rses f or su perv isors shou ld b e f u ll time and
of not less than one week's du ration. The trainees shou ld b e giv en
opportu nities of making one or two simple method stu dies and of measu ring
the time of an operation. The value to the work study person of a supervisor
who understands and is enthusiastic about what he or she is trying to do
28 cannot be overemphasized. He or she is a powerf u l ally.
THE HUMANFACTOR
The work stu dy prac titioner will only retain the su perv isors' f riendship
and respec t b y showing f rom the b eginning that he or she is not trying to u su rp
their plac e. The f ollowing ru les must b e ob serv ed:
(1) The work stu dy person mu st never giv e a direc t order to a worker. All
instru c tions mu st b e giv en throu gh the su perv isor. The only exc eption to
this is in matters c onnec ted with methods improv ements where the
worker has b een asked b y the su perv isor to c arry ou t the instru c tions of
the work stu dy person.
(2) Workers asking qu estions c alling f or dec isions ou tside the tec hnic al f ield
of work stu dy shou ld always b e ref erred to their su perv isor.
(3) The work stu dy person shou ld take c are never to express opinions to a
worker whic h may b e interpreted as c ritic al of the su perv isor (howev er
mu c h he or she may f eel like it!). If the worker later says to the
su perv isor: "... b u t Mr/Ms .. . said ...", there will b e trou b le!
(4) The work stu dy person mu st not allow the workers to "play him or her
of f against the su perv isor or to u se him or her to get dec isions altered
whic h they c onsider harsh.
(5) The work stu dy person shou ld seek the su perv isor's adv ic e in the
selec tion of job s to b e stu died and in all tec hnic al matters c onnec ted with
the proc ess (ev en if he or she knows a great deal ab ou t it). The work
stu dy person shou ld nev er try to start alone.
This list of "Do's" and "Don't's" may look f rightening b u t is mainly
c ommon sense and good manners. The workers in any working area c an only
hav e one b oss their su perv isor and ev erything mu st b e done to u phold
his or her au thority. Of c ou rse, onc e the work stu dy person and the su perv isor
hav e worked together and u nderstand one another, there c an b e some
relaxation; b u t that is a matter of ju dgement, and any su ggestion f or relaxation
shou ld c ome f rom the su perv isor.
A great deal of spac e has b een giv en to the relationship b etween the work
stu dy prac titioner and the su perv isor b ec au se it is the most dif f ic u lt of all the
relationships, and it mu st b e good. One of the b est methods of ensu ring that
this is so is to prov ide b oth parties with the proper training.
4. Work study and the worker
When the f irst c onsc iou s attempts at work stu dy were made at the tu rn of
the c entu ry, little was known ab ou t the way people b ehav ed at work. As a
resu lt, workers of ten resisted or were hostile to work stu dy. Du ring the past
40 years, howev er, a great deal of researc h has b een c arried ou t to disc ov er
more ab ou t the way people b ehav e the aim b eing not only to explain that
b ehav iou r b u t, if possib le, also to predic t how people will reac t to a new
situ ation. For a work stu dy spec ialist this is an important c onsideration, sinc e
throu gh his or her interv entions he or she is inv ariab ly and c ontinu ou sly
c reating new situ ations. 29
Behav iou ral sc ientists b eliev e that indiv idu als are motiv ated to ac t in a
c ertain way b y a desire to satisf y c ertain needs. One of the widely ac c epted
notions ab ou t needs was dev eloped b y Ab raham Maslow, who postu lated that
there are c ertain essential needs f or ev ery indiv idu al and that these needs
arrange themselv es in a hierarc hic al pattern. Maslow argu es that it is only when
one need b ec omes largely satisf ied that the next need in the hierarc hy will start
to exert its motiv ating inf lu enc e.
At the b ottom of the hierarc hy are physiological needs. These are the
b asic needs that mu st b e met to su stain lif e itself . S atisf ying one's
physiologic al needs will b e the primary c onc ern of any person, and u ntil one
has done so one will not b e c onc erned with any other issu es. Howev er, onc e
workers f eel reasonab ly su re of f u lf illing their physiologic al needs, they will
seek to satisf y the next need in the hierarc hy, that of security. S ec u rity is taken
to mean a f eeling of protec tion against physic al and psyc hologic al harm, as
well as sec u rity of employment. For workers who hav e already satisf ied b oth
their physiologic al and their sec u rity needs, the next motiv ating f ac tor is that of
affiliation, that is wanting to b elong to a grou p or an organization and to
assoc iate with others. Next on the hierarc hic al sc ale is the need to be
recognized, and this is f ollowed b y the need f or fulfilment (sometimes c alled
"self -ac tu alization"). This last need expresses the desire of people or workers
to b e giv en an opportu nity to show their partic u lar talents.
Maslow's hierarchy ofneeds
f u lf ilment
rec ognition
af f iliation
sec u rity
physiologic al
In prac tic e, most people satisf y some of these needs in part and are lef t
with some that are u nsatisf ied. In dev eloping c ou ntries people are prob ab ly
preoc c u pied more with their b asic needs. In dev eloped c ou ntries, on the other
hand, where physiologic al and sec u rity needs are normally met in large part,
people wou ld seem to b e motiv ated more b y needs at the u pper end of the
hierarc hy.
One of the interesting resu lts of the researc h c arried ou t in this area, and
whic h shou ld b e of c onc ern to u s here, is the disc ov ery that, in order to satisf y
af f iliation needs, workers assoc iate with eac h other to f orm v ariou s types of
inf ormal grou p. Thu s a worker is u su ally a memb er of a task grou p, that is a
grou p c omposed of workers perf orming a c ommon task. He or she may also b e
a memb er of v ariou s other grou ps, su c h as a f riendship grou p c omposed of
f ellow workers with whom he or she has something in c ommon or with whom
he or she wou ld like to assoc iate.
This means that ev ery organization has a f ormal and an inf ormal
stru c tu re. The f ormal stru c tu re is def ined b y management in terms of au thority
relationships. S imilarly, there also exists an inf ormal organization c omposed of
30 a great nu mb er of inf ormal grou ps whic h hav e their own goals and ac tiv ities
THE HUMANFACTOR
and whic h b ear the sentiments of their memb ers. Eac h grou p, it was f ou nd,
expec ts its memb ers to c onf orm to a c ertain standard of b ehav iou r, sinc e
otherwise the grou p c annot ac hiev e its goal, whether this b e ac c omplishing a
task or prov iding a means f or f riendly interac tion. It was f ou nd, f or example,
that a task grou p tends to estab lish among its memb ers a c ertain qu ota f or
produ c tion whic h may or may not b e in line with what a su perv isor or a
manager wants. In a typic al situ ation, a worker will produ c e more or less
ac c ording to this inf ormally ac c epted qu ota. Those who are v ery high or v ery
low produ c ers, and who thu s dev iate su b stantially f rom that norm, will b e
su b jec ted to pressu re f rom the grou p to c onf orm to the norm.
Disregarding or ignoring su c h b asic and elementary notions of b ehav iou r
has of ten c reated resentment and ou tright hostility. It is now easy to u nderstand
that a work stu dy person who makes a u nilateral dec ision to eliminate an
operation, resu lting in the loss of a job f or a worker or a nu mb er of workers, is
in f ac t u ndermining the b asic need f or sec u rity; a negativ e reac tion c an
theref ore b e expec ted. S imilarly, the imposition of an ou tpu t qu ota on a worker
or a grou p of workers withou t prior c onsu ltation or winning their c ooperation
c an yield resentment and b reed resistanc e.
How, then, shou ld a work stu dy person ac t? The f ollowing are some
u sef u l hints:
(1) The prob lem of raising produ c tiv ity shou ld b e approac hed in a b alanc ed
way, withou t too great an emphasis b eing plac ed on produ c tiv ity of
lab ou r. In most enterprises in dev eloping c ou ntries, and ev en in
indu strialized c ou ntries, great inc reases in produ c tiv ity c an generally b e
ef f ec ted throu gh the applic ation of work stu dy to improv e plant u tilization
and operation, to make more ef f ec tiv e u se of spac e and to sec u re greater
ec onomy of materials b ef ore the qu estion of inc reasing the produ c tiv ity of
the lab ou r f orc e need b e raised. The importanc e of stu dying the
produ c tiv ity of all the resou rc es of the enterprise and of not c onf ining the
applic ation of work stu dy to the produ c tiv ity of lab ou r alone c annot b e
ov eremphasized. It is only natu ral that workers shou ld resent ef f orts b eing
made to improv e their ef f ic ienc y while they c an see glaring inef f ic ienc y
on the part of management. What is the u se of halv ing the time workers
take to do a c ertain job or of imposing a produ c tion ou tpu t on them b y
well-applied work stu dy if they are held b ac k b y a lac k of materials or b y
f requ ent mac hine b reakdowns resu lting f rom b ad planning b y their
su periors?
(2) It is important that the work stu dy person b e open and f rank as to the
pu rpose of the stu dy. Nothing b reeds su spic ion like attempts to hide what
is b eing done; nothing dispels it like f rankness, whether in answering
qu estions or in showing inf ormation ob tained f rom stu dies. Work stu dy,
honestly applied, has nothing to hide.
(3) Workers' representativ es shou ld b e kept f u lly inf ormed of what is b eing
stu died, and why. They shou ld rec eiv e indu c tion training in work stu dy so
that they c an u nderstand properly what is b eing attempted. S imilarly,
inv olv ing the workers in the dev elopment of an improv ed method of 31
operation c an win them ov er to the new method and c an sometimes
produ c e u nexpec ted resu lts. Thu s, b y asking workers the right qu estions
and b y inv iting them to c ome f orward with explanations or proposals
sev eral work stu dy spec ialists hav e b een rewarded b y c lu es or ideas that
had nev er oc c u rred to them. Af ter all, a worker has an intimate knowledge
of his or her own job and of details that c an esc ape a work stu dy person.
One tried and tested prac tic e is to inv ite the workers in a sec tion to b e
stu died to nominate one of their nu mb er to join the work stu dy spec ialist
and, together with the su perv isor, to f orm a team that c an rev iew the work
to b e done, disc u ss the resu lts ac hiev ed and agree on steps f or
implementation.
(4) Althou gh asking f or a worker's su ggestions and ideas implic itly serv es to
satisf y his or her need f or rec ognition, this c an b e ac hiev ed in a more
direc t way b y giv ing proper c redit where it is du e. In many instanc es a
su perv isor, a worker or a staf f spec ialist c ontrib u tes u sef u l ideas that assist
the work stu dy person to dev elop an improv ed method of work. This
shou ld b e ac knowledged readily, and the work stu dy person shou ld resist
the temptation of ac c u mu lating all the glory.
(5) The work stu dy person mu st make it c lear that it is the work, and not the
worker, that is b eing stu died. This b ec omes mu c h easier if the workers
hav e had a proper introdu c tory c ou rse explaining the princ iples and
ou tlining the tec hniqu es of work stu dy.
(6) In some c irc u mstanc es it may b e possib le to inv olv e the workf orc e in
work stu dy inv estigations ev en more direc tly (f or example, b y training
them in some of the b asic tec hniqu es and allowing them to c ontrib u te to
disc u ssions throu gh the estab lishment of a "produ c tiv ity c irc le", set u p f or
the du ration of a projec t or on a longer-term b asis). Throu gh su c h a
proc ess the workers c an see more c learly that the tec hniqu es are u sed to
stu dy the work and not the workers themselv es.
(7) It is important that the work stu dy person shou ld rememb er that the
ob jec tiv e is not merely to inc rease produ c tiv ity b u t also to improv e job
satisf ac tion, and that he or she shou ld dev ote enou gh attention to this
latter issu e b y looking f or ways to minimize f atigu e and to make the job
more interesting and more satisf ying. In rec ent years sev eral enterprises
hav e dev eloped new c onc epts and ideas to organize work to this end and
to attempt to meet the workers' need f or f u lf ilment. These are treated
b rief ly in the last c hapter of this b ook.
5. The work study practitioner
We hav e talked a great deal in the prec eding sec tions ab ou t what is requ ired
f rom the work stu dy prac titioner, su ggesting b y ou r requ irements a hu man
b eing who is almost too good to b e tru e. The ideal person f or the job is likely to
b e f ou nd v ery rarely, and if he or she is a su c c essf u l work stu dy spec ialist,
c an easily b e promoted to higher posts. Nev ertheless, there are c ertain
32 qu alif ic ations and qu alities whic h are essential f or su c c ess.
THE HUMANFACTOR
Education
The v ery minimu m standard of edu c ation f or anyone who is to take c harge of
work stu dy applic ation in an enterprise is a good sec ondary edu c ation with
matric u lation or the equ iv alent sc hool-leav ing examination, or b etter still a
u niv ersity edu c ation, pref erab ly in the engineering or b u siness f ields.
Practical experience
It is desirab le that c andidates f or posts as work stu dy spec ialists shou ld hav e
had prac tic al experienc e in the indu stries in whic h they will b e working. This
experienc e shou ld inc lu de a period of ac tu al work at one or more of the
proc esses of the indu stry. This will enab le them to u nderstand what it means to
do a day's work u nder the c onditions in whic h the ordinary workers with whom
they will b e dealing hav e to work. Prac tic al experienc e will also c ommand
respec t f rom su perv isors and workers, and an engineering b ac kgrou nd enab les
one to adapt oneself to most other indu stries.
Personal qualities
Anyone who is going to u ndertake improv ements in methods shou ld hav e an
inv entiv e tu rn of mind, b e c apab le of dev ising simple mec hanisms and dev ic es
whic h c an of ten sav e a great deal of time and ef f ort, and b e ab le to gain the
c ooperation of the engineers and tec hnic ians in dev eloping them. The type of
person who is good at this is not always so good at hu man relations, and in
some large c ompanies the methods sec tion is separated f rom the work
measu rement sec tion, althou gh b oth c ou ld b e u nder the same c hief .
The f ollowing are essential qu alities:
D Sincerity and honesty
The work stu dy person mu st b e sinc ere and honest; only if this is the c ase
will he or she gain the c onf idenc e and respec t of those with whom he or
she will work.
D Enthusiasm
He or she mu st b e really keen on the job , b eliev e in the importanc e of
what he or she is doing and b e ab le to transmit enthu siasm to the people
rou nd ab ou t.
D Interest in and sympathy with people
The person mu st b e ab le to get along with people at all lev els. It is
nec essary to b e interested in them, to b e ab le to see their points of v iew
and to u nderstand the motiv es b ehind their b ehav iou r.
D Tact
Tac t in dealing with people c omes f rom u nderstanding them and not
wishing to hu rt their f eelings b y u nkind or thou ghtless words, ev en when
these may b e ju stif ied. Withou t tac t no work stu dy person is going to get
v ery f ar.
D Good appearance
The person mu st b e neat and tidy and look ef f ic ient. This will inspire
c onf idenc e among the people with whom he or she has to work. 33
D Self-confidence
This c an only c ome with good training and experienc e of applying work
stu dy su c c essf u lly. The work stu dy prac titioner mu st b e ab le to stand u p
to top management, su perv isors, trade u nion of f ic ials or workers in
def enc e of his or her opinions and f indings, and to do so in su c h a way
that will win respec t and not giv e of f enc e.
These personal qu alities, partic u larly the ab ility to deal with people, c an
all b e f u rther dev eloped with the right training. Far too of ten this aspec t of the
training of work stu dy spec ialists is neglec ted, the assu mption b eing that, if the
right person is selec ted in the f irst plac e, that is all that needs to b e done. In
most work stu dy c ou rses more time shou ld b e giv en to the hu man side of
applying work stu dy.
It will b e seen f rom these requ irements that the resu lts of work stu dy,
howev er "sc ientif ic ally" arriv ed at, mu st b e applied with "art", ju st like any
other management tec hniqu e. In f ac t, the qu alities whic h go to make a good
work stu dy person are the same qu alities as go to make a good manager. Work
stu dy is an exc ellent training f or you ng men and women destined f or higher
management. People with these qu alities are not easy to f ind, b u t the c aref u l
selec tion of persons f or training as work stu dy spec ialists will repay itself in
the resu lts ob tained, in terms b oth of inc reased produ c tiv ity and of improv ed
hu man relations in the workplac e.
Hav ing desc rib ed the b ac kgrou nd against whic h work stu dy is to b e
applied, we c an now tu rn to the qu estion of applying it, starting with method
stu dy. Bef ore we do so, howev er, attention mu st b e giv en to some general
f ac tors whic h hav e c onsiderab le b earing on its ef f ec t, namely the c onditions
u nder whic h the work is done in the area, f ac tory, workshop or of f ic e
c onc erned.
34
CHAPTER 5
Working conditions and
the working
environment
1. General considerations
The interdependenc e b etween working c onditions and produ c tiv ity is
inc reasingly rec ognized. The f irst mov e in this direc tion c ame when people
b egan to realize that oc c u pational ac c idents had ec onomic as well as physic al
c onsequ enc es, althou gh at f irst only their direc t c osts (medic al c are,
c ompensation) were perc eiv ed. S u b sequ ently, attention was paid to
oc c u pational diseases as well. As a f inal step it was realized that the indirec t
c osts of oc c u pational ac c idents (working time lost b y the inju red person, the
witnesses and the ac c ident inv estigators, produ c tion stoppages, material
damage, work delays, possib le legal and other c osts, redu c ed ou tpu t when the
inju red person is replac ed and su b sequ ently when he or she retu rns to work,
and so on) are u su ally f ar higher as mu c h as sev eral times higher in some
c ases than the direc t c osts.
The redu c tion in produ c tiv ity and the inc rease in produ c tion rejec ts and
manu f ac tu ring waste that resu lt f rom f atigu e du e to exc essiv ely long working
hou rs and b ad working c onditions in partic u lar, lighting and v entilation
hav e shown that the hu man b ody, in spite of its immense c apac ity f or
adaptation, is f ar more produ c tiv e when working u nder optimal c onditions.
Indeed, in c ertain dev eloping c ou ntries it has b een f ou nd that produ c tiv ity c an
b e improv ed merely b y improv ing the c onditions u nder whic h people work.
G enerally speaking, oc c u pational saf ety and health and ergonomic s hav e
not b een giv en su f f ic ient c onsideration in modern management tec hniqu es, in
spite of the modern tendenc y to c onsider an indu strial enterprise as a total
system or a c omb ination of su b systems.
These prob lems hav e b een seen in a dif f erent light sinc e pu b lic opinion
and, in partic u lar, the trade u nions b ec ame aware of them. It has b een possib le
to detec t in the stresses imposed b y modern indu strial tec hnology the sou rc e of
those f orms of dissatisf ac tion whic h oc c u r, in partic u lar, among workers
employed on the most elementary type of repetitiv e and monotonou s job s that
are lac king in any interest whatsoev er.
Thu s, not only may a hazardou s working env ironment b e a direc t c au se of
oc c u pational ac c idents and diseases, b u t workers' dissatisf ac tion with working
c onditions whic h are not in line with their c u rrent c u ltu ral and soc ial lev el may
also b e at the root of a dec line in produ c tion qu ality and qu antity, exc essiv e
lab ou r tu rnov er and inc reased ab senteeism. Ob v iou sly, the c onsequ enc es of 35
su c h a situ ation will v ary ac c ording to the soc io-c u ltu ral env ironment.
Nev ertheless, wherev er there is a demand f or lab ou r, it wou ld b e senseless to
b eliev e that f irms whose working c onditions hav e not dev eloped in line with
tec hnic al progress and ec onomic growth c an c ou nt on a stab le workf orc e and
ac hiev e prof itab le lev els of produ c tiv ity.
2. Occupational safety and health organization
The most ef f ec tiv e method of ob taining good resu lts in the prev ention of
oc c u pational hazards inc lu des the f ollowing:
D to rec ognize the importanc e of the employer's responsib ilities f or
ensu ring that the workplac e is saf e and withou t risk to workers' health;
D to adopt an oc c u pational saf ety and health polic y that prov ides f or the
estab lishment of a good oc c u pational saf ety and health organization
within the enterprise; and
D to enc ou rage strong partic ipation of workers in saf ety and health ac tiv ities
at the workplac e; inc lu ding saf ety c ommittees, inspec tion and ac c ident
inv estigation, and the appointment of spec ialists.
It is equ ally important that workers are adequ ately inf ormed of the natu re
of the oc c u pational hazards they may b e exposed to; this shou ld b e c onsidered
as a f u ndamental right. Fu rthermore, workers shou ld always hav e the right to
remov e themselv es f rom a work situ ation whic h they hav e reasonab le
ju stif ic ation to b eliev e presents an imminent and seriou s danger to their lif e
or health.
The stru c tu re of saf ety serv ic es needs to b e f ormalized. Its essential
f eatu res shou ld b e a prec ise alloc ation of responsib ilities within a stru c tu re
whic h c an ensu re su stained ac tion and a joint ef f ort b y employers and workers
to maintain a saf e and healthy working env ironment. This may b e ac -
c omplished throu gh joint saf ety c ommittees. Responsib ility f or saf ety and
health in an enterprise c annot b e isolated f rom day-to-day f u nc tions su c h as
management, produ c tion, maintenanc e and other related serv ic e ac tiv ities. This
responsib ility shou ld b e an integral aspec t of the workplac e and f ollow the
management stru c tu re f rom the senior exec u tiv e to line su perv isors.
Edu c ation and training on saf ety and health matters shou ld always b e an
integral part of training ac tiv ities at any enterprise regardless of size. These
shou ld b e c arried ou t in su c h a way that the saf ety and health needs of the
enterprise are c onstantly addressed at all lev els, leading to positiv e ac tion that
will tend to emphasize solu tions rather than merely the rec ognition of hazards.
The ac tiv ities are most ef f ec tiv e when their goals are in line with other
management goals of the enterprise.
S u f f ic ient time and ef f ort mu st b e inv ested in implementing these training
ac tiv ities. New workers shou ld rec eiv e an orientation to their tasks so that they
will learn to perf orm their job s in a saf e manner. This shou ld b e f ollowed b y
regu lar ref resher training. S af ety c ommittee memb ers and saf ety rep-
resentativ es shou ld rec eiv e spec ialized training to su pport and f ac ilitate the
36 improv ement of the work env ironment. The training of managers and
WORKING CONDITIONSANDENVIRONMENT
su perv isors is partic u larly important and du e emphasis shou ld b e plac ed on
ac tion f or improv ement.
3. Safety criteria
S tu dies of oc c u pational hazards in modern indu stry hav e rev ealed the
extremely c omplex natu re of the possib le c au ses of oc c u pational ac c idents or
diseases.
Occupational accidents
The c au ses of oc c u pational ac c idents are nev er simple, ev en in an apparently
c ommonplac e ac c ident; c onsequ ently, the nu mb er and v ariety of c lassif ic ations
are great. S tatistic s show that the most c ommon c au ses of ac c idents are not the
most dangerou s mac hines (c irc u lar saws, spindle mou lding mac hines, power
presses, f or example) nor the most dangerou s su b stanc es (explosiv es, v olatile
f lammab le liqu ids, c hemic als), b u t rather qu ite ordinary ac tions like stu mb ling,
f alling, the f au lty handling of goods or u se of hand tools, or b eing stru c k b y a
f alling ob jec t.
1
S imilarly, those who hav e ac c idents most f requ ently are not the
disab led b u t, on the c ontrary, those who are the b est equ ipped f rom the
physic al and psyc ho-sensorial point of v iew, i.e. you ng workers.
It shou ld b e kept in mind that in modern indu stry there are a v ariety of
b oth v isib le and inv isib le hazards at the workplac e. V isib le hazards inc lu de
u nf enc ed sc af f olds, openings in the f loor, dripping or leaking c hemic als or the
u nloc ked working zone of a rob ot. Inv isib le hazards are now b ec oming more
and more c ommon and dangerou s. They inc lu de inert gases, welding f u mes,
noise, v ib ration or u nf oreseen ef f ec ts of a mixtu re of c hemic als.
Tec hnic al progress has c reated new health hazards while at the same time
making the prev ention of oc c u pational ac c idents ac hiev ab le in prac tic e. It
greatly redu c es the sev erity of c onv entional hazards and signif ic antly improv es
saf ety standards. In addition, sinc e in many c ou ntries c ommu ting ac c idents
hav e now b een b rou ght u nder the heading of oc c u pational ac c idents, the
demarc ation line b etween oc c u pational and non-oc c u pational hazards has
b ec ome less distinc t and the role of the hu man f ac tor and the importanc e of the
c irc u mstanc es attending an ac c ident hav e b ec ome inc reasingly c lear. An
ac c ident is of ten the resu lt of a c omb ination of tec hnic al, physiologic al and
psyc hologic al f ac tors: it depends on b oth the mac hine and the env ironment
(lighting, noise, v ib ration, v aporizing su b stanc es, oxygen def ic ienc y), as well
as the worker's postu re and work-indu c ed f atigu e; b u t it is also c onditioned b y
c ommu ting c irc u mstanc es and other ac tiv ities ou tside the plant and b y ill-
temper, f eelings of f ru stration, you thf u l exu b eranc e and other spec if ic physic al
or mental states. In the dev eloping c ou ntries, in addition, malnu trition, endemic
diseases, lac k of adaptation to indu strial work and the immense c hanges that
indu stry has b rou ght to the worker's indiv idu al and f amily lif e and c u stoms
also play a part. It is theref ore not su rprising that, nowadays, inc reasing
1
IL O: Accident prevention, A workers' edu c ation manu al (G enev a, sec ond d., 1983). 37
Figure 7. The four basic methods of controlling occupational hazards classified by
decreasing order of effectiveness
O
0) (/)
ES
o c
II
W
ma
CDiZ
o "
0
Q
1
2
3
4
Hazard
Îndividual
TTdjiidtral
Elimination of hazard
Removal of the individual from exposure
Isolation of the hazard
Protection of the individual
Hazard Individual
Hazard Individual
Source; Adapted from E. Gniza: "Zur Thorie der Wege der Unfallverhtung", in Arbeitsokonomik und Arbeitsschutz (Berlin), Vol. 1 ,
1 95 7, No. 1 .
38
attention is b eing paid to the ac c ident hazards inherent in hu man b ehav iou r, b e
it in the f ac tory or elsewhere, and that the prob lems of saf egu arding the
worker's health and welf are are now b eing examined u sing an integrated
approac h.
The f irst prec au tion to take, in order to av oid ac c idents, is the elimination
of potential c au ses, b oth tec hnic al and hu man. The ways of doing this are too
nu merou s and v aried to b e listed extensiv ely here. Howev er, to mention b u t a
f ew, there are the ob serv anc e of tec hnic al ru les and standards, c aref u l
su perv ision and maintenanc e, saf ety training f or all workers, and the
estab lishment of good working relationships.
The main tec hnic al saf ety c riteria are listed in dec reasing order of
ef f ec tiv eness in f igu re 7.
S ome 30 per c ent of all ac c idents oc c u r in manu al handling; work stu dy
c an c ontrib u te to redu c ing the inc idenc e of these ac c idents qu ite simply b y
redu c ing the nu mb er of handling operations and the distanc e inv olv ed in
transporting goods. A signif ic ant perc entage of other ac c idents c ou ld b e
prev ented b y eliminating dangerou s operations throu gh prior work stu dy,
proc ess analysis and f low proc ess c harts (as explained in Part II) and, in
general, b y a c ritic al examination of work organization with a v iew to ac c ident
prev ention.
Work-related diseases
The situ ation relating to the c au ses of oc c u pational diseases and ways of
prev enting them is equ ally c omplex. Tec hnic al progress has b een so rapid that
it has of ten c reated new and totally u nrec ognized hazards whic h hav e resu lted
in oc c u pational diseases ev en b ef ore the disease was rec ognized as su c h. Y et
this same tec hnic al progress has prov ided extremely ef f ec tiv e tools f or the
early detec tion of signs or symptoms of oc c u pationally indu c ed morb idity, and
ev en methods f or assessing exposu re lev els b ef ore they hav e any b iologic al
ef f ec t. The stu dy and monitoring of the working env ironment hav e, in this way,
assu med a f u ndamental importanc e in the prev ention of oc c u pational diseases.
Indu strial hygiene measu res are similar to those that hav e already b een
mentioned f or ac c ident prev ention. One important point needs to b e made,
howev er. Indu strial hygiene has b een a su b jec t of stu dy f or a mu c h shorter
period than oc c u pational saf ety. It is a disc ipline whic h inv olv es b oth medic al
and tec hnic al knowledge. It is theref ore essential that the management of an
enterprise c omes to grips with the prob lem and adopts the most su itab le
approac hes f or its solu tion; su c h approac hes are not, howev er, of u niv ersal
applic ation sinc e they hav e to b e matc hed to the indiv idu al c irc u mstanc es of
the enterprise and its workers.
A nu mb er of b asic general c riteria in indu strial hygiene c an nev ertheless
b e pu t f orward. First of all, as has b een f ou nd in the f ield of mec hanic al saf ety,
in indu strial hygiene too the most ef f ec tiv e means of prev ention is that whic h
oc c u rs at the design stage b e it of a b u ilding, plant or work proc ess sinc e
any su b sequ ent improv ement or modif ic ation may perhaps b e too late to
protec t workers' health and will c ertainly b e more expensiv e. Dangerou s
operations (f or example, those resu lting in env ironmental pollu tion or
produ c ing noise or v ib ration) and harmf u l su b stanc es whic h may c ontaminate the
atmosphere at the workplac e shou ld b e replac ed b y harmless or less harmf u l
operations or su b stanc es.
Priority shou ld b e giv en to tec hnic al prev entiv e measu res with an
emphasis on the ef f ec tiv e u se of c ontrol tec hnologies. Where it is impossib le to
prov ide grou p saf ety equ ipment, u se shou ld b e made of su pplementary work
organization measu res whic h, in c ertain c ases, may inc lu de a redu c tion of the
du ration of exposu re to risk. Where grou p tec hnic al measu res and
administrativ e measu res do not redu c e exposu re to ac c eptab le lev els, workers
mu st b e prov ided with su itab le personal protec tiv e equ ipment. Howev er, other
than in exc eptional c ases or f or spec ial types of work, relianc e shou ld not b e
plac ed on personal protec tiv e equ ipment as the b asic means of saf ety. This is
not only f or physiologic al reasons b u t also a matter of princ iple, sinc e the
worker may, f or a wide range of reasons, f ail to make u se of this equ ipment.
4. The prevention of industrial accidents
Fire prevention and protection
The prev ention of f ire and, in c ertain c ases, explosion and the appropriate
protec tiv e measu res shou ld rec eiv e partic u lar attention, espec ially in hot and
dry c ou ntries and ab ov e all in c ertain indu stries where a f ire may lead to
widespread material damage and, shou ld it oc c u r du ring working hou rs, to
inju ry and ev en death. Measu res to prev ent f ires (f ire prev ention) and measu res
to redu c e the threat of inju ry and death and to limit the extent of damage (f ire
protec tion) shou ld rec eiv e spec ial attention.
The first principle of fire prevention is to design buildings, processes
and storage facilities in such a way as to limit the possible combination of
oxygen, fuel and an increase in temperature. In this regard, the c onstru c tion
of f ac ilities and proc ess engineering shou ld always striv e to redu c e the
possib ility of a f ire dev eloping and spreading. Fire risks exist in all workplac es.
The highest priority shou ld b e giv en to loc ating the f ire as soon as possib le 39
and, with the f ac ilities and measu res av ailab le, redu c ing the possib ility of the
f ire growing and spreading to other parts of the workplac e. It is theref ore
important that the c hoic e of materials u sed in the proc ess or in su pport of the
proc ess shou ld b e those with the lowest risk of c ontrib u ting to a possib le f ire or
explosion. G ood hou sekeeping also c onsiderab ly redu c es the risk.
The second principle is to eliminate or reduce sources of heat or
ignition, thus limiting the rise in temperature. Measu res su c h as restric ting
open f lames, f or example welding torc hes, and b anning the smoking of
c igarettes shou ld b e taken. The proc ess heat shou ld also b e c aref u lly c ontrolled
so as not to pose a risk.
Preparedness f or f ire emergenc ies shou ld always b e organized b y
management along the f ollowing lines:
D ev ery workplac e shou ld hav e an emergency plan with inf ormation
detailing the role of ev ery worker in c ase of a f ire or other emergenc y;
G there shou ld b e at least two clear, properly marked, unobstructed exits
leading to areas of saf ety;
D there mu st b e a way of notifying personnel of a need to evacuate, su c h
as an alarm system. This shou ld produ c e a su f f ic iently lou d signal f or all
workers to hear the alarm. In some applic ations, f or example where there
is a high lev el of noise, v isu al signals su c h as f lashing or rev olv ing lights
are also f requ ently u sed;
D the right type of fire extinguisher shou ld always b e prov ided in
adequ ate nu mb ers f or the giv en risk, and plac ed ac c ordingly. Dif f erent
types of f ire extingu isher exist f or dif f erent f ire risks and there are
national c odes f or the dif f erent types of risk. Eac h extingu isher shou ld b e
lab elled with easy-to-read instru c tions and an indic ation of whic h f ire
extingu isher to u se f or whic h risk;
D ev ery worker shou ld hav e hands-on training c onc erning the proper u se
of the extingu isher, inc lu ding b oth when and when not to u se it. The
training shou ld also c ov er saf ety c onsiderations in u sing an extingu isher;
D the prov ision of automatic fire protection su c h as sprinklers has prov ed
to b e v ery ef f ec tiv e in protec ting esc ape rou tes f or workers, as well as in
rapidly c ontrolling f ire. This is espec ially tru e in c ertain high-risk
indu stries su c h as c hemic als and textiles.
Fire c an strike a workplac e on any day at any time. Adequ ate preparation
c an greatly redu c e the extent of inju ry or damage to property. The six essential
f eatu res f or preparedness are as f ollows:
(1) A way to notif y all workers to ev ac u ate to a saf e area.
(2) An emergenc y plan detailing what shou ld b e done b y whom du ring a f ire
or other emergenc y.
(3) A trained f iref ighting team whic h c arries ou t regu lar f iref ighting and
ev ac u ation drills.
(4) Periodic inspec tion of ev ac u ation rou tes, inc lu ding emergenc y exits,
f iref ighting equ ipment, alarm systems, au tomatic f ire protec tion systems
40 and f ire hazards.
(5) A method of rapidly notif ying the f ire b rigade and assu ring its f amiliarity
with the f ac ilities, proc esses, and f ire protec tion sc hemes and equ ipment.
(6) Periodic f ire alarm and ev ac u ation exerc ises.
Major hazard control
The potential f or major indu strial ac c idents has b ec ome more signif ic ant as the
produ c tion, storage and u se of hazardou s su b stanc es has inc reased. Major f ires,
explosions or the dispersion of toxic c hemic als c an c au se deaths and inju ries to
workers and the pu b lic , resu lt in the ev ac u ation of c ommu nities and adv ersely
af f ec t the env ironment as a whole. In addition to the steps ou tlined ab ov e u nder
"Fire prev ention and protec tion", spec ial measu res are nec essary to prev ent
su c h indu strial disasters. Bec au se of the c omplexity of the indu strial ac tiv ities
c onc erned, the c ontrol of major ac c idents needs to b e b ased on a systematic
approac h.
The b asic c omponents of major hazard c ontrol systems
2
are:
D Identifying major hazard installations. G ov ernment au thorities and
management shou ld set u p, on a priority b asis, a system to identif y plants
where major hazards exist. This may b e done b y means of a list of
hazardou s c hemic als or c ategories of c hemic als and assoc iated threshold
qu antities.
D Information about the plant. Onc e the plants c onc erned hav e b een
identif ied, additional inf ormation needs to b e c ollec ted ab ou t their design
and operation. This inf ormation, whic h is of ten presented in the f orm of a
saf ety report, shou ld b e gathered and arranged systematic ally, and shou ld
b e ac c essib le to ev eryone c onc erned within the indu stry, su c h as
management and workers, and ou tside the indu stry, su c h as the
gov ernment b odies whic h may requ ire it f or lic ensing and inspec tion
pu rposes. In order to ac hiev e a c omplete desc ription of the hazards, it
may b e nec essary to c arry ou t saf ety stu dies and hazard assessments.
Action inside the plant. Management has the primary responsib ility f or
operating and maintaining a saf e plant. A sou nd saf ety polic y is theref ore
requ ired. Tec hnic al inspec tion, maintenanc e, plant modif ic ation, and
training and selec tion of su itab le personnel mu st b e c arried ou t ac c ording
to sou nd proc edu res. In addition to the preparation of the saf ety report,
ac c idents shou ld b e inv estigated and reports su b mitted to the au thorities.
L essons shou ld b e learnt f rom ac c idents and near misses.
D Emergency planning. All prev iou s elements f oc u s on the prev ention of
the oc c u rrenc e of major ac c idents. Emergenc y planning aims at mitigating
the c onsequ enc es of major ac c idents, and assu mes that ab solu te saf ety
c annot b e gu aranteed. In addition to the measu res mentioned ab ov e,
management may need to:
2
For f u rther details, see IL O: Prevention of major industrial accidents. An IL O c ode of prac tic e
(G enev a, 1991), and idem: Major hazard control, A prac tic al manu al (G enev a, 1988). 41
set u p and train a f ire b rigade;
prov ide alarm systems with a direc t line to the f ire b rigade or pu b lic
emergenc y f orc es;
draw u p an emergenc y plan, inc lu ding inf ormation ab ou t hazardou s
su b stanc es and their antidotes, gu idelines f or f ighting the emergenc y,
and alarm and c ommu nic ation rou tes;
c oordinate with the au thorities regarding their c ontingenc y plan.
In setting u p emergenc y planning, a distinc tion is made b etween on-site
and of f -site planning. A well-stru c tu red and c lear plan is one whic h is b ased on
a well-prepared saf ety report and whic h c an b e qu ic kly and ef f ec tiv ely
employed when a major ac c ident oc c u rs.
5. Working premises
It wou ld b e inappropriate to deal here with the tec hnic al details of plant
loc ation and c onstru c tion, b u t c ertain b asic princ iples need to b e apprec iated
and applied if management is su b sequ ently to ob tain v iab le resu lts. This point
shou ld b e b orne in mind b y the work stu dy spec ialist, espec ially when plant
installation is b eing stu died.
In dev eloping a layou t, emphasis shou ld b e plac ed on the princ iple of
isolating any operation whic h is hazardou s or c onstitu tes a nu isanc e. Wherev er
possib le, work premises shou ld b e ab ov e grou nd lev el and equ ipped with
windows hav ing a su rf ac e area of not less than 17 per c ent of the f loor area.
Minimu m c eiling height shou ld not b e less than 3 metres and eac h worker
shou ld hav e at least 10 c u b ic metres of air (or more where temperatu res or the
lev el of atmospheric pollu tion are high). For the pu rposes of ac c ident pre-
v ention, it is important to ensu re that eac h worker has an adequ ate minimu m
f ree-f loor area whic h shou ld not b e less than 2 squ are metres per person.
Walls and c eilings shou ld hav e a f inish whic h prev ents the ac c u mu lation
of dirt, av oids moistu re ab sorption and, where nec essary, redu c es noise
transmission; f loor c ov erings (tab le 1) shou ld b e of the non-slip, non-du st-
f orming and easy-to-c lean type and shou ld, where nec essary, hav e good
elec tric al and thermal insu lation properties.
Finally, the princ iples of good hou sekeeping shou ld b e applied.
6. Good housekeeping
Bu ilding work premises in ac c ordanc e with saf ety and hygiene regu lations is
not enou gh, howev er, if the plant or workshop is not kept c lean and tidy. G ood
hou sekeeping, whic h when u sed with ref erenc e to a f ac tory or workplac e is a
general term emb rac ing tidiness and general state of repair, not only
c ontrib u tes to ac c ident prev ention b u t is also a f ac tor in produ c tiv ity. In f ac t, it
is b y looking at su c h things as how material and equ ipment are stored, whether
aisles and gangways are kept f ree of ob stru c tions and the c leanliness of
working areas that a person c an ev en f orm an idea of the whole attitu de of
42 management to produ c tiv ity and to saf ety.
Table 1 . 'roperties of various industrial floor surfaces
1
Properties Type of surface
Concrete Ceramic Plastics Plastics Xylolite Wood Parquet Poured Rolled
tiles (2-compo-
nent com-
pounds)
(sheet or
strip)
blocks asphalt bituminous
surfaces
Abrasion Very Very Very Medium Poor Good Medium Good Good
resistance good good good
3
to good to good
Compressio n Very Very Very Medium Medium Good Medium Medium Good
3
to good
Impact Medium Medium Depen- Good Good Very Good Good Good to
resistance dent
on type
good. to very
good
very
good
Thermal Bad Bad Bad
3
Bad to Medium Very Very Medium Medium
insulation medium good good
(contact)
Shrinkage, Depen- None Poor Poor Depen- Depen- Depen- None None
stretching dent on
type
dent on
moisture
content
dent on
moisture
content
dent on
moisture
content
Acid Bad Very Good Usually Bad Good Good Poor
4
Medium
resistance good good tobad
Alkali Good Very Poor Usually Bad Medium Medium Good Good
resistance good to very
good
depend-
ing on
type
good to good to good
Water Good Very Good Good Bad Bad Bad Very Good
resistance good good
Oil and fuel Unsuit- Very Good Medium Unsuit- Good Good Unsuit- Good
resistance able un-
less spe-
cially
treated
good
2
to good able able
Solvent Good Very Certain Good Unsuit- Good Good Bad Medium
resistance good types
resistant
able
Dust Yes No No No Yes Yes No No No
formation
Ease of Satis- Good Very Good Satis- Rela- Satis- Good Medium
cleaning factory good factory tively
bad
factory
to good
to good
Fire Very Very Bad Medium Good Bad Bad Medium Quite
Dielectric Bad Good Good Good Depends Good Good Good Quite
properties on atmo-
spheric
humidity
(if dry) (if dry) good
Friction Yes Yes No No No No No No Yes
sparking
1
Determined by the Swiss Federal Materials Testing Laboratory and Research Institute (Laboratoire fdral d'essai des matriaux et Institut de
recherches), Dbendorf, August 1 969.
2
Except perhaps the joints.
3
In these cases in particular, the characteristics depend on the filler
employed.
4
The "acid-resistant" type is unaffected by non-oxidizing inorganic acids.
Source: Office fdral de l'industrie, des arts et mtiers et du travail (Suisse): Hygine et prvention des accidents dans les entreprises
industrielles, ordonnance 3 relative la loi sur le travail (Berne, 1 975 ).
43
Figure 8. Arrangement and storage of tools
'KIHHM
tJ,v)W)i)&M
m
TTrmm
nnnnnq
"V V W '
| V V V V Ml
innr
M
44
Source: J. E. Thurman et al.: Higher productivity and a better place to work. Action manual {Geneva, ILO, 1 988), figure 8.
G ood hou sekeeping inv olv es c ertain b asic elements:
D Unnec essary items shou ld b e disposed of : those that will not b e u sed
shou ld b e thrown away and other rarely u sed items c ollec ted and stored in
a su itab le manner.
D Tools and equ ipment shou ld b e arranged in a way that allows easy ac c ess
and retu rn to their designated plac e. Boards on whic h hand-tools may b e
displayed are u sef u l in this c ontext (f igu re 8).
D G angways and passages shou ld b e kept c lear and the f loor painted with
lines at least 5 c entimetres wide that distingu ish them as su c h. Depots and
storage areas shou ld b e similarly marked. Toxic matter shou ld b e painted
in a dif f erent c olou r to identif y it as su c h.
D The work area shou ld b e kept c lean. Du st may b e harmf u l to c ertain
operations, oil and grease c an c au se ac c idents, and deposits of toxic
material or c hemic als lef t u nattended are a sou rc e of oc c u pational
diseases. Continu ou s c leaning of f loors, workb enc hes, mac hinery and
equ ipment c an prolong their working lif e and show when repairs or
maintenanc e are requ ired.
D Working c lothes shou ld also b e kept c lean in order to redu c e the skin-
ab sorption hazard of c ertain toxic su b stanc es (aniline and its deriv ativ es,
b enzene, its homologu es and deriv ativ es, organo-phosphoru s c ompou nds,
tetraethyl lead and other organic metal c ompou nds, c arb on tetrac hloride
and other solv ents, nic otine, and so on) and the prob lem of skin
sensitization and c hronic or ac u te irritation. Prolonged c ontac t of the skin
with c ertain su b stanc es (espec ially mineral oils and aromatic
hydroc arb ons) may produ c e c hronic dermatitis, sometimes f ollowed b y
the dev elopment of c anc er. Workers exposed to toxic su b stanc es shou ld
hav e twin-c ompartment c lothing loc kers to keep their working c lothes
separate f rom their other c lothes. S imilarly, it is adv isab le to prov ide a
c entralized lau ndry serv ic e f or working c lothes in plants u sing highly
toxic su b stanc es.
3
D Workers employed on dirty job s or exposed to dangerou s or toxic
su b stanc es shou ld hav e wash-rooms with a tap f or ev ery three or f ou r
workers and a shower f or ev ery three workers (and nev er less than one f or
ev ery eight workers) to ensu re that workers do not giv e u p taking a
shower b ec au se they hav e to wait too long. Adequ ate toilet f ac ilities
shou ld b e prov ided no f arther than 75 metres f rom work areas.
7. Lighting
It is estimated that 80 per c ent of the inf ormation requ ired in doing a job is
perc eiv ed v isu ally. G ood v isib ility of the equ ipment, the produ c t and the data
inv olv ed in the work proc ess is an essential f ac tor in ac c elerating produ c tion,
redu c ing the nu mb er of def ec tiv e produ c ts, c u tting down waste and prev enting
v isu al f atigu e and headac hes among the workers. It may also b e added that
b oth inadequ ate v isib ility and glare are f requ ently c au ses of ac c idents.
V isib ility depends on a nu mb er of f ac tors. These are the size and c olou r of
the workpiec e, its distanc e f rom the eyes, the persistenc e of the image, the
lighting intensity, and c ontrasts of c olou r and lighting lev els with the
b ac kgrou nd. All these f ac tors shou ld b e stu died, espec ially in the c ase of
prec ision work, work in a dangerou s env ironment or where there are other
reasons f or dissatisf ac tion or c omplaint. L ighting is prob ab ly one of the more
important physic al f ac tors and the one whic h is easiest to c orrec t.
4
In princ iple, lighting shou ld b e adapted to the type of work. Howev er, the
lev el of illu mination, measu red in lu x, shou ld b e inc reased not only in relation
to the degree of prec ision or miniatu rization of the work (tab le 2), b u t also in
relation to the worker's age, sinc e older people requ ire a higher lev el of
illu mination than you ng ones, espec ially if they are to rec ognize details and to
maintain a su f f ic iently rapid v isu al reac tion. Moreov er, older people are highly
su sc eptib le to glare sinc e their rec ov ery time is longer. The ac c u mu lation of
du st and the wear of the light sou rc es c u t down the lev el of illu mination b y
10-50 per c ent of the original lev el. This gradu al drop in the lev el shou ld
theref ore b e c ompensated f or when designing the lighting system. Regu lar
c leaning of lighting f ixtu res is ob v iou sly essential.
In general, the light shou ld b e u nif ormly dif f u sed (f igu res 9, 10 and 11);
slight shadows help to distingu ish ob jec ts, b u t shadows that are too pronou nc ed
shou ld b e av oided. Exc essiv e c ontrasts in lighting lev els b etween the worker's
3
For f u rther details, see Ab u Bakar Che Man and Dav id G old: Safety in the use ofchemicals at work
(G enev a, IL O, f orthc oming).
"For f u rther inf ormation on v isu al ergonomic s and the parameters that inf lu enc e v isu al perf ormanc e,
see International Organization f or S tandardization: Principles of visual ergonomics: The lighting of indoor
worf eiîerai, IS O 8995 (G enev a, 1989). 45
Table 2. Recommended minimum values of illumination for various classes of
visual task
Class of visual task Minimum Typical examples
illumination
of task (lux)'
Casual seeing 1 00 Boilerhouse (coal and ash handling); dead storage of
rough, bulky materials; locker rooms
Ordinary rough tasks 1 5 0 Rough, intermittent bench and machine work;
rough inspection and counting of stock parts;
assembly of heavy machinery
Moderately critical tasks 300 Medium bench and machine work, assembly and
Inspection; ordinary office work such as reading,
writing, filing
Critical tasks 700 Fine bench and machine work, assembly and
inspection; extra-fine painting, spraying; sewing
dark-coloured goods
Very critical tasks 1 5 00 Assembly and inspection of delicate mechanisms;
tool- and die-making; gauge inspection; fine
grinding work
Exceptionally difficult 3 000 or more Fine watchmaking and repairing
or important tasks
' These figures refer to the mean value of illumination obtained during the life of the installation and averaged over the work plane or specific
task area (i.e. the so-called "service value of illumination").
Source: ILO, International Occupational Safety and Health Information Centre (CIS): Artificial lighting in factory and office, CIS Information
Sheet No. 1 1 (Geneva, 1 965 ), table 1 .
Table 3. Recommended maximum lighting intensity ratios
Points involved Ratio
Between the work and the immediate environment 5 to 1
Between the work and distant surfaces 20 to 1
Between the light source or the sky and adjacent surfaces 40 to 1
All points in the worker's immediate vicinity 80 to 1
task and the general su rrou ndings shou ld also b e av oided. Tab le 3 shows the
maximu m intensity ratios that shou ld b e ob serv ed in order to prev ent the
dev elopment of v isu al f atigu e and health disorders su c h as c onju nc tiv itis and
headac hes.
The u se of natu ral light shou ld b e enc ou raged. This c an b e ac hiev ed b y
installing windows that open, whic h are rec ommended to hav e an area equ al to
at least one-sixth of the f loor area. Howev er, daylight v aries with the season,
the time of day, the distanc e of workstations f rom the windows and the presenc e
or ab senc e of b linds. For this reason it is essential to hav e artif ic ial lighting
av ailab le all the time shou ld the need to u se it arise. The u se of artif ic ial light-
ing will enab le people to maintain proper v ision and will ensu re that the lighting
intensity ratios b etween the task, the su rrou nding ob jec ts and the general
46 env ironment are maintained.
Figure 9. Mounting of general lighting units
This
is better than
this
General lighting units should preferably be mounted as high as possible.
Source: ILO, CIS: Artificial lighting..,, op. dt, figure 1 8.
Some general lighting is always needed even when tasks are locally lit. (1 ) Uniform general lighting
(2) Local supplementary lighting.
Source: ILO, CIS: Artificial lighting..., op. cit., figure 21 .
Figure 1 1 . Maximum recommended spacing for industriai-type units
Measurements are to the centre point of the unit in all cases, and are expressed as a multiple of the
mounting height h above the work plane (I). The % h figure applies when there is a gangway next to
the wall, whilst the V2 h figure is used when people work close to the wall. For louvred units,
maximum spacing between fittings should be reduced to VU h.
Source: ILO, CIS: Artificial lighting..., op. cit., figure 1 9.
47
Figure 1 2. Factors influencing the degree of glare produced by a given diffusing
fitting (or a bare fluorescent lamp unit)
(1 ) Mounting height
This is more glaring than this
Glare Is worse when the mounting height of the
installation is lowered, since the lighting units
then approach closer to the horizontal line of
sight.
(2) Size of room
lî.
(-
Glare is worse in large rooms than in small
ones, because of the additional glare produced
by the many distant units which are seen close
to the horizontal line of sight.
\ This is more glar
ng
than this
(3) Orientation of lighting unit
This is more
glaring than this
When a substantial amount of light is emitted
from the sides of a fluorescent fitting, the unit
will be much more glaring when viewed broad-
side-on than when viewed end-on, since in the
latter case the apparent area of the bright side
panels (1 ) will be greatly diminished. This does
not apply to the horizontal base panel (2), for
though this panel looks a different shape, its
apparent area remains the same; hence the
glare produced by recessed units (and units
with unlit sides) is much the same regardless of
whether they are viewed endwise or crosswise.
Source: ILO, CIS: Artificial lighting..., op. cit., table IV.
Prov ided that glare is av oided (f igu re 12), f lu oresc ent lighting of f ers
c onsiderab le potential f or rational u se. This type of lighting has partic u larly
good c olou r-rendering properties and its annu al c ost (inc lu ding deprec iation
and installation c osts) f alls, in relation to inc andesc ent lighting, as the nu mb er
of hou rs of u se inc reases (f igu re 13). Thu s the nu mb er of hou rs an installation
is likely to b e u sed per year shou ld inf lu enc e the type of lighting c hosen.
L ighting c an b e easily measu red b y a light meter. The light meter shou ld b e
f itted with a detac hab le photo c ell so as to read f rom a distanc e, thu s av oiding
interf erenc e b y the person c ondu c ting the measu rements.
48
Use of colours
Experienc e shows that the c aref u l c hoic e of interior c olou r sc hemes makes a
v alu ab le c ontrib u tion to good lighting (f igu re 14). The c olou rs u sed at the
workplac e hav e psyc hologic al ef f ec ts whic h shou ld not b e ov erlooked. When
the time c omes to repaint workshops and of f ic es it c osts little to selec t pleasing
rather than drab c olou rs. The workers will see in this a c lear sign that the
management is attempting to make working c onditions more pleasant.
Figure 1 3. Relative cost of incandescent and fluorescent lighting
Annual hours of use
Source: LO, CIS: Artificial lighting..., op. cit., figure 1 .
(1 ) Fixed capital charges
(2) Point of equal cost
Fluorescent lighting
Incandescent lightin
The c olou rs of mac hinery and equ ipment are su pplementary saf ety
f ac tors. Their importanc e has b een rec ognized b y the manu f ac tu rers of
mac hine tools and elec tric al equ ipment.
Control of lighting
In order to make the b est u se of lighting in the workplac e, the f ollowing points
shou ld b e taken into ac c ou nt:
D f or u nif orm light distrib u tion, install an independent switc h f or the row of
lighting f ixtu res c losest to the windows. This allows the lights to b e
switc hed on and of f depending on whether or not natu ral light is
su f f ic ient;
to prev ent glare, av oid u sing highly shiny, glossy work su rf ac es;
u se loc alized lighting in order to ac hiev e the desired lev el f or a partic u lar
f ine job ;
c lean light f ixtu res regu larly and f ollow a maintenanc e sc hedu le so as to
prev ent f lic kering of old b u lb s and elec tric al hazards du e to worn ou t
c ab les;
av oid direc t eye c ontac t with the light sou rc es. This is u su ally ac hiev ed b y
positioning them properly. The u se of dif f u sers is also qu ite ef f ec tiv e;
D f or work with v isu al display u nits (V DUs):
5
D
D

D
5
For f u rther inf ormation on this su b jec t, see IL O: Working with visual display units. Oc c u pational
S af ety and Health S eries, No. 61 (G enev a, 1989). 49
Figure 1 4. Recommended ranges of reflection factor for main interior surfaces
Ceilings
75
0
/c ' a min. t
Walls
75 % max.
5 0% min.
Furniture,
equipment,
dados
(if required)
20% min. |
Floors
Source: ILO, CIS; Artificial lighting..., op. cit., figure 30.
Reflection
factor
(percent)
1 00
95
90
70
65
5 0
45
25
20
7
5
White
and
near-white
Light
colours
Medium
colours
Dark
colours
the general lighting lev el shou ld b e relativ ely low, not to exc eed 500
lu x (b linds or c u rtains may b e u sed to prev ent exc essiv e daylight);
av oid glare b y su itab le positioning of the V DU or other means;
ensu re that there are no ref lec ted light sou rc es seen b y the u ser on
the sc reen;
the lu minanc e and c ontrast of the sc reen mu st b e adju stab le and the
c harac ters mu st remain sharp;
if additional lighting is needed, it mu st b e adju stab le and positioned
in su c h a way as to av oid glare.
8. Noise and vibration
6
Noise
High lev els of mec hanization, inc reased mac hine speeds, the density of
mac hinery at the workplac e and the lac k, u ntil rec ently, of detailed knowledge
of the hazards and nu isanc e f ac tor of noise hav e resu lted, in many plants, in
6
For f u rther inf ormation on this su b jec t, see IL O: Protection ofworkers against noise and vibration
50 in the working environment. An IL O c ode of prac tic e (G enev a, third impression (with modif ic ations), 1984).
workers b eing exposed to noise lev els whic h are nowadays c onsidered
exc essiv e.
Noise means any disagreeab le or u ndesired sou nd. S ou nd-lev el meters are
u sed to measu re the pressu re v ariations produ c ing au dib le sou nd. The prac tic al
u nit f or measu ring noise is dec ib el (dB).
The hu man ear responds in dif f erent ways to sou nds of dif f erent
f requ enc ies. The u nit of f requ enc y is hertz (Hz) and the ear responds ov er
the approximate range of 20 to 20,000 Hz. The lou dness of sou nds, as ju dged
b y the hu man ear, depends on f requ enc y as well as lev el. The ear is less
sensitiv e to low and v ery high f requ enc ies than to the middle range of
f requ enc ies f rom 1,000 to 8,000 Hz. A sou nd-lev el meter has an elec tronic
network of standardized c harac teristic s b u ilt into it to simu late this
c harac teristic of the av erage ear. The generally ac c epted network f or this
approximation is the "A" S c ale and measu rements made du ring this weighting
are lab elled dB(A).
Noise is the c au se of v ariou s prob lems. It impedes sou nd c ommu nic ation
(f igu re 15), f irst, b y the ac ou stic al masking ef f ec t whic h ev ery sou nd has on
other sou nds of the same f requ enc y or immediately higher f requ enc ies and
whic h redu c es the intelligib ility of speec h that is not more than 10 dB lou der
than the b ac kgrou nd noise; and, sec ond, b y temporarily raising the ac ou stic
threshold in the ev ent of exposu re to a noise exc eeding 78-80 dB (f igu re 16).
Bac kgrou nd noise may hinder c ommu nic ation or, b y masking warning signals,
may c au se ac c idents. Its lev el shou ld not exc eed 60-70 dB(A) if anyb ody is to
c ondu c t a c onv ersation at a normal distanc e.
Noise may c au se sensori-motor, neu ro-v egetativ e and metab olic dis-
orders ; it has b een named as a c au se of indu strial f atigu e, irritation, redu c ed
produ c tiv ity and oc c u pational ac c idents.
Anyone who has done intellec tu al work, or work requ iring intense
c onc entration, in a noisy env ironment su c h as a weav ing mill or a workshop
f u ll of au tomatic mac hines ev en where the noise lev el does not reac h lev els
whic h may c au se oc c u pational deaf ness will know ju st how f atigu ing noise
c an b e. Intermittent noise f rom rams u sed f or digging the f ou ndations f or heav y
mac hines, riv eting hammers, pile-driv ers or large mec hanic al presses is
partic u larly distu rb ing. Nu merou s inv estigations hav e shown that a redu c tion in
the b ac kgrou nd noise is ac c ompanied b y a marked dec rease in the nu mb er of
errors and a signif ic ant improv ement in produ c tion.
Prolonged exposu re to noise ab ov e c ertain lev els c au ses permanent
damage to hearing and resu lts in oc c u pational deaf ness.
L oss of hearing is either temporary or permanent in natu re depending
u pon the length and sev erity of noise exposu re. A temporary hearing loss,
lasting f or a f ew sec onds to a f ew days, may resu lt f rom exposu res to high-
intensity noise f or short du rations. This is rev ersib le and normal hearing will b e
restored. Mu c h more seriou s regu lar and prolonged exposu re to some kinds of
noise of moderate intensity maintained throu gh su c c essiv e working days ov er a
period of years, or a single short exposu re to v ery high-intensity noise, may
c au se a loss of hearing whic h is permanent and irrev ersib le and may ev en
c au se damage to the ears. 51
Figure 1 5 . Distance at which the normal voice can be heard against background noise
Noise level at listener's ear in dB(A)
1 1 0
1 00
90
80
70
60
5 0
40
^ '^
h-.
No voice communication
"v
V
^
V
V ^
V
^
Partial
communication
\,
\,
r\

^^^
^
Easy comrr unication
^<s
^
\
'%
\
^ 1 ^ < = > ^ ^
0.05 0.1 0.25 0.5 1 0 20 40 70 1 00
Distance from talker to listener in metres
o
z
O
Source: From J. C. Webster: "Speech interfering aspects of noise", in D. Lipscomb (d.): Wo/se and auc//o/ogy (Baltimore, Maryland, University Park Press, Copyright 1 978), pp. 200-201 .
Figure 1 6. Temporary hearing threshold shift in dB as a function of duration of
exposure to wide-band noise
Threshold shift in dB
40
30
20
1 0
/
1
/
J
i
/
V
i
^
X

^38dBJ
i
1 0 20 5 0 1 00
Exposure in minutes
Source: A. Glorig et al.: "Damage risk criteria and noise-included hearing loss", in Archives of Otolaryngology (Chicago, Illinois), Vol. 74,
1 961 , p. 41 3, Copyright 1 961 , American Medical Association.
It is c onsidered that exposu re to c ontinu ou s noise lev els of 90 dB(A) or
ab ov e is dangerou s to hearing; b u t the f igu re of 85 dB(A) is already a warning
lev el whic h shou ld not b e exc eeded. S pec ial c are shou ld b e taken in the c ase of
impu lse noise, i.e. a sou nd with a rise time of not more than 35 millisec onds to
peak intensity (giv en as sou nd pressu re in pasc als (pa)) and a du ration of not
more than a sec ond to the time when the lev el is 20 dB b elow the peak. Eac h
time the sou nd lev el inc reases b y 6 dB, the sou nd pressu re dou b les and the
ac ou stic energy is qu adru pled; thu s it is c onsidered that, f or an inc rease of 3 to
5 dB in the sou nd lev el, the du ration of exposu re mu st b e halv ed if the
b iologic al ef f ec t is to remain u nc hanged (tab le 4).
The most ef f ec tiv e method of noise c ontrol is to redu c e the noise at
sou rc e b y, f or example, replac ing noisy mac hines or equ ipment b y less noisy
ones; this means (as is always the c ase with prev entiv e ac tion) that these
measu res mu st b e b orne in mind at the design stage of a produ c tion proc ess.
5 3
Table 4. Duration of continuous noise exposure which should not be exceeded to
ensure the prevention of occupational deafness among the majority of
workers
Daily duration of
noise in hours
Noise level in dB(A)
(measured "slow")
1 6 80
8 85
4 90
2 95
1 1 00
v
2
1 05
v. 1 1 0
v
8
1 1 5
Source: American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH): Threshold limit values for chemical substances and physical
agents In the workroom environment adopted by the ACGIH for 1987- 88 (Cincinnati, Ohio).
the c onstru c tion of a b u ilding or the pu rc hase of equ ipment. Partic u lar attention
shou ld b e giv en to v entilation equ ipment sinc e, in many workshops, rec ent
c onc ern ab ou t the prev ention of atmospheric pollu tion at the workplac e has led
to the installation of v entilation equ ipment whic h, when in operation, has
raised the b ac kgrou nd noise to 85 to 90 dB and ab ov e, ev en b ef ore the
produ c tion mac hines are started u p.
The sec ond method is to prev ent or redu c e noise transmission b y the
installation of noise-ab sorb ent b arriers b etween the noise sou rc e and the
worker and b y the damping of stru c tu res whic h may b e the sou rc e of sec ondary
rev erb eration, or b y isolating the noise sou rc e in separate premises or a sou nd-
proof ed enc losu re (this may also requ ire modif ic ation of the f ou ndations to
prev ent the transmission of v ib ration throu gh the f loor). Where su c h measu res
are not applic ab le or are not su f f ic iently ef f ec tiv e, it may b e nec essary to
prov ide workers with sou nd-proof ed c ab ins (v entilated or, where nec essary, air-
c onditioned) f rom whic h they c an operate the mac hines and do their work
withou t hav ing to enter the noisy env ironment exc ept f or short periods.
Where workers are systematic ally exposed to a noise lev el of 90 dB(A)
f or eight working hou rs, the du ration of noise exposu re shou ld b e redu c ed to
b ring the situ ation b ac k within ac c eptab le limits (tab le 4).
Personal noise protec tion c onsists of ear-plu gs made f rom material su c h
as glass f ib re or f oam plastic , or earmu f f s whic h prov ide a redu c tion in noise of
u p to 20 dB; howev er, workers sometimes ob jec t to this type of protec tion. In
f ac t, personal noise protec tion shou ld b e c onsidered as no more than a
prov isional remedy u ntil the workplac e is permanently modif ied or whenev er
spec ial c onditions make its u se nec essary.
Workers who are systematic ally exposed to noise lev els ab ov e the danger
lev el shou ld rec eiv e a periodic au diometric examination. This examination c an
help to identif y at an early stage indiv idu als whose hearing has b een af f ec ted,
possib ly b y exc eptional su sc eptib ility to noise, or f ailu re to u se hearing
54 protec tors prov ided to them, or u se of inc orrec tly f itted or u nsu itab le protec tors.
Vibration
Althou gh only a limited nu mb er of workers are exposed to v ib rations whic h
c onstitu te a health hazard, the nec essary protec tiv e measu res shou ld not b e
neglec ted. The possib ility of redu c ing v ib ration lev els (e.g. dynamic b alanc ing
of rotating parts, u se of v ib ration-ab sorb ing mou ntings, prov iding heav y
f ou ndations) and redu c ing the ef f ec t of v ib rations (e.g. u se of v ib ration-
damping handles f or hand-held mac hines) shou ld b e explored f irst. Where this
is not possib le the period of exposu re shou ld b e c ontrolled. Persons exposed to
v ib rations shou ld b e su b jec ted to periodic medic al examinations.
9. Climatic conditions
Control of the c limatic c onditions at the workplac e is paramou nt to the
workers' health and c omf ort and to the maintenanc e of higher produ c tiv ity.
With exc ess heat or c old, workers may f eel v ery u nc omf ortab le, and their
ef f ic ienc y drops. In addition, this c an lead to ac c idents.
The hu man b ody f u nc tions in su c h a way as to keep the c entral nerv ou s
system and the internal organs at a c onstant temperatu re. It maintains the
nec essary thermal b alanc e b y c ontinu ou s heat exc hange with the env ironment.
The extent of this exc hange depends, on the one hand, on air temperatu re,
v entilation, hu midity and radiant heat and, on the other, on b ody metab olism.
Du ring physic al ac tiv ity, metab olic v alu es may b e u p to ten times as mu c h as
those enc ou ntered at rest. Under normal c limatic c onditions, in order to av oid
ov er-heating (whic h sooner or later prov es f atal), the heat that the b ody is
c ontinu ally produ c ing mu st b e dissipated in larger qu antities when work is
b eing done and in still larger qu antities again if it is ab sorb ing heat f rom a
high-temperatu re env ironment. It is essential to av oid exc essiv e heat or c old,
and wherev er possib le to keep the c limatic c onditions optimal so that the b ody
c an maintain a thermal b alanc e.
Working in a hot environment
Hot working env ironments are f ou nd almost ev erywhere. Work premises in
tropic al c ou ntries may, on ac c ou nt of general c limatic c onditions, b e natu rally
hot. When sou rc es of heat su c h as f u rnac es, kilns or hot proc esses are present,
or when the physic al workload is heav y, the hu man b ody may also hav e to deal
with exc ess heat.
It shou ld b e noted that in su c h hot working env ironments sweating is
almost the only way in whic h the b ody c an lose heat. As the sweat ev aporates,
the b ody c ools. There is a relationship b etween the amou nt and speed of
ev aporation and a f eeling of c omf ort. The more intense the ev aporation, the
qu ic ker the b ody will c ool and f eel ref reshed. Ev aporation inc reases with
adequ ate v entilation.
Howev er, when there is high relativ e hu midity, ev aporation is less,
ef f ec tiv e in c ooling the b ody. Certain c limatic c onditions, su c h as those in
many tropic al c ou ntries, and c ertain working env ironments su c h as those f ou nd
in deep mines, textile mills and su gar ref ineries, expose the worker to a hot, 55
Figure 1 7. Limits of heat exposure
WBGT-
0
C
35 .
30
25
20
WBG T-
0
F
,95
Continuous
75 per cent work - 25 per cent rest each hour
5 0 per cent work - 5 0 per cent rest each hour
25 per cent work - 75 per cent rest each hour
90
85
80
O75
70
1 00 200 300
Kcal/hr.
400 5 00
400 800 1 ,200
BTU/hr.
Rate of wo rk
1 ,600 2,000
Source: ACGiH, op. cit.
hu mid env ironment with little possib ility to c ool throu gh ev aporation. Another
working env ironment whic h is u nc omf ortab le resu lts f rom a c omb ination of a
hot, dry, "desert-like" heat c omb ined with high air temperatu res. This type of
working env ironment c an b e f ou nd in iron and steel works, in f ou ndries,
arou nd su rf ac e treatment f u rnac es and in glass works, hot-rolling mills and
f orges. In all c ases it is nec essary to c onsider thermal b u rden in relation to the
energy expenditu re requ ired b y the work. The more b u rdensome the c limatic
c onditions, the longer the work b reaks shou ld b e (f igu re 17).
5 6
Working in a cold environment
Working in c old env ironments was onc e restric ted to non-tropic al or highly
elev ated regions. Now, as a resu lt of modern ref rigeration, v ariou s grou ps of
workers, ev en in tropic al c ou ntries, are exposed to a c old env ironment.
Exposu re to c old f or short periods of time c an produ c e seriou s ef f ec ts,
espec ially when workers are exposed to temperatu res b elow 10
0
C. The loss of
b ody heat is u nc omf ortab le and qu ic kly af f ec ts work ef f ic ienc y. To maintain a
normal temperatu re in a c ool or c old env ironment, the b ody tries to limit heat
loss b y shiv ering and slowing down the c irc u lation of b lood to the skin and
extremities. L ong exposu res or extreme c old endanger su rv iv al owing to a drop
in b ody temperatu re.
Work periods in c old env ironments shou ld, where nec essary, b e alternated
with work periods in normal temperatu re. Workers who mu st remain in the
open in c old weather, su c h as c onstru c tion workers, elec tric al line workers or
f ishermen, shou ld always b e prov ided with sheds or other f ac ilities where they
c an re-warm themselv es, sheltered f rom the weather. Workers shou ld
f requ ently take hot drinks. In non-heated c old loc ations, some degree of
c omf ort c an b e ac hiev ed b y loc alized heat, su c h as that prov ided b y inf ra-red
heaters, direc ted at the workers. This c an inc rease the amou nt of time a worker
c an remain in c old premises withou t negativ e c onsequ enc es to health and
withou t loss of produ c tion.
Workers in c old c limates and ref rigerated premises shou ld b e well
protec ted against the c old b y wearing su itab le c lothes, inc lu ding f ootwear,
glov es and, most importantly, a hat. Normally, dressing in layers traps dead air
and serv es as an insu lation layer, thu s keeping the worker warmer.
Working in a wet environment
As has already b een mentioned, high lev els of hu midity are poorly tolerated at
high temperatu res, in partic u lar when there is a signif ic ant workload. The
temperatu re (as indic ated b y the wet-b u lb thermometer) at the workplac e
shou ld not exc eed 21
0
C (70
0
F). It is extremely dif f ic u lt to keep within this
limit in hot c ou ntries, in c irc u mstanc es where (as in the textile indu stry) the
proc ess requ ires a high lev el of atmospheric hu midity or (as in lau ndries,
c anning plants and v ariou s c hemic al plants) produ c es large qu antities of steam.
Exc ess steam shou ld b e prev ented f rom spreading in the atmosphere b y loc al
exhau st where possib le, and b y c ontrolling the qu antity of steam introdu c ed f or
hu midif ic ation. Inc reasing air v eloc ity will prov ide a degree of c omf ort in hot,
hu mid, atmospheres.
Exc essiv e hu midity is also poorly tolerated in c omb ination with low
temperatu res. Relativ e hu midity shou ld b e kept within a range of 40 to 70 per
c ent. An inadequ ate amou nt of hu midity in the air c an also c reate prob lems.
Exc essiv ely dry air c an b e a c au se of respiratory trac t diseases; c onsequ ently,
this shou ld b e av oided in winter in ov erheated premises.
Control of the thermal environment
There are many ways of c ontrolling the thermal env ironment. It is relativ ely
easy to assess the ef f ec ts of thermal c onditions, espec ially when exc essiv e heat
or c old is an ob v iou s prob lem. To solv e the prob lem, howev er, c onsistent
ef f orts u sing a v ariety of av ailab le measu res are u su ally nec essary. This is
b ec au se the prob lem is linked with the general c limate, whic h greatly af f ec ts 57
Table 5 . Control of working climate
Type of work
Sedentary work 20-22 68-72
Light physical work in a seated position 1 9-20 66-68
Light work in a standing position (e.g. on machine-tools) 1 7-1 8 63-65
Moderate work in a standing position (e.g. assembly) 1 6-1 7 61 -63
Heavy work in a standing position (e.g. drilling) 1 4-1 6 5 7-61
the workplac e c limate, produ c tion tec hnology, whic h is of ten the sou rc e of heat
or c old, and v arying c onditions of the work premises as well as work methods
and sc hedu les. Personal f ac tors su c h as c lothing, nu trition, personal hab its, age
and indiv idu al dif f erenc es in response to the giv en thermal c onditions also need
to b e taken into ac c ou nt in the attempt to attain the thermal c omf ort of workers.
In c ontrolling the thermal env ironment, one or more of the f ollowing
princ iples may b e applied:
D regu lating the workroom temperatu re b y prev enting ou tside heat or c old
f rom entering (improv ed design of the roof , insu lation material or
installing an air-c onditioned workroom. Air-c onditioning is c ostly,
espec ially in f ac tories, b u t it is sometimes a worthwhile inv estment if an
appropriate type is c hosen);
D prov ision of v entilation in hot workplac es b y inc reasing natu ral
v entilation throu gh openings or installing v entilation dev ic es;
D separation of heat sou rc es f rom the working area, insu lation of hot
su rf ac es and pipes, or plac ement of b arriers b etween the heat sou rc es and
the workers;
D c ontrol of hu midity with a v iew to keeping it at low lev els, f or example
b y prev enting the esc ape of steam f rom pipes and equ ipment;
prov ision of adequ ate personal protec tiv e c lothing and equ ipment f or
workers exposed to exc essiv e radiant heat or exc essiv e c old (heat-
protec tiv e c lothing with high insu lation v alu e may not b e rec ommended
f or job s with long exposu re to moderate or heav y work as it prev ents
ev aporativ e heat loss);
D redu c tion of exposu re time, f or example b y mec hanization, remote c ontrol
or alternating work sc hedu les;
D insertion of rest pau ses b etween work periods, with c omf ortab le, if
possib le air-c onditioned, resting f ac ilities;
EJ ensu ring a su pply of c old drinking-water f or workers in a hot env ironment
and of hot drinks f or those exposed to a c old env ironment.
Experienc e shows that, among the workers in a giv en work area, some
wou ld pref er more v entilation and others less, and some tend to f eel c old while
others f eel at ease. S u c h dif f erenc es of ten oc c u r b ec au se the job s b eing done b y
c ertain workers demand greater physic al ef f ort than those b eing done b y others,
or b ec au se some work in a drau ght and others in a c onf ined work area.
58 Improv ed layou t of work premises and workstations c an of ten help prov ide
optimu m c limatic c onditions f or the majority of workers. It is u sef u l to take
into ac c ou nt the dif f erent air temperatu res rec ommended f or v ariou s types of
work, as shown in tab le 5.
It is sometimes seen that in partic u lar the heat at the workplac e may still
b e exc essiv e in spite of v ariou s av ailab le measu res. In this c ase c onsideration
shou ld b e giv en to drastic tec hnic al solu tions, su c h as c hanging the produ c tion
methods or proc esses, pu rc hasing mac hines whic h do not c ontrib u te to
exc essiv e heat in the env ironment or prov iding air-c onditioned workrooms.
Ventilation
The c u b ic v olu me of working premises c an nev er b e large enou gh to make
v entilation u nnec essary, sinc e v entilation is the dynamic parameter that
c omplements the c onc ept of air spac e: f or a giv en nu mb er of workers, the
smaller the work premises the more intense shou ld b e the v entilation.
V entilation mu st not b e c onf u sed with air c irc u lation: the f irst replac es
c ontaminated air b y f resh air, whereas the sec ond merely mov es the air withou t
renewing it. Where the air temperatu re and hu midity are high, merely to
c irc u late the air is not only inef f ec tiv e b u t, b eyond c ertain limits, inc reases heat
ab sorption b y c onv ec tion.
Workplac e v entilation:
D disperses the heat generated b y mac hines and people at work;
c onsequ ently, where mac hines or workers are grou ped together,
v entilation shou ld b e intensif ied;
dilu tes atmospheric c ontamination (it is easy to c alc u late the qu antity of
air to b e admitted, on the b asis of the qu antity of su b stanc es b eing released
into the air and the maximu m c onc entration that shou ld b e ob serv ed);
D maintains the f eeling of air f reshness.
In all, adequ ate v entilation shou ld b e looked u pon as an important f ac tor in
maintaining the worker's health and produ c tiv ity.
Exc ept f or c onf ined spac es, all working premises hav e some minimu m
v entilation. Howev er, to ensu re the nec essary air f low (whic h shou ld not b e
lower than 50 c u b ic metres of air per hou r per worker), air u su ally needs to b e
c hanged b etween f ou r and eight times per hou r in of f ic es or f or sedentary
workers, b etween eight and 12 times per hou r in workshops and as mu c h as 15
to 30 or more times per hou r f or pu b lic premises and where there are high
lev els of atmospheric pollu tion or hu midity.
The air speed u sed f or workplac e v entilation shou ld b e adapted to the air
temperatu re and the energy expenditu re: f or sedentary work it shou ld exc eed
0.2 metre per sec ond, b u t f or a hot env ironment the optimu m speed is b etween
0.5 and 1 metre per sec ond. For ardu ou s work it may b e ev en higher. Certain
types of hot work c an b e made tolerab le b y direc ting a stream of c old air at the
workers. V entilation, c orrec tly u sed, is one of the most important tec hnic al
means of making tolerab le c ertain types of extremely ardu ou s working
c onditions as enc ou ntered in deep mines and tropic al c ou ntries, i.e. anywhere 59
where there is a c omb ination of high atmospheric temperatu re and relativ e
hu midity.
Natu ral v entilation, ob tained b y opening windows or wall or roof air-
v ents, may produ c e signif ic ant air f lows b u t c an normally b e u sed only in
relativ ely mild c limates. The ef f ec tiv eness of this type of v entilation depends
largely on external c onditions that u su ally v ary c onsiderab ly. When v entilation
is most needed, natu ral v entilation is of ten least ef f ec tiv e; moreov er, it is
relativ ely dif f ic u lt to regu late. In addition, f or natu ral v entilation to b e ef f ec tiv e,
the ou tlet v ents mu st b e c orrec tly loc ated and of su f f ic ient size, espec ially in
hot c ou ntries where v entilation apertu res are, only too of ten, too small.
Where natu ral v entilation is inadequ ate, artif ic ial v entilation shou ld b e
u sed. A c hoic e may b e made b etween a b lown-air system, an exhau st-air
system or a c omb ination of b oth ("pu sh-pu ll" v entilation). Only "pu sh-pu ll"
v entilation systems allow f or b etter regu lation of air mov ement.
Where c onc entration of c ontaminants c annot b e redu c ed b y v entilation,
loc al exhau st systems mu st b e u sed. They u su ally inc lu de hoods or enc losu res,
du c twork leading to an exhau st f an, an air-c leaning dev ic e f or air pollu tion
ab atement and, f inally, disc harge to the ou tside air. An essential point is to
ensu re that the exhau sted air does not pass throu gh the workers' b reathing
zone. Althou gh the initial installation may b e c ostlier, loc al exhau st v entilation
is ov erall more ec onomic al and more ef f ic ient than general v entilation sinc e it
c aptu res c ontaminants at the sou rc e and requ ires a mu c h smaller v olu me of
exhau st air to remov e them f rom the workplac e.
10. Exposure to toxic substances
The protec tion of workers' health against hazards du e to the c ontamination of
air at the workplac e and the prev ention of c ontamination of the work
env ironment shou ld b e the c onc ern of all those inv olv ed in the design and
organization of work. Pollu tion of the work env ironment b y airb orne
c ontaminants is c au sed b y toxic su b stanc es released du ring the work proc ess in
the f orm of du st, gases, v apou rs or mists. Du st c ontaining silic a in stone
proc essing, solv ents u sed in c leaning work and su lphu r dioxide or c hlorine
leaking f rom pipes are some examples of c ontamination. Exposu re to toxic
su b stanc es has b oth short- and long-term ill-ef f ec ts on the hu man b ody, and
shou ld b e prev ented.
A f irst attempt shou ld b e made to remov e or eliminate the hazard b y
c ontrolling the release of toxic su b stanc es into the work env ironment. This is
possib le in many situ ations b y measu res su c h as su b stitu ting with a less
hazardou s su b stanc e, enc losing the proc esses emitting toxic su b stanc es and
prev enting leaks in joints of pipes. Prov iding loc al exhau st systems to remov e
the airb orne c ontaminants at the sou rc e is also prac tic al and v iab le in some
c ases. Introdu c ing c hanges in the proc ess itself (su c h as mec hanic al handling in
plac e of manu al handling or wet grinding in plac e of dry grinding) shou ld also
b e c onsidered.
The redu c tion of exposu re time of workers c an b e a v iab le solu tion in
60 c ases where the worker is not requ ired to b e near the proc ess c ontinu ou sly.
When the measu res su ggested ab ov e are not possib le, the last resort
shou ld b e to protec t the worker throu gh appropriate personal protec tiv e
equ ipment adequ ate to the task.
Whenev er there is a possib ility of a toxic su b stanc e c ontaminating the
work env ironment, steps shou ld b e taken to assess the lev els of exposu re.
Instru ments, equ ipment and standard methods are av ailab le f or detec tion,
sampling and ev alu ation of c ontaminants in the work env ironment. It is
nec essary to ensu re that the exposu re limits spec if ied are not exc eeded b y
implementing one or more of the methods desc rib ed ab ov e. Exposu re limits are
deriv ed f rom animal experiments, epidemiologic al data and f ield trials, and are
spec if ied b y gov ernments, researc h institu tions and rec ognized b odies su c h as
the Americ an Conf erenc e of G ov ernmental Indu strial Hygienists (ACG IH).
They are expressed in terms of time-weighted av erage (TWA), c eiling v alu es
(whic h mu st not b e exc eeded at any time) or short-term exposu re lev els (S TEL ,
i.e. the highest c onc entration whic h shou ld not b e exc eeded b eyond 15 minu tes
du ring any shif t). Periodic monitoring of the work env ironment is essential. It
may b e also nec essary, in some c ases, to c onf irm or su pplement the f indings b y
b iologic al monitoring, f or example b y examination of b lood or b ody f lu ids, and
b y medic al examinations.
Apart f rom airb orne c ontaminants (whic h enter the hu man b ody throu gh
inhalation), c ertain su b stanc es c an-enter the b ody throu gh ingestion (f ood or
drink c ontaminated with toxic su b stanc es mainly attrib u tab le to poor
personal hygiene prac tic es) or throu gh skin ab sorption. Mineral oils and
solv ents handled b y workers c an c au se dermatitis of the skin b y prolonged
c ontac t. Certain c hemic als reac h the b lood throu gh the skin and c au se systemic
disorders. Aniline c au ses c yanosis and b enzene is known to af f ec t b lood c ells
throu gh skin ab sorption.
Workers exposed to toxic su b stanc es shou ld b e su b jec ted to periodic
medic al examinations. Rec ords of medic al examinations shou ld b e maintained
and rev iewed, to detec t any c hanges or deterioration in the health statu s of
workers and to ensu re that ef f ec tiv e measu res are taken to protec t their health.
11. Personal protective equipment
For c ertain sev ere oc c u pational hazards, neither tec hnic al prev ention nor
administrativ e arrangements c an ensu re an adequ ate degree of protec tion. It is
theref ore nec essary to institu te a third lev el of def enc e, i.e. personal protec tiv e
equ ipment. This type of equ ipment is ju stif ied in emergenc y situ ations su c h as
a sev ere ac c ident, a leak or a f ire, or u nder exc eptional c irc u mstanc es su c h as
those attending work in c onf ined spac es. In other c ases the prov ision and
maintenanc e of this equ ipment may b e expensiv e and some workers may resist
its u se. It is theref ore adv isab le f or representativ es of the management and the
workers to examine the matter jointly b ef orehand and to seek the opinion of the
saf ety and health c ommittee, where one exists.
Where there is no other ef f ec tiv e means of protec tion, the enterprise mu st
prov ide a su f f ic ient qu antity of su itab le personal protec tiv e equ ipment, instru c t 51
the workers in its c orrec t u se and ensu re that it is worn. The c hoic e of
equ ipment shou ld b e made with the assistanc e of spec ialists, sinc e adv ic e is
requ ired b oth on the equ ipment's ef f ec tiv eness and on its ergonomie
c harac teristic s, i.e. its adaptation to the worker's physic al and f u nc tional
c harac teristic s.
12. Ergonomics
The ef f ec ts of health and saf ety on produ c tiv ity c annot b e properly disc u ssed
withou t tou c hing on the c onc ept of ergonomic s. This term c ov ers a f ield whic h
in rec ent years has expanded to an extraordinary degree and whose b ou ndaries
ov erlap with other disc iplines c onc erned with the stu dy of work and its
c onsequ enc es f or hu man b eings. Ergonomic s is c onc erned with: (a) the stu dy
of the indiv idu al operator or working team, and (b ) the prov ision of data f or
design. The aims of ergonomic s are, theref ore, to enhanc e functional
effectiveness while maintaining or improv ing human welfare. Ergonomie
measu res may also b e def ined as those that go b eyond the mere protec tion of
the workers' physic al integrity and aim at ensu ring their well-b eing throu gh
appropriate working c onditions and the most su itab le u se of their physic al
c harac teristic s and physiologic al and psyc hologic al c apab ilities. Thu s,
ergonomic s is hu man c entred. While the ergonomist has always in mind the
people inv olv ed in the operation of any system, other prof essionals may well
b e interested in the object b eing produ c ed or u sed (indu strial designer); the
method of work (work stu dy prac titioner); the productivity implic ations
(indu strial engineer); or the safety aspec ts (saf ety engineer).
For ergonomic s, then, the task is to dev elop the most c omf ortab le
c onditions f or the worker as regards lighting, c limate and noise lev el, to
redu c e the physic al workload (in partic u lar in hot env ironments), to f ac ilitate
psyc ho-sensorial f u nc tions in reading instru ment displays, to make the
handling of mac hine lev ers and c ontrols easier, to make b etter u se of
spontaneou s and stereotyped responses, to av oid u nnec essary inf ormation
rec all ef f orts, and so on.
The interac tion b etween operator and mac hine deserv es partic u lar
attention, as this is an important aspec t of work stu dy. The so-c alled "interf ac e"
b etween the worker and the mac hine is symb olized in f igu re 18 b y a dotted
line. One relev ant c harac teristic of any mac hine is the way that it c onv eys
inf ormation to the operator. This inf ormation is prov ided throu gh displays.
There is an enormou s v ariety of v isu al and au ditory displays (see f igu re 19).
Many ergonomie design aspec ts of these dev ic es shou ld b e c onsidered b y the
work stu dy prac titioner when stu dying the c u rrent working method. One
important point is that the main aim of the displays is to estab lish a
c ommu nic ation link b etween the mac hine and the worker and that this proc ess
c an b e enhanc ed or degraded depending u pon the qu ality of the displays
selec ted. While they c an prov ide alternativ e ways of c onv eying inf ormation,
new tec hnologies c an b ring new prob lems and pose new c onstraints in the u se
62 of displays. Elec tronic displays requ ire spec if ic gu idelines f or their selec tion.
Figure 1 8. The operator/machine interface
Machine
y
i
i
Displays
I
Controls
Source: Reproduced, by permission, from W. T. Singleton: Introduction to ergonomics (Geneva, WHO, 1 972), p. 87.
installation and u se. S ingleton proposes some general princ iples c onc erning
displays, some of whic h are as f ollows :
6
D Display design mu st b e b ased on a c lear def inition of the task and on an
u nderstanding of the way in whic h the partic u lar kind of operator
perf orms it.
D There are three kinds of display: pic torial, qu alitativ e and qu antitativ e
(f igu re 19). Q u antitativ e displays are only u sed when nu mb ers are
essential to the task.
D In most tasks the operator rec eiv es inf ormation b oth f rom a real work
proc ess and f rom an artif ic ial display representing it. The artif ic ial display
mu st b e so designed as to b e c ompatib le with the real display in terms of
patterns and relativ e mov ements.
D When the inf ormation to b e presented artif ic ially has b een assessed, it
mu st b e alloc ated:
' S ee W. T. S ingleton: Introduction to ergonomics (G enev a, World Health Organization, 1972), p. 77.
63
Figure 1 9. Ergonomie display design
A. Types of display
Speed Setting
3
1 1
1 5
AJH
AGH
BJi
Real Artificial Static Dynamic
5 0
Fast
7 6 3
Slow
Analogue Digital Pictorial Qualitative Quantitative
B. Scale patterns
Good designs iiii
Poor designs I ! ! -I
- \ M i i i I
7
Good designs
Poor designs
^SSi7
/
1 ' '" ' 1
C. Dial patterns
Superior design Reasonable alternatives
Poor designs
D. Display stereotypes
Expected
0 12 3 4 5
Unexpected
5 4 3 2 10
64
Source: Reproduced, by permission, from Singleton, op. cit., pp. 79-80.
b etween the three sensory c hannels: v isu al, au ditory and kinaesthetic
(mov ement perc eption); and
b etween dynamic and static displays.
D In designing displays f or maximu m speed and minimu m attention, u se the
kinaesthetic c hannel.
D For maximu m attention, u se the au ditory c hannel.
For maximu m prec ision and agreement b etween operators, u se the v isu al
c hannel.
The other major aspec t of mac hines c onc erns the way they are operated
and c ontrolled. Controls are instru ments permitting manipu lation of the
mac hine, thu s c losing the operator-mac hine loop system. The analysis of
c ontrol c harac teristic s or requ irements also prov ides v ery u sef u l inf ormation to
work stu dy personnel. Many operating mistakes attrib u ted to the worker c ou ld,
in f ac t, b e a system design error du e to an inappropriate selec tion of the most
adequ ate c ontrol type at the design stage of the mac hine.
Ergonomic s is also c onc erned with the way a worker is ab le to c ontrol the
ru nning of operations (see f igu re 20). Basic ally there are two essential f ac tors
inv olv ed, time and spac e: the time it takes f or a worker to exert c ontrol or reac t
to a system ou t of c ontrol whic h c ou ld b e matc hed with the motor skills of the
worker; and the spac e av ailab le to permit f reedom of mov ement when exerting
c ontrol. The spac e needed is of ten u nderestimated b y the system designers.
One reason f or this c ou ld b e a static approac h in designing the system. Work
stu dy prac titioners are of ten f ac ed with prob lems of this kind, in partic u lar the
v ery c ommon lac k of av ailab le spac e interf ering with new work methods.
S pac e requ irements f or a c omf ortab le and saf e b ody position at work shou ld b e
deriv ed f rom dynamic anthropomtrie c onsiderations that take into ac c ou nt
v ariations in the size of workers.
7
13. Working time
The def inition of working time is an important c onsideration f or work stu dy
prac titioners. Any c alc u lations of ou tpu t mu st b e done with du e c onsideration
to operations time and working time. Working time has in rec ent times b ec ome
a su b jec t of c onsiderab le importanc e and interest owing to the v ariations
introdu c ed to working standard hou rs.
Hours of work
The length of working time is of great importanc e to b oth workers and
employers. There seems little dou b t that where hou rs of work are v ery long, a
shortening of these hou rs is ac c ompanied b y su b stantial produ c tiv ity gains. In
f ac t, the main hindranc e to redu c tions in working time in su c h c ases may b e the
illu sion that workers c an maintain a rapid pac e of work throu ghou t the shif t.
7
For f u rther details, see Hans W. Jiirgens et al.: International data on anthropometry, Oc c u pational
S af ety and Health S eries No. 65 (G enev a, IL O, 1990). 65
Figure 20. Ergonomie design of controls
Label clearly
what
operation is
meant
Place controls
in easy-to-
identify
sequence
ON
OFF
r^
I A ,
I N i
I 1 I
I i
ON
OFF
ON ON
OFF
i 1
l F i
I A i
I N i
I 2 I
I i
OFF
i 1
1
^ '
I A i
I N ;
I 3 I
1 i
OFF OFF OFF
EMERGENCYCUTOFF
Mutually
related dials
and controls
should be
grouped
together
Make clearly
identifiable
which control
corresponds
to which
Red Yellow Blue Green Red
Use different shapes, sizes, or
colours so as to make it easy to
distinguish one from another
Source: Thurman et al., op. cit., figure 5 1 .
Make the emergency
switch easily visible
Ac tu al c ase stu dies with c aref u l c ontrols hav e almost always shown that
av erage produ c tiv ity rises rapidly as exc essiv e hou rs are redu c ed. L ong hou rs
of work also inc rease the risks of oc c u pational ac c idents, whic h are c ostly and
lead to losses in produ c tiv ity. At the same time, the exhau stion du e to long
hou rs prev ents workers f rom partic ipating in non-work ac tiv ities and u ltimately
threatens their health, in partic u lar if work inv olv es heav y physic al or mental
strain or health risks.
In 1962 the International L ab ou r Conf erenc e adopted the Redu c tion of
Hou rs of Work Rec ommendation (No. 116), whic h promotes the progressiv e
redu c tion of normal hou rs of work and estab lishes the standard of the 40-hou r
week. Indeed, normal hou rs hav e b een steadily f alling in indu strialized
c ou ntries and hav e reac hed 35 hou rs in some c ou ntries and indu stries. In many
c ases c ollec tiv e b argaining has had a greater inf lu enc e than legislation on
normal working hou rs.
66
Overtime
The issu e of redu c ing long hou rs of work is direc tly related to attempts to
c u rtail ov ertime, whic h are in tu rn b ased on argu ments c iting employment
promotion as well as soc ial or health grou nds. L egislation v aries c onsiderab ly
in the extent to whic h it allows normal hou rs of work to b e exc eeded in the
f orm of ov ertime, whic h is remu nerated at a higher rate than normal hou rs of
work. Most c ou ntries seek to limit ov ertime to a stric tly nec essary minimu m b y
estab lishing daily, weekly, monthly or annu al limits. Other restric tions take the
f orm of au thorization or reporting, and the u niv ersal applic ation of an ov er-
time premiu m. IL O Rec ommendation No. 116 rec ommends that spec ial
c onsideration shou ld b e giv en to you ng persons u nder 18 years of age,
pregnant women and nu rsing mothers, and the disab led.
Breaks and rest pauses
It is now widely rec ognized that rest b reaks du ring the working day prev ent the
ac c u mu lation of exc essiv e f atigu e and thu s lead to higher produ c tiv ity.
Althou gh rec ent tec hnologic al progress has, generally speaking, redu c ed the
ardu ou sness of v ariou s types of physic al work, it has of ten inc reased the
psyc ho-physic al workload b y ac c elerating the work tempo and eliminating
work preparation time. These c hanges hav e made it nec essary to introdu c e
b reaks du ring the working day in order to dissipate f atigu e and restore the
worker's physic al and nerv ou s energy. S hort, f requ ent b reaks are the most
ef f ec tiv e b ec au se f atigu e dissipates slowly onc e it has b u ilt u p to high lev els.
Du ring these b reaks a person doing hard physic al work shou ld b e ab le to stop
work, sit down and if possib le lie down; a person doing intellec tu al work
shou ld b e ab le to mov e arou nd and ev en do some light gymnastic s.
Interru ptions f or meals or those resu lting f rom ac c idents shou ld not b e c ou nted
as b reaks. The su b jec t of relaxation allowanc es will b e dealt with in Part Fou r
dev oted to work measu rement.
Daily and weekly rest
For the same produ c tiv ity and health c onsiderations mentioned ab ov e, most
c ou ntries hav e estab lished minimu m daily and weekly rest periods. They are
two of the most important f orms of workers' protec tion. Ab ou t two-thirds of
indu strialized c ou ntries hav e explic it prov isions on minimu m periods of daily
rest, typic ally 11 or 12 hou rs. Prov isions f or daily rest are of ten linked to
restric tions on work at night. An u ninterru pted rest period of at least 24 hou rs
f requ ently 36 hou rs and sometimes 48 hou rs in eac h period of sev en days
is a requ irement whic h is laid down in the legislation of all b u t a v ery f ew
c ou ntries.
Night work
Nu merou s stu dies hav e shown that night work c an b e harmf u l to the health of
workers, espec ially those who adju st poorly. Two major risks to the health of
workers on night shif ts hav e b een identif ied: harmf u l ef f ec ts on sleep and
gastro-intestinal and other disorders related to c hanges in eating hab its.
Fu rthermore, c ontinu ou s or f requ ent night work pu ts workers at a disadv antage
with regard to partic ipation in f amily lif e and soc ial ac tiv ities. Thu s two
instru ments f or the protec tion of night workers were estab lished b y the IL O in
1990: the Night Work Conv ention (No. 171) and Rec ommendation (No. 178).
They c all f or spec if ic measu res to b e taken f or night workers relating to hou rs
of work, rest periods, f inanc ial c ompensation, saf ety and health and soc ial 67
serv ic es to protec t their health, help them to meet their f amily and soc ial
responsib ilities, prov ide opportu nities f or oc c u pational adv anc ement and
c ompensate them appropriately. S pec ial prov isions are also made f or women
workers du ring at least 16 weeks b ef ore and af ter c hildb irth.
Flexible working-time arrangements
In rec ent years there has b een a marked inc rease in interest in b oth traditional
and new measu res designed to sc hedu le working time in ways that are
ec onomic ally ef f ic ient and whic h take into ac c ou nt the dif f erent needs and
pref erenc es of indiv idu al workers. Many f ac tors hav e c ontrib u ted to this,
inc lu ding c hanging attitu des towards work and leisu re on the part of the
working popu lation in general, the inf lu x of women into the lab ou r market,
tec hnologic al progress, persistent u nemployment, redu c tions in working time
and international c ompetition.
Employers are partic u larly interested in the extension of operating hou rs
b eyond the normal working day, of ten ref erred to as "delinking" or
"u nc ou pling" of working hou rs f rom enterprise operating time. L onger
operating time of equ ipment means that f ixed c apital c osts c an b e distrib u ted
ov er a greater nu mb er of hou rs or u nits of ou tpu t, thu s lowering the portion
ac c ou nted f or b y f ixed c apital in the pric e of the f inished produ c t. A more
f lexib le u se of working time also allows a c loser adaptation of working time to
daily, weekly or monthly f lu c tu ations in demand.
Attitu des of workers towards f lexib le working hou rs are of ten f av ou rab le,
if in retu rn the total annu al hou rs are redu c ed. Trade u nions tend to draw a
sharp distinc tion b etween f lexib ility of working time, whic h may hav e
adv antages f or workers, and deregu lation, whic h they strongly oppose.
Working-time arrangements in practice
Working-time arrangements are ev olv ing v ery rapidly in prac tic e. Many of
those prac tic es c an b e c omb ined in innov ativ e ways.
Staggered hours. A simple way of dealing with some of the prob lems of
f ixed sc hedu les is to stagger the times of arriv al and departu re of workers. This
method helps to ov erc ome the c ongestion du e to simu ltaneou s arriv als and
departu res of workers, and it extends operating time. The staggering of hou rs is
easiest to organize in c ases where dif f erent parts of the enterprise c an operate
independently, at least f or short periods.
Flexitime. Under f lexitime systems, starting and f inishing times and the
time of the lu nc h b reak may b e dec ided f reely b y the employees, prov ided that
all employees are present du ring c ore time, whic h most of ten is redu c ed to two
hou rs or so in the morning and in the af ternoon. Employees f ind that f lexitime
helps to redu c e stress resu lting f rom c onf lic ting demands of work, f amily and
personal lif e. It eliminates daily anxiety ab ou t pu nc tu ality, redu c es trav el time
and c osts and allows more daytime partic ipation in non-work ac tiv ities. For
employers, there are also adv antages to f lexitime. It may resu lt in improv ed
produ c tiv ity b ec au se of greater motiv ation and b etter morale of employees;
68 ab senteeism dec lines as employees no longer hav e to deal with personal
matters du ring working hou rs; ov ertime c osts are redu c ed; and, in addition, it
f ac ilitates rec ru itment, as f lexitime is attrac tiv e to potential c andidates.
Howev er, a nu mb er of management prob lems may arise with regard to internal
c ommu nic ation and c oordination. It may b e dif f ic u lt to prov ide proper
su perv ision at all times of the day. Fu rthermore, prob lems of staf f ing may
oc c u r at c ertain times of the day or week. An inv estment in time-monitoring
equ ipment may hav e to b e made.
Compressed work-weeks. Under the c ompressed work-week system,
working days are longer, b u t weeks are shorter. A 38-hou r week, f or example,
c ou ld b e worked as f ou r nine-and-a-half -hou r days. By rotating the days of
work, it is possib le to extend operating time to f iv e or six days a week, withou t
any employee working f or more than f ou r days a week, or part-time workers
c an b e hired to c ov er the one or two extra days of the week. With longer
working days, employers sav e on ov erhead c osts and starting-u p time.
Howev er, the long working day may c au se a dec line in perf ormanc e in terms of
qu ality and qu antity at the end of the day, espec ially if work is monotonou s and
intense, and the risk of ac c idents is inc reased. S c hedu ling ov ertime is also
dif f ic u lt u nder su c h c irc u mstanc es.
Shift work. S hif t work is the most widespread means of extending
operating hou rs. The main types of shif t systems are disc ontinu ou s (morning
and af ternoon shif ts only, on f iv e or six days per week), semi-c ontinu ou s
(c ontinu ou s du ring the week with a b reak at weekends) and c ontinu ou s. In
order to redu c e night work as mu c h as possib le, some semi-c ontinu ou s
sc hedu les eliminate the night shif t on Friday ev ening. A f ew sc hedu les prov ide
f or longer morning and af ternoon shif ts and shorter night shif ts, or inc rease the
nu mb er of shif ts per 24-hou r c yc le.
Many sc hedu ling possib ilities exist f or c ontinu ou s shif t systems. The
c lassic example is the f ou r-c rew, three-shif t system, in whic h three c rews work
eight hou rs eac h while the f ou rth c rew is at rest, with rotation at regu lar
interv als ov er a f ou r-week period. This sc hedu le av erages ou t to a 42-hou r
work-week. In many c ou ntries normal weekly hou rs of work are now well
b elow 42, and in some c ou ntries c ontinu ou s shif tworkers are entitled to spec ial
redu c tions in hou rs; henc e other shif t systems are now of ten u sed. For example,
in sev eral c ou ntries f iv e-c rew systems are now c ommon. These div ide the 168
hou rs of the week among f iv e c rews, eac h working eight-hou r shif ts ac c ording
to v ariou s rotation sc hedu les. Three c rews are at work while two are at rest,
and c onsequ ently the av erage hou rs of work ov er a f iv e-week period are
lowered to 33.6.
The rotation of shif ts is partic u larly important in c ontinu ou s operations.
On the b asis of relativ ely rec ent stu dies of the c irc adian rhythm of the hu man
b ody (oc c u rring ab ou t onc e daily) and the soc ial impac t of dif f erent shif t
sc hedu les, it is generally rec ommended that shif ts shou ld b e rotated rapidly,
ev ery two or three days, and that the longest period of rest shou ld f ollow the
night shif t.
For workers, c ontinu ou s shif t work is partic u larly ardu ou s and disru ptiv e
f or f amily and soc ial lif e. For this reason restric tions on shif t and night work 69
hav e b een estab lished in many c ou ntries. In addition, some c ompensation is
prov ided. In sev eral c ou ntries shif tworkers are entitled to premiu m pay, shorter
hou rs, extra days of leav e or earlier retirement. Trade u nions of ten press f or
f u rther improv ements of the working c onditions of shif tworkers, f or example
the prov ision of proper meals and rest f ac ilities du ring the night, and demand
that staf f ing b e redu c ed to a minimu m at night and weekends.
Hours-averaging, annual hours and related schemes. An innov ativ e
way of dealing with seasonal f lu c tu ations is to estab lish working-time
sc hedu les whic h respec t agreed normal hou rs of work on av erage b u t c all on
workers to pu t in more or f ewer hou rs at partic u lar times. A f u lly integrated
annu al hou rs system c an inc lu de short, long and normal work-weeks plu s
arrangements f or annu al leav e and holidays. Their sc hedu ling c an ensu re that
leav e and short work-weeks oc c u r in periods of slac k demand and c an prov ide
sc ope f or meeting indiv idu al working-time pref erenc es. The ec onomic
adv antages f or employers are su b stantial: more ef f ic ient u se of working time,
sav ings on ov ertime, b etter serv ic e to c lients, shorter deliv ery time, redu c tion
of stoc ks, and so on. S u c h a system has the f u rther adv antage that permanent
employees are u sed. They are u su ally b etter qu alif ied f or the job and are more
ef f ic ient and motiv ated than temporary workers. On the other hand, greater
ef f orts in time management and adv anc e sc hedu ling hav e to b e made.
14. Work-related welfare facilities
Work-related welf are f ac ilities of f ered at or throu gh the workplac e c an b e an
important f ac tor in attrac ting, retaining and motiv ating workers, and in
prev enting or redu c ing f atigu e. S ome f ac ilities are v ery b asic , b u t of ten
ignored, su c h as drinking-water and toilets. Others may seem less nec essary,
b u t u su ally hav e an importanc e to workers f ar greater than their c ost to the
enterprise.
8
Drinking-water. S af e, c ool drinking-water is essential f or all types of
work, espec ially in a hot env ironment. Withou t it f atigu e inc reases rapidly and
produ c tiv ity f alls. Adequ ate drinking-water shou ld b e prov ided and maintained
at c onv enient points, and c learly marked as "S af e drinking-water". Where
possib le it shou ld b e prov ided on tap; otherwise it shou ld b e kept in su itab le
v essels, renewed at least daily, and all prac tic al steps taken to preserv e the
water and the v essels f rom c ontamination.
Sanitary facilities. Hygienic sanitary f ac ilities shou ld exist in all
workplac es. They are partic u larly important where c hemic als or other
dangerou s su b stanc es are u sed. S u f f ic ient toilet f ac ilities, with separate
f ac ilities f or men and women workers, shou ld b e installed and c onv eniently
loc ated. Changing-rooms and c loakrooms shou ld b e prov ided. Washing
f ac ilities, su c h as washb asins with soap and towels, or showers, shou ld b e
plac ed either within c hanging-rooms or c lose b y.
8
Many prac tic al ideas are giv en in J. E. Thu rman et al.: Higher productivity and a better place to
70 work, Action manual (G enev a, IL O, 1988).
First-aid and medical facilities. Fac ilities f or rendering f irst-aid and
medic al c are at the workplac e in c ase of ac c idents or u nf oreseen sic kness are
direc tly related to the health and saf ety of the workers. First-aid b oxes shou ld
b e c learly marked and c onv eniently loc ated. They shou ld c ontain only f irst-aid
requ isites of a presc rib ed standard and shou ld b e in the c harge of a qu alif ied
person. Apart f rom f irst-aid b oxes, it is also desirab le to hav e a stretc her and
su itab le means to transport inju red persons to a c entre where medic al c are c an
b e prov ided.
Rest facilities. Rest f ac ilities c an inc lu de seats, rest-rooms, waiting-
rooms and shelters. They help workers to rec ov er f rom f atigu e and to get away
f rom a noisy, pollu ted or isolated workstation. A su f f ic ient nu mb er of su itab le
c hairs or b enc hes with b ac krests shou ld b e prov ided and maintained, inc lu ding
seats f or oc c asional rest of workers who are ob liged to work standing u p. Rest-
rooms enab le workers to rec ov er du ring meal and rest b reaks.
Feeding facilities. It is now well rec ognized that the health and work
c apac ity of workers depend on an adequ ate, well-b alanc ed diet. Theref ore,
some kind of f ac ilities f or workers to hav e light ref reshments are needed. A f u ll
meal at the workplac e is nec essary when the workers liv e some distanc e away
and when the hou rs of work are so organized that the meal b reaks are short. A
snac k b ar, b u f f et or mob ile trolleys c an prov ide tea, c of f ee and sof t drinks, as
well as light ref reshments. Canteens or a restau rant c an allow workers to
pu rc hase a c heap, well-c ooked and nu tritiou s meal f or a reasonab le pric e and
eat in a c lean, c omf ortab le plac e, away f rom the workstation.
Child-care facilities. Many employers f ind that working mothers are
espec ially loyal and ef f ec tiv e workers, b u t they of ten f ac e the spec ial prob lems
of c aring f or their c hildren. It is f or this reason that c hild-c are f ac ilities,
inc lu ding c rc hes and day-c are c entres, shou ld b e prov ided. These shou ld b e in
sec u re, airy, c lean and well-lit premises. Children shou ld b e looked af ter
properly b y qu alif ied staf f and of f ered f ood, drink, edu c ation and play at v ery
low c ost.
Recreational facilities. Rec reational f ac ilities of f er workers the
opportu nity to spend their leisu re time in ac tiv ities likely to inc rease physic al
and mental well-b eing. They may also help to improv e soc ial relations within
the enterprise. S u c h f ac ilities c an inc lu de halls f or rec reation and f or indoor
and ou tdoor sports, reading-rooms and lib raries, c lu b s f or hob b ies, pic nic s and
c inemas. S pec ial edu c ational and v oc ational training c ou rses c an also b e
organized.
71
PART TWO
Method study
CHAPTER 6
Method study and the
selection of jobs
1. The approach to method study
Method stu dy was def ined in Chapter 3. It may b e u sef u l, howev er, to
rec apitu late this def inition.
Method study is the systematic recording and critical examination
of ways of doing things in order to make improvements
As also mentioned in Chapter 3, the b asic approac h to method stu dy
c onsists of the f ollowing eight steps:
1 SELECT the work to b e stu died and def ine its b ou ndaries.
2 RECORD the relev ant f ac ts ab ou t the job b y direc t
ob serv ation and c ollec t su c h additional data as
may b e needed f rom appropriate sou rc es.
3 EXAMINE the way the job is b eing perf ormed and c hallenge
its pu rpose, plac e, sequ enc e and method of
perf ormanc e.
4 DEVELOP the most prac tic al, ec onomic and ef f ec tiv e method,
drawing on the c ontrib u tions of those c onc erned.
5 EVALUATE dif f erent alternativ es to dev eloping a new
improv ed method c omparing the c ost-ef f ec tiv eness
of the selec ted new method with the c u rrent
method of perf ormanc e.
6 DEFINE the new method, as a resu lt, in a c lear manner and
present it to those c onc erned, i.e. management,
su perv isors and workers.
7 INSTALL the new method as a standard prac tic e and train the
persons inv olv ed in applying it.
8 MAINTAIN the new method and introdu c e c ontrol proc edu res
to prev ent a drif ting b ac k to the prev iou s method
of work.
75
These eight steps (f igu re 6) c onstitu te the logic al proc edu re that a work
stu dy spec ialist c ou ld normally apply. In prac tic e, howev er, the proc edu re is
not as straightf orward as it is presented here. For example, when measu ring the
resu lts ac hiev ed b y the new method one may f ind that the resu lting c ost-
ef f ec tiv eness may b e negligib le and does not warrant the added inv estment in
time and ef f ort to dev elop the perc eiv ed method. In this c ase the work stu dy
person may hav e to go b ac k to the drawing-b oard to examine the job onc e
more and try to dev elop another improv ed method.
In other c irc u mstanc es experienc e with a new improv ed method may
b ring to the su rf ac e new prob lems, in whic h c ase the proc ess of examination,
dev elopment and su b sequ ent steps has to b e repeated again.
In the f ollowing c hapters we will deal with eac h of the steps inv olv ed in
stu dying the methods of work. The remaining part of this c hapter will b e
dev oted to the f irst step, namely selec tion of the work to b e stu died.
2. Selecting the work to be studied
One c an argu e that almost any operation in a work setting c an b e a c andidate
f or an inv estigation with a v iew to improv ing the way it is c arried ou t. S u c h an
argu ment wou ld present the work stu dy spec ialist with an endless workload,
some of whic h may not b e v ery produ c tiv e. Howev er, b y f oc u sing attention on
c ertain key operations, a work stu dy spec ialist c an ac hiev e f ar-reac hing resu lts
in a relativ ely short span of time. There are three f ac tors that shou ld b e kept in
mind when selec ting a job .
1. Ec onomic or c ost-ef f ec tiv e c onsiderations.
2. Tec hnic al c onsiderations.
3. Hu man c onsiderations.
(1) Economic considerations: It is ob v iou sly a waste of time to start or
to c ontinu e a long inv estigation if the ec onomic importanc e of a job is small, or
if it is one that is not expec ted to ru n f or long. Q u estions that shou ld always b e
asked are: "Will it pay to b egin a method stu dy of this job ?" or "Will it pay to
c ontinu e this stu dy?"
Ob v iou s c hoic es f or stu dy are:
A. Key prof it-generating or c ostly operations, or ones with the largest
sc rap/waste rates.
B. Bottlenec ks whic h are holding u p other produ c tion operations, or
lengthy operations that c onsu me a great deal of time.
C. Operations inv olv ing repetitiv e work u sing a great deal of lab ou r
and ones that are likely to ru n f or a long time.
D. Mov ements of material ov er long distanc es b etween workstations,
those inv olv ing the u se of a relativ ely large proportion of lab ou r or whic h
requ ire repeated handling of material.
One of the easiest tec hniqu es that c an b e u sed to identif y key operations
as listed in A ab ov e is the Pareto analysis (sometimes also ref erred to as "the
76 ABC analysis of v alu e analysis"). This analysis is named af ter an Italian
METHODSTUDY, THE APPROACH
Table 6. Pareto analysis, step 1 Profit contribution of products
Product
No.
Annual
production
Profit Total profit
per unit generated by
($) the product ($)
1 7 000 0. 6
2 1 2 00 4
3 1 6 00 3
4 800 40
5 3 2 00 0. 05
6 7 2 00 0. 5
7 4 000 0. 2 5
8 2 400 1
9 1 400 2 0
1 0 4 000 0. 9
1 1 1 800 6
1 2 2 000 3
1 3 6 000 0. 6
1 4 1 6 00 8
1 5 1 6 00 3
1 6 5 000 0. 8
1 7 1 2 00 5 0
1 8 8 000 0. 5
1 9 1 2 00 5
2 0 5 000 0. 4
4 200
4 800
4 800
32 000
1 600
3 600
1 000
2 400
28 000
3 600
1 0 800
6 000
3 600
1 2 800
4 800
4 000
60 000
4 000
6 000
2 000
2 00 000
ec onomist who noted that of ten a small nu mb er of items among a range of
produ c ts ac c ou nt f or the highest v alu e. The same ob serv ation c an b e extended
b y saying that among all the operations in a giv en plant a small nu mb er
ac c ou nt f or the largest share of c ost or of prof it, or f or that matter the largest
perc entage of waste.
To illu strate the point we will c onsider the f ollowing example.
L et u s assu me that a c ertain enterprise produ c es 20 dif f erent produ c ts.
Eac h of these produ c ts generates a c ertain prof it. By listing the annu al
produ c tion and prof it c ontrib u tion one ob tains the resu lts shown in tab le 6.
The next step c onsists of rearranging these items in desc ending order of
importanc e ac c ording to prof it. The resu lt wou ld then appear like the one
shown in tab le 7.
From tab le 7 it c an b e seen that three produ c ts only, listed as "A items",
ac c ou nt f or 60 per c ent of the prof it. These are the most prof itab le and any
improv ement in methods of produ c ing these partic u lar produ c ts wou ld ref lec t
highly on prof its. They wou ld b e a priority f or stu dy. Produ c ts listed u nder
"B", whic h are sev en in nu mb er, c ontrib u te 25 per c ent of the prof it. They
c ou ld then assu me a sec ond importanc e, while produ c ts "C" wou ld c ommand
the last priority sinc e their c ontrib u tion to prof it is minimal. The same type of
analysis c an b e c ondu c ted to determine "the most c ostly produ c ts or proc esses"
or "the produ c ts or proc esses that yield the highest waste". Those wou ld then
b ec ome a priority f or stu dy b y the work stu dy spec ialist. 77
Table 7. Pareto analysis, step 2: Products arranged In descending order of their
profit contribution
Product No. Total profit
($ )
Pareto or ABCanalysis
1 7
4
9
1 4
1 1
1 2
1 9
2
3
1 5
1
1 6
1 8
6
1 0
1 3
8
2 0
5
7
6 0 000
3 2 000
2 8 000
1 2 800
1 0 800
6 000
6 000
4 800
4 800
4 800
4 2 00
4 000
4 000
3 6 00
3 6 00
3 6 00
2 400
2 000
1 6 00
1 000
"A" items
Three items contribute
60% of the profit
$120 000
"B" items
Seven items contribute
25 % of the profit
5 0 000
"C" items
Ten items contribute
1 5 % of the profit
$30 000
200 000 200 000
78
(2) Technical or technological considerations: One of the important
c onsiderations is the desire b y management to ac qu ire more adv anc ed
tec hnology, whether in equ ipment or in proc esses. Thu s management may want
to c ompu terize its of f ic e paperwork or its inv entory system, or to introdu c e
au tomation in the produ c tion operations. Bef ore su c h steps are taken, a method
stu dy c an point ou t the most important needs of the enterprise in this respec t.
For example, if paperwork leav es mu c h to b e desired and a good deal of
u nnec essary or u nwarranted inf ormation or proc esses exist, c ompu terizing the
same method of work will do nothing mu c h to improv e the ef f ic ienc y of the
of f ic e. A c ommon term u sed b y inf ormation systems spec ialists in this c ase is
"u seless material in yields u seless material ou t". The only thing that c hanges in
this c ase as a resu lt of c ompu terization is that the same u nneeded inf ormation
will b e produ c ed at a higher rate. If , on the other hand, c ompu terization is
prec eded b y a method stu dy, the proc ess is then simplif ied a priori. The type of
inf ormation needed is determined more c learly and ev en dec isions on the
c hoic e of hardware and sof tware are made more rationally. Method stu dy then
ac ts as a sc ou ting operation prior to the introdu c tion of more adv anc ed
METHODSTUDY, THE APPROACH
tec hnology. The introdu c tion of new tec hnology shou ld theref ore c onstitu te an
important f ac tor in the c hoic e of methods of work to b e inv estigated.
(3) Human considerations: Certain operations are of ten a c au se of
dissatisf ac tion b y workers. They may indu c e f atigu e or monotony or may b e
u nsaf e or c lu msy to operate. The lev el of satisf ac tion shou ld point to a need f or
method stu dy. Thu s an operation whic h may b e perc eiv ed as ef f ec tiv e b y
management may, on the other hand, generate a great deal of resentment b y the
workf orc e. If su c h operations are addressed b y work stu dy spec ialists as part of
an ov erall work stu dy programme, the b enef its of work stu dy c an b ec ome more
apparent to the workf orc e.
In a similar v ein, a c hoic e of a partic u lar job f or stu dy may lead to u nrest
or ill-f eeling. The adv ic e giv en here is to leave it alone, howev er promising it
may b e f rom the ec onomic point of v iew. If other job s are tac kled su c c essf u lly
and the stu dy c an b e seen to b enef it the people working on them, opinions will
c hange and it will b e possib le, in time, to rev ert b ac k to the original c hoic e.
3. Limiting the scope of the work to be studied
One of the f irst dec isions a work stu dy spec ialist has to make is to def ine
exac tly the type of work to b e stu died, set u p b ou ndaries arou nd it and dec ide
what exac tly it will enc ompass. To take an example, in the prec eding sec tion
we u sed the Pareto analysis to selec t produ c ts or proc esses that are most
prof itab le or most c ostly, or yield the most waste. The next logic al qu estion is
to dec ide on the sc ope of ou r inv estigation with respec t to eac h produ c t or
proc ess. Do we wish to examine the whole sequ enc e of operation that goes into
produ c ing that produ c t, or only c ertain parts of it and in this c ase whic h part?
Wou ld it b e more opportu ne, f or example, to c onc entrate only on the
mov ement of material or operators, or f or that matter the handling of material?
To assist in making su c h dec isions, it is important to u nderstand
thorou ghly the prob lem at hand or the present situ ation b ef ore looking f or
solu tions or improv ements. Hav ing a f eel f or the situ ation either f rom
experienc e or b y talking to the v ariou s people inv olv ed will prov ide the work
stu dy spec ialist with the c lu e to the limits of his or her inv estigation, at least in
the initial stage. Onc e this is dec ided it shou ld b e adhered to. Fu rther work may
tempt the spec ialist to go into greater detail. This shou ld b e resisted, althou gh
these indic ations shou ld b e noted and tac kled separately. In other words, the
work stu dy prac titioner shou ld not go f irst f or a small one-operativ e job whic h
may entail detailed stu dy of the worker's mov ements and yield a sav ing of a
f ew sec onds per operation, u nless the job is one that is repetitiv e. It is of little
v alu e to play arou nd with split sec onds and c entimetres of mov ements when a
great waste of time and ef f ort is taking plac e as a resu lt of poor layou t or
inappropriate handling of heav y materials.
As will b ec ome ev ident in the next c hapters, def ining the natu re of the job
to b e selec ted f or stu dy and identif ying its sc ope will predetermine the type of
work stu dy tec hniqu e that will b e u sed to stu dy it. Thu s c ertain types of c hart
may b e u sed to rec ord the sequ enc e of work whic h c ou ld b e dif f erent f rom
those u sed to rec ord the mov ement of a worker, say in an assemb ly operation. 79
CHAPTER 7
Record, examine,
develop
1. Record the facts
The next step in the b asic proc edu re, af ter selec ting the work to b e stu died, is
to record all the facts relating to the existing method. The su c c ess of the
whole proc edu re depends on the ac c u rac y with whic h the f ac ts are rec orded,
b ec au se they will prov ide the b asis of b oth the c ritic al examination and the
dev elopment of the improv ed method. It is theref ore essential that the rec ord b e
c lear and c onc ise.
Rec ording serv es essentially as a b asis f or su b sequ ent analysis and
examination. It is not an end in itself . Rec ording may b e c arried ou t in two
phases: f irst, a rou gh sketc h or c harting of the job b eing stu died to estab lish
whether the rec orded inf ormation is of u se; and, sec ond, a more f ormal and
ac c u rate c hart or diagram to inc lu de in a report or presentation.
The u su al way of rec ording f ac ts is to write them down. Unf ortu nately,
this method is not su ited to rec ording the c omplic ated proc esses whic h are so
c ommon in modern indu stry. This is partic u larly so when an exac t rec ord is
requ ired of ev ery minu te detail of a proc ess or operation. To desc rib e exac tly
ev erything that is done in ev en a v ery simple job whic h takes perhaps only a
f ew minu tes to perf orm wou ld prob ab ly resu lt in sev eral pages of c losely
written sc ript, whic h wou ld requ ire c aref u l stu dy b ef ore anyone reading it
c ou ld b e qu ite su re that he or she had grasped all the detail.
To ov erc ome this dif f ic u lty other tec hniqu es or "tools" of rec ording hav e
b een dev eloped, so that detailed inf ormation may b e rec orded prec isely and at
the same time in standard f orm, in order that it may b e readily u nderstood b y
all method stu dy persons, in whatev er f ac tory or c ou ntry they may b e working.
The most c ommonly u sed of these rec ording tec hniqu es are charts and
diagrams. There are sev eral types of standard c hart av ailab le, eac h with its
own spec ial pu rposes. They will b e desc rib ed in tu rn later in this c hapter and in
su b sequ ent c hapters. For the present it will b e su f f ic ient to note that the c harts
av ailab le f all into two grou ps:
D those whic h are u sed to rec ord a process sequence, i.e. a series of ev ents
or happenings in the order in whic h they oc c u r, b u t whic h do not depic t
the ev ents to sc ale; and
D those whic h rec ord events, also in sequ enc e, b u t on a time scale, so that
the interac tion of related ev ents may b e more easily stu died.
The names of the v ariou s c harts are shown in tab le 8, whic h lists them in
the two grou ps giv en ab ov e and also lists the types of diagram c ommonly u sed. 81
Table 8. The most commonly used method study charts and diagrams
A. CHARTS
B. CHARTS
C. DIAGRAMS
Indicating process SEQUENCE
Outline process chart
Flow process chart Worker type
Flow process chart Material type
Flow process chart Equipment type
Two-handed process chart
Procedure flowcharts
Using a TIME SCALE
Multiple activity chart
Simo chart
Indicating MOVEMENT
Flow diagram
String diagram
Cyclegraph
Chronocyclegraph
Travel chart
Diagrams are u sed to indic ate mov ement and/or interrelationships of
mov ements more c learly than c harts c an do. They u su ally do not show all the
inf ormation rec orded on c harts, whic h they su pplement rather than replac e.
Process chart symbols
The rec ording of the f ac ts ab ou t a job or operation on a proc ess c hart is made
mu c h easier b y the u se of a set of f iv e standard symb ols,
1
whic h together serv e
to represent all the dif f erent types of ac tiv ity or ev ent likely to b e enc ou ntered
in any f ac tory or of f ic e. They thu s serv e as a v ery c onv enient, widely
u nderstood type of shorthand, sav ing a lot of writing and helping to show
c learly ju st what is happening in the sequ enc e b eing rec orded.
The two princ ipal ac tiv ities in a proc ess are operation and inspection.
These are represented b y the f ollowing symb ols:
OPERATION
Indicates the main steps in a process, method or procedure. Usually
the part, material or product concerned is modified or changed
during the operation
It will b e seen that the symb ol f or an operation is also u sed when c harting a
proc edu re, as f or instanc e a c leric al rou tine. An operation is said to take plac e
when inf ormation is giv en or rec eiv ed, or when planning or c alc u lating takes plac e.
82
1
The symb ols u sed throu ghou t this b ook are those rec ommended b y the Americ an S oc iety of
Mec hanic al Engineers and adopted in BS I: Glossary of terms used in management services, BS I 3138
(L ondon, 1991).
RECORD, EXAMINE, DEVELOP
The distinc tion b etween these two ac tiv ities is qu ite c lear:
An operation always takes the material, c omponent or serv ic e a stage
f u rther towards c ompletion, whether b y c hanging its shape (as in the c ase of a
mac hined part) or its c hemic al c omposition (du ring a c hemic al proc ess) or b y
adding or su b trac ting material (as in the c ase of an assemb ly). An operation
may equ ally well b e a preparation f or any ac tiv ity whic h b rings the c ompletion
of the produ c t nearer.
An inspection does not take the material any nearer to b ec oming a
c ompleted produ c t. It merely v erif ies that an operation has b een c arried ou t
c orrec tly as to qu ality and/or qu antity. Were it not f or hu man shortc omings,
most inspec tions c ou ld b e done away with.
Of ten a more detailed pic tu re will b e requ ired than c an b e ob tained b y the
u se of these two symb ols alone. In order to ac hiev e this, three more symb ols
are u sed:
O TRANSPORT
Indicates the movement of workers, materials or equipment from
place to place
A transport thu s oc c u rs when an ob jec t is mov ed f rom one plac e to
another, exc ept when su c h mov ements are part of an operation or are c au sed b y
the operativ e at the workstation du ring an operation or an inspec tion. This
symb ol is u sed throu ghou t this b ook whenev er material is handled on or of f
tru c ks, b enc hes, storage b ins, and so on.
TEMPORARY STORAGE OR DELAY
Indicates a delay in the sequence of events: for example, work
waiting between consecutive operations, or any object laid aside
temporarily without record until required
Examples of temporary storage or delay are work stac ked on the f loor
of a shop b etween operations, c ases awaiting u npac king, parts waiting to b e pu t
into storage b ins or a letter waiting to b e signed. 83
PERMANENT STORAGE
Indicates a controlled storage in which material is received into or
issued from a store under some form of authorization, or an item is
retained for reference purposes
A permanent storage thu s oc c u rs when an ob jec t is kept and protec ted
against u nau thorized remov al. The dif f erenc e b etween a "permanent storage"
and a "temporary storage or delay" is that a requ isition, or other f orm of f ormal
au thorization, is generally requ ired to get an artic le ou t of permanent storage
b u t not ou t of temporary storage.
In this b ook, f or the sake of simplic ity, temporary storage or delay will b e
ref erred to as "delay", and permanent storage as ju st "storage".
k^
Combined activities. When it is desired to show ac tiv ities
perf ormed at the same time or b y the same operativ e at the same workstation,
the symb ols f or those ac tiv ities are c omb ined, e.g. the c irc le within the squ are
represents a c omb ined operation and inspec tion.
Figu re 21 giv es an example of the u se of these symb ols.
The outline process chart
It is of ten v alu ab le to ob tain a "b ird's-eye" v iew of a whole proc ess or ac tiv ity
b ef ore emb arking on a detailed stu dy. This c an b e ob tained b y u sing an outline
process chart.
An outline process chart is a process chart giving an overall picture
by recording in sequence only the main operations and inspections
In an ou tline proc ess c hart, only the princ ipal operations c arried ou t and
the inspec tions made to ensu re their ef f ec tiv eness are rec orded, irrespec tiv e of
who does them and where they are perf ormed. In preparing su c h a c hart, only
the symb ols f or "operation" and "inspec tion" are nec essary.
In addition to the inf ormation giv en b y the symb ols and their sequ enc e, a
b rief note of the natu re of eac h operation or inspec tion is made b eside the
symb ol, and the time allowed f or it (where known) is also added.
An example of an ou tline proc ess c hart is giv en in f igu re 23. In order that
the reader may ob tain a f irm grasp of the princ iples inv olv ed, the assemb ly
represented on the c hart is shown in a sketc h (f igu re 22) and the operations
84 c harted are giv en in some detail b elow.
Figure 21 . Method study symbols
ACTIVITY EXAMPLE
OPERATION
O
^
A large circle
Indicates an
operation,
such as

Drive nail Drill hole Type letter
TRANSPORT
Q
An arrow
indicates
transport,
such as
iu
Move material by truck
Move material
by hoist or elevator
Move material by
carrying (messenger)
INSPECTION
D
A square
indicates
an inspection,
such as Examine material for
quality or quantity
Read steam gauge
on boiler
Examine printed form
for information
DELAY
D
The letter D
indicates a
delay,
such as
Material in truck or on
floor at bench waiting
to be processed
Employee waiting
for elevator
Papers waiting
to be filed
STORAGE
V
A triangle
indicates a
storage,
such as Bulk storage >
of raw material
Finished product
in warehouse
Documents and records
in storage vault
Source: Ralph M. Barnes: Motion and time study (New York, John Wiley, 7th d., 1 980) p. 5 2, figure 29. Reproduced by permission of r>c
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. O-
3
Example of an outline process chart:
Assembling a switch rotor
2
The assemb ly drawing (f igu re 22) shows the rotor f or a slow make-and-b reak
switc h.
It c onsists of a spindle (1); a plastic mou lding (2); and a stop pin (3).
In making an ou tline proc ess c hart it is u su ally c onv enient to start with a
v ertic al line down the right-hand side of the page to show the operations and
inspec tions u ndergone b y the princ ipal u nit or c omponent of the assemb ly (or
c ompou nd in c hemic al proc esses) in this c ase the spindle. The time allowed
per piec e in hou rs is shown to the lef t of eac h operation. No spec if ic time is
allowed f or inspec tions as the inspec tors are on time work.
The b rief desc riptions of the operations and inspec tions whic h wou ld
normally b e shown alongside the symb ols hav e b een omitted so as not to
c lu tter the f igu re.
The operations and inspec tions c arried ou t on the spindle, whic h is made
f rom 10 mm diameter steel rod, are as f ollows:
Operation 1 Fac e, tu rn, u nderc u t and part of f on a c apstan lathe (0.025 hou rs).
Operation 2 Fac e opposite end on the same mac hine (0.010 hou rs).
Af ter this operation the work is sent to the inspec tion
department f or:
Inspection 1 Inspec t f or dimensions and f inish (no time f ixed). From the
inspec tion department the work is sent to the milling sec tion.
Operation 3 S traddle-mill f ou r f lats on end on a horizontal miller (0.070 hou rs).
Operation 4 Remov e b u rrs at the b u rring b enc h (0.020 hou rs).
Figure 22. Switch rotor assembly
2
This example is adapted f rom W. Rodgers: Methods engineering chart and glossary (Nottingham
86 (United Kingdom), S c hool of Management S tu dies L td.).
Inspection 2
Operation 5
Operation 6
Inspection 3
Operation 7
Operation 8
Inspection 4
The work is retu rned to the inspec tion department f or:
Final inspec tion of mac hining (no time).
From the inspec tion department the work goes to the plating
shop f or:
Degreasing (0.0015 hou rs).
Cadmiu m plating (0.008 hou rs).
From the plating shop the work goes again to the inspec tion
department f or:
Final c hec k (no time).
The plastic mou lding is su pplied with a hole b ored c onc entric
with the longitu dinal axis.
Fac e on b oth sides, b ore the c ored hole and ream to size on a
c apstan lathe (0.080 hou rs).
Drill c ross-hole (f or the stop pin) and b u rr on two-spindle drill
press (0.022 hou rs).
From the drilling operation the work goes to the inspec tion
department f or:
Final c hec k dimensions and f inish (no time).
It is then passed to the f inished-part stores to await withdrawal
f or assemb ly.
It will b e seen f rom the c hart that the operations and inspec tions on the
mou lding are on a v ertic al line next to that of the spindle. This is b ec au se the
mou lding is the f irst c omponent to b e assemb led to the spindle. The stop-pin line
is set f arther to the lef t, and if there were other c omponents they wou ld b e set ou t
f rom right to lef t in the order in whic h they were to b e assemb led to the main item.
Note especially the method of numbering the operations and
inspections. It will b e seen that b oth operations and inspec tions start f rom 1.
The nu mb ering is c ontinu ou s f rom one c omponent to another, starting f rom the
right, to the point where the sec ond c omponent joins the f irst. The sequ enc e of
nu mb ers is then transf erred to the next c omponent on the lef t and c ontinu es
throu gh its assemb ly to the f irst c omponent u ntil the next assemb ly point, when
it is transf erred to the c omponent ab ou t to b e assemb led. Figu re 23 makes this
c lear. The assemb ly of any c omponent to the main c omponent or assemb ly is
shown b y a horizontal line f rom the v ertic al operation line of the minor
c omponent to the proper plac e in the sequ enc e of operations on the main line.
(S u b -assemb lies c an, of c ou rse, b e made u p of any nu mb er of c omponents
b ef ore b eing assemb led to the princ ipal one; in that c ase the horizontal joins
the appropriate v ertic al line whic h appears to the right of it.) The assemb ly of
the mou lding to the spindle, f ollowed b y the operation symb ol and nu mb er, is
c learly shown in the f igu re.
Assemb le the mou lding to the small end of the spindle and drill
the stop-pin hole right throu gh (0.020 hou rs).
Operation 9
87
Figure 23. Outline process chart: Switch rotor assembly
Stop pin
5 mm diam.
BSS32/4 steel
(0.001 5 ) (1 2
(0.006) (1 3
No time
Plastic moulding
P. F. resin
moulding
(0.080) I /
(0.022) ( 8
No time
Spindle
1 0 mm diam.
S. 69 steel
(0.020)
No time
(0.045 ) ( 1 4
88
Onc e this has b een done the assemb ly is ready f or the insertion of the stop
pin (made f rom 5 mm diameter steel rod) whic h has b een made as f ollows:
Operation 10 Tu rn 2 mm diameter shank, c hamf er end and part of f on a
c apstan lathe (0.025 hou rs).
Operation 11 Remov e the "pip" on a linisher (0.005 hou rs).
The work is then taken to the inspec tion department.
Inspection 5 Inspec t f or dimensions and f inish (no time).
Af ter inspec tion the work goes to the plating shop f or:
Operation 12 Degreasing (0.0015 hou rs).
Operation 13 Cadmiu m plating (0.006 hou rs).
The work now goes b ac k to the inspec tion department f or:
Inspection 6 Final c hec k (no time).
It then passes to the f inished-part stores and is withdrawn f or:
Operation 14 S top pin is f itted to assemb ly and lightly riv eted to retain it in
position (0.045 hou rs).
Inspection 7 The c ompleted assemb ly is f inally inspec ted (no time).
It is then retu rned to the f inished-parts store.
In prac tic e, the ou tline proc ess c hart wou ld b ear against eac h symb ol,
b eside and to the right of it, an ab b rev iated desc ription of what is done du ring
the operation or inspec tion. These entries hav e b een lef t ou t of f igu re 23 so that
the main sequ enc e of c harting may b e seen more c learly.
Figu re 24 shows some of the c onv entions u sed when drawing ou tline
proc ess c harts. In this instanc e the su b sidiary c omponent joins the main part
af ter inspec tion 3, and is assemb led to it du ring operation 7. The assemb ly
u ndergoes two more operations, nu mb ers 8 and 9, eac h of whic h is perf ormed
f ou r times in all, as is shown b y the "repeat" entry. Note that the next operation
af ter these repeats b ears the nu mb er 16, not 10.
As was explained earlier in this c hapter, the ou tline proc ess c hart is
intended to prov ide a f irst "b ird's-eye" v iew of the ac tiv ities inv olv ed, f or the
pu rpose of eliminating u nnec essary ones or c omb ining those that c ou ld b e done
together. It is u su ally nec essary to go into detail greater than the ou tline proc ess
c hart prov ides. In the f ollowing pages the f low proc ess c hart will b e desc rib ed
and its u se as a tool of methods improv ement illu strated.
Flow process charts
Onc e the general pic tu re of a proc ess has b een estab lished, it is possib le to go
into greater detail. The f irst stage is to c onstru c t a flow process chart.
A flow process chart is a process chart setting out the sequence of
the flow of a product or a procedure by recording all events under
review using the appropriate process chart symbols.
D Flow process chart Worker type: A flow process chart
which records what the operator does.
D Flow process chart Material type: A flow process chart
which records how material is handled or treated.
Flow process chart Equipment type: A flow process chart
which records how the equipment is used.
A f low proc ess c hart is prepared in a manner similar to that in whic h the
ou tline proc ess c hart is made, b u t u sing, in addition to the symb ols f or
"operation" and "inspec tion", those f or "transport", "delay" and "storage".
Whic hev er type of f low proc ess c hart is b eing c onstru c ted, the same
symb ols are always u sed and the c harting proc edu re is v ery similar. (It is
c u stomary to u se the ac tiv e v oic e of v erb s f or entries on worker-type c harts,
and the passiv e v oic e on material-type and equ ipment-type c harts. This 89
Figure 24. Some charting conventions
Subsidiary
component
Main
component
Change in size
or condition
shown thus
Now assembly
Repeats shown thus
(note subsequent
numbering)
Repeat three more times
18
90
c onv ention is more f u lly explained in Chapter 8, sec tion 3.) In f ac t, it is u su al
to hav e only one printed f orm of c hart f or all three types, the heading b earing
the words "Worker/material/equ ipment type", the two words not requ ired b eing
deleted.
Bec au se of its greater detail, the f low proc ess c hart does not u su ally c ov er
as many operations per sheet as may appear on a single ou tline proc ess c hart. It
is u su al to make a separate c hart f or eac h major c omponent of an assemb ly, so
that the amou nt of handling, delays and storages of eac h may b e independently
stu died. This means that the f low proc ess c hart is u su ally a single line.
An example of a material-type f low proc ess c hart c onstru c ted to stu dy
what happened when a b u s engine was stripped, degreased and c leaned f or
inspec tion is giv en in f igu re 25. This is an ac tu al c ase rec orded at the workshop
of a transport au thority in a dev eloping c ou ntry. Af ter disc u ssing the princ iples
of f low proc ess c harting and the means of u sing them in the next f ew pages, we
shall go on to c onsider this example in detail. Worker-type c harts are disc u ssed
in Chapter 8.
When f low proc ess c harts are b eing made regu larly, it is c onv enient to u se
printed sheets similar to that shown in f igu re 26. (In c harts of this kind the f iv e
symb ols are u su ally repeated down the whole length of the appropriate
c olu mns. This has not b een done in the c harts presented in this b ook, whic h
hav e b een simplif ied to improv e c larity.) This also ensu res that the work stu dy
person does not omit any essential inf ormation. In f igu re 26 the operation ju st
desc rib ed on the c hart in f igu re 25 is set down again.
Bef ore we go on to disc u ss the u ses of the f low proc ess c hart as a means
of examining c ritic ally the job c onc erned with a v iew to dev eloping an
improv ed method, there are some points whic h mu st always b e rememb ered in
the preparation of proc ess c harts. These are important b ec au se proc ess c harts
are the most u sef u l tool in the f ield of method improv ement; whatev er tec h-
niqu es may b e u sed later, the making of a proc ess c hart is always the f irst step.
(1) Charting is u sed f or rec ording b ec au se it giv es a c omplete pic tu re of what
is b eing done and helps the mind to u nderstand the f ac ts and their
relationship to one another.
(2) Charts are an important means of illu strating c learly to ev eryone
c onc erned the way the job is b eing c arried ou t. Althou gh su perv isors and
workers may not b e trained in the u se of a partic u lar rec ording tec hniqu e,
they c an u nderstand a c hart or diagram su f f ic iently to c onf irm that it
represents the "time" situ ation and c an of ten see the inef f ic ienc ies
inherent in a c hart whic h, f or example, inc lu des a large nu mb er of delay
or transport symb ols.
(3) The details whic h appear on a c hart mu st b e ob tained f rom direct
observation. Onc e they hav e b een rec orded on the c hart, the mind is
f reed f rom the task of c arrying them, b u t they remain av ailab le f or
ref erenc e and f or explaining the situ ation to others. Charts mu st not b e
b ased on memory b u t mu st b e prepared as the work is observed (exc ept
when a c hart is prepared to illu strate a proposed new method). Details
whic h hav e b een rec orded shou ld b e rev iewed and c onf irmed with the 91
Figure 25 . Flow process chart: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing
Chart No. 7 Sheet No. 7
Product: Sus engines
Process: Stripping, degreasing and
cleaning used engines
of 7 Method: Original
Operative(s):
Location: Degreasing shop
Charted by:
Approved by: Date:
Distance Symbol
(m)
Activity Type of activity
24
30
1.5
12
76
76
237.5
v In old- engine stores
i [Zj> Picked up engine by crane (electric) Non- productive
2 [^> Transported to next crane
31 ^> Unloaded to floor
4 [^> Picked up by second crane (electric)
s [^)> Transported to stripping bay
6
O Unloaded to floor
O Engine stripped Productive
Main components cleaned and laid out
LL) Components inspected for wear; inspection report written.. Non- productive
7
O Parts carried to degreasing basket
s [^> Loaded for degreasing by hand- operated crane
a \^> Transported to degreaser
io [^> Unloaded into degreaser
Degreased Productive
ii \^y Lifted out of degreaser by crane Non- productive
i2 [^> Transported away from degreaser
is C^> Unloaded to ground
Li) To cool
ii \^> Transported to cleaning benches
All parts completely cleaned Productive
is [^)> All cleaned parts placed in one box Non- productive
Li) Awaiting transport
is [^> All parts except cylinder block and heads loaded on trolley.
[^> Transported to engine inspection section
[^> Parts unloaded and arranged on inspection table
is [^> Cylinder block and head loaded on trolley
2o |^> Transported to engine inspection section
2i E^ Unloaded on ground
E) Stored temporarily awaiting inspection
92 (Adapted from an original)
Figure 26. Flow process chart Material type: Engine stripping, cleaning and
degreasing (original method)
Flow process chart Worker /Material/Equipmont type
Chart No. 7 Sheet No. 1 of 1 Summary
Subject charted:
Used bus engines
Activity Present Proposed Saving
Operation o
Transport o
Delay D
Inspection a
Storage v
4
27
3
7
7
Activity:
Stripping, cleaning and degreasing
prior to inspection
Distance (m) 237.5
Location: Degreasing shop Time (work-min.)

Operative{s): Clock Nos. 7234
5 77
Cost
Labour
Material

Charted by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
Total
Description Qty.
Dist-
ance
(m)
Time
(min.)
Symbol
Remarks
o D D D V
Stored in old- engine store
_ __
Engine picked up
-
Electric crane
Transported to next crane 24 Electric crane
Unloaded to floor
Picked up Electric crane
Transported to stripping bay 30 Electric crane
Unloaded to floor
X
Engine stripped
f
Main components cleaned and laid out L
Components inspected for wear;
'^
^
inspection report written >
Parts carried to degreasing basket 3
^
Loaded for degreasing
Transported to degreaser 7.5 Hand crane
Unloaded into degreaser
S
Degreased <
Lifted out of degreaser
N.
Hand crane
Transported away from degreaser 6 Hand crane
Unloaded to ground k
To cool
>
Transported to cleaning benches 12
S
By hand
All parts cleaned completely
<
All cleaned parts placed in one box 9 \ By hand
Awaiting transport
>
All parts except cylinder block and heads
/
loaded on trolley
Transported to engine inspection section 76 Trolley
Parts unloaded and arranged on
inspection table
Cylinder block and head loaded on trolley
Unloaded to ground V
Stored temporarily awaiting inspection
S
Total 237.5 4 27 3 7 7
(Adapted from an original)
93
su perv isor. This c onf irmation has two aims. First, it ensu res that the f ac ts
are c orrec t. S ec ond, it strengthens the b ond b etween the work stu dy
person and the su perv isor, who apprec iates that his or her opinion is
v alu ab le to the inv estigation.
(4) A high standard of neatness and ac c u rac y shou ld b e maintained in
preparing f air c opies of c harts c onstru c ted f rom direc t ob serv ation. The
c harts will b e u sed in explaining proposals f or standardizing work or
improv ing methods. An u ntidy c hart will always make a b ad impression
and may lead to errors.
(5) To maintain their v alu e f or f u tu re ref erenc e and to prov ide as c omplete
inf ormation as possib le, all c harts shou ld c arry a heading giv ing the
f ollowing inf ormation (see f igu re 26):
(a) the name of the produ c t, material or equ ipment c harted, with
drawing nu mb ers or c ode nu mb ers;
(b ) the job or proc ess b eing c arried ou t, c learly stating the starting-point and
the end point, and whether the method is the present or proposed one;
(c ) the loc ation in whic h the operation is taking plac e (department,
f ac tory, site, etc .);
(d) the c hart ref erenc e nu mb er, sheet nu mb er and the total nu mb er of sheets;
(e) the ob serv er's name and, if desired, that of the person approv ing the c hart;
(f ) the date of the stu dy;
(g) a key to the symb ols u sed. This is nec essary f or the b enef it of
anyone who may stu dy the c hart later and who may hav e b een
ac c u stomed to u sing dif f erent symb ols. It is c onv enient to show
these as part of a tab le su mmarizing the ac tiv ities in the present and
proposed methods (see f igu re 26);
(h) a su mmary of distanc e, time and, if desired, c ost of lab ou r and
material, f or c omparison of old and new methods.
(6) Bef ore leav ing the c hart, c hec k the f ollowing points:
(a) Hav e the f ac ts b een c orrec tly rec orded?
(b ) Hav e any ov er-simplif ying assu mptions b een made (e.g. is the
inv estigation so inc omplete as to b e inac c u rate)?
(c ) Hav e all the f ac tors c ontrib u ting to the proc ess b een rec orded?
S o f ar we hav e b een c onc erned only with the "rec ord" stage. We mu st
now c onsider the steps nec essary to examine critically the data rec orded.
2. Examine critically: The questioning technique
94
The questioning technique is the means by which the critical
examination is conducted, each activity being subjected in turn to a
systematic and progressive series of questions
The f iv e sets of ac tiv ities rec orded on the f low proc ess c hart f all natu rally
into two main c ategories, namely:
D those in whic h something is ac tu ally happening to the material or
workpiec e u nder c onsideration, i.e. it is b eing worked u pon, mov ed or
examined; and
D those in whic h it is not b eing tou c hed, b eing either in storage or at a
standstill owing to a delay.
Ac tiv ities in the f irst c ategory may b e su b div ided into three grou ps:
D MAKE READY activities requ ired to prepare the material or workpiec e
and set it in position ready to b e worked on. In the example in f igu re 25
these are represented b y the loading and transporting of the engine to the
degreasing shop, transporting it to the c leaning b enc hes, etc .
D DO operations in whic h a c hange is made in the shape, c hemic al
c omposition or physic al c ondition of the produ c t. In the c ase of the
example these are the dismantling, c leaning and degreasing operations.
S ome "do" operations may b e f u rther c lassif ied as "key" operations. For
example, deb u rring a mac hined part is a "do" operation b u t not a "key"
one sinc e it wou ld not b e perf ormed if no mac hining were c arried ou t.
PUT AWAY activities du ring whic h the work is mov ed aside f rom the
mac hine or workplac e. The "pu t away" ac tiv ities of one operation may b e
the "make ready" ac tiv ities of the next as, f or example, transport
b etween operations f rom the degreaser to the c leaning b enc hes. Pu tting
parts into storage, pu tting letters into an "Ou t" tray and inspec ting
f inished parts are other examples.
It will b e seen that, while "make ready" and "pu t away" ac tiv ities may b e
represented b y "transport" and "inspec tion" symb ols, "do" operations c an only
b e represented b y "operation" symb ols.
The aim is ob v iou sly to hav e as high a proportion of "do" operations as
possib le, sinc e these are the only ones whic h c arry the produ c t f orward in its
progress f rom raw material to c ompletion. ("Do" operations in non-
manu f ac tu ring indu stries are those operations whic h ac tu ally c arry ou t the
ac tiv ity f or whic h the organization exists, f or example the ac t of selling in a
shop or the ac t of typing in an of f ic e.) These are "produ c tiv e" ac tiv ities; all
others, howev er nec essary, may b e c onsidered as "non-produ c tiv e", inc lu ding
storages and delays whic h represent tied-u p c apital that c ou ld hav e b een u sed
to f u rther the b u siness.
An alternativ e approac h is to f irst examine the nec essity of "key"
operations. If these c an b e remov ed, assoc iated "do" (b u t non-"key") and non-
produ c tiv e operations will au tomatic ally b e remov ed.
The primary questions
The qu estioning sequ enc e u sed f ollows a well-estab lished pattern whic h
examines: 95
the PURPOSE
the PLACE
the SEQUENCE
the PERSON
the MEANS
with a v iew to
f or whic h
at whic h
in whic h
b y whom
b y whic h
ELIMINATING
COMBINING
REARRANGING
or
SIMPLIFYING
the ac tiv ities are
u ndertaken
) those ac tiv ities.
In the f irst stage of the qu estioning tec hniqu e, the pu rpose, plac e,
sequ enc e, person and means of ev ery ac tiv ity rec orded are systematic ally
qu eried, and a reason f or eac h reply is sou ght.
The primary questions therefore are:
PURPOSE:
PLACE:
What
Why
Where
SEQUENCE: When
PERSON:
MEANS:
Who
How
is ac tu ally done?
3
is the ac tiv ity nec essary
at all?
is it b eing done? Why is
it done at that parti-
c u lar plac e?
is it done? Why is it
done at that partic u lar
time?
is doing it? Why is it
done b y that partic u lar
person?
is it b eing done? Why is
it b eing done in that
partic u lar way?
ELIMINATE
u nnec essary parts
of the job
COMBINE
wherev er possib le
or
REARRANGE
the sequ enc e of
operations f or
more ef f ec tiv e
resu lts.
SIMPLIFY
the operation.
The secondary questions
The secondary questions cover the second stage of the questioning
technique, during which the answers to the primary questions are
subjected to further query to determine whether possible
alternatives of place, sequence, persons and/or means are
practicable and preferable as a means of improvement upon the
existing method
96
Thu s, du ring this sec ond stage of qu estioning (hav ing asked already,
ab ou t ev ery ac tiv ity rec orded, what is done and why is it done), the method
3
Many inv estigators u se the qu estion: What is ac tu ally ac hiev ed?
stu dy person goes on to inqu ire: What else might b e done? And, henc e: What
should b e done? In the same way, the answers already ob tained on plac e,
sequ enc e, person and means are su b jec ted to f u rther inqu iry.
Comb ining the two primary qu estions with the two sec ondary qu estions
u nder eac h of the headings "pu rpose, plac e", etc ., yields the f ollowing list,
whic h sets ou t the qu estioning tec hniqu e in f u ll:
PURPOSE: What is done?
Why is it done?
What else might b e done?
What should b e done?
PLACE: Where is it done?
Why is it done there?
Where else might it b e done?
Where should it b e done?
SEQUENCE: When is it done?
Why is it done then?
When might it b e done?
When should it b e done?
PERSON: Who does it?
Why does that person do it?
Who else might do it?
Who should do it?
MEANS: How is it done?
Why is it done that way?
How else might it b e done?
How should it b e done?
These questions, in the above sequence, must be asked systematically
every time a method study is undertaken. They are the basis of successful
method study.
Example: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing
L et u s now c onsider how the method stu dy people who prepared the f low
proc ess c hart in f igu re 25 set ab ou t examining the rec ord of f ac ts whic h they
had ob tained in order to dev elop an improv ed method. Bef ore doing so, we
shall transf er the same rec ord to a standard f low proc ess c hart f orm (f igu re 26)
with the nec essary inf ormation on the operation, loc ation, and so on, du ly f illed in.
To help the reader to v isu alize the operation, a f low diagram showing the
layou t of the degreasing shop and the path taken b y the engine in its jou rney
f rom the old-engine stores to the engine-inspec tion sec tion is giv en in f ig-
u re 27. It is ev ident f rom this that the engine and its parts f ollow an u nnec ess-
arily c omplic ated path.
Examination of the f low proc ess c hart shows a v ery high proportion of
"non-produ c tiv e" ac tiv ities. There are in f ac t only f ou r operations and one
inspec tion, while there are 21 transports and three delays. Ou t of 29 ac tiv ities,
exc lu ding the original storage, only f iv e c an b e c onsidered as "produ c tiv e". 97
Figure 27. Flow diagram: Engine stripping, cleaning and degreasing
Original method Proposed method
1
'D:
Original method
1 = Store
2 = Stripping
3 = Degreaser
4 = Cooling
5 = Cleaning
6 = Locker
7 = Tool cabinet
8 = Paraffin wash
9 = Charge hand
Monorail
Proposed method
A = Store
B = Engine stand
C = (stripping)
U = Basket
E = Degreaser
F = Cleaning
G = Motor
H = Locker
1 = Charge hand
Bench
Monorail
98
Detailed examination of the c hart leads to a nu mb er of qu estions. For
example, it will b e seen that an engine b eing transported f rom the old-engine
stores has to c hange c ranes in the middle of its jou rney. L et u s apply the
qu estioning tec hniqu e to these f irst transports:
Q . What is done?
A. The engine is c arried to the stripping b ay.
Q . How is this b eing done?
A. By an elec tric c rane. The engine is then plac ed on the grou nd and
pic ked u p b y another c rane to b e transported to the stripping b ay.
Q . Why is this done?
A. Bec au se the engines are stored in su c h a way that they c annot b e
direc tly pic ked u p b y the monorail c rane whic h ru ns throu gh the
stores and degreasing shop.
Q . What else might b e done?
A. The engines c ou ld b e stored so that they are immediately ac c essib le
to the monorail c rane, whic h c ou ld then pic k them u p and ru n
direc tly to the stripping b ay.
Q . What should b e done?
A. The ab ov e su ggestion shou ld b e adopted.
In the ev ent this su ggestion was adopted, and as a resu lt three "transports"
were eliminated (see f igu re 28).
L et u s c ontinu e the qu estioning tec hniqu e.
Q . Why are the engine c omponents c leaned before going to b e degreased
sinc e they are again c leaned af ter the grease is remov ed?
A. The original reason f or this prac tic e has b een f orgotten.
Q . Why are they inspec ted at this stage, when it mu st b e dif f ic u lt to make a
proper inspec tion of greasy parts and when they will b e inspec ted again in
the engine-inspec tion sec tion?
A. The original reason f or this prac tic e has b een f orgotten.
This answer is v ery f requ ently enc ou ntered when the qu estioning
tec hniqu e is applied. On many oc c asions, ac tiv ities are c arried ou t f or reasons
whic h are important at the time (su c h as temporary arrangements to get a new
shop going qu ic kly in the ab senc e of proper plant and equ ipment) and are
allowed to c ontinu e long af ter the need f or them has passed. If no satisf ac tory
reason why they shou ld b e c ontinu ed c an b e giv en, su c h ac tiv ities mu st b e
ru thlessly eliminated.
The next qu estions whic h arise ref er to the loading into the degreaser.
Here it appears to hav e b een nec essary to transport the parts 3 metres in order
to pu t them into the degreaser b asket. Why c annot the degreaser b asket b e kept
near at hand? Cannot the parts b e pu t straight into the degreaser b asket as the
engine is dismantled? 99
Figure 28. Flow process chart Material type: Engine stripping, cleaning and
degreasing (improved method)
Subject charted:
Used bus engines
Operation o
. Transport D
Delay D
Inspection a
Storage v
4
27
3
1
7
3
75
2
1
7
6
7
7
7
Activity:
Stripping, degreasing and cleaning
prior to inspection
Method: Prooont/Proposed
Distance (m) 237.5 150.0 5 7.5
Location: Degreasing shop Time (work-min.)
Operative(s): Clock Nos. 7234
5 77
Cost
Labour
Material
Charted by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
Total
Description Oty.
Dist-
ance
(m)
Time
(min.)
Symbol
Remarks
o D D D V
Stored in old- engine store
_ _ ^.
Engine picked up Electric
Transported to stripping bay 55 hoist on
Unloaded on to engine stand
S
monorail
Engine stripped
<
L
'"'
Transported to degreaser basket 7
V
By hand
Loaded into basket Hoist
Transported to degreaser 7.5
,
Hoist
Unloaded into degreaser
/
Hoist
Degreased
<
Unloaded from deqreaser
\.
Hoist
Transported from deqreaser 4.5 Hoist
Unloaded to ground
K
Allowed to cool
>
Transported to cleaning benches 6
/
Hoist
All parts cleaned
<
All parts collected in special trays 6 \
Awaiting transport
>
Trays and cylinder block loaded on trolley
y
Trays slid on to inspection benches
and blocks on to platform
Total 150 3 75 2 - 7
The ab ov e example illu strates how the qu estioning tec hniqu e c an b e
applied. The qu estions and answers may sometimes look rather c hildish as they
are set ou t ab ov e, b u t in the hands of an experienc ed inv estigator the
qu estioning is v ery rapid. S tic king to the v ery rigid sequ enc e ensu res that no
point is ov erlooked. And, of c ou rse, starting with the most searc hing sc ru tiny
of the operation itself
What is done? and why is it nec essary?
ensu res that time is not wasted on details if the whole operation shou ld not b e
nec essary, or if its f u ndamental pu rpose c ou ld b e ac hiev ed in some b etter way.
It will b e seen f rom the su mmary illu strated in f igu re 28 showing the
improv ed method that there hav e b een c onsiderab le redu c tions in the nu mb er
of "non-produ c tiv e" ac tiv ities. The nu mb er of "operations" has b een redu c ed
f rom f ou r to three b y the elimination of the u nnec essary c leaning, and the
inspec tion c arried ou t direc tly af ter it has also b een eliminated. "Transports"
hav e b een redu c ed f rom 21 to 15 and the distanc es inv olv ed hav e also b een c u t
f rom 237.5 to 150 metres a sav ing of ov er 37 per c ent in the trav el of eac h
engine. In order not to c omplic ate this example, times of the v ariou s ac tiv ities
hav e not b een giv en, b u t a stu dy of the two f low proc ess c harts will make it
ev ident that a great sav ing in the time of operation per engine has b een
ac hiev ed.
In the f ollowing example, we show how time rec ording c an b e introdu c ed
in a f low proc ess c hart whic h in this c ase is also c omb ined with a f low
diagram. As in the prev iou s c ase, the answers giv en b elow are sample answers
only to illu strate the u se of the qu estioning tec hniqu e. In prac tic e it is rare that
one arriv es direc tly at the right answer. It is more likely that a nu mb er of
alternativ es will b e thou ght of and dev eloped b ef ore an ev alu ation is made as
to the b est alternativ e.
Example of the use of a flow diagram with a flow process chart:
Receiving and inspecting aircraft parts
4
The f low diagram in f igu re 29 shows the original layou t of the rec eiv ing
department of an airc raf t f ac tory. The path of mov ement of the goods f rom the
point of deliv ery to the storage b ins is shown b y the b road line. It will b e
notic ed that the symb ols f or the v ariou s ac tiv ities hav e b een inserted at the
proper plac es. This enab les anyone looking at the diagram to imagine more
readily the ac tiv ities to whic h the goods are su b jec ted.
D RECORD
The sequ enc e of ac tiv ities is one of u nloading f rom the deliv ery tru c k
c ases c ontaining airc raf t parts (whic h are themselv es pac ked indiv idu ally in
c artons), c hec king, inspec ting and marking them b ef ore pu tting them into store.
These c ases are slid down an inc lined plane f rom the tail of the tru c k, slid
ac ross the f loor to the "u npac king spac e" and there stac ked one on top of
"This example has b een taken, with some adaptation, f rom Simplification du travail (the Frenc h
v ersion of a handb ook produ c ed b y the North Americ an Av iation Company Inc ., Texas Div ision) (Paris,
Editions Hommes et Tec hniqu es, 2nd d., 1950). 101
another to await opening. They are then u nstac ked and the lid remov ed. The
deliv ery notes are taken ou t and the c ases are loaded one at a time on a hand
tru c k, b y whic h they are taken to the rec eiv ing b enc h. They are plac ed on the
f loor b eside the b enc h. Af ter a short delay they are u npac ked; eac h piec e is
taken ou t of its c arton and c hec ked against the deliv ery note. It is then replac ed
in its c arton; the c artons are replac ed in the c ase and the c ase is mov ed to the
other side of the rec eiv ing b enc h to await transport to the inspec tion b enc h.
Here the c ase is again plac ed on the f loor u ntil the inspec tors are ready f or it.
The parts are again u npac ked, inspec ted, measu red and replac ed as b ef ore.
Af ter a f u rther short delay the c ase is transported to the marking b enc h. The
parts are u npac ked, nu mb ered and repac ked in the c artons and the c ase, whic h
af ter another delay is transported b y hand tru c k to the stores and there plac ed in
b ins to await issu e to the assemb ly shops. The c omplete sequ enc e has b een
rec orded on a f low proc ess c hart (f igu re 30).
D EXAMINE c ritic ally
A stu dy of the f low diagram (f igu re 29) shows immediately that the c ases
take a v ery long and rou ndab ou t path on their jou rney to the b ins. This c ou ld
not hav e b een seen f rom the f low proc ess c hart alone. The c hart, howev er,
enab les the v ariou s ac tiv ities to b e rec orded and su mmarized in a manner not
c onv eniently possib le on the diagram.
A c ritic al examination of the two together, u sing the qu estioning
tec hniqu e, at onc e raises many points whic h demand explanation, su c h as:
Q . Why are the c ases stac ked to await opening when they hav e to b e
u nstac ked in 10 minu tes?
A. Bec au se the deliv ery tru c k c an b e u nloaded f aster than work is
c leared.
Q . What else c ou ld b e done?
A. (a) The work c ou ld b e c leared f aster.
(b ) S pac e c ou ld b e prov ided to leav e the c ases u nstac ked.
Q . Why are the rec eption, inspec tion and marking points so f ar apart?
A. Bec au se they happen to hav e b een pu t there.
Q . Where else c ou ld they b e?
A. They c ou ld b e all together.
Q . Where should they b e?
A. Together at the present rec eption point.
Q . Why does the c ase hav e to go all rou nd the b u ilding to reac h the stores?
A. Bec au se the door of the stores is loc ated at the opposite end f rom the
deliv ery point.
No dou b t the reader who examines the f low diagram and the f low proc ess
c hart c aref u lly will f ind many other qu estions to ask. There is ev idently mu c h
room f or improv ement. This is a real-lif e example of what happens when a
series of ac tiv ities is started withou t b eing properly planned. Examples with as
102 mu c h waste of time and ef f ort c an b e f ou nd in f ac tories all ov er the world.
Figure 29. Flow diagram: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (original method)
^
Truck
Inclined plane
103
Figure 30. Flow process chart: Inspecting and marking incoming parts
(original method)
1 04
. . W. ..,-. | ...
Subject charted:
Case of BX 487 tee- pieces (TO per case in
cartons)
Operation o
Transport o
Delay D
Inspection
Storage v
2
77
7
2
1
Activity:
Receive, check, inspect and number tee-
pieces and store in case
Method: Present/Propoood
Distance (m) 56.2
Location: Receiving Dept.
Time (work-h) 1.96
Operative(s): Clock No.
See Remarks column
Cost
Labour
Material
$10.19
Charted by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
Total $10.19
Description
Gty.
1
case
Dist-
ance
(m)
Time
(min.)
Symbol
Remarks
o D D D V
Lifted from truck: placed on inclined plane 7.2" 2 labourers
Slid on inclined plane 6 70 2 labourers
Slid to storage and stacked 6-
N
2 labourers
Await unpacking

30
>
Case unstacked
- -
/
Lid removed: delivery note taken out
_
5 -
<
2 labourers
Placed on hand truck 71
-
N
Trucked to reception bench 9. 5 -
I
2 labourers
Await discharge from truck
_
70
>
Case placed on bench 7 2
<
2 labourers
Cartons taken from case: opened:
\
checked replaced contents
_
- 15 > Storekeeper
Case loaded on hand truck 7 2
<
2 labourers
Delay awaiting transport
_
5
V
Trucked to inspection bench 16.5 10
<
1 labourer
Await inspection
_
10
\
Case on truck
Tee- pieces removed from case and cartons: 7 20 r
>
Inspector
inspected to drawing: replaced
/
Await transport labourer
_
5
/
Case on truck
Trucked to numbering bench 9 5
<
1 labourer
Await numbering
_
15 ^ Case on truck
Tee- pieces withdrawn from case and
-
i5 r
<
Stores labourer
cartons: numbered on bench and replaced
\

5
>
Case on truck
Transported to distribution point 4.5 5
1 labourer
Stored
~^^
Total 56.2 174 2 77 7 2 7
D DEVELOP the improv ed method
The solu tion arriv ed at b y the work stu dy person in this f ac tory c an b e
seen in f igu res 31 and 32. It is c lear that among the qu estions asked were those
su ggested ab ov e, b ec au se it will b e seen that the c ase is now slid down the
inc lined plane f rom the deliv ery tru c k and pu t straight on a hand tru c k. It is
transported straight to the "u npac king spac e", where it is opened while still on
the tru c k and the deliv ery note is taken ou t. It is then transported to the
rec eiv ing b enc h, where, af ter a short delay, it is u npac ked and the parts are pu t
on the b enc h. The parts are c ou nted and c hec ked against the deliv ery note. The
inspec tion and nu mb ering b enc hes hav e now b een plac ed b eside the rec eption
b enc h so that the parts c an b e passed f rom hand to hand f or inspec tion,
measu ring and then nu mb ering. They are f inally replac ed in their c artons and
repac ked in the c ase, whic h is still on the tru c k.
It is ev ident that the inv estigators were led to ask the same qu estion as we
asked, namely: "Why does the c ase hav e to go all rou nd the b u ilding to reac h
the stores?" kav ing rec eiv ed no satisf ac tory answer, they dec ided to make a
new doorway into the stores opposite the b enc hes, so that the c ases c ou ld b e
taken in b y the shortest rou te.
It will b e seen f rom the su mmary on the f low proc ess c hart (f igu re 32)
that the "inspec tions" hav e b een redu c ed f rom two to one, the "transports"
f rom 11 to six and the "delays" (or temporary storages) f rom sev en to two. The
distanc e trav elled has b een redu c ed f rom 56.2 to 32.2 metres.
The nu mb er of work-hou rs inv olv ed has b een c alc u lated b y mu ltiplying
the time taken f or eac h item of ac tiv ity b y the nu mb er of workers inv olv ed, e.g.
"tru c ked to rec eption b enc h" = 5 minu tes X 2 lab ou rers = 10 work-minu tes.
Delays are not inc lu ded as they are c au sed b y operativ es b eing otherwise
oc c u pied. In the improv ed method the inspec tor and stores lab ou rer are
c onsidered to b e working simu ltaneou sly on inspec ting and nu mb ering
respec tiv ely, and the 20 minu tes theref ore b ec ome 40 work-minu tes. L ab ou r
c ost is rec koned at an av erage of US $5.20 per hou r f or all lab ou r. The c ost of
making a new doorway is not inc lu ded, sinc e it will b e spread ov er many other
produ c ts as well.
3. Develop the improved method
There is an old saying that to ask the right qu estion is to b e half way towards
f inding the right answer. This is espec ially tru e in method stu dy. In u sing the
qu estioning sequ enc e giv en in this c hapter, namely the f ollowing:
What shou ld b e done?
Where shou ld it b e done?
When shou ld it b e done?
Who shou ld do it?
How shou ld it b e done?
one c an dev elop a f airly good notion ab ou t the shortc omings of the present
operation and the possib ilities of a new improv ed method b egins to emerge. In 105
Figure 31 . Flow diagram: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (improved method)
-ir
Truck
Inclined plane
1 06
Figure 32. Flow process chart: Inspecting and marking incoming parts (improved
method)
1
-VIUII^. ih>-
Subject charted:
Case of SX 487 tee- pieces (W per case in
cartons)
Operation o
Transport o
Delay D
Inspection
Storage v
2
77
7
2
1
2
6
2
1
1
5
5
7
Activity:
Receive, check, inspect and number tee-
pieces and store in case
Distance (m) 56.2 32.2 24
Location: Receiving Dept.
" Time (work-h) 1.96 1.16 0.80
Cost per case
Labour
Material
$10.19 $6.03 $4.16
See Remarks column
Charted by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
Total $10.19 $6.03 $4.16
Description
Qty.
7
case
Dist-
ance
(m)
Time
(min.)
Symbol
Remarks
o D D D V
Craie lifted from truck: placed on inclined plane 7.2

2 labourers
Slid on inclined plane 6 - 5 2 labourers
Placed on hand truck 7_ 2 labourers
Trucked to unpacking space 6 5
/
1 labourer
Lid taken off case
_
5
<
1 labourer
Trucked to receiving bench 9 5
\
1 labourer
Await unloading
_
5
\
Cartons taken from case: opened and
-i
\
V
' tee- pieces placed on bench: counted
_ _
- 20
>
Inspector
and inspected to drawing
S
y
Numbered and replaced in case <
S
Stores labourer
_
5
^
>
Trucked to distribution point 9 5
.
1 labourer
Stored
_ ^-^
Total 32.2 55 2 6 2 1 7
many c ases, howev er, the solu tion is not all that ob v iou s and f u rther
inv estigation may b e needed elsewhere. It is theref ore u nwise to ru sh into
solu tions b ef ore inv estigating these other related areas. For example, a
simplif ic ation in the design of the produ c t or proper u se of raw material c an
sav e c onsiderab ly on times of operations. Other issu es related to proper layou t
or to materials handling c an also produ c e the same ef f ec t. It is f or this reason
that work stu dy spec ialists shou ld b e aware of the range of tec hniqu es that are
av ailab le to them in dev eloping a new improv ed method. These are ref erred to
in Part Three of this b ook.
Ev entu ally, and with prac tic e in u sing the qu estioning tec hniqu e, the work
stu dy person dev elops an inqu isitiv e attitu de whic h is c onstantly pu rsu ing
ef f ic ienc y.
Onc e the step of dev eloping a new method is ac c omplished, it is rec orded
on a c orresponding c hart. In ou r two prev iou s examples this wou ld b e a f low
proc ess c hart, so that it c an b e c ompared with the original method and c hec ked
to make su re that no point has b een ov erlooked. This will enab le entries to b e
made in the "su mmary" of the total nu mb er of ac tiv ities taking plac e u nder
b oth methods, the sav ings in distanc e and time whic h may b e expec ted to
ac c ru e f rom the c hange and the possib le c ost sav ings whic h will resu lt (f ig-
u res 28 and 32).
1 08
CHAPTER 8
Movement of workers in
the working area
1. Movement of workers and material
There are many types of ac tiv ity in whic h workers mov e at irregu lar interv als
b etween a nu mb er of points in the working area, with or withou t material. This
situ ation oc c u rs v ery of ten in indu stry and c ommerc e, and ev en in the home. In
manu f ac tu ring c onc erns it oc c u rs when:
D b u lk material is b eing f ed to or remov ed f rom c ontinu ou s proc ess, and is
stored arou nd the proc ess;
D an operativ e is looking af ter two or more mac hines;
D lab ou rers are deliv ering materials to or remov ing work f rom a series of
mac hines or workplac es.
Ou tside manu f ac tu ring operations, examples of its oc c u rrenc e are:
D in stores and shops where a v ariety of materials are b eing remov ed f rom
or pu t away into rac ks or b ins;
D in restau rant and c anteen kitc hens du ring the preparation of meals;
D in c ontrol lab oratories where rou tine tests are c arried ou t at f requ ent
interv als.
2. The string diagram
One tec hniqu e f or rec ording and examining this f orm of ac tiv ity is the string
diagram. It is one of the simplest of the tec hniqu es of method stu dy and one of
the most u sef u l.
The string diagram is a scale plan or model on which a thread is
used to trace and measure the path of workers, material or
equipment during a specified sequence of events
The string diagram (f igu re 33) is thu s a spec ial f orm of f low diagram, in
whic h a string or thread is u sed to measu re distanc e. Bec au se of this it is
nec essary that the string diagram b e drawn c orrec tly to sc ale, whereas the
ordinary f low diagram will prob ab ly b e drawn only approximately to sc ale, 109
Figure 33. A string diagram
# ' : / ::Po*il
<
t
JT i
r
^T
^^
//m
/ /
//
/ 1
mi
s
1
L
^
N

1
\f
^^
^^
T^\
t pD
^^P
'
1 1 0
with pertinent distanc es marked on it so that sc aling of f is u nnec essary. The
string diagram is started in exac tly the same way as all other method stu dies:
b y rec ording all the relev ant f ac ts f rom direc t ob serv ation. L ike the f low
diagram, it will most of ten b e u sed to su pplement a now proc ess c hart, the two
together giv ing the c learest possib le pic tu re of what is ac tu ally b eing done. As
always, the f low proc ess c hart will b e examined c ritic ally in order to make su re
that all u nnec essary ac tiv ities are eliminated b ef ore a new method is dev eloped.
A string diagram c an b e u sed to plot the mov ements of materials, and this
is sometimes done, espec ially when a work stu dy person wants to f ind ou t
easily ju st how f ar the materials trav el. We c ou ld hav e c onstru c ted a string
diagram f or eac h of the examples in the last c hapter, b u t this was not nec essary.
The simple f low diagram showed all that was needed, and was qu ic ker to
prepare f or the c irc u mstanc es illu strated. The string diagram is most of ten
u sed, howev er, f or plotting the mov ements of workers, and it is this applic ation
whic h is c onsidered in the examples giv en in the present c hapter.
The work stu dy person proc eeds to f ollow the worker b eing inv estigated
as he or she mov es f rom point to point in doing the job . (If the working area is
a f airly small one whic h c an b e seen as a whole f rom one point, he or she c an
watc h the worker withou t mov ing.) The stu dy person notes methodic ally eac h
point to whic h the worker mov es and, if the jou rneys are f airly long, the times
of arriv al and departu re. It will sav e a good deal of writing if the ob serv er
c odes the v ariou s mac hines, stores and other points of c all b y nu mb ers, letters
or other means.
MOVEMENTOF WORKERSINTHE WORKING AREA
Figure 34. A simple movement study sheet
Movement study sheet
Chart No. 7 Sheet No. 7 of 2 Operative(s):
Operation: Transport biscuit tiles
from inspection to storage Charted by:
bins and unload into bins Date;
Location: Biscuit warehouse Cross-reference:String diagrams
1 and2
1
Time
dep.
2
Time
arr.
3
Time
elapsed
4
Move to
5
Notes
Inspection bench (1)
to Bin 4
1
5
1
32

The f orm of stu dy sheet requ ired is v ery simple. A sample of the headings
requ ired is giv en in f igu re 34. Continu ation sheets need only giv e c olu mns 1, 2,
3, 4 and 5.
The rec ording of mov ements will c ontinu e f or as long as the work stu dy
person thinks is nec essary to ob tain a representativ e pic tu re of the worker's
mov ements, whic h may b e a f ew hou rs, a day, or ev en longer. The stu dy person
mu st b e su re that he or she has noted all the jou rneys made b y the worker and
has seen them made enou gh times to b e su re of their relativ e f requ enc y.
Insu f f ic ient stu dy may produ c e a misleading pic tu re, sinc e the work stu dy
person may only hav e watc hed the worker du ring a part of the c omplete c yc le
of ac tiv ities while u sing only a f ew of his or her v ariou s paths of mov ement.
L ater in the c yc le he or she may not u se these at all b u t u se others a great deal.
Onc e the stu dy person is satisf ied that he or she has a tru e pic tu re whic h
shou ld b e c hec ked with the worker c onc erned to make su re that there is
nothing else whic h is u su ally done that has not b een ob serv ed the string
diagram may b e c onstru c ted.
A sc ale plan of the working area similar to that requ ired f or a f low
diagram mu st b e made (the same plan may b e u sed so long as it has b een 1 1 1
ac c u rately drawn). Mac hines, b enc hes, stores and all points at whic h c alls are
made shou ld b e drawn in to sc ale, together with su c h doorways, pillars and
partitions as are likely to af f ec t paths of mov ements. The c ompleted plan
shou ld b e attac hed to a sof twood or c omposition b oard, and pins driv en into it
f irmly at ev ery stopping point, the heads b eing allowed to stand well c lear of
the su rf ac e (b y ab ou t 1 c m). Pins shou ld also b e driv en in at all the tu rning-
points on the rou te. A measu red length of thread is then taken and tied rou nd
the pin at the starting-point of the mov ements (the inspec tion b enc h (I) in
f igu re 33). It is then led arou nd the pins at the other points of c all in the order
noted on the stu dy sheet u ntil all the mov ements hav e b een dealt with.
The resu lt is an ov erall pic tu re of the paths of mov ement of the operativ e,
those whic h are most f requ ently trav ersed b eing c ov ered with the greatest
nu mb er of strings, the ef f ec t b eing as in f igu re 33.
It will b e seen f rom the sketc h that c ertain paths in partic u lar those
b etween A and D, A and H, and D and L are trav ersed more f requ ently than
the others. S inc e most of these points are at a f air distanc e f rom one another,
the diagram su ggests that c ritic al examination is c alled f or, with a v iew to
mov ing the work points whic h they represent c loser together.
It will b e rememb ered that the thread u sed was measu red b ef ore the stu dy
person started to make the diagram. By measu ring the length remaining and
su b trac ting this f rom the total length, the length u sed c an b e f ou nd. This will
represent, to sc ale, the distanc e c ov ered b y the worker. If two or more workers
are stu died ov er the same working area, dif f erent c olou red threads may b e u sed
to distingu ish b etween them.
The examination of the diagram and the development of the new layou t
c an now proc eed on the same lines as with a f low diagram, with templates
b eing u sed and the pins and templates b eing mov ed arou nd u ntil an
arrangement is f ou nd b y whic h the same operations c an b e perf ormed with a
minimu m mov ement b etween them. This c an b e asc ertained b y leading the
thread arou nd the pins in their new positions, starting f rom the same point and
f ollowing the same sequ enc e. When the thread has b een led arou nd all the
points c ov ered b y the stu dy, the length lef t ov er c an again b e measu red. The
dif f erenc e in length b etween this and the thread lef t ov er f rom the original
stu dy will represent the redu c tion in distanc e trav elled as a resu lt of the
improv ed layou t. The proc ess may hav e to b e repeated sev eral times u ntil the
b est possib le layou t (i.e. the layou t with whic h the minimu m length of thread is
u sed) is ac hiev ed.
The string diagram is a u sef u l aid in explaining proposed c hanges to
management, su perv isors and workers. If two diagrams are made, one showing
the original layou t and one the improv ed layou t, the c ontrast is of ten so v iv id
partic u larly if b rightly c olou red thread is u sed that the c hange will not b e
dif f ic u lt to "sell". Workers espec ially are interested in seeing the resu lts of su c h
stu dies and disc ov ering how f ar they hav e to walk. The idea of redu c ing one's
personal ef f ort appeals to almost ev eryone!
The f ollowing example shows this tec hniqu e as applied to the mov ements
112 of lab ou rers storing tiles af ter inspec tion.
Example of a string diagram: Storing tiles after inspection
D RECORD
In the operation stu died in this example, "b isc u it" tiles (i.e. tiles af ter f irst
f iring and b ef ore glazing) are u nloaded f rom kiln tru c ks on to the b enc h, where
they are inspec ted. Af ter inspec tion they are plac ed on platf orms ac c ording to
size and type. The loaded platf orms are taken on hand-lif t tru c ks to the
c onc rete b ins where the tiles are stored u ntil requ ired f or glazing. The original
layou t of the store is shown in f igu re 35.
It was dec ided to make a stu dy u sing a string diagram to f ind ou t whether
the arrangement, whic h appeared to b e a logic al one, was in f ac t the one
inv olv ing the least transport. S tu dies were made of a representativ e nu mb er of
kiln tru c k loads. This was b ec au se the types of tile on eac h tru c k v aried
somewhat, althou gh 10 c m X10 c m and 15 c m X15 c m plain tiles f ormed b y f ar
the largest part of eac h load.
A f orm of the type shown in f igu re 34 ab ov e was u sed f or rec ording the
inf ormation. Only a portion is shown, sinc e the natu re of the rec ord is ob v iou s.
(The b in nu mb ers are those shown in f igu re 35.)
It will b e seen that, in this c ase, times were not rec orded. It is more u sef u l
to rec ord times when long distanc es are inv olv ed (su c h as in tru c king b etween
departments of a f ac tory).
The string diagram was then drawn u p in the manner shown (f igu re 35).
The width of the shaded b ands represents the nu mb er of threads b etween any
giv en points and henc e the relativ e amou nt of mov ement b etween them.
D EXAMINE critically
A stu dy of the diagram shows at onc e that the most f requ ent mov ement is
u p the 10 c m X10 c m and 15 c m X15 c m rows of b ins. The b in into whic h any
partic u lar load of tiles is u nloaded depends on whic h are f u ll or empty (tiles are
c onstantly b eing withdrawn f or glazing). Trav el in the c ase of the
10 c m X10 c m and 15 c m X15 c m tiles may theref ore b e anywhere u p or down
the rows c onc erned.
It is equ ally ob v iou s that the "spec ial f eatu re" tiles (u sed f or dec orativ e
pu rposes in c omparativ ely small nu mb ers) are handled only rarely, and are
generally plac ed b y the inspec tors on one tru c k and deliv ered to sev eral b ins at
onc e. Deliv eries of tiles other than those mentioned are f airly ev enly
distrib u ted.
D DEVELOP the new layout
The f irst step in dev eloping the new layou t is to loc ate the b ins c ontaining
the most handled tiles as near as possib le to the inspec tion b enc h and those
c ontaining "spec ial f eatu re" tiles as f ar away as possib le. This c ertainly spoils
the tidy sequ enc e and may, f or a time, make tiles a little more dif f ic u lt to f ind;
howev er, the b ins, whic h hav e c onc rete partitions b etween them ab ou t 1 metre
high, c an c arry c ards with the c ontents marked on them. The c ards c an b e seen
f rom a distanc e, and the arrangement will soon b e memorized b y the workers.
Af ter a nu mb er of arrangements had b een tried ou t, the one shown in f igu re 36 113
Figure 35 . String diagram: Storing tiles (original method)
40 32
20 x 20
ie+corner
39
38
36
35
34
33
Bullnose
31
20x20
Plain
30
1 0 cm strip
29
1 5 x8
Re
28
1 5 x8
27
1 5 x1 0
Re
26
1 5 x1 0
Plain
25
1 5 x1 5
Corners
23
22
21
20
1 9
1 8
1 7
> 1 6
r 1 0x5
Re
8
1 5
1 0x5
Plain
7
1 4
c
i-
o
o
6 .
c
f is ;
5
<
5
P
l
a
i
n

/
12
>
c
<
2 4
i

11

(
D
r
3
1
r
C
1 0
r
<
3
2
9
1
^
O
Platforms
JoL
o o
Inspection bench
Rails
1 1 4
MOVEMENTOF WORKERS INTHE WORKING AREA
Figure 36. String diagram: Storing tiles (improved method)
Single journey Single journey
40
Special
39
Special
38
1 0x5
Re
37
1 5 x 1 5
Corners
36
1 0x1 0
Corners
35
1 0x1 0
Corners
32
Special
31
Bullnose
30
1 0x5
Plain
29
1 5 x 1 5
Re
28
1 5 x 1 5
Re
27
Plain
26
Plain
25
Plain
24
Special
23
20x20
Re + corner
22
20x20
Plain
Plain
IS
1 5 x1 5 1 5 x1 5
Plain
1 8
1 0x1 0 1 0x1 0
Plain
1 7
1 0x1 0 1 0x1 0
Plain
1 6
Special
8
Special
1 5
1 0 cm Strip
7
Special
>
1 4
1 5 x1 0
Re
6 .
1 5 x8 /
Re <
1 3
1 5 x 1 0
Re
5
1 5 x8
Plain
1 2
1 5 x1 5
Plain
4
1 0x1 0
Re
1 1
1 5 x1 5
Plain
3
1 0x1 0 *
Re ^
1 0
k
1 0x1 0
r
Plain
2
1 0x1 0^
Re 1
9
lOx 1 0
' Plain
1
1 0x1 0
Re
O
n r
Platforms
J o L o
Inspection bench
Kiln truck
O
Rails
1 1 5
prov ed to b e the most ec onomic al of transport time. The distanc es c ov ered
were redu c ed f rom 520 to 340 metres, a sav ing of 35 per c ent.
3. The worker-type flow process chart
In tab le 8 in Chapter 7 six dif f erent types of proc ess c hart were listed. The
ou tline proc ess c hart was desc rib ed in Chapter 7, and the two-handed proc ess
c hart and proc edu re f lowc hart will b e dealt with in Chapters 9 and 11
respec tiv ely. The other three are f low proc ess c harts:
Flow proc ess c hart Worker type
Flow proc ess c hart Material type
Flow proc ess c hart Equ ipment type
S ev eral examples of material-type f low proc ess c harts hav e already b een
giv en (f igu res 26 and 28 and f igu res 30 and 32 in Chapter 7). We shall now
deal with worker-type f low proc ess c harts.
A worker-type flow process chart is a flow process chart which
records what the worker does
The same tec hniqu es as hav e b een u sed to f ollow materials throu gh the
operations and mov ements whic h they u ndergo c an b e u sed to rec ord the
mov ements of a person. Worker-type f low proc ess c harts are f requ ently u sed in
the stu dy of job s whic h are not highly repetitiv e or standardized. S erv ic e and
maintenanc e work, lab oratory proc edu re and mu c h of the work of su perv isors
and exec u tiv es c an b e rec orded on c harts of this type. S inc e the c harts f ollow
one indiv idu al or a grou p perf orming the same ac tiv ities in sequ enc e, the
standard f low proc ess c hart f orms c an b e u sed. It is u su ally essential to attac h
to the worker-type f low proc ess c hart a sketc h showing the path of mov ement
of the worker while he or she is c arrying ou t the operation c harted.
The c harting proc edu re u sed in c ompiling a worker-type f low proc ess
c hart is almost exac tly the same as that u sed on material-type f low proc ess
c harts. There is one slight dif f erenc e, howev er a u sef u l c harting c onv ention
whic h helps to distingu ish worker-type c harts f rom the other two f low proc ess
c harts, and whic h will b e f ou nd qu ite natu ral in prac tic e.
The def inition of the worker-type c hart giv en ab ov e states that it rec ords
what the worker does. The def initions of the other two f low proc ess c harts,
howev er, state that they rec ord (material type) how material is handled or
treated, and (equ ipment type) how the equ ipment is used. The def initions thu s
ref lec t the c harting prac tic e, whic h is to u se mainly the active voice on worker-
type c harts, and mainly the passive voice on the other two. The c onv ention,
whic h has b een f ollowed on all the f low proc ess c harts illu strated in this b ook,
116 will b e c lear f rom the f ollowing examples of typic al entries:
Flow proc ess c harts
Worker type Material type
Drills c asting Casting drilled
Carries to b enc h Carried to b enc h
Pic ks u p b olt (b olt) Pic ked u p
Inspec ts f or f inish Finish inspec ted
An example of a worker-type f low proc ess c hart applied to hospital
ac tiv ities is giv en b elow.
Example of a worker-type flow process chart:
Serving dinners in a hospital ward
D RECORD
Figu re 37 shows the layou t of a hospital ward c ontaining 17 b eds. When
dinners were serv ed b y the original method, the nu rse in c harge of the ward
f etc hed a large tray b earing the f irst c ou rse, together with the plates f or the
patients, f rom the kitc hen. The f ood was u su ally c ontained in three dishes, two
of whic h held v egetab les and the third the main dish. The nu rse plac ed the tray
on the tab le marked "S erv ing tab le" in the diagram. S he set the large dishes ou t
on the tab le, serv ed one plate with meat and v egetab les and c arried it to b ed 1.
S he retu rned to the serv ing tab le and repeated the operation f or the remaining
16 b eds. The paths whic h she f ollowed are shown b y the full lines in the
diagram. When she had serv ed all the patients with the f irst c ou rse, she
retu rned to the kitc hen with the tray and the empty dishes, c ollec ted the dishes
and plates f or the sec ond c ou rse and retu rned to the ward. S he then repeated
the c omplete operation, replac ing the plates emptied b y the patients with plates
c ontaining their portions of the sec ond c ou rse and retu rning the u sed plates to
the serv ing tab le, where she stac ked them. Finally she made a tou r of the ward,
c ollec ting u p the empty plates f rom the sec ond c ou rse, and c arried ev erything
on the tray b ac k to the kitc hen. (To av oid c onf u sion on the diagram, the f inal
c ollec tion of empty plates is not shown. In b oth the original and the improv ed
method the distanc e c ov ered and the time taken are the same, sinc e it is
possib le f or her to c arry sev eral plates at a time and mov e f rom b ed to b ed.)
The operation has b een rec orded in part on the f low proc ess c hart in f igu re 38
b u t only enou gh has b een shown to demonstrate to the reader the method of
rec ording, whic h it will b e seen is v ery similar to that u sed f or material-type
f low proc ess c harts, b earing in mind that it is a person and not a produ c t that is
b eing f ollowed. As an exerc ise readers may wish to work ou t the serv ing c yc les
f or themselv es on the b asis prov ided b y the diagram. The dimensions of the
ward are giv en. It is, of c ou rse, possib le to c omplete the worker-type f low
proc ess c hart in mu c h greater detail if desired.
A c ritic al examination of the f low proc ess c hart in c onju nc tion with the
diagram su ggests that there is c onsiderab le room f or improv ement. The f irst
"Why?" whic h may c ome to mind is: "Why does the nu rse serv e and c arry only 117
Figure 37. Flow diagram: Serving dinners in a hospital ward
Original method
Improved method
Door
V
To kitchen 1 2 metres from door
1 1 8
Figure 38. Flow process chart Worker type: Serving dinners in a hospital ward
Cln...
n
>
nnA
<.> ha.*
Subject charted:
Hospital nurse
Operation o
Transport o
Delay D
Inspection D
Storage v
34
60
18
72
16
(- 12)
Activity:
Serve dinners to 17 patients
Method: Present/Proposed
Distance (m) 436 197 239
Time (work-h) 39 28 11
Location: Ward L
Cost
Labour
Material (Trolley)
-
$24
-
Charted by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
Total (Capital) $24
Description
Original method
Qty.
(plates)
Dist-
ance
(m)
Time
(min.)
Symbol
Remarks
o D D a V
Transports first course and plates -
-i
Awkward load
kitchen to serving table on tray J 77 16 .50
T
Places dishes and plates on table 77
-
.30
}
Serves from three dishes to plate
- -
.25 <
Carries plate to bed 7 and returns 7 7.3 .25
>
Serves
- -
.25
<
Carries plate to bed 2 and returns 7 6 .23
>
Serves
- -
.25 <
I
(Continues until all 17 beds are
u
served. See figure 37 for distances)
Service completed, places dishes on
-|
k
tray and returns to kitchen
J
16 .50
1
Total distance and time, first cycle 192 10.71 17 20
- - -
Repeats cycle for second course 192 10.71 17 20
- - -
Collects empty second course plates 52 2.0
-
20
- - -
Total 436 23.42 34 60
Improved method
Transports first course and plates -
-
Serving
kitchen to position A - trolley J 77 16 .50
S
trolley
Serves two plates
- -
.40 <
Carries two plates to bed 1: leaves one;
~
n.Bi
N
carries one plate from bed 1 to bed 2; 2 0.6 .25
returns to position A
-1
L 7.5 -1
Pushes trolley to position B
-
3.0 .12
x*
Serves two plates
- -
.40 <
Carries two plates to bed 3; leaves one;
-7.5 -
v^
carries one plate from bed 3 to bed 4; 2 0.6 .25
returns to position B
-i
L
7.5 -
1
k
(Continues until all 17 beds are served.
\
See figure 37 and note variation
at bed 11)
\
Returns to kitchen with trolley
-
16 .50
\
Total distance and time, first cycle
-
72.5 7.49 9 26
Repeats cycle for second course
-
72.5 7.49 9 26
Collects empty second course plates
-
52 2.00
-
20
Total - 197 16.98 18 72
1 1 9
one plate at a time? How many c ou ld she c arry?" The answer is almost
c ertainly: "At least two." If she c arried two plates at a time, the distanc e she
wou ld hav e to walk wou ld b e almost halv ed. One of the f irst qu estions asked
wou ld almost c ertainly b e: "Why is the serv ing tab le there, in the middle of the
ward?" f ollowed, af ter one or two other qu estions, b y the key qu estions: "Why
shou ld it stand still? Why c an it not mov e rou nd? Why not a trolley?" This
leads straight to the solu tion whic h was adopted.
D DEVELOP the new method
It will b e seen f rom the broken line in the diagram (representing the
rev ised path of mov ement of the nu rse when prov ided with a trolley) and f rom
the f low proc ess c hart that the f inal solu tion inv olv es the nu rse serv ing and
c arrying two plates at a time (whic h also sav es a small amou nt of serv ing
time).
The resu lt, as will b e seen f rom the proc ess c hart, is a redu c tion of ov er
54 per c ent in the total distanc e walked in serv ing and c learing away the
dinners (the sav ing is 65 per c ent if the distanc e walked in remov ing the
sec ond-c ou rse plates, whic h is the same in b oth the old and the new methods, is
exc lu ded).
What is important here in this v ery simple example is not so mu c h the
redu c tion in c ost, whic h is v ery small, as the f ac t that the nu rse's f atigu e,
resu lting f rom the c onsiderab le distanc e whic h she had to walk within the ward
and while c arrying the loaded tray to and f rom the kitc hen, is lessened.
4. The multiple activity chart
We c ome now to the f irst of the c harts listed in tab le 8 whic h u se a time sc ale
the multiple activity chart. This is u sed when it is nec essary to rec ord on
one c hart the ac tiv ities of one su b jec t in relation to another.
A multiple activity chart is a chart on which the activities of more
than one subject (worker, machine or item of equipment) are each
recorded on a common time scale to show their interrelationship
120
By u sing separate v ertic al c olu mns, or b ars, to represent the ac tiv ities of
dif f erent operativ es or mac hines against a c ommon time sc ale, the c hart shows
v ery c learly periods of idleness on the part of any of the su b jec ts du ring the
proc ess. A stu dy of the c hart of ten makes it possib le to rearrange these
ac tiv ities so that su c h inef f ec tiv e time is redu c ed.
The mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart is extremely u sef u l in organizing teams of
operativ es on mass-produ c tion work, and also on maintenanc e work when
expensiv e plant c annot b e allowed to remain idle longer than is ab solu tely
nec essary. It c an also b e u sed to determine the nu mb er of mac hines whic h an
operativ e or operativ es shou ld b e ab le to look af ter.
Figure 39. Multiple activity chart: Inspection of catalyst in a converter
(original method)
Hours
0
-2
-3
Electrician and mate Fitter and mate Rigger Process workers
Remove
heaters
Workshop
repairs
Release
top
Fix tackle
Remo
1
/e top
Inspect
or adjust
catalyst
Replac ;e top
Secure
top
Remove tackle
Replace
heaters
Working
time
Ineffective
time
In making a c hart, the ac tiv ities of the dif f erent operativ es or of the
dif f erent operativ es and mac hines are rec orded in terms of working time and
idle time. These times may b e rec orded b y ordinary wristwatc h, b y stop-watc h
or b y elec tronic timing, ac c ording to the du ration of the v ariou s periods of
work and idleness (i.e. whether they are a matter of minu tes or sec onds).
Extreme ac c u rac y is not requ ired, b u t timing mu st b e ac c u rate enou gh f or the
c hart to b e ef f ec tiv e. The times are then plotted in their respec tiv e c olu mns in
the manner shown in f igu re 39.
The u se of the mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart c an b est b e shown b y an example. 1 21
Example of a multiple activity chart applied to team work:
Inspection of catalyst in a converter
1
D RECORD
This is an applic ation in the f ield of plant maintenanc e and is u sef u l in
showing that method stu dy is not c onf ined to repetitiv e or produ c tion
operations.
Du ring the "ru nning-in" period of a new c atalytic c onv erter in an organic
c hemic al plant, it was nec essary to make f requ ent c hec ks on the c ondition of
the c atalyst. In order that the c onv erter shou ld not b e ou t of serv ic e f or any
longer than was stric tly nec essary du ring these inspec tions, the job was stu died.
In the original method the remov al of the top of the v essel was not started
u ntil the heaters had b een remov ed, and the replac ement of the heaters was not
started u ntil the top had b een c ompletely f ixed. The original operation, with the
relationships b etween the working times of the v ariou s workers, is shown in
f igu re 39.
It will b e seen f rom this c hart that, b ef ore the top of the v essel was
remov ed b y the f itter and his or her mate, the heaters had to b e remov ed b y the
elec tric ian and his or her mate. This meant that the f itters had to wait u ntil the
elec tric ians had c ompleted their work. S imilarly, at the end of the operation the
heaters were not replac ed u ntil the top had b een replac ed, and the elec tric ians
had to wait in their tu rn. A c ritic al examination of the operation and
qu estioning of the existing proc edu re rev ealed that in f ac t it was not nec essary
to wait f or the heaters to b e remov ed b ef ore remov ing the top.
Onc e this had b een determined, it was possib le to arrange f or the top to b e
u nf astened while the heaters were b eing remov ed and f or the heaters to b e
replac ed while the top was b eing sec u red in plac e. The resu lt appears on the
c hart in f igu re 40.
It will b e seen that the idle time of the elec tric ian and f itter and their
respec tiv e mates has b een su b stantially redu c ed, althou gh that of the rigger
remains the same. Ob v iou sly the rigger and the proc ess workers will b e
otherwise oc c u pied b ef ore and af ter perf orming their sec tions of the job and are
not, in f ac t, idle while the heaters and c ov er are b eing remov ed or replac ed.
The sav ing ef f ec ted b y this simple c hange was 32 per c ent of the total time of
the operation.
The simple f orm of mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart shown here c an b e c onstru c ted
on any piec e of paper hav ing lines or squ ares whic h c an b e u sed to f orm a time
sc ale. It is more u su al, howev er, to u se printed or du plic ated f orms, similar in
general layou t to the standard f low proc ess c harts, and to draw v ertic al b ars to
represent the ac tiv ities c harted. Figu res 41, 42 and 43 show mu ltiple ac tiv ity
c harts drawn on printed f orms.
' Adapted f rom an example in Method study, a handb ook issu ed b y Imperial Chemic al Indu stries L td.,
122 Work S tu dy Department.
MOVEMENTOF WORKERS INTHE WORKING AREA
Figure 40. Multiple activity chart: Inspection of catalyst in a converter
(improved method)
Hours
0
Electrician and mate Fitter and mate Rigger Process workers
-1
Remove
heaters
Release top
Fix tackle
Remove top
Workshop
-2
-3
Inspect
or adjust
catalyst
Replac ;e top
Remove tackle
Replace
heaters
Secure top
-4
-5
Time
32 pe
saved
r cent
The mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart c an also b e u sed to present a pic tu re of the
operations perf ormed simu ltaneou sly b y a worker and one or more mac hines.
The c hart may b e drawn in the manner shown in f igu re 41, with the v ertic al
ac tiv ity b ars c lose to eac h other down the middle of the sheet. In this way the
b eginning and end, and henc e the du ration, of ev ery period of ac tiv ity of either
worker or mac hine are c learly seen in relation to one another. By a stu dy of
these ac tiv ities it is possib le to determine whether b etter u se c an b e made of the
operativ e's time or of the mac hine time. In partic u lar, it of f ers a means of
determining whether a worker minding a mac hine, whose time is only partly
oc c u pied, c an manage to serv ic e another mac hine, or whether the inc rease in
inef f ec tiv e time of the two mac hines will of f set any gain to b e ob tained f rom
employing the worker's time more f u lly. This is an important qu estion in those 1 23
Figure 41 . Multiple activity chart Worker and machine: Finish mill casting
(original method)
Chart No. 8 Sheet No. 7 Of 7 Summary
Product
S. 239 casting
Present Proposed Saving
Cycle time (min.)
Drawing No. B. 239/1 Worker 2.0
Process:
Finish mill second face
Machine 2.0
Working
Worker 1.2
Machine 0.8
Machine(s): Speed Feed
Cincinnati No. 4 80 15
vertical miller r.p.m. in./min.
Idle
Worker 0.8
Machine 1.2
Utilization
Operative: Clock No. 7234 Worker 60%
Charted by: Date: Machine 40%
S
/i u- Time
Machme
(mjn
,
n Removes finished casting; 1
0.2 cleans with compressed air H 0.2
Gauges depth on surface plate HB
0.4
Breaks sharp edge with file; I^HI
o.6 cleans with compressed air BH
Idle E
0.6
n Places in box; I^B
o.8 obtains new casting H 0.8
n Cleans machine with 1 ^1
i.o compressed air HH 1.0
Locates casting in fixture; H
= L2 sfarfs machine and auto feed HH 1.2
1.4

E W/e
1.6
1 Working rz
^Bl Finish mill second face i e
1.8
1
2.0 H 2.0
2.2 2.2
2.4 2.4
2.6 2.6
2.8 2.8
3.0 3.0
3.2 3.2
3.4 3.4
3.6 3.6
3.8 3.8 =
Figure 42. Multiple activity chart Worker and machine: Finish mill casting
(improved method)
Chart No. 9 Sheet No. 7 Of 7 Summary |
Product
a 239 casti ng
Present Proposed Saving
Cycle time (min.)
Drawing No. B. 239/1 Worker 2.0 7.30 0.64
Process:
Finish mi ll second face
Machine 2.0 7.36 0.64
Working
Worker 1.2 7.72 O.OS
Machine 0.8 0.8
Machine(s): Speed Feed
Cincinnati No. 4 80 15
verti cal mi ller r.p.m. in./min.
Idle
Worker 0.8 0.24 0.5 6
Machine 1.2 0.56 0.64
Utilization Gai n
Operative: Clock No. 7234 Worker 60% 83% 23%
Charted by: Date: Machine 40% 59% 19%
Time ,., .
(min.)
Worker
Machine i,
H Removes finished casting SHi
0.2
Cleans machine with compressed air; locates
new casting in fixture; starts machine and iSH
0.4 auto feed
idle ZZ
0.4
0.6
1
0.6 =
Breaks edge of machined casting with file;
H 0.8 cleans with compressed air
0.8
Gauges depth on surface plate
1 .0 Places casting in box; picks up new casting Working 1 .0
and places by machine
1 .2
Finish mill second face

1 .2 =
1 .4 .i
Idle
1 .6 1.6 ^
1.8 1.8
2.0 2.0 ^
2.2 2.2 =
2.4 2.4
=
2.6 2.6
=
2.8 2.8 ^^
=
3.0 3.0
=
3.2 3.2
= 3.4 3.4 =
3.6 3.6
3.8 3.8 =
c ou ntries where hu man resou rc es are more readily av ailab le than mac hines and
other c apital equ ipment.
Example of a multiple activity chart recording worker and
machine: Finish mill casting on a vertical miller
D RECORD
Figu re 41 represents a c ommon f orm of worker-and-mac hine mu ltiple
ac tiv ity c hart rec ording the operation of a v ertic al milling mac hine f inish-
milling one f ac e of a c ast iron c asting parallel to the opposite f ac e, whic h is
u sed f or loc ating it in the f ixtu re. This is a v ery simple example, typic al of the
sort of operation c arried ou t ev ery day in an engineering shop.
The heading of the c hart rec ords the u su al standard inf ormation, with one
or two additions. The gradu ated sc ale on the edge of the c hart c an b e made to
represent any sc ale of time requ ired; in this c ase one large div ision equ als 0.2
of a minu te. The making of the c hart and noting of the operations are self -
ev ident and shou ld not requ ire f u rther explanation.
It will b e seen f rom f igu re 41, whic h represents the method b y whic h the
operativ e was doing the job b ef ore the stu dy was made, that the mac hine
remains idle du ring nearly three-qu arters of the operation c yc le. This is du e to
the f ac t that the operativ e is c arrying ou t all his or her ac tiv ities with the
mac hine stopped, b u t remains idle while the mac hine is ru nning on an
au tomatic f eed.
Examination of the c hart shows that the work c arried ou t b y the operativ e
c an b e div ided into two parts: that whic h mu st b e done with the mac hine
stopped, su c h as remov ing and loc ating the workpiec e, and that whic h c an b e
done while the mac hine is ru nning, su c h as gau ging. It is ob v iou sly an
adv antage to do as mu c h as possib le while the mac hine is ru nning as this will
redu c e the ov erall operation c yc le time.
Figu re 42 shows the improv ed method of operation. It will b e seen that
gau ging, b reaking the edges of the mac hined f ac e with a f ile, plac ing the
c asting in the b ox of f inished work, pic king u p an u nmac hined c asting and
plac ing it on a work tab le ready to loc ate in the f ixtu re are now all done while
the mac hine is ru nning. A slight gain in time has b een made b y plac ing the
b oxes with the f inished work and the work to b e done next to one another, so
that one c asting c an b e pu t away at the same time as the new one is lif ted f rom
its b ox. The c leaning of the mac hined c asting with c ompressed air has b een
def erred u ntil af ter the sharp edges hav e b een b roken down, thu s sav ing an
extra operation.
The resu lt of this rearrangement, whic h has inv olv ed no c apital ou tlay, is
a sav ing of 0.64 of a minu te, a gain of 32 per c ent in the produ c tiv ity of the
milling mac hine and operativ e.
The next example is one of a mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart rec ording the
126 ac tiv ities of a team of workers and a mac hine.
Example of multiple activity chart recording
the activities of a team of workers and a machine:
Feeding bones to a crusher in a glue factory
This simple b u t nev ertheless interesting example of a c omb ined teamwork and
mac hine c hart (f igu re 43) is applied to the f eeding of sorted b ones f rom a
storage du mp to a c ru shing mac hine in a glu e f ac tory in a dev eloping c ou ntry.
The original layou t of the working area is shown in f igu re 44. Raw
material in the f orm of animal b ones of all sorts was b rou ght b y the su ppliers to
one of the du mps lab elled "Bones", 80 metres f rom the b one c ru sher. The
c ru sher was f ed b y means of a small trolley ru nning on rails.
D RECORD
Workers sorted the b ones into "sof t" and "hard" types. The selec ted b ones
were c arried to a heap, ready f or loading b y two workers into the trolley. The
loading was done b y hand. These two workers were idle du ring the time that
the trolley was b eing pu shed to the c ru sher, emptied into it and b rou ght b ac k.
Two other workers pu shed the trolley; they were idle while it was b eing loaded.
The f ollowing f igu res relate to the ac tiv ities of the loaders, the trolley and
the c ru shing mac hine du ring eight c yc les, whic h lasted 117.5 minu tes.
Trolley loading time 7 min. (2 workers)
Trolley to c ru sher, empty and retu rn 7 min. (2 workers)
Trolley load 250 kg
Weight transported in 117.5 minu tes 8 X 250 = 2,000 kg
Cru sher waiting time 37.75 min.
A c hart (f igu re 43) has b een made relating the ac tiv ities of the c ru sher,
trolley, trolley operativ es and loaders. From this it will b e seen that 10 minu tes
of the c ru sher waiting time was taken u p in replac ing a b roken b elt; howev er,
af ter the b elt was repaired, the c ru sher ran c ontinu ou sly f or 16.5 minu tes
instead of the u su al 10, b ec au se a f resh trolley load was ready f or it. If a normal
4 minu tes of idleness is allowed, the net idleness du e to the b roken b elt
b ec omes only 6 minu tes.
A c ritic al examination of the c hart shows at onc e that the c ru sher was
normally idle f or 31.75 ou t of 111.5 minu tes (37.75 ou t of 117.5 minu tes if the
6 minu tes' b reakdown time is inc lu ded), or 28.5 per c ent of the possib le
working time. Eac h of the two grou ps of workers (loaders and trolley
operativ es) was idle f or 50 per c ent of its av ailab le time. The f irst qu estion that
might arise in the mind of someone stu dying the diagram and c hart is: "Why
c annot the trolley operativ es load the trolley?"
The answer to this qu estion is that, if they did so, they wou ld get no rest
and wou ld hav e to work c ontinu ou sly ju st to keep the c ru sher going f or the
same perc entage of its time as at present. There wou ld b e a sav ing of
manpower b u t no improv ement in the produ c tiv ity of the plant. In any c ase, no
one c an work f or three or f ou r hou rs on end withou t some rest, espec ially when
engaged on heav y work su c h as loading and pu shing the trolley, where the
allowanc e wou ld normally b e 25 per c ent or possib ly more of the total time 127
Figure 43. Combined team work and machine multiple activity chart: Crushing bones
(original method)
Chart No. 10 Sheet No. 1 Of 7
Product/Material:
Mixed bones
Operation: Load and transport
bones in trolley (250 kg load)
from dump to crusher
Method: Present/Proposed
Location: Bone yard
Charted by: Date:
(1 ) Machine(s)
(2) Labour
(1) Crusher
Trolley
(2) Loaders 2
Trolley operatives 2
Crusher operatives 4
% Utilization
Present
68
96
47.5
47.5
Proposed
Not studied
Gain
Time
(min.)
Crusher Trolley Trolley operatives
Replace
80 broken belt-
tdle, not emptied
117.5 mi. I 3.75
5 .5
2.0
Loaders
Time
(min.)
Figure 44. Crushing bones: Layout of working area
Bones
Bones
Bones
LO
o
Brook
Selected
tibias
Bones
Crusher
bones from suppliers
Heap of selected
bones ^
o
00
Brook
1 29
allowed f or the job (f or the treatment of relaxation allowanc es see Chapter 23).
If the two trolley operativ es took their relaxation allowanc es, the produ c tiv ity
of the c ru sher wou ld b e still lower.
A stu dy of the diagram of the working area and of the inf ormation giv en
ab ov e shows that the workers sorting the b ones at the du mps lab elled "Bones"
hav e to c arry the sorted b ones f rom the points where they are working to the
"Heap of selec ted b ones", so that they c an b e loaded into the trolley. This raises
the qu estion: "Why c annot the b one sorters load the sorted b ones straight into
the trolley?"
The answer is that they c ou ld do so, if the rails were extended another
20 metres to the b one du mps.
This eliminates the loaders b u t still leav es the prob lem of the 4 minu tes of
idle time of the c ru sher, while it is waiting f or the trolley to retu rn with a load.
There are more b one sorters than loaders and they c an load the trolley more
qu ic kly; if eac h trolley load were redu c ed, it wou ld take less time to load and
wou ld requ ire less ef f ort to pu sh. In this way it might b e possib le to keep u p
with the c yc le of the c ru sher. The load was theref ore redu c ed to 175 kilograms.
Waiting time was eliminated.
D DEVELOP the improved method
The line of c rosses in f igu re 44 shows the extension of the rails to the
b one du mps. The loaders who were eliminated were transf erred to other work
in the f ac tory. This was prob ab ly made possib le b y the f ac t that, as will b e
seen, the c ru sher ou tpu t rose su b stantially as a resu lt of the c hange of method.
Figu re 45 is the mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart showing the improv ed method. It
will b e seen f rom this that the perc entage ru nning time of the c ru sher has
c onsiderab ly improv ed.
Perf ormanc e f igu res are now:
Trolley loading time 1 min.
Trolley to c ru sher, empty and retu rn 6 min.
Trolley load 175 kg
Weight transported in 117.5 minu tes 15 X 175 = 2,625 kg
Cru sher waiting time 6 min.
The c ru sher waiting time will b e seen f rom the c hart to inc lu de 3 minu tes
f or c learing hard b ones an ab normal oc c u rrenc e. If this time is exc lu ded to
enab le the original and improv ed perf ormanc es to b e c ompared, the ov erall
time du ring whic h the c ru sher is av ailab le f or ac tion is 112.5 minu tes. The
inc rease in ou tpu t f rom the c ru sher ov er almost identic al periods is
625 kilograms; the inc rease in produ c tiv ity of the c ru sher is 29.5 per c ent.
Two lab ou rers ou t of eight hav e b een released f or other work; the lab ou r
produ c tiv ity has theref ore inc reased b y
f nn*! -
1
) X iOO =
7
5 per c ent.
\2,000 x 6 / ^
The spac e f ormerly oc c u pied b y the "Heap of selec ted b ones" is now
130 av ailab le f or other u ses.
Figure 45 . Combined team work and machine multiple activity chart: Crushing bones
(improved method)
Chart No. 11 Sheet No. 7 Of 7
(1 ) Machine(s)
(2) Labour
% Utilization
Material:
Mixed bones
Present Proposed Gain
(V Crusher
Trolley
68
96
93
95
25
- 1
Operation : Load and transport
bones in trolley (175 kg load)
from dump to crusher
Method: Presem/Proposed
(2) Loaders 2
Trolley operatives 2
Crusher operatives 4
N.B. Loading now done by sorters
47.5
47.5
Transfer
81
red
33.5
Location: Bone yard
IMUL siuuieu
1
Charted by: Date:
Mn'l C"""
M
> ' Wley o
P
,i
m
^ m.
= 1
^H
I 6.0 min. per trip
- 6.0 min. work
* 1.0 min. loading
i. l
- 1.0 waiting loaders
1 0
W 1

=
Remove 1 1 3
> 0
H
20 ^^
bones
LmJ ^H
20 =
I
1 4.5 0 1
Load not emptied - -
E
1
1
3.0
- 3.0 waiting
30 =
1 .0
E
40 40 =
1 4.5 0
i
5 0
0
-
5
5 0 =
i
E
Delay 1 .0
60 ^H
1 .0
60 =
1
E
70
I
70 =
E
45 .0
De/a^Q 1 0 1 .0

= 80
L
80
i
Delay 1 .0 1 .0
E
= 90 90 =
E
0.5
E
= 1 00 H
6.5
1 00 ~

0.5
= 1 1 0
1 4.75
1 1 0 zz
J
111.0 min.

115.b min. -*- ^ ' ' ' ' , ' .^
J
,
Note: During delays to trolley
1 20 sorting continues 1 20
This example is a dramatic illu stration of the manner in whic h the
produ c tiv ity of land, plant and lab ou r c an b e inc reased b y method stu dy
properly and systematic ally applied, at a c ost of only 20 metres of light railway
trac k.
5. The travel chart
The string diagram is a v ery neat and ef f ec tiv e way of rec ording f or c ritic al
examination the mov ement of workers or materials ab ou t the work area,
espec ially when readily u nderstood "b ef ore" and "af ter" models are needed to
help in presenting the merits of a proposed c hange. S tring diagrams do take
rather a long time to c onstru c t, howev er, and when a great many mov ements
along c omplex paths are inv olv ed the diagram may end u p looking like a
f orb idding maze of c riss-c rossing lines. When the mov ement patterns are
c omplex, the travel chart is a qu ic ker and more manageab le rec ording
tec hniqu e.
A travel chart is a tabular record for presenting quantitative data
about the movements of workers, materials or equipment between
any number of places over any given period of time
Figu re 46 shows a typic al trav el c hart. It rec ords the mov ements of a
messenger deliv ering papers or inf ormation to the v ariou s desks and
workstations in an of f ic e. The layou t of the of f ic e, showing the relativ e
positions of the workstations, is sketc hed b eneath the trav el c hart.
The trav el c hart is always a squ are, hav ing within it smaller squ ares. Eac h
small squ are represents a workstation that is, in the present example, a plac e
v isited b y the messenger. There are ten stations, and so the trav el c hart is drawn
with ten small squ ares ac ross, nu mb ered 1 to 10 f rom lef t to right, and ten
small squ ares down, again nu mb ered 1 to 10 going down. Thu s f or ten
workstations the trav el c hart c ontains a total of 10 X 10 = 100 small squ ares,
and has a diagonal line drawn ac ross it f rom top lef t to b ottom right.
The squ ares f rom lef t to right along the top of the c hart represent the
plac es from where mov ement or trav el takes plac e: those down the lef t-hand
edge represent the stations to which the mov ement is made. For example,
c onsider a mov ement f rom station 2 to station 9. To rec ord this, the stu dy
person enters the trav el c hart at the squ are nu mb ered 2 along the top of the
c hart, ru ns a penc il down v ertic ally throu gh all the squ ares u nderneath this one
u ntil he or she reac hes the squ are whic h is horizontally opposite the station
marked 9 on the lef t-hand edge. This is the terminal squ are, and the stu dy
person will make a mark in that squ are to indic ate one jou rney f rom station 2 to
station 9. All jou rneys are rec orded in the same way, always starting at the top
in the squ are of departu re, always trav elling v ertic ally downwards, and always
132 ending in the squ are opposite the station of arriv al, as read f rom the lef t-hand
Figure 46. Travel chart: Movements of messenger in office
Movement FROM ^7
Station
1
2
3
4
O 5
H
4-*
6
>
S 7
1 0
<
9
1 0
\
'i ^

3
5
3
7
5
i

S
u
m
m
a
r
y

o
f

m
o
v
e
m
e
n
t
s

I
N
T
O

s
t
a
t
i
o
n

n
u
m
b
e
r

,

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
\
T
^ ^ ^
\
^ ^
^
\
4 ^
^ ^ ^
\
^ 4 -i
^ ^
\
^ -i ^
4 '*4
\
^
^
\
-i 4
^
\
'* 4 ^ 4 4
\
> 3 i 5 V- 3
7 5
iSummary of movements FROM station numbert
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Layout sketch
of office
showing location
of stations
- -
"1
Fl
n
'
_
io|

E
1 33
edge. Of c ou rse, the stu dy person does not ac tu ally trac e in the path ov er whic h
the penc il mov es b u t ju st plac es a small tic k or other mark in the terminal
squ are to rec ord the jou rney.
To make the rec ording method c ompletely c lear, let u s su ppose that the
messenger trav elled the f ollowing rou te: 2 to 9 to 5 to 3 and b ac k to 2. The
jou rney f rom 2 to 9 will b e marked b y a tic k as desc rib ed ab ov e. To enter the
jou rney f rom 9 to 5, the stu dy person will retu rn to the top of the c hart, selec t
squ are 9, mov e down the c olu mn b elow this u ntil he or she reac hes the squ are
opposite 5 on the lef t-hand edge, and rec ord the mov ement b y a tic k there. To
the top again to selec t squ are 5, down f rom there to that opposite 3; another
tic k f or that jou rney. Finally, u p to the top onc e more to selec t squ are 3, and
down to that opposite nu mb er 2 f or the rec ording of the f inal leg of the
messenger's walk.
Example of a travel chart: Movement of messenger In an office
D RECORD
The f irst stage of the rec ording proc ess, that is when the method stu dy
person ob serv es the mov ement of the messenger ac tu ally in the of f ic e, c an b e
c arried ou t v ery simply on a stu dy sheet similar to that shown in f igu re 47.
Onc e the stations v isited hav e b een nu mb ered and keyed to a sketc h of the
workplac e, the entries rec ording the jou rneys made requ ire v ery little writing.
The trav el c hart is then c ompiled in the method stu dy of f ic e. Af ter all the
mov ements hav e b een entered on the c hart with tic ks, the tic ks in eac h small
squ are are added u p, the total b eing entered in the squ are itself . The
mov ements are then su mmarized, in two ways. Down the right-hand side of the
c hart, the nu mb er of mov ements into eac h station is entered against the squ are
representing the station, as read f rom the lef t-hand edge. Underneath the c hart,
the nu mb er of mov ements from eac h station is rec orded, this time u nder the
relev ant squ ares as read of f the top of the c hart.
In the c hart in f igu re 46 there were two mov ements into station 1, as c an
b e seen b y ru nning an eye ac ross the line of squ ares against station 1 on the
lef t-hand edge. S imilarly, in the next horizontal line of squ ares, that opposite
station 2, there are altogether ten mov ements shown, into station 2. For the
mov ements from stations, the totalling is c arried ou t v ertic ally: it will b e seen
that there were ten mov ements f rom station 2, as shown in the c olu mn of
squ ares u nder station 2 at the top of the c hart. With v ery little prac tic e, the
c hart and its su mmaries c an b e c ompiled extremely qu ic kly mu c h qu ic ker
than it takes to desc rib e what is done.
In f igu re 46 the su mmary of mov ements into eac h station shows the same
nu mb er of mov ements as those rec orded at the b ottom as b eing made from that
station, indic ating that the messenger f inished at the same station as he or she
started ou t f rom when the stu dy c ommenc ed. If he or she had f inished
somewhere else (or if the stu dy had b een b roken of f when he or she was
somewhere else), there wou ld hav e b een one station where there was one more
mov ement in than the nu mb er of mov ements ou t, and this wou ld b e where the
134 stu dy f inished.
Figure 47. A simple study sheet
STUDYSHEET
Department: UtartM* Section / Study No. 4*7
Equipment: {fi TlcA: fi dJ* Sheet: / of
Taken by: CfiA
Date:
7MM I
? 7 V- 3
f 4 ? 3 l
^
Tr
9
7 V- 3 f
4 9 3
Z 9
7
J. 4c*m
40
-
0 40
- 30 40 - 30 AO
- 30
-
7Z*m 7 4 V- 9 e Z 5
9
7 5
9
71 i
V-
9 e
2, 5 ?
7 l
5 9
Jli ' cm**
40 LO - 30 o 0 30 vo 40 0 40
30 O
7t*M( i
4 9
7S- 4 1 i
1 '
Jti ' cm** - 30 30 ^ ^
u^
i ^
An examination of the c hart shows that ten jou rneys hav e b een made into
station 2, sev en into station 9 and six into station 5. These are the. b u siest
stations. A sc ru tiny of the b ody of -the c hart helps to c onf irm this: there were
six jou rneys f rom station 2 to station 9, and f iv e f rom station 5 to station 2. The
b u siest rou te is 5-2-9. This su ggests that it wou ld b e b etter to loc ate these
stations next to eac h other. It might then b e possib le f or the c lerk at station 5 to
plac e f inished work direc tly into the in-tray at station 2, and the c lerk there to
pass his or her work on to station 9, thu s reliev ing the messenger of a good deal
of trav elling.
Example of a weighted travel chart: Material handling
A v ariation on the trav el c hart is the weighted travel chart. This rec ords
mov ements ov er a giv en time period (normally one shif t or one day) and, in 1 35
Figure 48. Weighted travel chart: Material handling
Movement FROM ^F
Station
1
2
>
O
2
<
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
\
/ -
/*)
\
.
/.o /
4
0
\
/ *.
\
.
/ O
^
iO
\
/ JO
/ M
/ 30
\
/ -
/ -
\
*,
JO
/-
.
30
/30
\
Summary
No.
of
trips
No.
INTO of
cans
3 10
3
vo
I 0
0
Z
vo
5
-fd
3 40
-# o
* 470
Summary
No. of
trips 3V-2.2.ZV-3-**
o
DC
LL
No.
of cans SO BO - 94 70 LO 50 O 490
1 36
addition to rec ording jou rneys made b etween loc ations, shows the v olu me or
weight of materials mov ed. Thu s, eac h time a jou rney is rec orded the v olu me
or weight of the material is also rec orded. At the end of the time period, the
total traf f ic v olu me b etween eac h set of loc ations is entered on the tab u lar c hart
and u sed as the b asis of examination.
An example of a weighted trav el c hart c ompiled as part of a material-
handling stu dy is shown in f igu re 48. In the shop in whic h the stu dy was made,
eight mixing mac hines were u sed to mix materials in dif f erent proportions, the
f inal mixtu res b eing taken to an inspec tion b enc h (station 6). The mixes were
transported in 25-litre c ans, whic h were plac ed on pallets and mov ed b y a low
lif t tru c k.
D RECORD
Mov ements were rec orded on the shop f loor on a stu dy sheet of the type
shown in f igu re 47. The entries show not only the jou rneys made b u t also the
nu mb er of c ans c arried on eac h trip. In the trav el c hart shown in f igu re 48 there
are nine stations, the eight mixing mac hines and the inspec tion b enc h. The trav el
c hart was made exac tly as in the prev iou s example, exc ept that in this instanc e
the nu mb er of c ans deliv ered was also entered in the destination squ ares,
b eside the tic ks f or the jou rneys, and b oth jou rneys and c ans deliv ered hav e
b een su mmarized. It will b e seen that, f or instanc e, two jou rneys were made
f rom station 5 to station 9, one with a load of 40 c ans and the other with 30.
Not mu c h c an b e learned f rom the stu dy sheet, exc ept that sev en of the 29
trips made were ru n withou t any load, and that the size of load v aried f rom ten
to 40 c ans. The trav el c hart, howev er, shows at onc e that stations 6 and 9 are
b u sy ones. Fiv e trips were made to station 6, with a total of 150 c ans b eing
deliv ered. (S tation 6 was the inspec tion b enc h.) Fou r of these trips were f rom
station 9, b ringing in a total of 130 c ans. The largest nu mb er of trips, and the
greatest qu antity of c ans, was f rom station 9 to the inspec tion b enc h,
su ggesting that this rou te might b e laid ou t so that it wou ld b e as short as
possib le. It might b e possib le to install a roller c onv eyor b etween these points,
thu s reliev ing the lif t tru c k of a great deal of work.
Eight trips were made into station 9, to deliv er 170 c ans. The c ans c ame
f rom stations 1,2, A and 5, one trip withou t load b eing made f rom station 3.
S tations 1, 2, 4 and 5 appear to f eed station 9, whic h sends its work on to the
inspec tion b enc h (longer stu dy might b e nec essary to c onf irm this). If so, there
wou ld b e a c ase f or modif ying the layou t of the shop in order to b ring these
stations c loser together, when roller c onv eyors might allow grav ity to do most
of the transporting b etween them. In this example there is no sketc h of the shop
layou t or tab le of distanc es b etween stations, b oth of whic h are essential
c omplements to a trav el c hart.
It is interesting to note that f ou r trips were made f rom station 2, b u t only
three into the station; and that only f ou r were made f rom station 6, althou gh
f iv e were made into it. This is b ec au se the stu dy started at station 2 and
f inished at the inspec tion b enc h.
1 37
CHAPTER 9
Methods and
movements at the
workplace
1. General considerations
In this b ook we hav e gradu ally mov ed f rom the wide f ield of the produ c tiv ity
of indu stry as a whole to c onsidering in a general way how the produ c tiv ity of
workers and mac hines c an b e improv ed throu gh the u se of work stu dy. S till
mov ing f rom the b roader to the more detailed approac h, we hav e also
examined proc edu res of a general natu re f or improv ing the ef f ec tiv eness with
whic h c omplete sequ enc es of operations are perf ormed and with whic h
material f lows throu gh the working area. Tu rning f rom materials to workers,
we hav e disc u ssed methods of stu dying the mov ements of persons arou nd the
working area and the relationships b etween men or women and mac hines or
workers working together in grou ps. We hav e done so f ollowing the princ iple
that the b road method of operation mu st b e pu t right b ef ore we attempt
improv ements in detail.
The time has now c ome to look at one worker working at a workplac e,
b enc h or tab le and to apply to him or her the princ iples whic h hav e b een laid
down and the proc edu res shown in the examples giv en.
In c onsidering the mov ements of workers and materials on the larger
sc ale, we hav e b een c onc erned with the more ef f ic ient u se of existing plant and
mac hinery (and, where possib le, materials) throu gh the elimination of
u nnec essary idle time, the more ef f ec tiv e operation of proc esses and the more
ef f ic ient u se of the serv ic es of lab ou r throu gh the elimination of u nnec essary
and time-c onsu ming mov ement within the working area of f ac tory, department
or yard.
As ou r example (Chapter 8) of the trolley operativ e's need f or relaxation
shows, the f ac tor of f atigu e af f ec ts the solu tion of prob lems ev en when we are
dealing with areas larger than the indiv idu al workplac e. Bu t when we c ome to
stu dy indiv idu als at the workplac e, the way in whic h they apply their ef f ort and
the amou nt of f atigu e resu lting f rom their manner of working b ec ome primary
f ac tors af f ec ting their produ c tiv ity.
Bef ore emb arking on a detailed stu dy of an operativ e doing a job at a
single workplac e, it is important to make c ertain that the job is in f ac t
nec essary and is b eing done as it shou ld b e done. The qu estioning tec hniqu e
mu st b e applied as regards:
D PURPOSE
To ensu re that the job is nec essary. 139
D PLACE
To ensu re that it is b eing done where it shou ld b e done.
D SEQUENCE
To ensu re that it is in its right plac e in the sequ enc e of operations.
D PERSON
To ensu re that it is b eing done b y the right person.
Onc e these hav e b een v erif ied and it is c ertain that the job c annot b e
eliminated or c omb ined with another operation, it is possib le to go on to
determine the
D MEANS
b y whic h the job is b eing done
and to simplif y them as mu c h as is ec onomic ally ju stif ied.
L ater in this c hapter we shall c onsider the rec ording tec hniqu es adopted to
set ou t the detailed mov ements of an indiv idu al at his or her workplac e in ways
whic h f ac ilitate c ritic al examination and the dev elopment of improv ed
methods, in partic u lar the two-handed process chart, as well as the PTS
chart whic h will b e ref erred to in Part Fou r of this b ook. Bef ore doing this,
howev er, it is appropriate to disc u ss the princ iples of motion ec onomy and a
nu mb er of other matters whic h inf lu enc e the design of the workplac e itself , so
as to make it as c onv enient as possib le f or the worker to perf orm his or her job .
2. The principles of motion economy
There are a nu mb er of "princ iples" c onc erning the ec onomy of mov ements
whic h hav e b een dev eloped as a resu lt of experienc e and whic h f orm a good
b asis f or the dev elopment of improv ed methods at the workplac e. They may b e
grou ped u nder three headings:
A. Use of the human body
B. Arrangement of the workplace
C. Design of tools and equipment
They are u sef u l in shop and of f ic e alike and, althou gh they c annot always
b e applied, they do f orm a v ery good b asis f or improv ing the ef f ic ienc y and
redu c ing the f atigu e of manu al work. The ideas expou nded b y Prof essor
Barnes
1
are desc rib ed here in a somewhat simplif ied f ashion.
A. Use of the human body
When possib le:
(1) The two hands shou ld b egin and c omplete their mov ements at the same
time.
(2) The two hands shou ld not b e idle at the same time exc ept du ring periods
of rest.
(3) Motions of the arms shou ld b e symmetric al and in opposite direc tions and
shou ld b e made simu ltaneou sly.
1
S ee Ralph M. Barnes: Motion and time study: Design and measurement of work (New Y ork and
140 L ondon, John Wiley, 7th d., 1980), Chs. 15-17.
METHODSANDMOVEMENTSATTHE WORKPLACE
(4) Hand and b ody motions shou ld b e made at the lowest c lassif ic ation at
whic h it is possib le to do the work satisf ac torily (see sec tion 3 b elow).
(5) Momentu m shou ld b e employed to help the worker, b u t shou ld b e
redu c ed to a minimu m whenev er it has to b e ov erc ome b y mu sc u lar
ef f ort.
(6) Continu ou s c u rv ed mov ements are to b e pref erred to straight-line motions
inv olv ing su dden and sharp c hanges in direc tion.
(7) "Ballistic " (i.e. f ree-swinging) mov ements are f aster, easier and more
ac c u rate than restric ted or c ontrolled mov ements.
(8) Rhythm is essential to the smooth and au tomatic perf ormanc e of a
repetitiv e operation. The work shou ld b e arranged to permit easy and
natu ral rhythm whenev er possib le.
(9) Work shou ld b e arranged so that eye mov ements are c onf ined to a
c omf ortab le area, withou t the need f or f requ ent c hanges of f oc u s.
B. Arrangement of the workplace
(1) Def inite and f ixed stations shou ld b e prov ided f or all tools and materials
to permit hab it f ormation.
(2) Tools and materials shou ld b e pre-positioned to redu c e searc hing.
(3) G rav ity f eed, b ins and c ontainers shou ld b e u sed to deliv er the materials
as c lose to the point of u se as possib le.
(4) Tools, materials and c ontrols shou ld b e loc ated within the maximu m
working area (see f igu re 49) and as near to the worker as possib le.
(5) Materials and tools shou ld b e arranged to permit the b est sequ enc e of
motions.
(6) "Drop deliv eries" or ejec tors shou ld b e u sed wherev er possib le, so that
the operativ e does not hav e to u se his or her hands to dispose of the
f inished work.
(7) Prov ision shou ld b e made f or adequ ate lighting, and a c hair of the type
and height to permit good postu re shou ld b e prov ided. The height of the
workplac e and seat shou ld b e arranged to allow alternate standing and sitting.
(8) The c olou r of the workplac e shou ld c ontrast with that of the work and
thu s redu c e eye f atigu e.
C. Design of tools and equipment
(1) The hands shou ld b e reliev ed of all work of "holding" the workpiec e
where this c an b e done b y a jig, f ixtu re or f oot-operated dev ic e.
(2) Two or more tools shou ld b e c omb ined wherev er possib le.
(3) Where eac h f inger perf orms some spec if ic mov ement, as in typewriting,
the load shou ld b e distrib u ted in ac c ordanc e with the inherent c apac ities
of the f ingers.
(4) Handles su c h as those on c ranks and large sc rewdriv ers shou ld b e so
designed that as mu c h of the su rf ac e of the hand as possib le c an c ome
into c ontac t with the handle. This is espec ially nec essary when
c onsiderab le f orc e has to b e u sed on the handle. 141
Figure 49. Normal and maximum working areas
A. Normal working area
(finger, wrist and elbow movements)
B. Maximum working area
(shoulder movements)
Left hand
maximum
working area
Right hand
maximum
working area
1 42
(5) L ev ers, c rossb ars and handwheels shou ld b e so plac ed that the operativ e
c an u se them with the least c hange in b ody position and the greatest
"mec hanic al adv antage".
These "princ iples", whic h ref lec t those disc u ssed in Chapter 5, c an b e
made the b asis of a su mmary "qu estionnaire" whic h will help, when laying ou t
a workplac e, to ensu re that nothing is ov erlooked.
Figu re 49 shows the normal working area and the storage area on the
workb enc h f or the av erage operativ e. As f ar as possib le, materials shou ld not
b e stored in the area direc tly in f ront of him or her, as stretc hing f orwards
inv olv es the u se of the b ac k mu sc les, thereb y c au sing f atigu e. This has b een
demonstrated b y physiologic al researc h.
3. Classification of movements
The f ou rth "ru le" of motion ec onomy in the u se of the hu man b ody c alls f or
mov ements to b e of the lowest c lassif ic ation possib le. This c lassif ic ation is
b u ilt u p on the piv ots arou nd whic h the b ody memb ers mu st mov e, as shown in
tab le 9.
Table 9. Classification of movements
Class Pivot Body member(s) moved
1 Knuckle Finger
2 Wrist Hand and fingers
3 Elbow Forearm, hand and fingers
4 Shoulder Upper arm, forearm, hand and fingers
5 Trunk Torso, upper arm, forearm, hand and fingers
It is ob v iou s that eac h mov ement ab ov e Class 1 will inv olv e mov ements
of all c lasses b elow it. Thu s the sav ing in ef f ort resu lting f rom u sing the lowest
c lass possib le is ob v iou s. If , in laying ou t the workplac e, ev erything needed is
plac ed within easy reac h, this will minimize the c lass of mov ement whic h the
work itself requ ires f rom the operativ e.
4. Further notes on workplace layout and simplification
of movements
A f ew general notes on laying ou t the workplac e may b e u sef u l.
(1) If similar work is b eing done b y eac h hand, there shou ld b e a separate
su pply of materials or parts f or eac h hand.
(2) If the eyes are u sed to selec t material, as f ar as possib le the material
shou ld b e kept in an area where the eyes c an loc ate it withou t there b eing
any need to tu rn the head.
(3) Use semi-c irc u lar arrangements in pref erenc e to c irc u lar arrangements
(see f igu re 50).
(4) Design the workplac e u sing ergonomie princ iples. In a sitting position a
rec ommended postu re is shown in f igu re 51.
(5) The natu re and the shape of the material inf lu enc e its position in the
layou t. Use v ariou s b ins su c h as those shown in f igu re 52 to
ac c ommodate material. 143
Figure 5 0. Semi-circular and circular working arrangement
This is a correct and better arrangement
than a circular arrangement
1 44
Figure 5 1 . Recommended dimensions for seated tasks
Work surface
height should
be around
elbow level
Work surface
thickness:
5 cm maximum
Leg clearance:
40 cm at knee level
60 cm for the feet
Thigh
clearance:
20 cm minimum
Seat height:
36-45 cm
(adjustable to each
worker)
Source: Thurman et al., op. cit., figure 5 4.
(6) Hand tools shou ld b e pic ked u p with the least possib le distu rb anc e to the
rhythm and symmetry of mov ements. As f ar as possib le the operator
shou ld b e ab le to pic k u p or pu t down a tool as the hand mov es f rom one
part of the work to the next, withou t making a spec ial jou rney. Natu ral
mov ements are c u rv ed, not straight; tools shou ld b e plac ed on the arc of
mov ements, b u t c lear of the path of mov ement of any material whic h has
to b e slid along the su rf ac e of the b enc h.
(7) Tools shou ld b e easy to pic k u p and replac e; as f ar as possib le they shou ld
hav e an au tomatic retu rn, or the loc ation of the next piec e of material to
b e mov ed shou ld allow the tool to b e retu rned as the hand trav els to pic k
it u p.
(8) Finished work shou ld b e:
(a) dropped down a hole or a c hu te;
(b ) dropped throu gh a c hu te when the hand is starting the f irst motion of
the next c yc le;
(c ) pu t in a c ontainer plac ed so that hand mov ements are kept to a
minimu m;
(d) if the operation is an intermediate one, plac ed in a c ontainer in su c h
a way that the next operativ e c an pic k it u p easily.
(9) Always look into the possib ility of u sing pedals or knee-operated lev ers
f or loc king or indexing dev ic es on f ixtu res or dev ic es f or disposing of
f inished work. 1 45
Figure 5 2. Various bins and motion-economy devices
Rotating bin
Double bins
1 46 Depression in a table to hold flaps of a carton for packaging operation
Source: Adapted from Thurman et al., op. cit., figure 5 3.
An example of a workstation layout
L et u s now look at a typic al workstation with the princ iples of motion ec onomy
and the notes in the prev iou s sec tion in mind.
Figu re 53 shows a typic al example of the layou t of a workstation f or the
assemb ly of elec tric al equ ipment. Certain points will b e notic ed at onc e:
(1) A f ixtu re has b een prov ided f or holding the workpiec e, leav ing b oth the
operativ e's hands f ree f or assemb ly work. The u se of one hand pu rely f or
holding the part b eing worked on shou ld always b e av oided, exc ept f or
operations so short that a f ixtu re wou ld not b e ju stif ied.
(2) The nec essary tools are su spended in f ront of the operativ e so that he or
she has to make only a v ery short and easy mov ement to grasp them and
b ring them to the work. They are, howev er, c lear of the su rf ac e of the
tab le and of the work. The hammer and wire-c u tter are within easy reac h,
so that the operativ e c an pic k them u p withou t searc hing. They are plac ed
to one side of the trays of parts, so that they do not get in the way.
(3) All the small parts are c lose to the operativ e, well within the "maximu m
working area". Eac h part has a def inite loc ation, and the trays are
designed with "sc oop" f ronts f or easy withdrawal, parts b eing drawn
f orward with the tips of the f ingers and grasped as they c ome ov er the
rou nded edge. They are arranged f or symmetric al mov ements of the arms,
so that parts whic h are assemb led simu ltaneou sly are pic ked u p f rom trays 1 47
' INTRODUCTIONTOWORKSTUDY
in the same relativ e position to the operativ e, on either side of him or her.
It will b e noted that the trays c ome almost in f ront of the operativ e, b u t this is
not v ery important in this c ase as the length of reac h is not exc essiv e and
will not inv olv e mu c h play of the shou lder and b ac k mu sc les.
5. Notes on the design of jigs, tools and fixtures
A jig holds parts in an exact position and guides the tool that
works on them
A fixture is a less accurate device for holding parts which would other-
wise have to be held in one hand while the other worked on them
The designer's ob jec t in prov iding jigs and f ixtu res is primarily ac c u rac y
in mac hining or assemb ly. Of ten, opening and c losing them or positioning the
workpiec e c alls f or more mov ements on the part of the operativ e than are
stric tly nec essary. For example, a spanner may hav e to b e u sed to tighten a nu t
when a wing nu t wou ld b e more su itab le; or the top of the jig may hav e to b e
lif ted of f when the part might b e slid in.
Cooperation b etween the work stu dy person and the jig and tool
designers, in indu stries where they are employed (princ ipally the engineering
indu stry), shou ld start in the early stages of designing, and tool designers
shou ld b e among the f irst people to take apprec iation c ou rses in method stu dy.
S ome points worth noting are:
(1) Clamps shou ld b e as simple to operate as possib le and shou ld not hav e to
b e sc rewed u nless this is essential f or ac c u rac y of positioning. If two
c lamps are requ ired, they shou ld b e designed f or u se b y the right and lef t
hands at the same time.
(2) The jig shou ld b e designed so that b oth hands c an load parts into it with a
minimu m of ob stru c tion. There shou ld b e no ob stru c tion b etween the
point of entry and the point f rom whic h the material is ob tained.
(3) The ac tion of u nc lamping a jig shou ld at the same time ejec t the part, so
that additional mov ements are not requ ired to take the part ou t of the jig.
(4) Where possib le on small assemb ly work, f ixtu res f or a part whic h does
not requ ire b oth hands to work on it at onc e shou ld b e made to take two
parts, with su f f ic ient spac e b etween them to allow b oth hands to work easily.
(5) In some c ases jigs are made to take sev eral small parts. It will sav e
loading time if sev eral parts c an b e c lamped in position as qu ic kly as one.
(6) The work stu dy person shou ld not ignore mac hine jigs and f ixtu res su c h
as milling jigs. A great deal of time and power is of ten wasted on milling
mac hines owing to the f ac t that parts are milled one at a time, when it
148 may b e qu ite f easib le to mill two or more at onc e.
(7) If spring-loaded disappearing pins are u sed to position c omponents,
attention shou ld b e paid to their strength of c onstru c tion. Unless the
design is rob u st, su c h dev ic es tend to f u nc tion well f or a while b u t then
hav e to b e repaired or redesigned.
(8) In introdu c ing a c omponent into a jig it is important to ensu re that the
operativ e shou ld b e ab le to see what he or she is doing at all stages; this
shou ld b e c hec ked b ef ore any design is ac c epted.
6. Machine controls and displays of dials
Until rec ently, mac hinery and plant of all kinds were designed with v ery little
thou ght b eing giv en to the c onv enienc e of the operativ e. In short c yc le work
espec ially, the manipu lation of the c ontrols (c hanging speeds on a c apstan
lathe, f or example) of ten inv olv ed awkward mov ements. There is not mu c h
that the u ser c an do ab ou t the c ontrols of a mac hine af ter hav ing b ou ght it; b u t
he or she can draw the attention of the makers to inc onv enient c ontrols so that
they c an make improv ements in later models. There is ev idenc e, howev er, that
mac hinery makers generally are b ec oming more c onsc iou s of this prob lem. In
the f ew c ompanies that make their own mac hinery or plant, the work stu dy
department shou ld b e c alled in at the earliest possib le stage of the design
proc ess, to giv e assistanc e and adv ic e.
Physiologists and psyc hologists hav e giv en some thou ght to the
arrangement of dials with a v iew to minimizing the f atigu e to people who hav e
to watc h them. The arrangement of the c ontrol panels f or c hemic al proc esses
and similar types of proc ess is of ten made at the works installing them, and the
work stu dy person shou ld b e c onsu lted when this is done.
The growing awareness of the importanc e of arranging mac hine c ontrols
and workplac es so that they are c onv enient f or the people who hav e to do the
work has led in rec ent years to the dev elopment of a new f ield of sc ientif ic
stu dy whic h is c onc erned entirely with su c h matters. This is ergonomics,
2
the
stu dy of the relationship b etween a worker and the env ironment in whic h he or
she works, partic u larly the applic ation of anatomic al, physiologic al and
psyc hologic al knowledge to the resu lting prob lems. Ergonomists hav e c arried
ou t many experiments to dec ide on matters su c h as the b est layou t f or mac hine
c ontrols, the b est dimensions f or seats and worktops, the most c onv enient pedal
pressu res, and so on, and this is of ten inc orporated in the designs of new
mac hines and equ ipment.
7. The two-handed process chart
The stu dy of the work of an operativ e at the b enc h starts, as does method stu dy
ov er the wider f ield, with a proc ess c hart. In this c ase the c hart u sed is the f if th
of the c harts indic ating proc ess sequ enc e (tab le 8), the one known as the two-
handed process chart.
2
S eeCh.5. 149
The two-handed process chart is a process chart in which the
activities of a worker's hands (or limbs) are recorded in their
relationship to one another
The two-handed proc ess c hart is a spec ialized f orm of proc ess c hart
b ec au se it shows the two hands (and sometimes the f eet) of the operativ e
mov ing or static in relation to one another, u su ally in relation to a time sc ale.
One adv antage of inc orporating a time sc ale in the c hart f orm is that the
symb ols f or what the two hands are doing at any giv en moment are b rou ght
opposite eac h other.
The two-handed proc ess c hart is generally u sed f or repetitiv e operations,
when one c omplete c yc le of the work is to b e rec orded. Rec ording is c arried
ou t in more detail than is normal on f low proc ess c harts. What may b e shown
as a single operation on a f low proc ess c hart may b e b roken down into a
nu mb er of elemental ac tiv ities whic h together make u p the operation. The two-
handed proc ess c hart generally employs the same symb ols as the other proc ess
c harts; howev er, b ec au se of the greater detail c ov ered, the symb ols are
ac c orded slightly dif f erent meanings:
O OPERATION Is u sed f or the ac tiv ities of grasp, position, u se, release,
etc ., of a tool, c omponent or material.
O- TRANSPORT Is u sed to represent the mov ement of the hand (or limb ) to
or f rom the work, a tool or material.
D DELAY Is u sed to denote time du ring whic h the hand or limb
b eing c harted is idle (althou gh the others may b e in u se).
V HOLD The term storage is not u sed in c onnec tion with the two-
handed proc ess c hart. Instead, the symb ol is redesignated
as hold and is u sed to represent the ac tiv ity of holding the
work, a tool or material that is, when the hand b eing
c harted is holding something.
The symb ol f or inspection is not mu c h u sed b ec au se the hand mov ements
when an operativ e is inspec ting an artic le (holding it and examining it v isu ally
or gau ging it) may b e c lassif ied as "operations" on the two-handed c hart. It
may, howev er, sometimes b e u sef u l to employ the "inspec tion" symb ol to draw
attention to the examination of a piec e.
3
The v ery ac t of making the c hart enab les the work stu dy spec ialist to gain
an intimate knowledge of the details of the job , and the c hart itself enab les him
or her to stu dy eac h element of the job b y itself and in relation to other
elements. From this stu dy ideas f or improv ements are dev eloped. These ideas
shou ld b e written down in c hart f orm when they oc c u r, ju st as in all other
proc ess c harting. It may b e that dif f erent ways of simplif ying the work c an b e
3
S ome au thorities f eel that the standard proc ess-c hart symb ols are not entirely su itab le f or rec ording
hand and b ody mov ements and hav e adopted v ariants, su c h as:
1 50 O: Operation; TL : Transport loaded; TE: Transport empty; H: Hold; R: Rest.
f ou nd; if they are all c harted, they c an b e c ompared easily. The b est method is
generally that whic h requ ires the f ewest mov ements.
The two-handed proc ess c hart c an b e applied to a great v ariety of
assemb ly, mac hining and c leric al job s. In assemb ly operations, tight f its and
awkward positioning present c ertain prob lems. In the assemb ly of small parts
with c lose f its, "positioning" shou ld b e shown as a separate mov ement
("Operation") apart f rom the ac tu al mov ement of assemb ly (e.g. f itting a
sc rewdriv er in the head of a small sc rew). Attention c an thu s b e f oc u sed on it
and, if it is shown against a time sc ale, its relativ e importanc e c an b e assessed.
Major sav ings c an b e made if the nu mb er of su c h positionings c an b e redu c ed.
Notes on compiling two-handed process charts
The c hart f orm shou ld inc lu de:
D spac es at the top f or the u su al inf ormation;
D adequ ate spac e f or a sketc h of the layou t of the workplac e (c orresponding
to the f low diagram u sed in assoc iation with the f low proc ess c hart), or a
sketc h of jigs, etc .;
D spac es f or the mov ements of right and lef t hands;
D spac e f or a su mmary of mov ements and analysis of idle time;
Examples are giv en in the f ollowing pages.
S ome points on c ompiling c harts are worth mentioning:
(1) S tu dy the operation c yc le a f ew times b ef ore starting to rec ord.
(2) Chart one hand at a time.
(3) Do not rec ord more than a f ew symb ols at a time.
(4) The ac tion of pic king u p or grasping a f resh part at the b eginning of a
c yc le of work is a good point at whic h to start the rec ord. S tart with the
hand that handles the part f irst or the hand that does the most work. The
exac t point of starting is not really important, as the c omplete c yc le will
ev entu ally c ome rou nd to it again, b u t the point c hosen mu st b e def inite.
Add in the sec ond c olu mn the kinds of work done b y the other hand.
(5) Only rec ord ac tions on the same lev el when they occur at the same
moment.
(6) Ac tions whic h oc c u r in sequence mu st b e rec orded on the c hart at
dif f erent horizontal lev els. Chec k the c hart f or the time relation of the
hands.
(7) Care mu st b e taken to list everything the operativ e does and to av oid
c omb ining operations and transports or positionings, u nless they ac tu ally
oc c u r at the same time.
Example of a two-handed process chart:
Cutting glass tubes
This v ery simple example desc rib es how a two-handed proc ess c hart was
c onstru c ted f or c u tting of f short lengths of glass tu b e with the aid of a jig. This
is illu strated on the f orm; the operations inv olv ed are self -explanatory (f igu re 54). 15 1
Figure 5 4. Two-handed process chart: Cutting glass tubes (original method)
Chart No. 7 Sheet No. 7 of 7 Workplace layout
Drawing and part: Glass tube 3 mm dia..
Original method
7 metre original length
Operation; Cut to lengths of 7.5 cm
6
Jig
/ /
Location: General shop
7
\
Operative:
Glass tube Position for mark
Charted by Date:
Left-hand description
(
D O D V o o D V
Right-hand description
Holds tube ^
-
^
Picks up file
To Jig
S
> Holds file
Inserts tube to jig
/
< File to tube
Presses to end
>
Holds file
Holds tube > <
c^ Notches tube with file
Withdraws tube slightly > Holds file
Rotates tube 12CP/18CP J Holds file
Pushes to end ig
^
Moves file to tube
Holds tube >
<
Notches tube
Withdraws tube
<
\
Places file on table
Moves tube to R. H.
> /
Moves to tube
Bends tube to break
^f
Bends tube
Holds tube >
I,
Releases cut piece
Changes grasp on tube ""
\
To file
Summary
Method Present Proposed
L H. R. H. L. H. R. H.
Operations 8 5
Transports 2 5
Delays
- -
Holds 4 4
Inspections
- -
Totals 14 14
152
D RECORD
In the original method the tu b e was pressed to the stop at the end of the
jig, marked with the f ile and then eased b ac k f or notc hing. It was then taken
ou t of the jig f or b reaking. The c hart goes into great detail in rec ording the
mov ements of the hands, b ec au se in short c yc le work of this kind f rac tions of
sec onds, when added together, may represent a large proportion of the total
time needed f or the job .
An examination of the details of the original method, u sing the
qu estioning tec hniqu e, at onc e raises c ertain points. (It is not c onsidered
nec essary to go throu gh the qu estions in sequ enc e at this stage in the b ook: it is
assu med that the reader will always do so.)
(1) Why is it nec essary to hold the tu b e in the jig?
(2) Why c annot the tu b e b e notc hed while it is b eing rotated instead of the
right hand hav ing to wait?
(3) Why does the tu b e hav e to b e taken ou t of the jig to b reak it?
(4) Why pic k u p and pu t down the f ile at the end of eac h c yc le? Can it not b e held?
A stu dy of the sketc h will make the answers to the f irst three qu estions plain.
(1) The tu b e will always hav e to b e held b ec au se the length su pported b y the
jig is short c ompared with the total length of the tu b e.
(2) There is no reason why the tu b e c annot b e rotated and notc hed at the
same time.
(3) The tu b e has to b e taken ou t of the jig to b e b roken b ec au se, if the tu b e
were b roken b y b ending against the f ac e of the jig, the short end wou ld
then hav e to b e pic ked ou t an awkward operation if v ery little were
stic king ou t. If a jig were so designed that the short end wou ld f all ou t
when b roken, it wou ld not then b e nec essary to withdraw the tu b e.
The answer to the f ou rth qu estion is also ob v iou s.
(4) Both hands are needed to b reak the tu b e u sing the old method. This might
not b e nec essary if a new jig c ou ld b e dev ised.
Onc e these qu estions hav e b een asked and answered, it is f airly easy to
f ind a satisf ac tory solu tion to the prob lem. Figu re 55 shows one possib le
solu tion. It will b e seen that, in redesigning the jig, the stu dy person has
arranged it in su c h a way that the notc h is c u t on the right-hand side of the
su pporting piec es, so that the short end will b reak away when giv en a sharp tap
and it will no longer b e nec essary to withdraw the tu b e and u se b oth hands to
b reak of f the end. The nu mb er of operations and mov ements has b een redu c ed
f rom 28 to six, as a resu lt of whic h an inc rease in produ c tiv ity of 133 per c ent
was expec ted. In f ac t this was exc eeded, b ec au se the job is now more
satisf ac tory f ollowing the elimination of irritating work su c h as "position tu b e
in jig". The new method c an b e c arried ou t withou t looking c losely at the work,
so that workers c an b e trained more easily and b ec ome less f atigu ed. 153
Figure 5 5 . Two-handed process chart: Cutting glass tubes (improved method)
Chart No. 2 Sheet No. 7 of 7 Workplace layout
Drawing and part: Glass tube 3 mm dia.,
Improved method
7 metre original length
Operation; Cut to lengths of 7.5 cm P^-*--,
Stop
1
h
i \ IX. D ^:+:
Location: General shop
Operative:
Glass tube jjg
Charted bv Date:
Left-hand description
O o D V o O D V
Right-hand description
Pushes tube to stop f ^^ Holds file
Rotates tube r "'' Notches with file
Holds tube -- Taps with file: end drops to box
Summary
Method Present Prop( jsed
L. H. R. H. L. H. R. H.
Operations 8 5 2 2
Transports 2 5
- -
Delays
- - - -
Holds 4 4 7 7
Inspections - - - -
Totals 14 14 3 3
1 5 4
8. Micromotion study
In c ertain types of operation, and partic u larly those with v ery short c yc les
whic h are repeated many times ov er, it may b e worth while going into mu c h
greater detail to determine where mov ements and ef f orts c an b e sav ed and to
dev elop the b est possib le pattern of mov ement, thu s enab ling the operativ e to
perf orm the operation repeatedly with a minimu m of ef f ort and f atigu e. The
tec hniqu es u sed f or this pu rpose are known c ollec tiv ely as micromotion study.
In the earlier periods of work stu dy spec ial types of c hart su c h as the simo
c hart, as well as spec ial mic romotion symb ols known as therb ligs, were u sed
f or mic romotion stu dy. These hav e now b een replac ed b y the u se of
Predetermined Time S tandards c harts (PTS c harts), whic h will b e explained in
Part Fou r of this b ook, as well as b y the u se of f ilm and v ideo.
Both f ilm and v ideo c ameras c an b e u sed to rec ord ac tiv ities at the
workplac e. Althou gh f ilm prov ides greater f lexib ility in terms of f ilming and
playb ac k speeds, v ideo is generally c heaper and easier to u se. With a good-
qu ality v ideo playb ac k u nit, it is possib le to hav e high-qu ality slow motion and
still-f rame f ac ilities.
The adv antages of f ilm and v ideo ov er direc t ob serv ation are that they:
(a) permit greater detailing than eye ob serv ation;
(b ) prov ide greater ac c u rac y than penc il, paper and watc h tec hniqu es;
(c ) are more c onv enient;
(d) prov ide a positiv e rec ord;
(e) help in the dev elopment of the work stu dy persons themselv es.
The use of films
In mic romotion stu dy, f ilms may b e u sed f or the f ollowing pu rposes:
(1) Memomotion photography (A f orm of time-lapse photography whic h
rec ords ac tiv ity b y the u se of a c ine c amera adapted to take pic tu res
at longer interv als than normal. The time interv als u su ally lie b etween
0.5 sec . and 4 sec .)
A c amera is plac ed with a v iew ov er the whole working area to take
pic tu res at the rate of one or two per sec ond instead of the u su al rate of 24
f rames per sec ond. The resu lt is that the ac tiv ities of ten or 20 minu tes
may b e c ompressed into one minu te and a v ery rapid su rv ey of the
general pattern of mov ements may b e ob tained, f rom whic h the larger
mov ements giv ing rise to wasted ef f ort c an b e detec ted and steps taken to
eliminate them. This method of analysis, whic h is a rec ent dev elopment,
has c onsiderab le possib ilities and is v ery ec onomic al.
(2) Retraining of operatives
Both f or this pu rpose and f or analysis it may b e nec essary to hav e slow-
motion pic tu res of the proc ess (produ c ed b y photographing at high
speed); c onsiderab le u se c an b e made of loops f or this pu rpose.
1 5 5
The use of video
V ideo is b eing u sed more and more as a v ehic le f or analysing motions, thou gh
it is dif f ic u lt to ob tain equ ipment with the c apac ity f or time-lapse rec ording.
V ideo is also u sed in a wider sense in method stu dy to rec ord the
mov ements of people and materials in a giv en workplac e, and the type of
handling or storage f ac ilities u sed. A mu ltitu de of u sef u l data c an then b e
v iewed qu ic kly b y the work stu dy spec ialist in order to assist him or her in
drawing u p c harts, analysing the operation and dev eloping a new method.
In addition, v ideo is b ec oming a v ery u sef u l tool f or training, f or
presenting to management, su perv isors and workers the existing and the
proposed methods of work, and f or ac tiv ely inv olv ing those c onc erned in
disc u ssing the natu re of the improv ements proposed.
9. Other recording techniques
Here we shall desc rib e v ery b rief ly one or two other tec hniqu es of rec ording
and analysis whic h hav e so f ar only b een mentioned, and whic h will not b e
dealt with f u rther in this introdu c tory b ook.
Tab le 8 in Chapter 7 listed f iv e diagrams indic ating mov ement whic h are
c ommonly u sed in method stu dy. Three of these, the f low diagram, the string
diagram and the trav el c hart, hav e already b een desc rib ed, with examples, in
earlier c hapters. The other two are the c yc legraph and the c hronoc yc legraph.
The cyclegraph is a rec ord of a path of mov ement, u su ally trac ed b y a
c ontinu ou s sou rc e of light on a photograph, pref erab ly stereosc opic . The path
of mov ement of a hand, f or instanc e, may b e rec orded on a photograph in this
way if the worker is asked to wear a ring c arrying a small light whic h will
make the trac e on the photograph. Alternativ ely, su c h a light may b e attac hed
to a worker's helmet if the pu rpose is to ob tain a rec ord of the path ov er whic h
he or she mov es du ring the perf ormanc e of a task.
The chronocyclegraph is a spec ial f orm of c yc legraph in whic h the light
sou rc e is su itab ly interru pted so that the path appears as a series of pear-shaped
dots, the pointed end indic ating the direc tion of mov ement and the spac ing
indic ating the speed of mov ement.
In c omparison with the other rec ording tec hniqu es ou tlined in this b ook,
the c yc legraph and c hronoc yc legraph are of limited applic ation, b u t there are
oc c asions on whic h photographic trac es of this sort c an b e u sef u l.
10. The development of improved methods
In eac h of the examples of the dif f erent method stu dy tec hniqu es giv en so f ar,
ou r disc u ssion has c ov ered the three stages of RECORD, EXAMINE and
DEVELOP, b u t has b een f oc u sed primarily on the f irst two, the dev elopment
stage b eing disc u ssed only as f ar as was nec essary to draw attention to the
improv ements made in method as a resu lt of u sing the partic u lar diagram or
156 f orm b eing demonstrated.
It will now b e appropriate to stu dy a little more c losely the manner in
whic h improv ed methods c an b e dev eloped.
One of the rewards of method stu dy is the large sav ing whic h c an of ten b e
made f rom qu ite small c hanges and inexpensiv e dev ic es, su c h as c hu tes or
su itab le b ins.
An example of this is a small spring-loaded tab le, v ery c heaply made in
plywood, f or remov ing the tiles f rom an au tomatic tile-making mac hine. The
spring was so c alib rated that, eac h time a tile was pu shed on to it b y the
mac hine, it was c ompressed u ntil the top of the tile dropped to the lev el of the
mac hine platf orm so that the tab le was ready to rec eiv e the next tile. This
enab led the woman operating the mac hine to c onc entrate on loading the
f inished tiles on to a rac k ready f or f iring while the new stac k was piling u p.
When ab ou t a dozen tiles were in plac e, she was ab le to lif t them of f the tab le,
whic h immediately sprang u p to the lev el of the mac hine platf orm ready to
rec eiv e the f irst tile of the next stac k. This v ery simple dev ic e enab led the
sec ond operativ e f ormerly employed on this operation to b e released f or other
work, an important f eatu re in an area where skilled tile-pressers were dif f ic u lt
to ob tain.
In many manu f ac tu ring plants the work stu dy person may hav e to go
b eyond the stu dy of the mov ements of materials and workers if he or she is
going to make the most ef f ec tiv e c ontrib u tion to inc reased produ c tiv ity. For
example, he or she mu st b e prepared to disc u ss with the designers the
possib ility of u sing alternativ e materials whic h wou ld make the produ c t easier
and qu ic ker to manu f ac tu re. Ev en if he or she is not an expert in design and,
indeed, c annot b e expec ted to b e drawing attention to the possib ilities of an
alternativ e may pu t ideas into the minds of the designers themselv es whic h
they had prev iou sly ov erlooked. Af ter all, like ev eryone else, they are hu man
and of ten hard-worked, and there is a strong temptation to spec if y a giv en
material f or a giv en produ c t or c omponent simply b ec au se it has always b een
u sed in the past. Other similar interv entions will b e ou tlined in Part Three of
this b ook.
Apart f rom the elimination of ob v iou sly wastef u l mov ements whic h
c an b e done f rom the f low diagram or proc ess c hart the dev elopment of
improv ed methods c alls f or skill and c reativ ity. It is likely to b e more
su c c essf u l if work stu dy spec ialists are also well ac qu ainted with the indu stry
with whic h they are c onc erned. In any b u t the simplest manu al operations, they
will hav e to c onsu lt the tec hnic al or su perv isory staf f and, ev en if they do know
the right answer, it is b etter that they shou ld do so, sinc e a method whic h the
staf f hav e taken part in dev eloping is likely to b e ac c epted more readily than
one whic h is introdu c ed as someone else's idea. The same is tru e of the
operativ es. L et ev eryone pu t f orward his or her ideas two heads are b etter
than one!
The f ac t that really su c c essf u l methods improv ement is a c omb ined
operation is b eing inc reasingly rec ognized. Many organizations, large and
small, hav e set u p grou ps f or the improv ement of manu f ac tu ring and operating
methods. These grou ps may b e permanent or set u p f or some partic u lar job
su c h as the re-laying ou t of a shop or f ac tory, or the organization of work. S u c h 157
grou ps of ten dec ide on the div ision and alloc ation of work as well as other
related f u nc tions su c h as the c ontrol of qu ality.
S ome of these grou ps are known as "produ c tiv ity c irc les" or "qu ality
c irc les". Their task is to meet regu larly to try to see how they c an improv e the
ef f ic ienc y of their operation. Prior training b y a spec ialist in elementary
approac hes to method stu dy c an yield high div idends. Apart f rom that, a work
stu dy spec ialist c an always b e av ailab le as a resou rc e person if the grou p c alls
on him or her.
1 5 8
CHAPTER 1 0
Evaluate, define, install,
maintain
1. Evaluating alternative methods
The DEVELOP stage of the method stu dy proc edu re shou ld resu lt in proposed
c hanges to existing ways of c arrying ou t the work u nder rev iew. S ometimes the
c hanges to b e made are c lear-c u t and a rev ised method c an b e c learly def ined.
In many instanc es, howev er, the method stu dy highlights a nu mb er of possib le
c hanges and theref ore a nu mb er of potential new methods. S ome of these may
b e c apab le of immediate introdu c tion, while others su c h as the introdu c tion
of new equ ipment, the b u ilding of new jigs or f ixtu res, operator training and so
on may requ ire f u rther ac tions to b e c arried ou t b ef ore they c an b e
implemented. The sponsors of the inv estigation (normally the managers or
su perv isors in the area in whic h it is taking plac e) mu st make a dec ision as to
the pref erred solu tion. To make this dec ision, they need appropriate
inf ormation on the alternativ e methods, the likely resu lts of the proposed
c hanges and the c osts of implementation. Thu s the method stu dy person shou ld
prepare a c ost-b enef it analysis f or eac h of the proposed methods. This is
normally done in a nu mb er of stages.
A "f irst pass" is c arried ou t in whic h v ery b road c osts and b enef its are
assoc iated with eac h potential c hange. This c an of ten b e done v ery qu ic kly and
giv es su f f ic ient inf ormation to exc lu de a nu mb er of possib le c hanges and
methods f rom the more detailed ev alu ation proc ess.
It is important when examining b enef its to inc lu de not only those that c an
b e easily qu antif ied (su c h as direc t f inanc ial sav ings) b u t also those that c an b e
expressed only in qu alitativ e terms. S u c h b enef its (f or example, improv ements
in job satisf ac tion, employee morale or indu strial relations) c an hav e
signif ic ant long-term ef f ec ts on f inanc ial perf ormanc e and mu st b e inc lu ded in
the ev alu ation proc ess.
In order to allow the inc lu sion of qu alitativ e f ac tors alongside qu antitativ e
f ac tors as part of the ev alu ation of alternativ e methods, u se is of ten made of
"pseu do-qu antitativ e" tec hniqu es. These express the qu alitativ e b enef its in
qu antitativ e terms (b y translating su b jec tiv e ju dgements into nu meric al sc ores),
allowing the qu antitativ e and qu alitativ e b enef its to b e c omb ined in an ov erall
ev alu ation.
A c ommon approac h is to u se a c omb ination of sc oring and weighting.
The v ariou s f ac tors (normally b enef its, b u t they c an inc lu de negativ e b enef its
or disadv antages) that relate to the potential solu tions are listed. This list may 159
inc lu de su c h entries as direc t c ost sav ings, improv ed saf ety, greater lab ou r
f lexib ility and so on. A relativ e weighting is assigned to eac h f ac tor to indic ate
its relativ e importanc e to the organization. This weighting mu st b e ac hiev ed b y
disc u ssion with the managers or su perv isors inv olv ed in the work area. (One
adv antage of this method is that it requ ires those responsib le f or the dec ision-
making proc ess to think c aref u lly ab ou t their priorities.)
Eac h potential method is then "sc ored" against eac h f ac tor (normally on a
simple 1 to 5 or 1 to 10 sc ale). This sc oring c an b e b ased on qu antitativ e data,
where this is av ailab le, or on su b jec tiv e ju dgement.
Finally, the sc ore of eac h f ac tor is mu ltiplied b y the weighting f or that
f ac tor and the resu ltant su m giv es an ov erall sc ore f or that partic u lar potential
method, as shown in the example b elow.
Weighting S c ore Fac tor
Cost redu c tion 4 14
L ab ou r f lexib ility 2 4 8
Inc reased ou tpu t 14 4
Total 16
In the ab ov e example, a method that will inc rease ou tpu t signif ic antly
(sc oring 4 ou t of 5 points on that f ac tor) ob tains a low ov erall sc ore b ec au se
that partic u lar f ac tor c arries a low weighting sinc e the enterprise is not ab le
to sell any inc reased ou tpu t.
The main adv antage of su c h a method is not that it produ c es a nu meric al
resu lt b u t that it f orc es those inv olv ed in the ev alu ation proc ess to c onsider all
f ac tors (ev en those whic h are not easily measu rab le) and makes them think
c aref u lly ab ou t the relativ e importanc e of eac h one. The f inal f igu res are
gu idelines only.
For some kinds of inv estigation, it may b e possib le to make u se of f ormal
dec ision-su pport tec hniqu es su c h as dec ision matric es and dec ision trees. As
with the simple weighting and sc oring method ab ov e, su c h tec hniqu es do not
make dec isions they prov ide a f ramework throu gh whic h inf ormation c an b e
presented and ju dgemental thinking c an b e c arried ou t.
When measu ring f inanc ial c osts and b enef its whic h ac c ru e or are
expended ov er time, it may b e nec essary to u se su c h tec hniqu es as disc ou nted
c ash f low to allow the c omparison of inc omes and expenditu re at present-day
monetary v alu es.
The natu re of the ev alu ation ou tlined ab ov e depends on the natu re of the
situ ation u nder rev iew and the sc ope and sc ale of the proposed c hanges. Where
the c hange is minor b oth in terms of any disru ption inv olv ed and in terms of
the implementation c osts, the ev alu ation c an b e c arried ou t in a matter of
minu tes and a dec ision taken b y the su perv isor; in other c ases it may requ ire a
signif ic ant inv estigation in its own right to determine and assess the likely c osts
and b enef its.
The f indings of this ev alu ation phase are inc lu ded in the projec t report,
perhaps with a rec ommended c ou rse of ac tion, su b mitted to the management of
160 the area u nder rev iew. The f ormat of this report may b e determined b y a "hou se
EVALUATE, DEFINE, INSTALL, MAINTAIN
style" within the organization. Where this is not the c ase, the prac titioner
shou ld simply f ollow the simple "A-B-C " ru le b y ensu ring that the report is:
ACCURATE
BRIEF
and
CLEAR
Disc u ssions that hav e taken plac e du ring the method stu dy shou ld ensu re
that the f indings c ontained within this report are no su rprise to the readers
the pu rpose of the report is to su mmarize the inv estigation, to present the
f indings, to produ c e ev alu ation data and to make rec ommendations su pported
b y the material in the report.
Where the rec ommendation to proc eed with a partic u lar new method is
v ery strong and the resu lting dec ision to proc eed is c learly antic ipated, the
report may inc lu de a detailed implementation plan f or the c hanges to b e
adopted. Where this is not the c ase, the detailed plan may b e lef t u ntil af ter the
dec ision has b een taken b u t an ou tline plan will hav e b een c onstru c ted so
that implementation c osts c ou ld b e inc lu ded in the v alu ation of alternativ e
methods.
If the inv estigation has b een c arried ou t in a stru c tu red and systematic
manner, and the report has b een sou ndly c onstru c ted, the manager is b est ab le
to make a rational dec ision, and the prac titioner shou ld ensu re that his or her
repu tation is enhanc ed.
2. Defining the improved method
Onc e a dec ision has b een taken on the c hanges in method to b e adopted, it is
important that the new method shou ld b e stric tly def ined.
The written standard practice
For all job s other than those perf ormed on standard mac hine tools or
spec ialized mac hines where the proc ess and methods are v irtu ally c ontrolled b y
the mac hine, it is desirab le to prepare a written standard prac tic e, also known
as an "operativ e instru c tion sheet". This serv es sev eral pu rposes:
(1) It rec ords the improv ed method f or f u tu re ref erenc e, in as mu c h detail as
may b e nec essary.
(2) It c an b e u sed to explain the new method to management, su perv isors and
operativ es. It also adv ises all c onc erned, inc lu ding the works engineers, of
any new equ ipment requ ired or of c hanges needed in the layou t of
mac hines or workplac es.
(3) It is an aid to training or retraining operativ es and c an b e u sed b y them f or
ref erenc e u ntil they are f u lly c onv ersant with the new method.
(4) It f orms the b asis on whic h time stu dies may b e taken f or setting
standards, althou gh the b reakdown b y element (see Chapter 20) will not
nec essarily b e the same as the b reakdown b y motion.
1 61
The written standard prac tic e ou tlines in simple terms the methods to b e
u sed b y the operativ e. Three sorts of inf ormation will normally b e requ ired:
(1) The tools and equ ipment to b e u sed and the general operating c onditions.
(2) A desc ription of the method. The amou nt of detail requ ired will depend
on the natu re of the job and the prob ab le v olu me of produ c tion. For a job
whic h will oc c u py sev eral operativ es f or sev eral months, the written
standard prac tic e may hav e to b e v ery detailed, going into f inger
mov ements.
(3) A diagram of the workplac e layou t and, possib ly, sketc hes of spec ial
tools, jigs or f ixtu res.
A v ery simple written standard prac tic e f or the operation stu died in
Chapter 9, sec tion 7 (c u tting glass tu b es to length), is illu strated in f igu re 56.
The same princ iple is f ollowed in more c omplex c ases. In some of these the
desc ription may ru n into sev eral pages. The workplac e layou t and other
diagrams may hav e to b e pu t on a separate sheet. With the more widespread
u se in rec ent years of standardized printed sheets f or proc ess c harts, it is
b ec oming c ommon prac tic e to attac h a f air c opy of the appropriate proc ess
c hart to the written standard prac tic e, whenev er the simple desc ription entered
on it does not c onstitu te a c omplete def inition of the method.
3. Installing the improved method
The f inal stages in the b asic proc edu re are perhaps the most dif f ic u lt of all. It is
at this point that ac tiv e su pport is requ ired f rom management and trade u nions
alike. It is here that the personal qu alities of the work stu dy person, his ab ility
to explain c learly and simply what he or she is trying to do and a gif t f or
getting along with other people and winning their tru st b ec ome of the greatest
importanc e.
Installation c an b e div ided into f iv e stages, namely:
(1) G aining ac c eptanc e of the c hange b y management.
(2) G aining ac c eptanc e of the c hange b y the departmental su perv ision.
These two steps are c ov ered in the ev alu ation and reporting of the
alternativ e methods and hav e already b een disc u ssed. There is no point in
trying to go any f u rther if this approv al and ac c eptanc e hav e not b een ob tained.
(3) G aining ac c eptanc e of the c hange b y the workers and their
representativ es.
(4) Preparing to make the c hanges.
(5) Controlling the c hange-ov er.
If any c hanges are proposed whic h af f ec t the nu mb er of workers
employed in the operation, the workers' representativ es mu st b e c onsu lted as
early as possib le. There may b e existing agreements ab ou t the displac ement of
lab ou r and these, natu rally, mu st b e adhered to. Plans mu st b e c onstru c ted that
minimize the hardship or inc onv enienc e c au sed to workers. This applies not
only to job losses b u t also to c hanges in work organization, loc ation and so on.
162 Indiv idu als working within a partic u lar sec tion or department estab lish b onds
Figure 5 6. Standard practice sheet
Standard practice sheet
Product:
3 mm diam. glass tube,
supplied in 1 metre
lengths
Equipment
Jig No. 231
Half- round 15 cm
| | bench | |
(SUDDIV of tubes)
Operation:
File and break to lengths
of 1.5 cm
|
i
Jig
Tube r -
^
M 1 1
Dron delivery
r
-~

-
by chute |
Working conditions:
Light good
"T

b-

Box underneath
1 1 1 1 1
-
1 1
i r i i i
Location: Fitting shop Ref. studies Nos. 12, 13
Operative: Clock No. 54 Charted by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
EL Left hand Right hand EL
1 Take tube between thumb and first
two fingers: push forward to stop
Hold file: wait for LH. 1
2 Rotate tube between thumb and fingers Notch tube all round with edge
of file hard up against face of jig
2
3 Hold tube Tap notched end of tube sharply with
file so that it falls into chute
3
and soc ial relationships whic h are of ten v ery important in determining job
satisf ac tion. Any c hanges to these estab lished relationships will b e resented.
In the c ase of team or grou p working, the b onds are f ar stronger; and
b reaking u p su c h a team may hav e seriou s, adv erse ef f ec ts on produ c tiv ity, in
spite of improv ed methods. Allegianc e of grou p memb ers to their working
grou p is of ten stronger than their allegianc e to the organization. Failu re to take
this into ac c ou nt may lead the workers to resist c hanges whic h they wou ld
otherwise ac c ept.
It is in c arrying ou t the f irst three steps of installation that the importanc e
of preliminary edu c ation and training in work stu dy f or all those likely to b e
c onc erned with it management, su perv isors and workers' representativ es
b ec omes ev ident. People are mu c h more likely to b e rec eptiv e to the idea of
c hange if they know and u nderstand what is happening than if they are merely
presented with the resu lts of a sort of c onju ring tric k. Where work grou ps are
inv olv ed in the work u nder rev iew, it is of ten adv antageou s to hold disc u ssions
with the grou p, rather than separately with indiv idu al memb ers. This allows
grou p v iews and f ears to b e expressed and dealt with.
4. Preparing to make the changes
Where redu ndanc y or a transf er are not likely to b e inv olv ed, the workers are
mu c h more likely to ac c ept new methods if they hav e b een allowed to share in
their dev elopment. The work stu dy person shou ld c onf ide in the operativ e f rom
the start, explaining what he or she is trying to do and why, and the means b y
whic h he or she expec ts to do it. If the operativ e shows an interest, the u ses of
the v ariou s tools of inv estigation shou ld b e explained. The string diagram is
one of the most u sef u l of these in gaining interest: most people like to see their
ac tiv ities portrayed, and the idea that he or she walks so f ar in the c ou rse of a
morning's work is of ten a su rprise to the worker and makes him or her
delighted at the idea of redu c ed ef f ort. Always ask the workers f or their own
su ggestions or ideas on improv ements that c an b e made, and wherev er they c an
b e implemented, do so, giving the people credit f or them (major su ggestions
may merit a monetary reward). L et the workers play as f u ll a part as possib le in
the dev elopment of the new method, u ntil they c ome to f eel that this is mainly
or partly their own.
It may not always b e possib le to ob tain v ery ac tiv e c ooperation f rom
u nskilled personnel, b u t they u su ally hav e some v iews on how their job s c an b e
made easier or less su b jec t to interru ption whic h may giv e important
leads to the work stu dy person in redu c ing wasted time and ef f ort.
Wholehearted c ooperation at any lev el will only c ome as the resu lt of
c onf idenc e and tru st. Work stu dy prac titioners mu st c onv inc e management that
they know what they are doing. They shou ld hav e the respec t of the su perv isors
and tec hnic ians, who mu st realize that they are not there to displac e them or
show them u p, b u t as spec ialists at their disposal to help them. Finally, work
stu dy people mu st c onv inc e the workers that they are not going to af f ec t their
164 job sec u rity.
Where there is deep-rooted resistanc e to c hange, it may b e nec essary to
dec ide whether the sav ings likely to b e made b y adopting the new method
ju stif y the time and trou b le inv olv ed in pu tting the c hange throu gh and
retraining older operativ es. It may b e c heaper to c onc entrate on new trainees
and let the older workers c ontinu e to work in the way they know.
In gaining the tru st of the workers, the work stu dy person will f ind that
they will tend to tu rn to him or her f or dec isions rather than to the su perv isor (a
danger already disc u ssed). This situ ation mu st not b e allowed to arise. The
work stu dy person mu st make c ertain f rom the f irst that ev eryone u nderstands
that he or she c annot giv e exec u tiv e dec isions and that the instru c tions
c onc erning the introdu c tion and applic ation of the new methods mu st c ome
f rom the su perv isor to the worker in the f irst instanc e. Only then c an he or she
proc eed.
It is important that the c hange-ov er f rom an existing method to a rev ised
one is properly planned. The f irst task is to identif y the v ariou s ac tiv ities that
mu st b e u ndertaken b ef ore the new method c an b e implemented. The most
ob v iou s ones are the pu rc hase or c onstru c tion of new equ ipment, tools, f ixtu res
and so on, b u t the list may inc lu de the alteration of layou ts or the training of
operators. Eac h of these will hav e a dif f erent "lead time" b ef ore it c an b e
c ompleted, and thu s an ov erall implementation sc hedu le mu st b e c onstru c ted to
ensu re that eac h ac tiv ity is c ompleted b ef ore the f inal c hange-ov er to the new
method is made.
Training and retraining operatives
The extent to whic h the workers requ ire retraining will depend entirely on the
natu re of the job . It will b e greatest in the c ase of job s inv olv ing a high degree
of manu al dexterity whic h hav e long b een done b y traditional methods. In su c h
c ases it may b e nec essary to resort to f ilms to demonstrate the old and the new
methods and the manner in whic h mov ements shou ld b e made. Eac h job will
hav e to b e treated on its merits.
In the training or retraining of operativ es, the important thing is to
dev elop the habit of doing the job in the c orrec t way. Hab it is a v alu ab le aid to
inc reased produ c tiv ity as it redu c es the need f or c onsc iou s thou ght. G ood
hab its c an b e f ormed ju st as easily as b ad ones.
Beginners c an b e tau ght to f ollow a nu mb ered sequ enc e illu strated on a
c hart or they may b e tau ght on the mac hine itself . Either way, they mu st b e
made to u nderstand the reason f or ev ery mov ement. S till pic tu res together with
instru c tion sheets hav e prov ed v ery su c c essf u l. S lides or v ideo c an also b e
u sed.
Films are partic u larly v alu ab le when retraining. When old hab its hav e to
b e b roken, it may b e f ou nd that the workers are qu ite u naware of what they are
doing. A f ilm in slow motion will enab le them to see their exac t mov ements
and, onc e these are u nderstood, they c an start to learn the new method. It is
important that the new method shou ld b e really dif f erent f rom the old,
otherwise the operativ es will tend to slip b ac k into their old ways, espec ially if
they are not you ng and hav e spent many years doing the job . 165
Figure 5 7. A typical learning curve
Time per cycle (minutes)
0.1 0
0.09 -
0.08
0.07
0.06 _
0.05
2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000
Cycles of practice
In learning a new series of mov ements, the operativ e gathers speed and
redu c es the time requ ired to perf orm them v ery qu ic kly at f irst. The rate of
improv ement soon b egins to slow u p, howev er, and it of ten requ ires long
prac tic e to ac hiev e really high and c onsistent speed, althou gh the adoption of
modern ac c elerated training methods will c onsiderab ly shorten the time
needed. A typic al "learning c u rv e" is shown in f igu re 57.
Experiments hav e shown that in the f irst stages of learning, to ob tain the
b est resu lts, rests b etween periods of prac tic e shou ld b e longer than the periods
of prac tic e themselv es. This situ ation alters rapidly, howev er, and when the
operativ e has b egu n to grasp the new method and to pic k u p speed, rest periods
c an b e v ery mu c h shorter.
As part of the proc ess of installation it is essential to keep in c lose tou c h
with the job , onc e it has b een started, to ensu re that the operativ e is dev eloping
speed and skill and that there are no u nf oreseen snags. This ac tiv ity is of ten
known as "nu rsing" the new method, and the term is an apt one. Only when the
work stu dy person is satisf ied that the produ c tiv ity of the job is at least at the
lev el he or she estimated and that the operativ e has settled down to it c an it b e
lef t f or a time.
166
5. Controlling the change-over
Changing f rom one method to another mu st b e planned and c ontrolled. S tep 4
ab ov e has ensu red that the work stu dy person has identif ied, planned and
sc hedu led all the tasks that are prerequ isites of the new method. It is now
nec essary to ensu re that these are c ompleted ac c ording to sc hedu le and that
ev eryone is ready f or the ac tu al c hange-ov er.
The f irst c onsideration is to dec ide when the c hange-ov er shou ld take
plac e. Ev en thou gh a new method is more ef f ic ient and will u ltimately resu lt in
greater ou tpu t, there is of ten an interim period when ou tpu t f alls, while the
workers get u p to speed on the new method. Natu rally, this shou ld not c oinc ide
with a c risis su c h as the c ompletion of an u rgent order, u nless additional staf f
c an b e u sed on a temporary b asis to keep ou tpu t lev els u p. The c hange-ov er
date shou ld thu s b e c hosen to b e as c onv enient as possib le this is
partic u larly important where radic al c hanges mu st b e made to layou t, inv olv ing
the re-siting of mac hines and equ ipment. Management will hav e to plan f or the
lab ou r to make su c h mov es, and may want to make su c h c hanges ov er a
weekend or other non-working time to c au se minimu m disru ption to normal
produ c tion.
Hav ing estab lished the date of the c hange-ov er, the work stu dy person c an
work b ac k along the c ritic al path of ac tiv ities to pu t a date on eac h of the other
ac tiv ities. For a simple c hange-ov er, the c ontrol mec hanism f or this proc ess
may b e a simple rec ord of ac tiv ities in a diary. For c omplex c hanges, a f ormal
projec t planning and c ontrol tec hniqu e, su c h as network analysis, may b e u sed;
this will b e explained in Chapter 15.
6. Maintaining the new method
It is important that, when a method is installed, it shou ld b e maintained in its
spec if ied f orm, and that workers shou ld not b e permitted to slip b ac k into old
methods, or introdu c e elements not allowed f or, u nless there is v ery good
reason f or doing so.
To b e maintained, a method mu st f irst b e v ery c learly def ined and
spec if ied. This is espec ially important where it is to b e u sed f or setting time
standards f or inc entiv e or other pu rposes. Tools, layou t and elements of
mov ement mu st b e spec if ied b eyond any risk of misinterpretation. The extent to
whic h it is nec essary to go into minu te details will b e determined b y the job itself .
Ac tion b y the work stu dy department is nec essary to maintain the
applic ation of the new method b ec au se, hu man natu re b eing what it is, workers
and su perv isors or c hargehands will tend to allow a drif t away f rom the method
laid down, if there is no c hec k. Many dispu tes ov er time standards arise
b ec au se the method b eing f ollowed is not the one f or whic h the time was
spec if ied; f oreign elements hav e c rept in. If the method is properly maintained,
this c annot happen. If it is f ou nd that an improv ement c an b e made in the
method (and there are v ery f ew methods whic h c annot b e improv ed in time,
of ten b y the operativ e inv olv ed), this shou ld b e of f ic ially inc orporated, a new
spec if ic ation drawn u p and new time standards set. 167
The proc edu re f or maintaining a new method may depend on the natu re
of the relationship b etween the work stu dy person and the part of the
organization in whic h the method has b een implemented. S ome work stu dy
spec ialists are permanently assigned to work in a partic u lar part of the
organization and will b e ab le to keep methods c onstantly u nder rev iew. Where
this is not the c ase and the work stu dy person mov es f rom loc ation to loc ation,
it may b e nec essary to estab lish a f ormal method rev iew or method au diting
proc edu re when all methods introdu c ed within a giv en time span are su b jec ted
to a rev iew examination af ter the lapse of a spec if ied period. The adv antage of
this f ormal rev iew proc ess is that it signals to the workers and their su perv isors
that the rev iew will b e c arried ou t ac c ording to the predetermined sc hedu le.
They are theref ore more likely to b e motiv ated to adhere to the spec if ied
method.
7. Conclusion
In this and the prec eding c hapters an attempt has b een made to explain and
illu strate some of the more c ommon methods of improv ing produ c tiv ity
throu gh the sav ing of wasted ef f ort and time, and b y redu c ing the work c ontent
of the proc ess. G ood method stu dies will do more than this, b ec au se they will
draw attention to waste of material and waste of c apital inv ested in equ ipment.
Chapter 11 shows that these methods c an b e applied not only in produ c tion b u t
also in of f ic e work.
In Part Three we shall explain b rief ly some of the important tec hniqu es
u sed in produ c tion management. These c an c onstitu te a v alu ab le set of tools
that may b e u sed b y the work stu dy person in c arrying f u rther the inv estigation
of the methods of work.
1 68
CHAPTER 1 1
Method study in the
office
1. The importance of method study in the office
Work stu dy in general is traditionally assoc iated with a manu f ac tu ring
env ironment. The pu rpose of work stu dy is to improv e the ef f ic ienc y of the
c onv ersion of resou rc es or inpu ts into ou tpu ts (f igu re 1), thereb y raising the
produ c tiv ity of the organization this mu st b e applied to ev ery part of the
enterprise, and not ju st to the manu f ac tu ring side. Of f ic es u se resou rc es, and
these resou rc es mu st b e u sed ef f ic iently. Indeed, the importanc e of resou rc e
u tilization within the of f ic e b ec omes ev er more important as the perc entage of
workers in of f ic es c ontinu es to inc rease. Administrativ e and c leric al c osts are a
signif ic ant and growing c ost f or most organizations and mu st b e c ontrolled.
The c osts assoc iated with of f ic e work are of ten ref erred to as "ov erheads"; in
that they do not c ontrib u te direc tly to the f inal produ c t of the organization. At
the same time the introdu c tion of adv anc ed tec hnology and the applic ation of
produ c tion management tec hniqu es, as well as work stu dy on the shop-f loor,
hav e raised ef f ic ienc y to a lev el where many gains are inc remental rather than
rev olu tionary. Of f ic e workers, on the other hand, hav e b een su b jec ted to v ery
little systematic stu dy and the potential f or improv ement is greater. There is
thu s a need f or the applic ation of work stu dy in the of f ic e.
One c ommon ob jec tion raised against the u se of work stu dy in an of f ic e is
the f ac t that of f ic e work is c onc erned with mental ac tiv ity or "b rain work" and
c annot b e easily identif ied, ob serv ed, measu red or analysed. Howev er, in most
of f ic es, most of the work is rou tine and any mental ac tiv ity is at a f airly low
lev el, with dec isions b eing b ased on f irm prec edent. Inc reasingly, also, the
of f ic e is f u rnished with tec hnologic al aids. S u c h equ ipment b ears a c lose
parallel with shop-f loor mac hinery. Operating a photoc opying mac hine is like
operating any other mac hine. The argu ment that of f ic e work is in some ways
f u ndamentally dif f erent f rom f ac tory work is f allac iou s.
Another reason that work stu dy is of ten not prac tised within of f ic es is the
dif f erent statu s of manu al and c leric al workers. What is perc eiv ed as a f ac tory
tec hniqu e is not ac c eptab le to those who think of themselv es as hav ing higher
statu s.
This is one of the reasons f or the growth of organization & methods
(O & M). Properly, O & M is something more than work stu dy in the of f ic e,
b eing also c onc erned with the organization stru c tu res in u se; b u t in prac tic e
most O & M is c onc erned with the "methods" part of the tec hniqu e and is 169
indistingu ishab le f rom work stu dy if perhaps, b ec au se of its dif f erent name,
more ac c eptab le.
The pu rposes and princ iples remain the same, wherev er work stu dy is
applied. Work stu dy in the of f ic e still c onsists of the b asic areas of method
stu dy and work measu rement, and b oth of these f ollow the same pattern as we
hav e seen elsewhere throu ghou t this b ook. What we shall do in this c hapter is
to highlight minor c hanges or additions to tec hniqu es that hav e prov ed
partic u larly ef f ec tiv e within an of f ic e env ironment.
The point ab ou t the perc eption of dif f erenc e b y of f ic e workers has also to
b e applied to managers of administrativ e and c leric al u nits. They too are
prob ab ly not u sed to "experts" c oming in and adv ising them on how to ru n
their departments and sec tions. They may b e su spic iou s and wary. The
prac titioner shou ld expec t some resistanc e and b e prepared to deal with it. It is
important to gain the c onf idenc e of those inv olv ed and ensu re that b y the time
any inv estigation is c omplete, they are c ommitted to the c hanges that are
nec essary.
2. The procedure for improving methods of work
in the office
The b asic proc edu re of method stu dy
D SELECT
D RECORD
D EXAMINE
D DEVELOP
D EVALUATE
D DEFINE
D INSTALL
D MAINTAIN
remains v alid f or stu dies c arried ou t in an of f ic e env ironment. We still hav e to
mov e systematic ally f rom selec tion of the prob lem or opportu nity to b e stu died
to implementation and maintenanc e of an improv ed situ ation.
Of f ic e au tomation and c ompu terization are of ten seen as the prime means
of improv ing of f ic e ef f ic ienc y. Y et there is now a growing sense of potential
u nf u lf illed with many c ompu ter systems. This is b ec au se the c ompu terization
or au tomation of ten simply speeds u p existing inef f ic ienc ies. Compu ters and
other inf ormation handling aids are u sef u l dev ic es b u t their u se shou ld b e
determined as part of a systematic analysis of the work inv olv ed and not
instead of it. Method stu dy prov ides the means b y whic h that systematic
analysis c an b e u ndertaken.
Select
S elec tion of the area or ac tiv ity to b e stu died f ollows the same b asic princ iples
as f or shop-f loor work stu dy. S elec tion c onsists of two c omponents: f inding
170 those areas whic h represent signif ic ant prob lems or opportu nities, and then
METHODSTUDYINTHE OFFICE
giv ing priority to them. In the of f ic e we shall b e looking f or areas or ac tiv ities
that:
D ac c ou nt f or a signif ic ant proportion of of f ic e lab ou r c osts (Pareto analysis
c an b e u sed to good ef f ec t here);
D are produ c ing large nu mb ers of errors or seriou s errors;
D are c reating high lev els of dissatisf ac tion;
D need to c hange in response to some external c hange (e.g. the introdu c tion
of new tec hnology su c h as c ompu terization).
In addition, it may b e f elt nec essary to hav e some f orm of regu lar rev iew
of operations. S itu ations c hange ov er time. People also c hange. S hort c u ts will
b e f ou nd in working methods, new tec hniqu es will b e f ou nd, new equ ipment
installed. At the same time, less ef f ic ient ways of working may b e introdu c ed.
Ev en if no alterations take plac e, there may b e c hanges in lev els of
dissatisf ac tion on the part of either management or workers as their
expec tations c hange. Changes in proc edu res may take plac e f or the b est of
reasons and may in f ac t inc rease produ c tiv ity at a loc al lev el. Howev er, it is
possib le that su c h u nplanned or u nc oordinated c hanges may hav e reperc u ssions
elsewhere in a wider system that are u nf oreseen b y those making the c hange.
Inc reasing throu ghpu t of one sec tion, f or example, may c reate a b ottlenec k in a
proc edu re at a su b sequ ent stage in the ov erall system. For all these reasons,
some f orm of stru c tu red programme of rev iew is adv isab le. This may take the
f orm of a proc edu ral au dit, a departmental rev iew or a system stu dy, as long as it
is a regu lar rev iew of c leric al ac tiv ity to maintain and improv e of f ic e ef f ic ienc y.
Another sou rc e of projec ts to b e stu died is the employees themselv es.
Projec ts c ou ld arise ou t of an employee su ggestion sc heme or ou t of su c h
stru c tu res as qu ality c irc les, implemented as part of an organization-wide
attempt to improv e the way ac tiv ities are c arried ou t. Of ten issu es raised b y
su c h c irc les requ ire additional work or stu dy b ef ore c hanges c an b e su ggested
and/or ev alu ated; these inv estigations may b e su itab le work stu dy projec ts
where the work stu dy prac titioner works on b ehalf of the qu ality c irc le.
Record
It is the RECORD stage that the most ob v iou s c hanges are seen when
c omparing shop-f loor with of f ic e work stu dy. This is b ec au se we are u su ally
rec ording something that is f u ndamentally dif f erent. On the shop-f loor, we
rec ord the progress or ac tiv ity of one of three things workers, materials or
equ ipment. Materials are normally those that make u p the f inal end produ c t of
the ac tiv ity.
In the of f ic e, there is no end produ c t. The important material ob jec ts in
u se are normally f orms or doc u ments, and thu s there are a nu mb er of
tec hniqu es aimed at rec ording the c ontent of and progress of doc u ments as they
mov e throu gh c leric al systems and proc edu res.
Most of f ic e work c an b e plac ed on a hierarc hy whic h inc lu des systems,
proc edu res, ac tiv ities and methods (f igu re 58). The system is the ov erall
sc heme that links dif f erent departments and sec tions together in pu rsu it of a
f inal aim or ob jec tiv e. Proc edu res are su b u nits of the system, of ten relating to 171
Figure 5 8. The hierarchy of office systems, procedures and methods
System
Procedure Procedure Procedure
Activity/
method
Activity/
method
Activity/
method
Activity/
method
Activity/
method
Activity/
method
Activity/
method
1 72
one partic u lar doc u ment, workstation or indiv idu al. Eac h proc edu re is made u p
of a nu mb er of ac tiv ities (some of whic h may b e c ommon to a nu mb er of
proc edu res), while the methods are the means of c arrying ou t su c h ac tiv ities to
f u lf il the needs of a partic u lar proc edu re.
Rec ording of ten f ollows this hierarc hy, so that f irst the ob serv er will
rec ord inf ormation pertaining to the entire system, b ef ore mov ing on to rec ord
spec if ic proc edu res and then partic u lar ac tiv ities and working methods. This
shou ld b e the c ase ev en where the partic u lar stu dy is c onc erned only with one
proc edu re or method knowledge of the f u ller system is important in that it
prov ides a c ontext f or the inv estigation. Where an inv estigation is c arried ou t
b y an in-hou se work stu dy person, the knowledge of the ov erall system within
whic h a proc edu re takes plac e may already exist and rec ording c an start at the
proc edu ral lev el.
Rec ording f ollows the same pattern as with shop-f loor work stu dy.
Normally, a system or proc edu re is rec orded in ou tline f orm to allow
c onsideration of larger issu es, and gradu ally the inv estigation mov es down to a
more detailed lev el, u sing tec hniqu es that allow more detail to b e rec orded.
One u sef u l rec ording tec hniqu e is that of the proc edu ral narrativ e, whic h
is a "shorthand" means of rec ording b asic textu al inf ormation ab ou t who does
what within a proc edu re. It is a v ery simple rec ord b u t serv es to identif y the
main steps in a proc edu re.
Accounts clerk opens and sorts inc oming mail
passes inv oic es to inv oic e c lerk
Invoice clerk date-stamps inc oming inv oic es
matc hes inv oic es with f iled orders
c hec ks order f or c ompleteness
u pdates order rec ord
enters inv oic e details to c ompu ter inv oic ing system
Figure 5 9. An example of a specimen chart
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
S imilarly, at this ou tline rec ording stage, it is u sef u l to c ollec t together a
c opy of eac h f orm and doc u ment u sed in a partic u lar proc edu re. These c an b e
mou nted on to a b ac king sheet whic h, together with possib le annotation, is
sometimes ref erred to as a specimen chart (f igu re 59).
S u c h rec ording dev ic es serv e the same pu rpose as an ou tline proc ess
c hart: they rec ord the major details and prov ide the b asis f or a f irst-lev el
examination of the proc edu re. This f irst-lev el examination is aimed at
eliminating whole areas of ac tiv ity b ef ore the most c ru c ial areas are rec orded
and examined more c losely. At this lev el a more detailed rec ording method
mu st b e employed.
Proc ess c harts c an b e u sed in the of f ic e b u t it is more u sef u l to u se a
v ariation of the proc ess c hart known as a procedure flowchart this is in
ef f ec t a doc u ment-type f low proc ess c hart, sinc e it c harts the progress of a
doc u ment or series of doc u ments throu gh a proc edu re. S inc e proc edu res of ten
inv olv e a nu mb er of departments, it is c ommon to u se the c hart in a c olu mnar
f orm in whic h eac h c olu mn represents one department or sec tion of the
organization (f igu re 60). This allows eac h department to c onc entrate on its own
part of the proc edu re and f or transf ers b etween departments to b e easily rec ognized.
As with all rec ording tec hniqu es, the important point is to c onc entrate on
rec ording inf ormation to a lev el of detail and in a f orm that makes it su itab le
f or su b sequ ent examination. 1 73
Figure 60. A procedure flowchart
Sales Warehouse Accounts
Order
received
O
Date
stamped
Q Cop ied Mark r)
order ^
Yes
Pick p)
order ^
Mark
sheet
1 74
When rec ording of f ic e work, there is of ten little that c an b e direc tly
ob serv ed. Mu c h of the inf ormation c omes f rom interv iews or b y asking
qu estions to elic it the detail of what is ob serv ed. The prac titioner thu s needs
well-dev eloped interpersonal and c ommu nic ation skills.
Examine, develop, evaluate and define
The examination of the rec orded data mu st b e systematic and c omplete; the
c ritic al examination proc ess is u sef u l here in prov iding the stru c tu re. All the
points made when disc u ssing c ritic al examination in Chapter 7 are v alid here,
the pu rpose of the examination b eing to eliminate, then simplif y or c omb ine
ac tiv ities. As b ef ore, one of the dif f ic u lties with the EXAMINE stage is to stress
its importanc e in spite of the f ac t that, u nlike the RECORD stage, there is a
limited range of av ailab le tec hniqu es to su pport it.
Inc reasingly, tec hnology is b eing u sed in su pport of of f ic e work. Thu s,
when it c omes to dev eloping new and improv ed methods of working, the work
stu dy prac titioner needs an u p-to-date knowledge of inf ormation systems and
c ompu terization. There is of ten a c onf lic t here b etween the work stu dy
prac titioner and the c ompu ter spec ialist. One c ommon distinc tion is that
"c ompu ter systems" whic h are part of the mainstream of b u siness ac tiv ity
(su c h as payroll, stoc k c ontrol, inv oic ing, etc .) remain the prov inc e of the
c ompu ter prof essional, while "c ompu ter su pport" (whic h tends to b e b ased on a
mic ro or personal c ompu ter) is part of of f ic e work and workstation design, and
is henc e the prov inc e of the work stu dy prac titioner. In reality, if all is working
well, the two types of staf f shou ld work in tandem and c ooperativ ely.
S imilarly, in many organizations, the c ompu ter department will lay down
the ov erall c ompu terization strategy and will def ine the types of equ ipment to
b e u sed with du e regard to their c ompatib ility, while others (inc lu ding work
stu dy personnel) will b e ab le to design and prov ide systems to meet loc al needs
as long as they adhere to these ov erall standards. The u se of personal
c ompu ters is only an extension of the u se of su c h dev ic es as typewriters and
c alc u lators; in f ac t, the two most c ommon applic ations are word proc essing
(inv olv ing the manipu lation of text) and spreadsheets (inv olv ing the
manipu lation of nu mb ers) b oth essential parts of of f ic e work. S inc e the
personal c ompu ter is now in the same c ategory, and is av ailab le at a pric e that
b rings it within most of f ic e b u dgets, it shou ld b e treated in the same way as
an of f ic e tool, rather than as part of the c ompu ter inf rastru c tu re. Where of f ic es
make u se of c entralized datab ases and loc al area networks, the setting of
hardware and sof tware standards is espec ially important, b u t there shou ld still
b e sc ope f or indiv idu al of f ic es to solv e f or themselv es spec if ic of f ic e prob lems
within the f ramework of the ov erall organizational strategy and polic y
regarding inf ormation tec hnology.
Another f ac tor to b e c onsidered in ev alu ating tec hnology is the c onf lic t
b etween c ost and ease or c onv enienc e of u se. For example, althou gh it may b e
mu c h more "f riendly" to plac e indiv idu al photoc opying mac hines in eac h
department of the organization, this may resu lt in mu c h higher reprographic
c harges than hav ing a c entralized c opying department whic h c an u se higher-
powered, more ef f ic ient mac hinery to produ c e b u lk c opies. The same is tru e of
other f ac ilities su c h as a c entralized f ac simile (f ax) serv ic e c ompared with f ax
mac hines arou nd the organization. It may b e nec essary to estab lish a c ompany
polic y with regard to some of these serv ic es so that indiv idu al departments
know the "grou nd ru les".
An important aspec t of the dev elopment of new methods is to ev alu ate
one potential method and c ompare it with the existing method or a dif f erent
potential c hange. It is important to ensu re that any c hanged method meets the
aims of the inv estigation, b u t it is also important to identif y the sec ondary
b enef its of any c hange. Word proc essing may b e introdu c ed, f or example, to
inc rease ef f ic ienc y b u t it of ten has sec ondary b enef its su c h as improv ed
presentation. S u c h sec ondary b enef its shou ld b e inc lu ded in any c ost-b enef it
analysis.
175
Install, maintain
Installation of a rev ised method is always important. If the installation is
handled b adly, the new method stands little c hanc e of b eing a su c c ess.
Howev er, the princ iples inv olv ed in installing and then maintaining a new
method within an of f ic e env ironment are exac tly the same as f or installing
c hanged methods on the shop-f loor.
Training and su pport of those inv olv ed in the c hange are v ery important.
The f irst task is to ensu re that they know exac tly what is expec ted of them.
S ome organizations hav e manu als of f ormal proc edu res in whic h all c leric al
rou tines are rec orded. When a new system or proc edu re is f irst implemented, it
may b e nec essary to su pplement the f ormal desc ription with spec if ic training or
instru c tion sheets and/or with training c ou rses. It is u sef u l to c onstru c t some
kind of c hange-ov er sheet so that workers c an look u p what they did u nder the
old system or proc edu re and see immediately what their ac tion shou ld b e u nder
the new one.
Where proc edu res manu als do exist, it is v ital that they are kept u p to
date. There mu st b e some way of ensu ring that, whenev er a c hange is made to
a system or proc edu re, all c opies of the manu als are u pdated and all those
inv olv ed, howev er remotely or oc c asionally, are made aware of the c hange and
its implic ations f or them.
Whenev er a system or proc edu re c hanges there will b e some teething
trou b les. These may b e minor in themselv es, b u t if there are a nu mb er of them
they may ac c u mu late to present a major prob lem or to lower c onf idenc e in the
c hanges. It is theref ore important that the implementation is c aref u lly
monitored and that minor modif ic ations, if nec essary, c an b e made b ef ore any
prob lems b ec ome sev ere.
3. Design and control of forms
As we hav e stated ab ov e u nder RECORD, doc u ments and f orms are c ommon
f eatu res of all of f ic es, of ten b eing the only physic al ev idenc e of a proc edu re.
Doc u ments are u sed as the c arriers of inf ormation, and the ef f ec tiv eness of this
proc ess is determined b y the ef f ec tiv eness of the doc u ment itself the way in
whic h it holds and transf ers inf ormation, and the way in whic h it interrelates
with other doc u ments and with the people who u se it.
Perhaps we might b y now hav e expec ted to see the paperless of f ic e, b u t
this appears to b e a long way of f . Inf ormation is harder to read f rom a sc reen
than it is f rom paper and people theref ore tend to take paper c opies of
inf ormation ev en thou gh it may originate on sc reen. The elec tronic f orm makes
transf er of inf ormation mu c h f aster and the rise of su c h tec hnologies as
elec tronic data interc hange is hav ing some impac t on the v olu me of paper
f orms b eing transf erred b etween organizations. The proper design of f orms,
howev er, remains an important part of of f ic e-b ased work stu dy. In addition,
there tends to b e a prolif eration of f orms in many organizations ad hoc
f orms are designed f or a spec if ic , perhaps temporary, f u nc tion b u t then get
176 ab sorb ed into the mainstream of of f ic e lif e. Ov er a period of time, many new
f orms arriv e on the sc ene b u t v ery f ew f orms are ev er delib erately
disc ontinu ed. There is thu s an equ al need f or the c ontrol of f orms.
The ob jec tiv es of f orm design are the same as that of method stu dy itself
to eliminate ac tiv ity, and where this is not possib le to c omb ine or simplif y.
In terms of f orms, this c an mean eliminating (and then c omb ining or
simplif ying) whole f orms, or eliminating (and then c omb ining or simplif ying)
partic u lar entries on f orms. The design and c ontrol of f orms is theref ore a
spec ialized f orm of method stu dy rather than an alternativ e ac tiv ity.
Design of forms
Natu rally, a doc u ment or f orm shou ld b e examined together with the proc edu re
in whic h it is u sed. Changing a system or proc edu re may hav e au tomatic
implic ations f or f orms u sed. Forms themselv es shou ld b e examined when the
proc edu re itself has b een examined and improv ed or v alidated. Examination of
a f orm f ollows the b asic c ritic al examination proc ess, asking:
Why is the f orm nec essary?
What inf ormation does it c onv ey?
Who u ses it?
When do they u se it?
Where is it u sed?
How is it u sed? (Is the f orm produ c ed b y a c ompu ter, are entries typed on
to the f orm, is it f illed in manu ally, etc .?)
and then examining and ev alu ating alternativ es.
In addition, we need to gather inf ormation ab ou t the f requ enc y and
v olu me of u se, the methods of f iling, the length of time that the f orm is to b e
kept, and the relation to other f orms in this or other proc edu res.
Onc e we are c lear that a partic u lar f orm (whic h may b e a c omb ination of
two or more existing f orms) is nec essary, we c an start to (re-)design it.
When designing f orms we are trying to make the f orm:
D compatible with its intended use: For example, a f orm that has a long
expec ted length of u se or that has to b e u sed in an ou tdoor env ironment,
and perhaps in adv erse weather c onditions, needs dif f erent qu ality paper
f rom a f orm whic h is u sed internally or has a short lif espan.
D easy to complete: This means that the f orm shou ld b e c lear and
u namb igu ou s. Entries shou ld b e c ompatib le with the sou rc e of the data
if data are c opied f rom another f orm, they shou ld b e in the same sequ enc e
or in some logic al sequ enc e. (Transc ription errors are v ery c ommon.
They are minimized when the data hav e a stru c tu re and a c ontext whic h
enab les errors to b e easily identif ied.) There shou ld b e su f f ic ient spac e f or
eac h entry, allowing f or the method of entry (printing, typing, etc .).
Mu ltiple-c hoic e and ab b rev iated-entry f ormats shou ld b e u sed where
possib le b oth to sav e time and to minimize the nu mb er of errors.
D easy to use: This ref ers to the part the f orm plays in a proc edu re af ter it
has b een c ompleted. G enerally the inf ormation it c arries mu st b e read and
ac ted u pon b y another person, and the design mu st theref ore depend on 177
what this ac tion is. It may b e that the only ac tion is f or the f orm to b e
f iled, and oc c asionally retriev ed f or the inf ormation to b e ac c essed. In
su c h a c ase, the prime requ irement is that the ref erenc e identity (f orm
nu mb er or identif ying entry employee nu mb er, department name, or
whatev er) is c lear and positioned as appropriate to the f iling method. If
the f orm is to b e posted, it shou ld b e designed to f it into a standard-sized
env elope with the minimu m of f olding. Fu rther c onsiderations are
disc u ssed u nder "Detail design", b elow.
These c riteria may c onf lic t with one another. For example, when
c onsidering ease of u se, it may b e nec essary to plac e the inf ormation on a
giv en f orm in a partic u lar sequ enc e sinc e some of it will later b e c opied on to
another f orm whic h already c ontains the data in a giv en sequ enc e. This may,
howev er, b e dif f erent f rom the sequ enc e of data on the sou rc e doc u ment. In
su c h a c ase, it may b e nec essary to extend the sc ope of the exerc ise to take in
all the f orms that are af f ec ted, ev en at one or two stages remov ed. If this is not
possib le, some f orm of c ompromise design mu st b e reac hed.
If it is nec essary to examine a nu mb er of f orms inv olv ed in the same
proc edu re, the X-c hart prov ides a u sef u l means of su mmarizing the entries on
the dif f erent f orms and highlights ov erlap b etween the f orms. An X-c hart is
simply a matrix whic h shows all the f orms against all the entries on eac h
f orm. An X in a matrix c ell indic ates that a partic u lar f orm has a giv en entry
(f igu re 61). This c hart is u sef u l in helping to identif y ov erlap and du plic ate
entries so that f orms c an b e c omb ined with one another.
The design of the detail of the f orm shou ld b e b ased on prac tic al rather
than aesthetic c onsiderations, althou gh of ten the most prac tic al f orms are the
most aesthetic ally pleasing.
Consideration mu st b e giv en to:
paper size;
D paper weight;
D shape;
D c olou r;
D maintaining any hou se style or c orporate identity;
and b alanc ing these with the c ost inv olv ed.
Figure 61 . An X-chart
Data tern
Document
Customer name Address Contact name Sales record Sale terms
Order X x X
Delivery note X X
Invoice x X X
Customer card X X X X X
1 78
D
D
Detail design
We hav e also ref erred to the f ac t that detail design is dependent on the way in
whic h the f orm will b e u sed. Details that af f ec t design are:
D the f iling/retriev al proc ess;
the rou teing of the f orm throu ghou t the organization (and the degree to
whic h additional entries are made on the f orm at su b sequ ent stages);
the natu re of data entered on the f orm and the degree to whic h they c an b e
grou ped.
G rou ping of data is one of the f irst c onsiderations when designing a f orm.
Of ten data c an b e split into two or more b asic c ategories. A personnel rec ord
f orm, f or example, may c ontain personal data ab ou t the memb er of staf f ,
departmental data ab ou t the job to whic h the person is appointed and its plac e
in the organization, and salary data ab ou t rates of pay and c onditions of work.
A simple example of su c h a f orm is shown in f igu re 62. In this f orm, the
name and address hav e b een plac ed as they wou ld b e on an env elope (sinc e
they will almost c ertainly b e c opied f rom this f orm on to env elopes in the
f u tu re). The employee nu mb er is plac ed at the top right-hand side to f it in with
the f iling method. The entries f or employee nu mb er, department, sec tion,
salary sc ale and point on sc ale are pre-f ixed sinc e c odes are u sed f or
department and sec tion, and b oxes hav e b een prov ided to gu ide the u ser to f ill
in the c orrec t nu mb er of c harac ters.
S imilarly, the start-date b ox has b een inc lu ded to ensu re that the date is
entered in the c orrec t f ormat. The f orm ref erenc e nu mb er is inc lu ded at the
b ottom so that the f orm c an b e easily reordered and the name of the f orm is
inc lu ded c learly at the top so that it c an b e easily v erif ied that the right f orm is
b eing u sed.
Mu lti-part f orm sets c an b e u sef u l in c ertain c irc u mstanc es, b u t this mu st
b e b alanc ed b y the additional c osts of produ c tion. When su c h f orms are not
u sed b u t mu ltiple c opies are requ ired, people of ten rev ert to photoc opying
Figure 62. A personnel record form
Personnel record form
Title:
Last name:
First name:
Address:
Telephone: _
Next of kin:
Employee No.
Job title:
Department
Section
Salary scale
Point on scale
Start date i I
Form AZ/1 24
179
f orms. This is expensiv e, not so mu c h in terms of photoc opying c osts b u t in the
c ost of the staf f time inv olv ed.
It is always worth produ c ing a "moc k-u p" of the f orm and talking throu gh
the design with those who are going to hav e to u se it.
Many f orms, these days, are produ c ed in-hou se u sing spec ial-pu rpose
pac kages or desktop pu b lishing sof tware f or the design of f orms. There is a
danger, with the prolif eration of su c h sof tware, that f orms design will b e
c arried ou t b y many people within the organization, many of whom will not
hav e appropriate training, expertise or experienc e. The danger with desktop
pu b lishing is the range of f ac ilities and design options it prov ides there is a
tendenc y among the u ntrained u ser to make u se of too many in any one
pu b lic ation. This is one of the reasons why the c ontrol of f orms is important.
Control of forms
The most important part of c ontrolling f orms is to u ndertake regu lar au dits to
disc ov er if eac h f orm is still nec essary to serv e a partic u lar b u siness f u nc tion
(in ef f ec t, the MAINTAIN stage of method stu dy applied to the design and
c ontrol of f orms). This is b est serv ed b y hav ing a c entral register of all f orms in
u se, together with a rev iew sc hedu le f or eac h f orm in the register. Where the
pu rpose of the f orm is still v alid, qu estions mu st b e asked ab ou t the
env ironment in whic h the f orm operates and whether c hanges here f or
example, in tec hnology or f iling methods requ ire c hanges to b e made to the
f orm.
Other items to b e c onsidered are:
D the produ c tion method:
How is the f orm produ c ed and are there now b etter or c heaper ways?
D stoc ks:
How mu c h stoc k of eac h f orm is held, and where is it held?
Is this appropriate to the u se of the f orm?
(Is the minimu m stoc k dic tated b y u se or b y the ec onomic s of produ c tion?
If the latter, is there an alternativ e produ c tion method?)
How are su pplies to u sers reordered?
How is stoc k issu ed to u sers?
How is issu ed stoc k trac ked? (For example, if a f orm is disc ontinu ed, how
'do we trac e all c opies of it so that they c an b e destroyed?)
D the natu re of disposal:
What is the u sef u l lif e of inf ormation on the f orm?
Are there any legal c onstraints on disposal?
How do we ensu re that f orms are disposed of , af ter their u sef u l lif e is
ended (to release v alu ab le spac e)?
Are there sec u rity restric tions on disposal (shou ld f orms b e shredded or
b u rnt)?
180
4. Office layout
Of f ic e layou t is another spec ialized f orm of method stu dy in the of f ic e in
ef f ec t, it is an extension of plant layou t, the princ iples and the approac h
remaining the same. All types of layou t exc ept layou t b y f ixed position, whic h
will b e ref erred to in Chapter 14, are v alid in an of f ic e env ironment. In
addition, there is of ten a deb ate ab ou t the relativ e merits of open-plan or
c ellu lar of f ic es (see b elow). In reality, most of f ic es c omb ine the two, the c hoic e
of ten depending as mu c h on su c h f ac tors as the c onstraints of existing
b u ildings and the organizational c u ltu re as on prac tic al design c onsiderations.
Planning of f ic e layou t shou ld f ollow the hierarc hy of the system. The ov erall
system will dic tate the b road layou t, the proc edu ral b reakdown will determine
the detailed layou t and the natu re of working methods will dic tate the
workstation design.
The dif f erenc es then relate to the ov erall type of layou t selec ted. A layou t
b u ilt arou nd partic u lar proc edu res will ob v iou sly b e dif f erent f rom one b u ilt
arou nd spec if ic of f ic e f u nc tions.
As with all method stu dy inv estigations, we need inf ormation on whic h to
b ase any dec isions as to type of layou t. The RECORD stage of the inv estigation
mu st prov ide details of equ ipment in u se, v olu mes and f lows of doc u ments,
nu mb ers of staf f , c ommu nic ation f lows and so on. S u c h dev ic es as trav el c harts
may b e u sed to su pplement the data f rom proc edu re f lowc harts and prov ide
inf ormation on c ommu nic ation and c ontac t b etween workstations.
The inc reasing u se of of f ic e tec hnology means that of f ic e layou t mu st pay
stric t attention to power and serv ic e requ irements, to proper lighting and to the
av oidanc e or redu c tion of noise. Additionally, there is a strong need f or the
appropriate arrangement of c ab les a workstation may hav e a c ompu ter, a
printer, an answering mac hine, a f ac simile mac hine, a telephone and perhaps
other dev ic es, all with power and c onnec ting c ab les. If not handled c orrec tly,
these are u nsightly and c onstitu te a saf ety hazard.
Open-plan office layout
The main driv e towards open-plan of f ic es is the c ost of spac e. Open-plan
of f ic es almost always resu lt in spac e sav ing c ompared to a su ite of small,
c ellu lar of f ic es. Howev er, in open-plan of f ic es great c are mu st b e taken to
ensu re priv ac y f or those ac tiv ities whic h requ ire it and to minimize the ef f ec ts
of noise. The adv antages of open-plan working are:
D the sav ing of spac e dev oted to walls and partitions;
D improv ed c ommu nic ation and c ontac t b etween dif f erent workstations
this shou ld lead to a redu c tion in the nu mb er of internal telephone c alls
and of internal memoranda;
D greater f lexib ility, if the layou t needs to b e c hanged in the f u tu re to c ope
with a c hange in working methods;
D easier su perv ision of staf f ;
D easier and c heaper c leaning of of f ic e spac e;
D easier power and serv ic e distrib u tion. 181
There is of ten a relu c tanc e of staf f to mov e f rom a traditional, c ellu lar
of f ic e layou t to an open-plan one. Howev er, this resistanc e is of ten minimized
if the c hange is ac c ompanied b y a signif ic ant improv ement in the qu ality of
of f ic e f u rnitu re and dec or, and if c aref u l landsc aping is u sed to split u p a large,
open-plan spac e into smaller, sc reened areas.
Office layout studies
Taking ac c ou nt of the ab ov e points, an of f ic e layou t stu dy shou ld c onsist of the
f ollowing steps. This assu mes that, as a resu lt of the SELECT and DEFINE
stages of the projec t, the prac titioner is aware of the c onstraints on the
inv estigation espec ially those dic tated b y existing b u ildings and b y
limitations of f inanc e.
(1) Rec ord details of the major systems in u se within the of f ic e.
(2) Rec ord details of the c leric al proc edu res that su pport those systems.
(3) Examine the working methods of those proc edu res and c arry ou t a b asic
method stu dy of eac h one. (For most of them this may b e a v ery simple
exerc ise, b u t some may demand a f u ller stu dy b ef ore the method is
c onf irmed as the most appropriate.) This stage is important as it is
pointless to b u ild a layou t arou nd working methods that may c hange in
the near f u tu re. In partic u lar, it is important to identif y the range of
equ ipment that is c u rrently in u se, or is proposed to b e in u se in the short
term.
(4) Carry ou t a c apac ity assessment of eac h part of the proc edu re possib ly
down to eac h workstation within the proc edu re. (This is a work
measu rement exerc ise; where there is no f ormal work measu rement
system, it may b e nec essary to ob tain the inf ormation f rom estimating,
with help f rom managers and su perv isors.)
(5) Analyse v olu mes of ou tpu t and qu estion the senior managers to disc ov er
likely f u tu re trends.
(6) Identif y c ommu nic ation and c ontac t paths and f requ enc ies.
(7) Design indiv idu al workstations. Make u se of ergonomie princ iples as
desc rib ed in Chapter 5. S ome of the workstations may b e simple desks,
while others may b e c ompu ter workstations or photoc opiers. The
workstation shou ld b e designed as a c omplete entity, inc lu ding working
su rf ac es, seating and equ ipment. Where appropriate it shou ld also inc lu de
spac e f or "personal" f iling. At this stage, the design shou ld remain
c onc eptu al, c onsisting only of the details of what is needed and not how
they are going to b e prov ided.
(8) From v olu me and c apac ity data, c alc u late total workstation requ irements.
(9) Dec ide on b asic type of layou t.
(10) Identif y any "external" c onstraints. For example, a department that has a
high nu mb er of external v isitors may need to b e loc ated c lose to the
rec eption area. A department that makes u se of heav y mac hinery may
182 need to b e on the grou nd f loor of a mu lti-lev el b u ilding.
(11) Use c ommu nic ation and c ontac t data to draw u p a sc hematic layou t
showing the loc ation of dif f erent work areas or work f u nc tions relativ e to
one another.
(12) Inv estigate av ailab le hardware solu tions (c hoic e and arrangement of
f u rnitu re, f iling, sc reening, doc u ment transf er tec hnologies, etc .).
Consider pac kaged solu tions in whic h dif f erent c omponents are designed
to f it with and matc h eac h other. G enerally, modu lar solu tions are to b e
pref erred sinc e these allow greater f lexib ility throu gh the inter-
c hangeab ility of u nits.
(13) Design a prov isional layou t, f itting proposed solu tions to a sc ale plan of
the work area. This layou t shou ld take ac c ou nt of existing doors, lif ts,
etc ., and shou ld inc lu de the prov ision of power and serv ic es.
(14) Disc u ss the prov isional layou t with b oth the u sers and the serv ic es or
b u ilding department (where one exists) to disc ov er operational and
f inanc ial f easib ility.
(15) Modif y the layou t in ac c ordanc e with the resu lts of disc u ssions and
prepare the proposed layou t.
The layou t shou ld also inc lu de an analysis of lighting, heating and
v entilation needs, and the prov ision of toilet f ac ilities and rest rooms. It shou ld
b e detailed enou gh to inc lu de su c h things as waste b ins, c oat stands or
c u pb oards, f iling c ab inets, b ookshelv es and so on (sinc e it is of ten the small
items that hav e a major ef f ec t on ov erall ef f ic ienc y). The layou t may, in some
c irc u mstanc es, hav e to take ac c ou nt of additional f ac tors su c h as sec u rity, f or
example b y grou ping together sec tions or departments whic h hav e to b e within
a partic u larly sec u re spac e env elope.
Items su c h as heating, lighting, v entilation and noise c ontrol (see Chap-
ter 5) requ ire spec ialist knowledge, and adv ic e may b e requ ired b ef ore su c h
matters c an b e properly inc lu ded in a layou t. It is important to rememb er that
modern of f ic e equ ipment generates c onsiderab le amou nts of heat and that air
c onditioning may b e requ ired to maintain a su itab le working temperatu re.
S imilarly, althou gh noise c ontrol is a spec ialist area, mu c h of it is c ommon
sense and many b asic prev entiv e measu res (su c h as u sing sou nd-deadening
material u nder typewriters and printers, ac ou stic hoods and sc reens, f u rnishings
and f ittings whic h are sou nd ab sorb ent, etc .) c an b e spec if ied at the of f ic e
layou t design stage.
S inc e doc u ments are the main "produ c t" of of f ic es, c aref u l thou ght shou ld
b e giv en to f iling and retriev al systems. It may b e possib le at the f iling stage to
replac e the paper doc u ment b y mic rof ilm or magnetic media to redu c e the
spac e c onsu med b y f iling. The natu re of the mediu m u sed f or f iling will
depend on the natu re and f requ enc y of su b sequ ent retriev al and on any legal
requ irements f or doc u ments to b e maintained. Where large qu antities of
doc u ments hav e to b e stored (as f or example in many f inanc ial serv ic es
organizations), it may b e nec essary to inv estigate au tomated storage systems.
Doc u ment transport is another area in whic h tec hnology is dev eloping.
There are now systems b y whic h doc u ments c an b e rou ted arou nd b u ildings,
inc lu ding c hanges of f loor lev el, on a pre-programmed b asis u sing tu b es and/or 183
rails. The doc u ment transport system shou ld b e designed alongside the storage
and retriev al system as part of the materials handling stu dy. It is normally mu c h
easier to design and dev elop au tomated doc u ment handling systems when the
of f ic e is b eing loc ated in a new b u ilding, b u t it is of ten possib le to f it a system
into an existing b u ilding with all the inherent c onstraints.
5. Quality control in the office
The b iggest single "qu ality qu estion" is always: Are we doing the right thing?
Only if this is answered satisf ac torily shou ld any attention b e giv en to the way
in whic h something is b eing done.
Q u ality c ontrol is not generally applied to of f ic e work. There seems to b e
an implic it assu mption that of f ic e workers do not make mistakes. This is
simply not tru e of f ic e workers are no dif f erent f rom any other c ategory of
workers, in that they too lose c onc entration and produ c e errors and def ec tiv e
work. These errors c an b e c ostly: if they are spotted, they c ost money to pu t
right; if they are not spotted, they c an b e mu c h more c ostly in su pplying
inc orrec t inf ormation to others in the organization or to c u stomers or c lients.
Howev er, errors introdu c ed b y the workers are of ten a small proportion of total
errors. Most errors are system errors where the system f ails to work adequ ately,
with the resu lt that delays, misu nderstandings and misrou teings oc c u r. It is
theref ore important to ensu re that the systems, proc edu res and methods of
working u sed in of f ic es are designed to minimize errors and that some f orm of
c ontrol of errors is institu ted, espec ially where the resu lts of any error may b e
signif ic antly c ostly or damaging. G ood systems and proc edu res prev ent errors,
leav ing qu ality c ontrol tec hniqu es to pic k u p the small nu mb er that do oc c u r.
It is possib le to implement spec if ic qu ality c ontrol tec hniqu es su c h as spot
c hec king and random sampling and, f or some ac tiv ities, this may b e deemed
nec essary. Howev er, it is ju st as important to pay attention to the "hu man
f ac tor" inv olv ed in determining qu ality. This f ac tor also leads to system errors
sinc e the workers are an integral part of , and prob ab ly the most important part
of , the system in operation.
One important sou rc e of error is a lac k of or inadequ ate training of
the personnel inv olv ed. People generally work withou t error, b u t only if they
know exac tly what is expec ted of them, they are giv en the appropriate tools,
equ ipment and su pport, and they are properly trained in the tec hniqu es and
skills requ ired. If all of these are tru e, the "system" has done its job . The
workers shou ld also hav e c onf idenc e in their ab ility to deliv er and will c arry
ou t their work with the minimu m of error c onf idenc e b reeds c ompetenc e.
Rec ent initiativ es su c h as total qu ality management and c u stomer serv ic e
programmes hav e highlighted the importanc e of eac h stage of a proc edu re in
the determination of ov erall qu ality of the end produ c t or serv ic e. It is
important that the c u ltu re of the organization makes people want to prov ide a
high-qu ality serv ic e in their own sphere of ac tiv ity and lets them f eel that their
own ac tiv ity is important to the organization and its ov erall qu ality deliv ery.
1 84
PART THREE
Selected production
management
techniques
CHAPTER 1 2
Product design and
materials utilization
1. Product design
Bef ore disc u ssing the v ariou s aspec ts of produ c tion management that c ou ld
b enef it f rom work stu dy tec hniqu es, in this c hapter we f irst c onsider the
c harac teristic s of the produ c ts to b e manu f ac tu red.
The way a produ c t is designed greatly af f ec ts produ c tion c osts. For
example, in inv estigating produ c tion c osts the Japanese c ompany Hitac hi
estimated that 75 per c ent of these c osts were already determined in the design
and dev elopment phase, while f u rther c osts su c h as handling or layou t and
other operations c omb ined determined the remaining 25 per c ent of the c ost
of a produ c t.
1
This is b ec au se produ c t design determines the nu mb er of
c omponent parts, the sequ enc e of produ c tion and whether the v ariou s stages of
making a produ c t c an b e ac c omplished b y existing mac hinery and equ ipment
or requ ire new c apital inv estment.
The relation b etween work stu dy and produ c t design is ev ident. It is not
u nc ommon that a method stu dy spec ialist, while inv estigating a lengthy
operational sequ enc e, wou ld do b etter to think in terms of simplif ying produ c t
design rather than simplif ying the existing proc ess. Howev er, modif ying
produ c t design is a shared responsib ility b etween v ariou s partners. The work
stu dy person c annot alone take initiativ es on produ c t design, b u t he or she c an
c ertainly c all attention to his or her f indings and ac t as a resou rc e person f or
produ c tion engineers du ring the dev elopment of the prototype or the pilot ru n
of a produ c t.
A produ c t has aesthetic requ irements whic h are u su ally highly
emphasized b y the marketing personnel, and produ c tion requ irements in terms
of the material, equ ipment and skills needed to make it, as v iewed b y the
produ c tion manager; it also generates a c ertain retu rn on inv estment giv en the
v ariou s c osts inv olv ed in its produ c tion, and this is how it is seen b y the
f inanc ial manager. In addition, new produ c ts and serv ic es are the driv ing f orc e
f or the su rv iv al and growth of an enterprise in an inc reasingly c ompetitiv e
b u siness env ironment. The c ontinu ou s dev elopment of new produ c ts has
b ec ome an essential f u nc tion of an enterprise. As existing produ c ts c ontinu e to
sell, new produ c ts are b eing prepared to replac e them b ef ore their lif e-c yc le
dec ays; and modem-day produ c t dev elopment is in f ac t a shared responsib ility
Johnson A. Edosomwan (d.): People and product management in manufacturing (Amsterdam,
Elsev ier S c ienc e Pu b lishers, 1990), p. 26. 187
if not a c ompromise b etween the v iews of the marketing, produ c tion and
f inanc ial serv ic es. Figu re 63 shows a simplif ied sequ enc e f or dev eloping a new
produ c t. In f ac t, many weeks or months may elapse b etween eac h stage and
the next.
From f igu re 63 one c an see that good opportu nities exist to inf lu enc e
manu f ac tu ring c osts when produ c ing a prototype, and later at the pilot
produ c tion stage. By a prototype we do not mean ju st one prototype there
c ou ld b e many, eac h tested f or f u nc tional perf ormanc e, dependab ility and
materials u sed, as well as market ac c eptab ility as assessed b y the marketing
spec ialists. This dev elopment of prototypes has b een greatly f ac ilitated throu gh
the u se of computer-aided design (CAD).
CAD enab les a designer to projec t on to a v ideo sc reen drawings of
v ariou s parts or the produ c t itself . These c an b e rotated on the sc reen to b e
v iewed in a three-dimensional f ashion f rom v ariou s angles. Design c hanges
c an b e introdu c ed u sing v ariou s dev ic es su c h as a "mou se" or a penc il-like
dev ic e, b y tou c hing the sc reen or b y pu nc hing instru c tions to the c ompu ter
(f igu re 64). Thu s su c h possib ilities as inc reasing the diameter of a part or the
position of a hole may b e tested, to see to what extent this will inf lu enc e the f it
and f inal shape of the produ c t.
The pilot produ c tion phase also of f ers a sec ond c hanc e to examine the
way in whic h produ c tion c osts c an b e redu c ed withou t detrac ting f rom the
marketab ility of a produ c t. Bu t what c an b e done in this respec t? Here are a
series of pointers.
(1) Reducing component parts: This is a b ig c ost sav er. When sev eral parts
are eliminated (f igu re 65), there is a marked redu c tion in the c ost of
ac qu iring parts, assemb ly time, and the c ost of equ ipment, inv entory and
f loor spac e. Many examples c an b e qu oted of how enterprises emb arked
on this road with exc ellent resu lts. For example, the Hewlett-Pac kard
Tou c h S c reen II personal c ompu ter was f inally introdu c ed into the market
with 150 c omponent parts as against 450 parts in the original design. The
Asu ag-S S IH S wiss c onsortiu m c ame u p with the S watc h watc h whic h had
only 51 parts.
(2) Standardization or modularization of parts: This aims at c reating
c ertain standard parts that c an meet the requ irements of sev eral produ c ts.
L et u s take an example of a f u rnitu re f ac tory making sideb oards.
Originally these were made ac c ording to c u stomers' spec if ic ations. An
examination of a simple sideb oard shows that it has three dimensions
length, depth and height. By introdu c ing two standard spec if ic ations f or
eac h dimension, the f inal produ c t c an b e assemb led in eight dif f erent
models of v arying length, depth and height. These c ou ld then b e of f ered
to the c u stomer. S u c h a modu larization allows the mass produ c tion of
c omponent parts. S tandardization also means f ewer v arieties held in stoc k,
f ac ilitates produ c tion planning and enab les b etter u tilization of spac e.
(3) Use of existing machinery and equipment: The possib ility of u sing
existing produ c tion f ac ilities, tools or f ixtu res to manu f ac tu re the new
188 produ c t c an c u t down c onsiderab ly on manu f ac tu ring c osts.
SELECTEDPRODUCTIONMANAGEMENTTECHNIQUES
Figure 63. From idea to final product
idea
Market assessment
Desk study
Prototype
Technical feasibility
Preliminary cost
estimate
Placement test
Pilot production
Manufacturing cost
study
Marketing plan
Final specification
For product parts
and
processes
Naming,
marking,
packaging,
pricing
Standard
cost
1 89
Figure 64. Computer-aided design (CAD)
Source: Reproduced by courtesy of Hewlett Packard.
(4) Redesigning to simplify methods of work: In manu al b enc h assemb ly
operations, f or example, the reloc ation of holes to c reate symmetry c an
f ac ilitate assemb ly or enab le a b etter c omb ination of c ertain assemb ly
operations.
(5) Facilitating handling: Produ c ts or parts may also b e designed with
handling in mind. Pac kages that c ou ld transf orm the dimensions of a
produ c t into squ ares or rec tangu lar shapes allow sev eral possib ilities of
handling.
(6) The use of substitutes: The u se of plastic or alu miniu m alloys on c ertain
produ c ts instead of metal c an c u t down on c osts. In the c hemic al
indu stries c ertain f illers and additiv es are c heaper than others.
1 90
Value engineering
All these points c an b e systematic ally taken into ac c ou nt b y applying v alu e
engineering (also known as value analysis) tec hniqu es f or inc reasing produ c t
v alu e b y improv ing the relationship b etween the f u nc tion of a produ c t and its
c ost. As u p to two-thirds of produ c tion c osts are of ten determined at the design
stage of a produ c t, the c ontrib u tion of v alu e engineering to produ c tiv ity
Figure 65 . Reducing component parts in product design
79 parts 29 parts
improv ement c annot b e ov erestimated. Produ c tiv ity improv ement programmes
f requ ently c onc entrate on the produ c tion proc ess rather than on the produ c t,
thu s neglec ting the potential f or an important produ c tiv ity improv ement.
Not only does v alu e engineering c onsist of an analysis of produ c t v alu e,
b u t it also c omprises the whole proc ess of "b rainstorming" and dev eloping
improv ed produ c ts. It is c harac terized b y three main f eatu res:
D it analyses the functions of a system and its elements;
it c onsists of teamwork b y representativ es of dif f erent departments with
dif f erent interests, b ac kgrou nds and skills;
creativity techniques are applied systematic ally.
V alu e engineering was prob ab ly the earliest small-grou p ac tiv ity, long
b ef ore qu ality c irc les (Q C) were estab lished and su c h ac tiv ities b ec ame
f ashionab le. Althou gh v alu e engineering was originally dev eloped to improv e
the v alu e of produ c ts, it is now also applied to proc esses. For of f ic e work an
information value analysis has b een c reated. The resu lt of a v alu e engineering
projec t is u su ally a simplif ied and of ten more intelligently designed produ c t.
D
D
1 91
2. Utilization of materials
A great v ariety of materials normally enter into the "making" of a produ c t.
These may b e direc t materials su c h as c omponent parts, or indirec t materials
su c h as energy, lu b ric ants, c atalysts, solv ents, pac kaging materials and so on.
Manu f ac tu ring c osts c an b e redu c ed throu gh a more ef f ic ient u tilization of
these materials. Proper materials u tilization seeks two goals: improv ing the
yield (or redu c ing waste) and the salv age of waste.
Improving the yield
The maximization of yield and the redu c tion of waste are of major c onc ern to
the work stu dy person. Of ten, howev er, he or she wou ld b e c onc erned merely
with the waste that is generated f rom primary material du ring proc essing. It is
rare that a work stu dy person giv es su f f ic ient attention to the ec onomies that
c an b e ac hiev ed f rom proper u tilization of indirec t material or to other issu es
inv olv ed with the salv age of waste. Ec onomies whic h are sometimes
su b stantial in produ c tion c osts c an also b e ac hiev ed throu gh proper
u tilization of v ariou s materials in a produ c tion operation.
Waste c an b e c lassif ied into u nav oidab le and av oidab le waste. The sec ond
type of waste is the one that c onc erns u s here. Av oidab le c au ses normally arise
f rom u sing exc essiv e or inappropriate f orms of raw material or poor methods
of work. S ev eral tec hniqu es c an b e u sed to improv e the yield:
(1) Change the original size of the raw material so that it c an giv e the
maximu m yield. This is partic u larly u sef u l in c u tting operations of , say,
f ab ric or metal sheets, or paper. In a proc ess of printing lab els, f or
example, c hanging the size of the original paper u sed c ou ld yield more
lab els per sheet. S imilarly, the proper positioning of these lab els on a
sheet c ou ld also redu c e waste.
(2) Proper methods of work c an also redu c e waste du ring proc essing. In
Chapter 7 sev eral examples were giv en where method stu dy resu lted in
waste redu c tion.
(3) Q u ality c ontrol, whic h will b e dealt with in Chapter 13, when properly
applied c ontrols the generation of waste.
(4) Improv ing the u tilization of indirec t material c an b e equ ally important.
Energy-sav ing measu res, rec yc ling of c ertain solv ents and c hoic e of
appropriate pac kaging c an also help to c u t down c osts.
It shou ld b e noted that as the semi-f inished produ c t passes throu gh the
v ariou s stages of produ c tion its v alu e inc reases progressiv ely as it reac hes the
f inal stage. As a resu lt, waste redu c tion towards the end of the operation needs
to b e addressed ev en more c losely.
Salvage of waste
Irrespec tiv e of the time and ef f ort expended in redu c ing waste, it will still
resu lt and a good part of it will b e u nav oidab le. There are two options here:
D Use the waste to manu f ac tu re other produ c ts. For example, waste f rom a
192 saw-mill c an b e u sed to make c ompressed wood. S imilarly, in produ c ing
c ertain produ c ts in the c hemic al indu stry, b y-produ c ts u su ally resu lt
whic h in tu rn c an b e proc essed to make new produ c ts.
D Find the most appropriate way of selling the waste. If an enterprise
produ c es v ariou s types of sc rap, a higher pric e will b e paid if the sc rap is
sorted, as c ertain sc raps, su c h as c opper, are more v alu ab le than others.
1 93
CHAPTER 1 3
Quality control
Q u ality has b ec ome a strong c ompetitiv e weapon on ac c ou nt of sev eral
f ac tors. First, produ c ing a qu ality standard c ommensu rate with c onsu mers'
expec tations c reates loyal c u stomers and improv es the enterprise's image.
S ec ond, properly applied qu ality c ontrol c an in many c ases redu c e rather than
inc rease manu f ac tu ring c osts. Third, when applied as a managerial tool, it c an
help b reed a c u ltu re within the enterprise whic h is c onstantly striv ing f or
improv ed qu ality in produ c ts, proc esses, inf ormation and other enterprise
f u nc tions. The f irst f ac tor mentioned ab ov e is ob v iou s and needs no partic u lar
elab oration. The last two will b ec ome c lear as we proc eed with ou r disc u ssion
in this c hapter.
1. Meaning and scope
In the prec eding paragraph we saw qu ality as c onf ormity with c u stomers'
expec tations. Q u ality c ontrol theref ore means measu res u ndertaken to ensu re
su c h c onf ormity. It does not nec essarily mean measu res u ndertaken to attain
the highest possib le qu ality. As a resu lt of the applic ation of qu ality c ontrol,
produ c ts or serv ic es wou ld hav e c onsistent and u nif orm spec if ic ations.
Q u ality c ontrol has also c ome to b e identif ied with two approac hes:
D a tec hnic al and statistic al tool to keep v ariations f rom the norm u nder
c ontrol. Here v ariou s tec hniqu es c an b e u sed f or this pu rpose. They will
b e b rief ly explained in the next sec tion;
D a management tool intended to inf lu enc e attitu des so that v ariou s persons
and grou ps in the organization b ec ome c ommitted to pu rsu ing and
maintaining qu ality improv ement. This latter c onc ept is ref erred to as
"total qu ality c ontrol". This approac h will b e disc u ssed later in this
c hapter.
The approac h to qu ality c ontrol was in the past b ased mainly on the u se of
statistic al analysis to measu re the dev iation f rom c ertain def ined spec if ic ations.
It is f or this reason that qu ality c ontrol is sometimes ref erred to as "statistic al
qu ality c ontrol". While this approac h c ontinu es to b e u sed as a b asis f or
measu ring qu ality standards, ov er the past 15 years a new approac h to qu ality
c ontrol has b een dev eloped b y Tagu c hi whic h c arries qu ality c ontrol a step
f u rther, namely towards qu ality improv ement rather than merely statistic al
measu rement and taking c orrec tiv e ac tion. A still b roader c onc ept is that of 195
total qu ality c ontrol, extended to all the ac tiv ities of the enterprise. We explain
these approac hes b rief ly b elow.
2. Statistical quality control
In traditional statistic al qu ality c ontrol c ertain steps are f ollowed:
(1) Identif y the qu ality c harac teristic we want to measu re. This c an b e
weight, length, diameter, density, hu midity, etc .
(2) Dec ide on the desired qu ality standards f or that c harac teristic . This shou ld
b e determined in line with c onsu mers' or u sers' ac c eptanc e lev el. As we
inc rease the lev el of qu ality standards, c onsu mers' satisf ac tion may
inc rease b u t u p to a point af ter whic h inc reased qu ality standards will not
make mu c h dif f erenc e to the av erage c onsu mer. Cost, howev er, will
c ontinu e to inc rease in an ac c elerated manner as we pu rsu e higher
spec if ic ations. For example, in ref ining oliv e oil it will not make mu c h
dif f erenc e to the av erage c onsu mer if the perc entage of remaining
impu rities (f atty ac ids) is 0.01 or 0.005, b u t the c ost of ref ining to attain
the last f igu re c an b ec ome exorb itant.
(3) Dec ide on the ac c epted toleranc e lev el. For v ariou s reasons, produ c ts
rarely c onf orm 100 per c ent to the desired spec if ic ations. There c an b e
spec if ic reasons relating to the manu f ac tu ring proc ess, v ariations in the
raw material u sed, sensitiv ity of the produ c t to the ou tside or
manu f ac tu ring env ironment, and so on. These v ariou s f ac tors c omb ine to
giv e v ariations f rom the spec if ic ations we desire. We shou ld ac c ept or
"tolerate" the dev iation f rom ou r spec if ic ation u p to a point and then
rejec t the produ c t if its c harac teristic f alls b eyond ou r toleranc e lev el.
S etting toleranc e lev els is one of the most c ru c ial issu es in any qu ality
c ontrol operation. S etting toleranc e lev els that are too tight c an inc rease
the nu mb er of rejec ts c onsiderab ly, thereb y inc reasing the c osts. On the
other hand, setting them too loosely c ou ld mean that produ c ts with a wide
v ariation in qu ality standards wou ld f ind their way on to the market, with
an adv erse ef f ec t on c onsu mer satisf ac tion. In the f inal analysis, in setting
toleranc e lev els management will b e gu ided b y its assessment of
c onsu mers' toleranc e of qu ality v ariations and b y c ost.
(4) Dec ide on the method of sampling to test f or qu ality. Inspec ting ev ery
produ c t may not b e possib le in all c ases (e.g. if we are testing a c ar
against shoc k or ac c ident impac t, testing all c ars produ c ed means v irtu ally
destroying them all). Neither is there any gu arantee that 100 per c ent
testing is an ef f ec tiv e method. When sampling is dec ided u pon, there are
three issu es to b e addressed. First, are there operations that requ ire more
c ontrol than others? Here we c an u se a Pareto analysis (see Chapter 6) to
indic ate those operations or produ c ts-in-progress that hav e the highest
v alu e or su f f er the largest nu mb er of def ec ts. S ec ond, we c an dec ide on
where to plac e ou r inspec tion points. A third dec ision to b e made wou ld
b e on sample size and the f requ enc y of sampling. On this last point, we
196 wou ld u se some of the statistic al tools av ailab le to assist u s in this
QUALITYCONTROL
respec t
1
These tools, whic h will not b e elab orated on here, indic ate to u s
the sample size we need if we want to b e, say, 95 per c ent c onf ident that
the ob serv ed dev iation f rom the standard we requ ire is merely du e to
c hanc e. If we want to b e 99 per c ent c onf ident, then the sample size will
inc rease.
(5) Estab lish c ontrol c harts to measu re dev iation f rom toleranc e lev els. There
are two b asic dimensions u sed in most c harts: (a) the mean or av erage X,
indic ating the c entral tendenc y f or v ariou s ob serv ations to oc c u r; and (b )
the range R, or the range of v ariation b etween the lowest and highest
qu ality c harac teristic . L et u s assu me f or simplic ity's sake that we hav e
taken ten samples of a c ertain produ c t (a rod) and measu red its length in
millimetres (mm). As a resu lt, we ob tained the f ollowing:
Sample No. 1 2345 6789 1 0
Length (mm) 7 1 0 9 1 0 8 9 1 2 7 9 9
, .... ., , sumof total reading
In this case the average is equal to =
number of samples
- 90
that is X = = 9 mm
1 0
and the range = difference between the highest and lowest reading or
R= 1 2 7 = 5 mm.
We c an speak here of an operation that produ c es rods of 9 mm av erage
length, b u t the produ c ts c an v ary b etween 7 and 12 mm. If we had dec ided on a
spec if ic ation of 9 mm and a toleranc e lev el of x 2 mm, this wou ld mean that
we wou ld ac c ept all those produ c ts ranging b etween 7 and 11 mm. In this c ase
we wou ld rejec t sample No. 7, whic h is 12 mm.
There are many types of c hart that c an b e u sed in qu ality c ontrol, some
relating to standard dev iation f rom the standard spec if ic ation, and others to the
range. Histograms, sc atter diagrams, and so on, are u sed in one way or another
Howev er, the most c ommonly u sed c hart is the X c hart. Figu re 66 shows an X
c hart drawn in ac c ordanc e with ou r example. It shows an av erage 9 mm, an
u pper c ontrol limit of 11 mm and a lower_c ontrol limit of 7 mm. Figu re 67
shows another hypothetic al example where X tends to exc eed the u pper c ontrol
limit. This is an indic ation that the proc ess is getting ou t of c ontrol, in whic h
c ase it is stopped to detec t and c orrec t the reason f or this v arianc e.
Usef u l as these c harts are, the b asic approac h here is to c ontrol v ariation
f rom a predetermined toleranc e lev el. The Tagu c hi method of qu ality c ontrol
f ollows a dif f erent approac h.
1
S ev eral ref erenc es dealing with qu ality c ontrol or with produ c tion management c an b e c onsu lted.
S ee, f or example, Elwood S . Bu f f a and Rakesh K. S arin: Modern production operations management (New
Y ork, John Wiley, 8th d., 1987), Ch. 13. S ee also Ch. 19 of this b ook on determination of sample size f or
v ariou s lev els of c onf idenc e. 197
Figure 5 6. An X-chart: Process within control limits
Measurement in mm
1 1
Sample No.7 to be
rejected
Upper control limit
- -
Figure 67. An X-chart: Process drifting
Measurement in mm
1 1
Lower control limit
9 1 0
Sample No.
Upper control limit
X
Lower control limit
8 9 1 0
Sample No.
198
3. The Taguchi approach
The Tagu c hi approac h to qu ality c ontrol in its simplest f orm may b e c ompared
to the approac h of an agronomist. Agronomists hav e f or years experimented
with seeds that were immu ne to c limatic c onditions or attac ks b y insec ts. The
c entral theme of Tagu c hi's approac h to qu ality is to hav e a sec ond look at the
produ c t and proc ess design, and c hange these in su c h a way as to render them
QUALITYCONTROL
immu ne to v ariations. L et u s take a simple example of a f ac tory produ c ing
tiles. Under traditional statistic al qu ality c ontrol approac hes, the c omposition
of the tiles is giv en and qu ality c ontrol aims at assessing the v ariations in
produ c t spec if ic ation. These v ariations c an arise ou t of many f ac tors su c h as
u nev en temperatu re distrib u tion du ring the b aking operation, the mixing
operation, and so on. Under the Tagu c hi approac h, one wou ld try to c hange the
mixtu re of the ingredients that make u p a tile, with a v iew to c reating one that
is immu ne to temperatu re v ariations. For example, in this partic u lar c ase an
inc rease in the lime c ontent redu c es v ariations a great deal. This is a proac tiv e
approac h that inv ites the searc h f or a b etter produ c t and proc ess design, so as to
redu c e the c hanc es of qu ality v ariations.
In addition, ev ery produ c t has sev eral qu ality c harac teristic s (shape,
c olou r, strength, etc .), b u t it is not ec onomic al to try to improv e all of them.
Under the Tagu c hi method only those that are of primary importanc e need to b e
inv estigated. S ome of these c harac teristic s may b e produ c ed in ac c ordanc e
with a c ertain spec if ic ation b u t su f f er deterioration on u se, say, the c olou r of a
f ab ric whic h may f ade. Here again, u sing more f ast c olou rs c an allev iate the
prob lem of f ading. Thu s, apart f rom c ontrolling the manu f ac tu ring operation to
redu c e v ariations f rom the desired standard, it is b etter to go b ac k to the
produ c t design stage and c reate a so-c alled "rob u st" design whic h c an resist
b oth deterioration and v ariations in the env ironment du ring manu f ac tu ring.
4. Total quality control
As mentioned earlier in this c hapter, qu ality c an also b e emb rac ed b y
management as an ef f ec tiv e c ompetitiv e tool. As a resu lt, managers may
organize the ru nning of the enterprise in su c h a way that pu rsu ing qu ality
ob jec tiv es b ec omes inherent in employees' ac tiv ities. S inc e c u stomer
satisf ac tion is the determining yardstic k f or qu ality spec if ic ations, then total
qu ality c ontrol implies the c ontinu ou s identif ic ation of c u stomers' pref erenc es
and, as in the Tagu c hi approac h, a c ontinu ou s prob ing of produ c t design to
minimize v ariations f rom spec if ic ations, as well as a c onc erted ef f ort b y all
c onc erned to minimize v ariations du ring proc essing and to improv e c u stomer
serv ic es. Instead of relegating qu ality to a spec if ic department su c h as the
qu ality c ontrol department, total qu ality c ontrol b ec omes ev eryb ody's b u siness.
Cu stomer satisf ac tion is ob tained not only throu gh the ac qu isition of a good-
qu ality produ c t b u t also throu gh c ou rteou s telephone serv ic e, proper
administration of an order, c lear and proper b illing, and a helpf u l af ter-sales
serv ic e. In implementing total qu ality c ontrol some c ompanies hav e f ou nd it
u sef u l to estab lish qu ality c irc les.
Quality circles (Q C) started in Japan in the early 1960s. A Q C is a small
grou p, normally of six to eight persons, who work in the same area and who
meet regu larly on a v olu ntary b asis to think of ways to improv e the qu ality of
their operational ac tiv ities. Circ le memb ers u su ally rec eiv e su itab le training in
approac hes to prob lem solv ing. In the early days of Q C dev elopment the
memb ers were essentially c onc erned with qu ality-related prob lems. Howev er,
later on the c onc ern spread also to produ c tiv ity improv ement. As the c irc le 199
memb ers dev elop, they in tu rn seek to make systematic improv ements and not
ju st isolated experiments. As the Q C mov ement b egan to spread f rom Japan to
v ariou s dev eloping and indu strialized c ou ntries, some v ariations in the
operation of Q C were introdu c ed. For example, Q C grou ps in Japan meet af ter
working hou rs, whic h is not the c ase in many indu strialized c ou ntries. Reward
f or su c c essf u l ac hiev ements in Japan is giv en in terms of rec ognition (say, a
trophy), lec tu ring to other organizations on ac hiev ements or attendanc e at
c onv entions, and f or ou tstanding ac hiev ements a v isit ab road may also b e
organized. In other c ou ntries the u se of direc t f inanc ial rewards is c onsidered in
many c ases to b e a more appropriate f orm of c ompensation.
The adv antage of Q C is that it inv olv es employees in qu ality and
produ c tiv ity programmes and as su c h reinf orc es the approac h to total qu ality
c ontrol sc hemes. Nev ertheless, not all Q C mov ements hav e b een su c c essf u l.
S ome c irc les hav e b ec ome inac tiv e almost f rom their inc eption or dec lined in
ac tiv ity af ter initial enthu siasm; some produ c ed marginal resu lts, while others
c ontinu ed their ac tiv ities with remarkab le su c c ess.
2
5. Work study and quality control
Part Two of this b ook ou tlined the ob jec tiv es of method stu dy. These inc lu ded
not only qu antitativ e gains or c ost redu c tion b u t also qu ality improv ement. In
this sense, the relation b etween method stu dy in partic u lar and qu ality c ontrol
is straightf orward. A work stu dy person ev alu ates the resu lts of his or her work
b y looking at qu ality improv ements as well. In addition, we hav e seen in this
c hapter that estab lishing appropriate qu ality spec if ic ations and toleranc e lev els
and signalling the primary c harac teristic of a produ c t f or c ontrol c an redu c e
c osts, again an issu e of c onc ern to the work stu dy person. We hav e also seen
that modem trends look at qu ality c ontrol as a dynamic f u nc tion that aims at
the c ontinu ou s improv ement of produ c t and proc ess design to meet c u stomer
expec tations.
In this sense the ob jec tiv es of method stu dy and that of modem qu ality
c ontrol c oinc ide. It wou ld indeed b e dif f ic u lt f or a work stu dy person to b e
c onc emed primarily with qu antitativ e gains while ov erlooking qu ality issu es.
He or she wou ld b e ill-adv ised to look f or produ c t simplif ic ation in design
withou t taking into c onsideration the c hanges that might b e needed in the
c omposition of that produ c t to make it more resistant to v ariations and
deterioration. In the same v ein, method stu dy c annot pu rsu e improv ement in
operations withou t linking them to the resu lting qu ality imperativ es. Finally, a
total qu ality c ontrol approac h c reates an enterprise c u ltu re whic h c an b e more
rec eptiv e and c ondu c iv e to a stu dy of the methods of work.
2
For an analysis of the reasons f or su c c ess and f ailu re in the United S tates and the United Kingdom
see, respec tiv ely, E. E. L awler III and S . A. Mohrman: "Q u ality c irc les af ter the f ad", in Harvard Business
Review, Jan.-Feb . 1985, pp. 65-71; B. G . Dale: "The extent of and reasons f or qu ality c irc le f ailu res", in
200 Management Research News, V ol. 7, No. 2, 1984, pp. 4-9.
CHAPTER 1 4
Layout, handling
and process planning
1. Layout
The way in whic h mac hinery, equ ipment and material are arranged in a
working area determines the layou t in that area. L ayou t is of ten determined at
the ou tset of operations, i.e. when a plant or ev en an of f ic e starts operating.
Ev en if the initial layou t was well thou ght ou t, a re-examination of the
u tilization of spac e is of ten c alled f or b ec au se of v ariou s f ac tors, among them
the f ollowing:
D New produ c ts are added or produ c t design c hanges introdu c ed. Both types
of ac tion may nec essitate a dif f erent sequ enc e of operations.
D New equ ipment or mac hinery or a dif f erent shape and size of materials
are introdu c ed.
D Materials-handling equ ipment that has dif f erent spac e requ irements f rom
the original equ ipment is ac qu ired.
D Modif ic ations are made to the b u ilding to inc rease spac e.
D Temporary arrangements may hav e b een made to c ope with an u psu rge of
demand f or a c ertain produ c t, b u t these then remain semi-permanent.
D Mov es are made b y management towards adv anc ed tec hnologies su c h as
the u se of rob otic s, au tomation, c ompu ter networking or f lexib le
manu f ac tu ring systems.
When situ ations like these arise, it is said that the plant or a working area
has ou tgrown its present layou t. Operations b ec ome c u mb ersome with either
c ongestion or lengthy and u nnec essary mov ements of produ c ts-in-progress or
operators, of ten with c riss-c rossing lines of produ c tion resu lting in loss of time
and energy.
To rethink a layou t one has to start b y distingu ishing among f ou r b asic
types: (1) layou t b y f ixed position; (2) layou t b y proc ess or f u nc tion; (3) layou t
b y produ c t or line layou t; and (4) grou p layou t (f igu re 68). In prac tic e a
c omb ination of two types or more of layou t may exist in a working area.
(1) Layout by fixed position. This arrangement is u sed when the material to
b e proc essed does not trav el arou nd the plant b u t stays in one plac e: all
the nec essary equ ipment and mac hinery are b rou ght to it instead. This is
the c ase when the produ c t is b u lky and heav y and when only a f ew u nits
are made at a time. Typic al examples are shipb u ilding or airc raf t
c onstru c tion, and the manu f ac tu re of diesel engines or large motors. 201
Figure 68. Types of layout
(a) Layout by fixed position
Work in progress
on stationary product
Machine
Workers
D Q U Equipment and tools
Raw material
(b) Layout by process or function
Machines
OWorkers
Raw material
(c) Layout by product (line layout)
O Workers O O
Machines
O
(d Group layout
Raw material
Groups of workers
working on a product
202
LAYOUT, HANDLING ANDPROCESSPLANNING
(2) Layout by process or function. Here all operations of the same natu re
are grou ped together: f or example, in the garment indu stry all the c u tting
of material is c arried ou t in one area, all the sewing or stitc hing in
another, all the f inishing in a third, and so on. This layou t is u su ally
c hosen where a great many produ c ts whic h share the same mac hinery are
b eing made and where any one produ c t has only a relativ ely low v olu me
of ou tpu t. Other examples are textile spinning and weav ing, and
maintenanc e workshops.
(3) Layout by product or line layout, sometimes popu larly ref erred to as
"mass produ c tion". In this layou t all the nec essary mac hinery and
equ ipment needed to make a giv en produ c t are set ou t in the same area
and in the sequ enc e of the manu f ac tu ring proc ess. This layou t is u sed
mainly where there is a high demand f or one or sev eral produ c ts that are
more or less standardized. Typic al examples are sof t drinks b ottling, c ar
assemb ly and some c anning operations.
(4) Layout making possible group production methods, or group layout.
Rec ently, in an ef f ort to inc rease job satisf ac tion, sev eral enterprises hav e
arranged their operations in a new way, with a grou p of workers working
together on a giv en produ c t or on a part of a produ c t and hav ing at hand
all the mac hinery and equ ipment needed to c omplete their work. In su c h
c ases the workers distrib u te the work among themselv es and u su ally
interc hange job s. Fu rther details of this method of produ c tion are giv en in
Chapter 29.
With these v ariou s kinds of layou t in mind, we may now analyse the f low
of materials in a working area. In some situ ations, rapid c hanges in ou tpu t may
b e realized b y switc hing f rom one type of layou t to another. This is partic u larly
tru e when a shif t is made f rom a layou t b y f u nc tion to a line layou t f or one or
more produ c ts whose ou tpu t has b een inc reased signif ic antly.
In most c ases, howev er, a c aref u l analysis of the f low is c alled f or b ef ore
any dec ision is taken to c hange a giv en layou t, sinc e this is u su ally a c ostly
proc ess, and management has to b e c onv inc ed that real sav ings will resu lt
b ef ore au thorizing the c hange.
The dev elopment of a layou t
A. Developing an initial layout
The line of reasoning is as f ollows:
(1) From sales f orec asts and produ c tion planning one c an determine the
amou nt of mac hinery and equ ipment that will b e needed in the present
and the f u tu re. The spac e requ irement f or eac h item of mac hinery is then
c alc u lated. Ab ou t 17 per c ent of the total spac e taken u p b y mac hinery
shou ld b e added in a single-storey b u ilding and 22 per c ent in a mu lti-
storey b u ilding to ac c ou nt f or passages, aisles and lif ts.
(2) A c alc u lation is then made f or the spac e needed f or storing goods-in-
progress and v ariou s other storage points. 203
O
ti
Figure 69. Developing the flow for a number of products, using the cross chart
^^^^ To
Form Normalize Machine BurrArim Paint Plate Coat Polish Wrap Pack and ship Total
From "^^^
Form
WIWIIII
1 4
0/1 1
8
Sffl
6
Mllll
1 4
1
1
000
001 1
27
70
Normalize Mllffll
1 7
1
1
1 8
Machine
III
3
II
2
II
2
1
1
8
Burr/trim
III!
4
I
1
III
3
II
2
1 0
Paint
1
1
u sam
H
000
HII
1 9
00 III
1 3
II
2
46
Plate
0000
II 22
22
Coat
0000
II
22
22
Polish
ii
2
0000
0 0 III
33
1
1
36
Wrap
0000
000 mi
39
39
Pack and ship 0
Total 0 1 8 8 1 0 46 22
22 36 39 70
o
o
o
s
o
Source: Taken from Richard Muther: "Plant layout", in H. B. Maynard: Industrial engineering handbook (New York and London, McGraw-Hill, 3rd d., 1 971 ), and used by kind permission of the McGraw-Hill Book Company.
(3) Another c alc u lation is made f or au xiliary f ac ilities su c h as washrooms,
of f ic es, pu mps, maintenanc e serv ic es, etc . These are all listed and the
spac e f or eac h is determined.
(4) We are now ready to determine and sketc h the f low of work. In the c ase
of layou t b y f ixed position and line layou t this is more or less
straightf orward. By u sing a f low proc ess c hart as explained in Chapter 7,
one c an v isu alize the sequ enc e of operations and sketc h a diagram to
indic ate the plac ement of workstations. It is the f u nc tional arrangement
that presents u s with a prob lem. This is so b ec au se in all prob ab ility a
mu ltitu de of produ c ts are produ c ed, eac h hav ing a dif f erent sequ enc e of
operations. A helpf u l way of determining the plac ement of workstations
in this c ase is to u se a cross chart.
D As c an b e seen f rom f igu re 69, the c ross c hart is drawn u p b y listing
the v ariou s operations (or mac hinery) throu gh whic h the dif f erent
produ c ts pass at the v ariou s stages of produ c tion, on b oth the
horizontal and v ertic al dimensions of the c hart. The example in
f igu re 69 illu strates the u se of the c ross c hart f or a c ompany making
dec orated metal produ c ts. In this c ase, the c ompany is produ c ing 70
produ c ts, eac h of whic h passes throu gh some of the operations
indic ated.
D To c omplete this c hart, take one produ c t at a time and enter its
sequ enc e of manu f ac tu ring in the appropriate squ are on the c hart. If
a produ c t mov es f rom "Form" to "Normalize", a stroke is made in
the squ are "Form/Normalize". If it su b sequ ently mov es f rom
"Normalize" to "Plate", a stroke is entered in the c orresponding
squ are, and so on u ntil the whole sequ enc e of operations f or that
partic u lar produ c t is entered. The same proc ess is then repeated f or
eac h of the other 70 produ c ts. The c ompleted c ross c hart appears in
f igu re 69.
D The next step is to dec ide whic h operations shou ld b e plac ed
adjac ent to eac h other. From the c hart it is c lear that 27 produ c ts ou t
of 70 (i.e. 39 per c ent of the produ c ts) pass direc tly f rom "Form" to
"Pac k and ship". These two operations shou ld theref ore b e adjac ent.
S imilarly, all 22 produ c ts that were su b jec ted to plating passed f rom
"Plate" to "Coat" and f rom "Coat" to "Polish". Henc e, these three
operations shou ld f ollow eac h other in sequ enc e. By f ollowing the
same line of reasoning it is possib le to reac h the pref erred sequ enc e
of operations.
D A v ariation on this tec hniqu e is to c omplete the c ross c hart b y taking
a sample of the most f requ ently produ c ed items. If the plant is
produ c ing ov er 100 dif f erent items, it may b ec ome c u mb ersome to
f ollow the method indic ated ab ov e. Howev er, inv estigation may
rev eal that, say, 15 or 20 items ac c ou nt f or possib ly 80 per c ent of
the produ c tion v olu me. The sequ enc e of operations of these items
wou ld then b e entered on the c ross c hart, and the f low determined in
the same way as that desc rib ed ab ov e. 205
(5) Onc e the dimensions and the relativ e position of mac hinery, storage
f ac ilities and au xiliary serv ic es hav e b een determined, it is adv isab le to
make a v isu al presentation of the proposed layou t b ef ore proc eeding with
the ac tu al rearrangement of the workplac e, whic h may b e a c ostly
operation. This c an b e done b y the u se of "templates", or piec es of
c ardb oard c u t ou t to sc ale. Dif f erent c olou red c ards may b e u sed to
indic ate dif f erent items of equ ipment, su c h as mac hines, storage rac ks,
b enc hes or material-handling equ ipment. When positioning these
templates, make su re that gangways are wide enou gh to allow the f ree
mov ement of material-handling equ ipment and goods-in-progress.
Alternativ ely, sc ale models may b e u sed to prov ide a three-dimensional
display of the layou t. V ariou s types of model f or many well-known items
of mac hinery and equ ipment are readily av ailab le on the market and are
partic u larly u sef u l f or training pu rposes.
B. Modifying an existing layout
In modif ying an existing layou t, a f low proc ess c hart may b e u sed to
rec ord trav el distanc es and times f or v ariou s operations. This c an b e
adv antageou sly su pplemented b y a f low diagram. An example was giv en in
Chapter 7 (f igu res 27-30). In a stu dy inv olv ing the modif ic ation of a layou t one
is b etter to look at the whole layou t of , say, a department or ev en a plant b ef ore
mov ing into the details of one operation. Af ter dev eloping an ideal layou t, one
has to rec onc ile it with the c onstraints that exist. It may b e too c ostly to mov e
c ertain mac hinery, or modif y the stru c tu re of a b u ilding to hav e a smoother
layou t. The c osts may ou tweigh the resu lting b enef its. Here one mov es f rom
the ideal to the prac tic al. S ome of the tec hniqu es u sed in dev eloping an initial
layou t, su c h as the u se of the c ross c hart (f igu re 69) and the v ariou s
c alc u lations of spac e requ irements, may also b e relev ant here.
2. The handling of material
A good deal of time and ef f ort is of ten expended in mov ing material f rom one
plac e to another in the c ou rse of proc essing. This handling is c ostly and adds
nothing to the v alu e of the produ c t. In essenc e, theref ore, there shou ld ideally
b e no handling at all. Unf ortu nately, this is not possib le. A more realistic aim
wou ld b e to mov e material b y the most appropriate methods and equ ipment at
the lowest possib le c ost and with regard to saf ety. This aim may b e met b y:
D eliminating or redu c ing handling;
D improv ing the ef f ic ienc y of handling;
D making the c orrec t c hoic e of material-handling equ ipment.
Eliminating or reducing handling
There is of ten ample sc ope f or eliminating or redu c ing handling. In prac tic e, it
b ec omes ob v iou s that there is a need to improv e an existing situ ation when
c ertain symptoms are ob serv ed, e.g. too mu c h loading and u nloading, repeated
206 manu al handling of heav y weights, material trav elling c onsiderab le distanc es.
non-u nif orm f low of work with c ongestion in c ertain areas, f requ ent damage or
b reakage resu lting f rom handling, and so on. These are some of the most
f requ ent phenomena that inv ite the interv ention of the work stu dy spec ialist.
The approac h to b e f ollowed here is similar to the traditional method stu dy
approac h, u sing ou tline and f low proc ess c harts and f low diagrams and asking
the same qu estions as to "where, when, b y whom, how" and, ab ov e all, "why"
this handling is done.
Howev er, su c h a stu dy may f requ ently hav e to b e prec eded b y or c arried
ou t in c onju nc tion with a stu dy of the layou t of the working area, in order to
redu c e mov ement to a minimu m.
Improving the efficiency of handling
The ob serv anc e of c ertain prec epts c an improv e the ef f ic ienc y of handling.
These prec epts are:
(1) Inc rease the size or nu mb er of u nits b eing handled at any one time. If
nec essary, rev iew produ c t design and pac kaging to see if you c an ac hiev e
this resu lt more readily.
(2) Inc rease the speed of handling if this is possib le and ec onomic al.
(3) L et grav ity work f or you as mu c h as possib le.
(4) Hav e enou gh c ontainers, pallets, platf orms, b oxes, etc ., av ailab le in order
to make transportation easier.
(5) G iv e pref erenc e in most c ases to material-handling equ ipment that lends
itself to a v ariety of u ses and applic ations.
(6) Try to ensu re that materials mov e in straight lines as mu c h as possib le,
and ensu re that aisles are kept c lear.
Making the correct choice of material-handling equipment
Dif f erent kinds and types of material-handling equ ipment exist. Althou gh there
are literally hu ndreds of v ariou s types, these may b e c lassif ied in f iv e major
c ategories.
D Conveyors
Conv eyors are u sef u l f or mov ing material b etween two f ixed
workstations, either c ontinu ou sly or intermittently. They are mainly u sed f or
c ontinu ou s or mass produ c tion operations indeed, they are su itab le f or most
operations where the f low is more or less steady. Conv eyors may b e of v ariou s
types, with either rollers, wheels or b elts to help mov e the material along: these
may b e power-driv en or may roll f reely. The dec ision to prov ide c onv eyors
mu st b e taken with c are, sinc e they are u su ally c ostly to install; moreov er, they
are less f lexib le and, where two or more c onv erge, it is nec essary to c oordinate
the speeds at whic h the two c onv eyors mov e.
D Industrial trucks
Indu strial tru c ks are more f lexib le in u se than c onv eyors sinc e they c an
mov e b etween v ariou s points and are not permanently f ixed in one plac e. They
are theref ore most su itab le f or intermittent produ c tion and f or handling v ariou s 207
sizes and shapes of material. There are many types of tru c k petrol-driv en,
elec tric , hand-powered, and so on. Their greatest adv antage lies in the wide
range of attac hments av ailab le; these inc rease the tru c ks' ab ility to handle
v ariou s types and shapes of material.
D Cranes and hoists
The major adv antage of c ranes and hoists is that they c an mov e heav y
material throu gh ov erhead spac e. Howev er, they c an u su ally serv e only a
limited area. Here again, there are sev eral types of c rane and hoist, and within
eac h type there are v ariou s loading c apac ities. Cranes and hoists may b e u sed
b oth f or intermittent and f or c ontinu ou s produ c tion.
D Containers
These are either "dead" c ontainers (e.g. c artons, b arrels, skids, pallets)
whic h hold the material to b e transported b u t do not mov e themselv es, or "liv e"
c ontainers (e.g. wagons, wheelb arrows or c ompu ter self -driv en c ontainers).
Handling equ ipment of this kind c an b oth c ontain and mov e the material, and is
u su ally operated manu ally.
D Robots
Many types of rob ot exist. They v ary in size, and in f u nc tion and
manoeu v rab ility (f igu re 70). While many rob ots are u sed f or handling and
transporting material, others are u sed to perf orm operations su c h as welding or
spray painting. An adv antage of rob ots is that they c an perf orm in a hostile
env ironment su c h as u nhealthy c onditions or c arry on ardu ou s tasks su c h as the
repetitiv e mov ement of heav y materials.
1
The c hoic e of material-handling equ ipment among the v ariou s
possib ilities that exist (f igu re 71) is not easy. In sev eral c ases the same material
may b e handled b y v ariou s types of equ ipment, and the great div ersity of
equ ipment and attac hments av ailab le does not make the prob lem any easier. In
sev eral c ases, howev er, the natu re of the material to b e handled narrows the c hoic e.
Among the most important f ac tors to b e taken into c onsideration when
c hoosing material-handling equ ipment are the f ollowing:
(1) Properties of the material. Whether it is solid, liqu id or gas, and in what
size, shape and weight it is to b e mov ed, are important c onsiderations and
c an already lead to a preliminary elimination f rom the range of av ailab le
equ ipment u nder rev iew. S imilarly, if a material is f ragile, c orrosiv e or
toxic this will imply that c ertain handling methods and c ontainers will b e
pref erab le to others.
(2) Layout and characteristics of the building. Another restric ting f ac tor is
the av ailab ility of spac e f or handling. L ow-lev el c eilings may prec lu de
the u se of hoists or c ranes, and the presenc e of su pporting c olu mns in
awkward plac es c an limit the size of the material-handling equ ipment. If
the b u ilding is mu lti-storeyed, c hu tes, or ramps f or indu strial tru c ks, may
b e u sed. Finally, the layou t itself will indic ate the type of produ c tion
operation (c ontinu ou s, intermittent, f ixed position or grou p) and c an
' S ev eral ref erenc es deal with rob ots. Those interested may ref er to S herif D. El Wakil: Processes
208 and designfor manufacturing (Englewoods Clif f s, New Jersey, Prentic e Hall, 1989), pp. 422-445.
LAYOUT, HAMDUNG ANDPROCESSPLANNING
Figure 70. Manoeuvrability of robots
A robot with four
possible movements
A robot with seven
possible movements
already indic ate some items of equ ipment that will b e more su itab le than
others.
(3) Production flow. If the f low is f airly c onstant b etween two f ixed
positions that are not likely to c hange, f ixed equ ipment su c h as c onv eyors
or c hu tes c an b e su c c essf u lly u sed. If , on the other hand, the f low is not
c onstant and the direc tion c hanges oc c asionally f rom one point to another
b ec au se sev eral produ c ts are b eing produ c ed simu ltaneou sly, mov ing
equ ipment su c h as tru c ks wou ld b e pref erab le.
(4) Cost considerations. This is one of the most important c onsiderations.
The ab ov e f ac tors c an help to narrow the range of su itab le equ ipment,
while c osting c an help in taking a f inal dec ision. S ev eral c ost elements
need to b e taken into c onsideration when c omparisons are made b etween
v ariou s items of equ ipment that are all c apab le of handling the same load.
There is the initial c ost of the equ ipment, f rom whic h one c an deriv e the
inv estment c ost in terms of interest payment (i.e. if the c ompany has to
b orrow money to b u y the equ ipment) or opportu nity c osts (i.e. if the
c ompany possesses the f u nds and does not hav e to b orrow, b u t the
pu rc hase of the equ ipment wou ld depriv e it of an opportu nity to inv est the
f u nds at a c ertain rate of retu rn). From the c ost of the equ ipment one c an
also c alc u late the deprec iation c harges per year, to whic h will b e added
other c harges su c h as insu ranc e, taxes and additional ov erheads. Apart
f rom these f ixed c harges, there are also operating c osts, su c h as the c ost
of operating personnel, power, maintenanc e and su perv ision. By
c alc u lating and c omparing the total c ost f or eac h of the items of
equ ipment u nder c onsideration, a more rational dec ision c an b e reac hed
on the most appropriate c hoic e.
209
Figure 71 . Different possibilities of handling the same object

^^,,_
Containers
Conveyors

Trucks
Cranes and hoists
i-> rt-rr-r^ n n TT-r* rm n
I \L \ i \
Robots
21 0
Figure 72. Developments in manufacturing technology
1
Manual work,
1
Mechanization
1
Automation
1
CNC,
1
FMS
steam power CAD, CIM
and
CAM,
simple machines
CNC: computerized numerical control; CAD: computer-aided design; CAM: computer-aided
manufacturing; FMS: flexible manufacturing systems; CIM: computer-integrated manufacturing.
While proper layou t and handling hav e b rou ght ab ou t a c onsiderab le
improv ement in the ef f ic ienc y of operations, other dev elopments in mac hinery,
inf ormation systems and c ompu terization hav e had an important impac t on
produ c tiv ity as well. We shall b rief ly rev iew some of these dev elopments
b ef ore dealing with proc ess planning.
3. Developments in manufacturing technology
Ev er sinc e the Indu strial Rev olu tion, people hav e b een seeking to improv e the
tec hnology of produ c ing goods, partic u larly manu f ac tu red produ c ts. The
introdu c tion of the assemb ly line in 1914 to produ c e Model T Ford c ars was
rev olu tionary at that time; it marked a c lear transition f rom a manu al to a
mec hanized operation. In the 1950s au tomated proc esses c ame into b eing and,
with the rapid dev elopments in c ompu ter sc ienc e and applic ation, we hav e
mov ed into areas su c h as c ompu terized nu meric al c ontrol (CNC), c ompu ter-
aided design (CAD) and c ompu ter-aided manu f ac tu ring (CAM) and in the
f ac tory of the f u tu re are heading towards f lexib le manu f ac tu ring systems
(FMS ) and c ompu ter-integrated manu f ac tu ring (CIM). This is sc hematic ally
presented in f igu re 72.
This transition does not mean that eac h of these phases has b een replac ed
b y a su c c essiv e phase in a c hronologic al order. We still hav e manu al work,
assemb ly line and mec hanized proc esses, sometimes side b y side with an
au tomated proc ess in the same plant. Howev er, there is a trend towards more
f lexib le systems of produ c tion, and this is gathering pac e at an ac c elerated rate.
Thu s while the f irst Indu strial Rev olu tion spanned the late eighteenth and early
nineteenth c entu ries, the ev olu tion in elec tronic s and c ompu ters ov er the past
40 years has led many to b eliev e that we hav e in f ac t emb arked on a sec ond
Indu strial Rev olu tion.
We shall now rev iew b rief ly some of the dev elopments in manu f ac tu ring
tec hnology.
Assembly line: Operations allow a massiv e inc rease in produ c tion (henc e
they b ec ame synonymou s with the term "mass produ c tion"). They do so b y
div iding produ c tion operations into elements, eac h element b eing perf ormed b y
an operator while the produ c t mov es along the line. Thu s the operators are
stationary and the produ c t mov es. While assemb ly lines permit a dramatic
inc rease in ou tpu t, they also b reed monotony as eac h operator repeats the same
type of operation ov er and ov er again. 211
Mec hanization: Mec hanization aims at replac ing manu al work b y
mac hine work when f easib le. In this way some monotonou s repetitiv e manu al
work has b een replac ed b y mac hinery c apab le of perf orming these operations.
S till in mec hanization, a worker operates a mac hine and adju sts it to perf orm
the desired qu antity of ou tpu t to the desired lev el of qu ality. Q u ality in this c ase
depends to a large measu re on the worker's skill, in addition to the c ondition of
the mac hine and tools that are b eing u sed.
Automation: In au tomation f ew workers are inv olv ed. The mac hines
rec eiv e their instru c tions f rom a c ompu ter into whic h all the desired
inf ormation has b een f ed, and theref ore they c ontinu e to operate on their own
and with minimu m operator interf erenc e. The dev elopment of rob ots, CNC and
CAM has giv en a b oost to au tomation. The transition f rom traditional
operations to au tomation is shown in f igu re 73.
Numerical control (NC) and computerized numerical control (CNC):
The princ iple of NC tec hnology is that the mac hine is c ontrolled b y preset
v alu es, traditionally rec orded on a pu nc h tape, eac h ref erring to a c ertain
desired physic al qu antity su c h as height, length, diameter, etc . The introdu c tion
of nu meric al v alu es f or any physic al qu antity driv es the mac hine to perf orm the
desired operation ac c ordingly. S inc e then the tec hnology has ev olv ed rapidly
towards CNC. NC and CNC mac hine tools ensu re that prec ise operations are
perf ormed repeatedly and rapidly. Modern CNC mac hines c an also store a
programme f or f u tu re u se and f orm the b asis f or c ompu ter-integrated
manu f ac tu ring (CIM).
Compu ter-aided manufacturing (CAM): This is a generic name
ref erring to a host of mac hines and proc esses that u se c ompu ters in the
management, implementation and c ontrol of manu f ac tu ring operations. CNC
f orms part of CAM, b u t so does c ompu ter-aided proc ess planning whic h, as
the name implies, u ses the c ompu ter to determine the needed sequ enc e of
operations in manu f ac tu ring c ompu ter-aided monitoring and c ontrol of
manu f ac tu ring operations.
Flexib le manufacturing systems (FMS ): This is a f airly rec ent
dev elopment. FMS allows the c onstru c tion of a produ c tion system that c an b e
responsiv e to c hanging produ c tion targets. It theref ore c onsists of a series of
proc esses that are needed to make a c ertain c omponent or a part. These c an
inc lu de operational mac hinery, an au tomatic materials-handling system and a
c ompu ter-c ontrol system whic h c oordinates the other two ac tiv ities. By
introdu c ing c hanges in the programme, the v ariou s c omponents of FMS work
in tandem to produ c e a new desired ou tpu t. While the u se of FMS is
expanding, these systems are still v ery expensiv e to install and operate. More
researc h is needed into the dev elopment of sof tware requ ired f or their u se, and
this will no dou b t b e f orthc oming.
21 2
Figure 73. The evolution of car painting
Traditional
(complete spraying and hand traverse)

T
^
r
Mechanized
(apportioned hand spraying)
(D
^
non COD nnin rrnn nrm c nn nm nrm
4
anD
primer-coat spraying anti-noise spraying varnish spraying
Automated
(robotized and hand spraying)

T
i ^
COD;
il
nUD nm ron
V
nrnn

&&
<
^ i .Qse fe)
semi-automated
primer-coat spraying
robotized and hand
anti-noise spraying
J 1.
robotized and hand
varnish spraying
Source: Reproduced by courtesy of ENFAPI, Sistemi Formativi Confindustria; La fabrica camminando con I' innovazione [The factory in
conjunction with innovation] (Rome, Editore SIPI, 1 987), p, 90.
21 3
Figure 74. Computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM)
Manufacturing
: operations
(FMS)
Finished
goods
- Delivery
Computer-
aided
design
(CAD)
Computer-
ized raw
material
inventory
system
Computer-
aided
production
planning
(CAM)
Computer- \
aided \
production \
control \
(CAM)
s
\
s
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
Computer-
aided
finished
goods
inventory
. j
)
::::: HI
\
t 1
Mainframe
computer
Computer-
aided
distribu-
tion
o
o
c
o
H
O
S
o
Computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM): By linking all the
operations in a giv en work-setting f rom the design stage to deliv ery of goods
u sing a mainf rame c ompu ter and su b sidiary terminals, one c an estab lish a
c ompu ter-integrated system of manu f ac tu ring (f igu re 74). S u c h a system wou ld
u se CAD in design (ref erred to in Chapter 12) and CAM in all its v ariou s f orms
f or su b sequ ent proc essing. CIM inv olv es the c ompu terization of v ariou s
proc esses. More important, this is done in sync hronization with inf ormation
f low so that the whole operational system, f rom the entry of raw material to the
deliv ery of f inished goods, rec eiv es v ariou s f lows of inf ormation that allow it
to c orrec t anomalies and proc eed in an optimal manner. In the early 1990s this
was still a sou ght-af ter ob jec tiv e that had materialized in a meaningf u l manner
only in a limited nu mb er of c ases.
4. Process planning
Proc ess planning aims at dev eloping a c omprehensiv e plan f or manu f ac tu ring a
part or a produ c t. The starting-point is the produ c t design, f rom whic h one c an
determine in a c hronologic al order:
(1) The nu mb er of parts needed to make the produ c t.
(2) Whether to make or b u y some of these parts u sing f inanc ial estimations of
the c osts inv olv ed f or eac h alternativ e, as well as other v alu e ju dgements;
f or example, av ailab ility of raw material, the skill needed, u se of av ailab le
spac e f or existing produ c tion mac hinery and equ ipment, and so on.
(3) Onc e a dec ision is made on those parts that will b e made, then the
sequ enc e of operations may b e determined u sing b loc k or operations
c harts.
(4) If new equ ipment and mac hinery has to b e b ou ght, then a dec ision needs
to b e taken as to the type of manu f ac tu ring tec hnology that c an b e u sed
(ref er to sec tion 3, ab ov e).
(5) A f u rther dec ision is then made c onc erning the b y-produ c ts of the proc ess
of manu f ac tu ring; f or example, the u se of ef f lu ent gases, exc ess heat,
waste disposal and treatment.
(6) A dec ision is also made on the handling equ ipment and on the type, skill
and nu mb er of operators to b e assigned to the operation.
(7) Finally, a dec ision is taken on the type of inf ormation that needs to b e
designed and generated f or the c ontrol of the operation, inc lu ding qu ality
c onsiderations.
While the ab ov e sev en steps apply essentially to proc esses that are
planned f or a new produ c t or part, they c an also b e applied with some
adaptation to the modif ic ation of existing proc esses, to c ope with a new
produ c t or design c hange. We shall restric t ou r disc u ssion to the applic ation of
steps 3 and 4 with respec t to two types of operations: functional operations
and line operations. As indic ated earlier in this c hapter, f u nc tional operations
are those where all similar mac hinery is arranged together and the produ c ts
mov e f rom one mac hine to another in a sequ enc e depending on the type of 215
operation that needs to b e perf ormed, whereas line operations are those where
the raw material or part mov es c ontinu ou sly throu gh a nu mb er of sequ ential
operations that end u p with the f inished produ c t. The remaining steps in
proc ess planning ref erred to ab ov e were dealt with earlier, with the exc eption
of step 7 whic h will b e disc u ssed in the next c hapter, and step 2, the "make or
b u y" dec ision, the explanation of whic h f alls ou tside the sc ope of this b ook.
Process planning in functional manufacturing
Traditional f u nc tional manu f ac tu ring, whic h f igu res prominently in mac hine-
tool indu stries, garment-making f ac tories and similar types of indu stry, is b ased
on the premise that all similar mac hines are pu t adjac ent to eac h other.
Depending on the sequ enc e of operations needed to manu f ac tu re a c ertain
produ c t, this produ c t mov es f rom one mac hine to another. At eac h mac hine
there may b e a need f or a setting-u p time to adju st it to the mac hining
requ irements of that partic u lar produ c t. Proc ess planning aims at def ining the
sequ enc e of operations f or eac h produ c t and the time it will take to go throu gh
eac h mac hine, inc lu ding the set-u p time, and then c alc u lating the nu mb er of
mac hines and tools and materials that will b e needed to manu f ac tu re eac h
produ c t.
In c omparison with line produ c tion this type of arrangement is not
ef f ec tiv e b ec au se of the time lost in setting u p v ariou s mac hines as a resu lt of
c hanges f rom one produ c t to another, and b ec au se of the su c c essiv e handling
and b ac ktrac king as v ariou s produ c ts mov e throu gh dif f ering operations.
To ov erc ome these dif f ic u lties, there hav e b een two major dev elopments.
The f irst c onsists of perf orming a Pareto analysis f rom whic h the produ c ts that
ac c ou nt f or the largest v olu me of produ c tion are identif ied. The layou t is
su b sequ ently c hanged in su c h a way that the mac hinery and equ ipment needed
to manu f ac tu re these produ c ts are pu t in sequ enc e and these produ c ts are
produ c ed in a line f ashion (f igu re 75). S u b stantial gains in produ c tiv ity c an b e
ob tained in this way. The sec ond approac h c onsists of replac ing existing
mac hines b y CNC mac hines where reprogramming is qu ic ker and set-u p time
is redu c ed su b stantially. Again, CNC c an b e arranged in su c h a way that all
f amilies of c ertain major produ c ts or parts are perf ormed together in the same
working area.
Process planning in line manufacturing
The b est examples of line manu f ac tu ring are the c hemic al indu stry, b ottling
plants and motor v ehic le assemb ly. In line manu f ac tu ring, the proc ess is more
or less f ixed at the stage of the plant design, b u t there are u su ally minimal
c hanges in lead time as the produ c tion shif ts f rom one produ c t to another. In a
b ottling plant, f or example, c hanging the type of sof t drink b eing b ottled does
not inv olv e too mu c h of a lead time. Bec au se of that line produ c tion is
c onsidered a highly produ c tiv e operation.
Proc ess planning in line produ c tion c onsists of making a b loc k diagram
(f igu re 76) f ollowed b y a proc ess f low diagram (f igu re 77). These are then
216 f ollowed b y detailed engineering diagrams where the position of v ariou s
Figure 75 . Changing functional layout to a line or product layout
Original layout
Types of machinery
ABC D E
Here machines are organized by function. However, analysis
shows that 80 per cent of the products go through machines
B E C G F in that sequence.
Modified layout
Types of machines '
B EGG
A ^
1 1
This layout permits 80 per cent of the products to be processed
according to a line sequence of manufacturing.
equ ipment is indic ated. These c an b e pu mps, v entilation equ ipment, v essels,
f ans, b lowers and c ompressors, v ac u u m equ ipment, mixers and agitators.
Au xiliary equ ipment, su c h as heat exc hangers, insu lation, air c onditioning and
sou rc es of power and heat, is then added.
5. Work study, layout, handling and process planning
L ayou t and the c hoic e of handling methods c onstitu te a major preoc c u pation in
any stu dy of methods of work. In most method stu dy examples mentioned in
Chapters 7, 8 and 9, improv ements in work methods were ob tained throu gh a
modif ic ation of the layou t, shortening distanc es of trav el f or materials and
operators, and f ac ilitating handling and transport operations whether at the
workplac e or b etween workstations. 217
Figure 76. A block diagram in line manufacturing
Flue gasto
stack
Product
A
Finished
product
Oxidize
- Preheated
oxygen
'
Waste
impurities
Product
B
Solvent
Solvent
recovery
21 8
While the b asic approac h to dev eloping a layou t was ou tlined in this
c hapter, it is rather rare that a work stu dy prac titioner will b e c alled u pon to
make a c omplete design of a plant u sing the b asic steps indic ated. This is more
the task of the indu strial engineer or the produ c tion management spec ialist. It is
more c ommon f or the work stu dy person to b e f ac ed with a prob lem of
modif ying an existing layou t. Here the approac h c onsists of planning an "ideal"
layou t, taking into c onsideration some of the c onstraints su c h as the c ost
inv olv ed in mov ing heav y mac hinery. Bef ore making a dec ision on the
mov ement f rom the ideal to the prac tic al, the work stu dy prac titioner may then
weigh u p sev eral possib le solu tions, eac h ev alu ated on its own merits.
We hav e also seen that in line manu f ac tu ring, b ec au se proc ess design is
inherent in the installation, the f reedom of ac tion of a work stu dy person is
more limited. It c ou ld b e restric ted to a stu dy of handling operations b etween
lines of produ c tion, or of the raw material and pac kaging of f inished produ c ts,
and in some c ases to the b alanc ing of operations among c onv erging lines. By
c ontrast, the work stu dy person c an ac c omplish a great deal b y c hanging a
f u nc tional operation into an arrangement where the primary produ c ts or parts
are arranged on a line produ c tion b asis.
In this respec t this c hapter has also shown the gradu al transition in
manu f ac tu ring tec hnology, partic u larly in more indu strialized c ou ntries, f rom
mec hanization to au tomation and to FMS . This trend, in a sense, is reminisc ent
of the early days of work stu dy when it assisted in simplif ying work, isolating
repetitiv e motions whic h ev entu ally b ec ame mec hanized and are now semi- or
f u lly au tomated. Keeping these trends in perspec tiv e permits the work stu dy
person to inqu ire whether the operation u nder stu dy is likely to go throu gh a
Figure 77. A flow diagram in line manufacturing
Solvent
Preheated oxygen
Product B
Filter
Solvent
recovery
Heat exchange
Finished
product
Solid waste
and impurity
Gas to stack
tec hnologic al c hange f airly soon, b ef ore emb arking on a lengthy stu dy to
ac hiev e gains in ef f ic ienc y that may pale b y c omparison with adv anc ed
tec hnology gains. Bec au se of his or her intimate knowledge of operations on
the shop f loor, a work stu dy spec ialist c an b e a v alu ab le resou rc e person when
it c omes to the c hoic e of a new operations tec hnology or adv anc ed handling
system.
If need b e, he or she c an b e c ou nted u pon to assess the improv ements that
are likely to arise as a resu lt of introdu c ing adv anc ed tec hnology, or f or that
matter the prob lems that c ou ld b e enc ou ntered.
21 9
CHAPTER 1 5
Production planning
and control
1. The scope of production planning and control
A c ru c ial issu e in produ c tion management is how to prepare the plans f or
manu f ac tu ring a produ c t or a range of produ c ts in the desired qu antity and
qu ality to meet agreed deliv ery dates. Bu t ev en then the b est-c onc eiv ed plans
are not inf allib le. Unexpec ted delays, low inv entories or mac hine b reakdowns
c an u ndermine produ c tion plans. As a resu lt, there is a need to estab lish a
c ontrol ov er the progress of operations whic h c an signal dev iations f rom the
plans and thereb y trigger of f c orrec tiv e ac tion. Produ c tion planning and c ontrol
are theref ore c losely related, so mu c h so that some writers hav e tended to u se
only one term to enc ompass them b oth. Thu s "produ c tion c ontrol" has in some
c ases b een u sed as a term that inc lu des the planning phase as well.
In addition, there hav e b een two v arying interpretations of the sc ope of
produ c tion planning and c ontrol.
The first approach inc lu des u nder this disc ipline the planning of all
materials, proc esses and operations ending with the f inished produ c t.
Produ c tion planning and c ontrol are seen to inv olv e inv entory c ontrol,
sc hedu ling of operations, and the planning of tools and equ ipment that are
needed, as well as qu ality c ontrol.
In this c hapter we shall not adopt su c h an emb rac ing def inition. Q u ality
c ontrol is a su f f ic iently important su b jec t to b e dealt with on its own, and this
was done in Chapter 13. Fu rthermore, new dev elopments in inv entory c ontrol
warrant a separate c hapter dev oted to that su b jec t (Chapter 16).
The second approach looks at planning as an aggregate ov erall c onc ept.
Here the starting-point is the sales f orec ast or sales orders depending on the
produ c ts b eing produ c ed. A produ c tion c apac ity assessment is then made, and
an adju stment introdu c ed to ac c ou nt f or the reliab ility of deliv ery of raw
materials, ef f ec tiv e time of operations and the natu re of the produ c t mix.
S c hedu ling of operations then b egins.
This sec ond approac h, if adopted, wou ld take in issu es su c h as estimation
of demand f or v ariou s produ c ts, prob ab ilistic assessment of operations
b reakdowns, lab ou r tu rnov er and ab senteeism, all of whic h f all b eyond the
sc ope of this b ook, where we are more c onc erned with produ c tion operations
and their relations to work stu dy. For this reason we intend to take a restric tiv e
v iew of produ c tion planning and c ontrol b y limiting it to the sc hedu ling,
planning and c ontrol of operational ac tiv ities. 221
In doing so, we hav e to dif f erentiate b etween planning and c ontrol in
c ontinu ou s or line produ c tion, planning and c ontrol in intermittent b atc h
produ c tion or f u nc tional produ c tion, and planning f or spec if ic projec ts.
2. Production planning and control in continuous
production
As explained in Chapter 14, c ontinu ou s or line produ c tion c onsists of
operations where one or a f ew produ c ts pass throu gh a sequ enc e of operations
to produ c e the desired f inished produ c t or produ c ts. Examples are c hemic al
indu stries, paper and pu lp plants, and c ement f ac tories. In the ev ent that the
enterprise is produ c ing one produ c t, produ c tion planning and c ontrol b ec ome a
rather simple operation of alloc ating produ c tion targets per week or on a daily
b asis, the assu mption b eing that all the dif f erent mac hines inv olv ed are
perf ec tly sync hronized. A c ontrol of the ou tpu t wou ld signal a dev iation f rom
the desired norm c alling f or an interv ention to take c orrec tiv e ac tion.
It is rather u nu su al to hav e a single produ c t mov ing throu gh a produ c tion
line. More likely, a f ew produ c ts may c ompete f or existing c apac ity. The mix
of produ c ts inv olv ed c an render the planning and c ontrol operation more
c omplex. In an oil ref inery, f or example, inc reasing the planning targets f or
gasoline means a redu c tion in the produ c tion of other ref ined produ c ts su c h as
diesel oil or kerosene. In sev eral c ases in line produ c tion operations, as the
v ariou s produ c ts share more or less the same f low, adju stments in the plan are
made on a daily b asis, depending on v ariations in demand f or eac h produ c t. A
simplif ied sequ enc e of planning f or line produ c tion is shown in f igu re 78.
When more than two or three produ c ts are inv olv ed, more sophistic ated tools
u sing su itab le c ompu ter sof tware are normally u sed f or planning pu rposes.
3. Production planning and control in intermittent
production
Intermittent produ c tion is normally a proc ess where a mu ltitu de of produ c ts or
parts are produ c ed, eac h nec essitating a c ertain sequ enc e of operations.
Examples of intermittent produ c tion are woodworking, and f u rnitu re indu stries,
and mac hine shops. In this type of planning the sequ enc e of operations f or eac h
produ c t or part is identif ied, together with the time needed in eac h operation,
inc lu ding set-u p times. If the nu mb er of produ c ts is limited, then a su itab le
c hart su c h as the Gantt chart (f igu re 79) c an b e u sed to plan and c ontrol the
sequ enc e of operations. The same G antt c hart c an also b e u sed to show
mac hine loading, thereb y identif ying idle time. This wou ld enab le resc hedu ling
to ob tain the optimu m u tilization of mac hines and equ ipment. Finally, the
G antt c hart c an b e u sed to plan operators' deployment on v ariou s mac hines, or
materials proc u rement and deliv ery needs.
In c onstru c ting a G antt c hart one works b ac kwards, starting with deliv ery
222 dates of the f inal produ c t and then sc hedu ling assemb lies or su b assemb lies
PRODUCTIONPLANNING ANDCONTROL
Figure 78. Planning and control for line production: Master production plan
Master production plan
Monthly targets
Compare weekly
actual production
with weekly estimated
demand
Product A
Overproduction
Product B
Underproduction
Weekly schedule
adjustment
Deduct from
next week's
demand
Increase next
week's target or
work overtime
Daily schedule
adjustment
Produced but not
planned
Deduct from
master plan
Planned but not
produced
Rush jobs and
high priority
relating them to a time sc ale (in months, weeks, days or hou rs as the need may
b e) u ntil one c an determine the starting-point f or ev ery operation.
While G antt c harts of f er management an easy readab le and v isu al
demonstration of a work plan and the position regarding implementation at a
c ertain date, they b ec ome c u mb ersome to u se onc e the produ c ts or parts are
many and v aried and if there are a nu mb er of c onstraints su c h as c apac ity
u tilization, rejec tion, margins, u nc ertainty of deliv ery dates of raw materials or
c hanging priorities f or f inished produ c ts. In su c h c ases more sophistic ated tools 223
Figure 79. Bar diagram or Gantt chart
Days
Mon. Tues. Wed. Thurs. Fri. Mon. Tues. Wed. Thurs. Fri.
Activities
A
B
C
D
E
mm
=
i
m
na
iillM^llfc
of prob ab ility theory and operations researc h are u sed to analyse a planning
prob lem whic h is dec omposed,into v ariou s sc hedu ling options. Compu ter
sof tware exists to assist with su c h prob lems, whic h inv olv e c hanging the
v ariou s c onstraints to ob tain f easib le sc hedu les and c ome u p with an optimu m
solu tion.
To translate plans into ac tu al operational instru c tions v ariou s f orms are
issu ed or instru c tions giv en, sometimes u sing c ompu ter terminal f ac ilities.
These c an inc lu de manu f ac tu ring orders, inc lu ding rou teing of raw material
and produ c ts-in-progress to f inal produ c ts, operation c ards to operators
showing distrib u tion of their time on v ariou s operations, mac hine loading and
u tilization orders, and a f eedb ac k monitoring operation. These v ariou s types of
inf ormation, thou gh primarily u sef u l f or the optimu m alloc ation of resou rc es
f or planning and c ontrol, are also u sef u l f or c ost-ac c ou nting pu rposes and
enab le inf ormation to b e giv en on prob ab le deliv ery dates.
224
4. Planning and control of special projects
The G antt c hart is u nsu itab le f or planning spec ial projec ts su c h as b u ilding a
ship or a diesel engine, or erec ting a b u ilding. In these spec ial projec ts not only
are the many ac tiv ities too c u mb ersome to b e handled b y a traditional G antt
c hart operation, b u t also sev eral ac tiv ities c an b e, and normally are, perf ormed
simu ltaneou sly. S u c h projec ts are planned and c ontrolled u sing spec ial
planning methods and diagramming tec hniqu es c alled networking. Among the
most important planning methods u sed is PERT (Programme Ev alu ation and
Rev iew Tec hniqu e) dev eloped b y the United S tates Nav y and u sed to plan and
c ontrol the ac tiv ities of some 3,000 dif f erent c ontrac tors engaged in b u ilding
the Polaris su b marine in 1958. Independently, another planning method c alled
CPM (Critic al Path Method) was dev eloped b y Du Pont together with the Rand
Corporation in 1957. Both systems are similar, and the extended u se of b oth
PERT and CPM ov er the years eliminated some of the dif f erenc es that
originally distingu ished one f rom the other. Bec au se of that we will try to
explain b rief ly the CPM method and the networking planning tec hniqu e
assoc iated with it.
The planning sequ enc e c onsists of the f ollowing steps:
(1) Identif y the ac tiv ities needed to c omplete a c ertain projec t.
(2) Determine whic h ac tiv ities c an ru n c onc u rrently and whic h c an only b e
started af ter another ac tiv ity is terminated.
(3) Draw the network diagram, u sing the princ iples shown in f igu re 80.
(4) Calc u late the time requ ired to c omplete eac h ac tiv ity, and indic ate this on
the diagram.
(5) Determine the total time f or c ompleting the projec t; this is the longest
path on the network and is c alled the c ritic al path (f igu re 81).
(6) Calc u late the c osts needed f or eac h ac tiv ity if it were to b e c arried ou t at a
normal pac e, or at a c rash or ac c elerated pac e (say b y u sing more people,
ov ertime or more resou rc es).
(7) Balanc e the u se of resou rc es to ev en ou t u psu rges in their u se.
The example in f igu re 81 shows a network c omposed of 11 ac tiv ities. The
f igu res in b old-f ac ed type indic ate the time in days needed to c omplete eac h
ac tiv ity. Note that the length of the arrows b ears no relation to the time it takes
to u ndertake the partic u lar ac tiv ity.
To get f rom starting-point A to f inishing-point I there are sev eral paths.
Eac h c onsists of sev eral ac tiv ities with time alloc ations. These are:
A to B to G to F to I or 3 + 2 + 4 + 3 = 12 days
A to B to C to E to F to I or 3 + 5 + 2 + 8 + 3 = 21 days
A to B to D to E to F to I or 3 + 3 + 8 + 8 + 3 = 25 days
A to B to H to F to I or 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 12 days
From this analysis one c an c onc lu de that the projec t c annot possib ly
f inish b ef ore 25 days hav e elapsed. This is the longest path, known as the
critical path, c onsisting of ac tiv ities A to B to D to E to F to I.
Figure 80. CPM activities

Sequential activities Ato B to C. Activity B to E is independent of activity Cto D; however, both must
be completed before activity F to G can start. 225
Figure 81 . A network diagram using normal times
There are sev eral u ses that c an b e made of CPM. The line of reasoning
goes as f ollows:
(1) Ac tiv ities B to G and G to F requ ire six days to f inish. What is important
is that they reac h point F three days b ef ore the end of the projec t.
Theref ore they c an start at any time b ef ore that and need not start
immediately af ter ac tiv ity A to B is f inished. If they do, they will reac h
point F on the ninth day and will hav e to wait to day 22. They c ou ld start
f or example, on day 15 or 20 and still wou ld not af f ec t the time needed
f or c ompleting the projec t. S inc e they are not ac tiv ities on the c ritic al
path, they are said to b e ac tiv ities that c an float f orwards and b ac kwards
as we wish, with the prov iso that they c an b egin any time af ter three days
f rom the start of the projec t and f inish three days b ef ore the end of the
projec t.
This f loating phenomenon of non-c ritic al ac tiv ities is v ery u sef u l as
it allows the b est alloc ation of resou rc es. For example, the same personnel
working on ac tiv ities B to G and G to F c an af ter they f inish b e
redeployed to perf orm ac tiv ities B to H and H to F or v ic e v ersa, if the
skills needed are the same or similar. Hav ing two teams working
simu ltaneou sly on ac tiv ities B-G -F and B-H-F wou ld represent a waste of
resou rc es. We c an theref ore u se CPM to redu c e projec t c osts.
(2) If these ac tiv ities were perf ormed, say, b y su b c ontrac tors, one c ou ld b y
proper planning of non-c ritic al ac tiv ities u se their f loat to make the
optimu m sc hedu le of payment to the c ontrac tors. This wou ld also help to
solv e c ash f low prob lems.
(3) CPM c an also b e u sed to b alanc e projec t du ration with c ost, allowing a
projec t manager to make a dec ision in line with the situ ation he or she
226 f ac es. L et u s assu me that some of the ac tiv ities mentioned ab ov e c an b e
Table 1 0. Critical path method: Normal and crash times and costs for performing
activities
Activity Normal time Crash time
1
Normal cost Crash cost
Days $ $
I.AtoB 3 1 5 00 1 200
2. B to C 5 5 1 0000 1 0000
3. B to D 3 2 400 600
4. D to E 8 4 8000 1 6000
5 . C to E 2 2 5 00 5 00
6. E to F 8 6 2000 2000
7. B to H 3 3 5 00 5 00
8. H to F 3 3 1 000 1 000
9. B to G 2 1 35 0 600
1 0. G to F 4 3 2000 2800
1 1 . F toi 3 1 5 00 1 5 00
Critical path 25 days 1 5 days 25 75 0 36700
1
New critical path given crash time is A to B to Cto E to F to 1 = = 1 5 days.
ac c elerated, say, b y employing more people (or u sing more tru c ks or other
equ ipment) b u t ob v iou sly at a higher c ost. Others c annot b e c hanged. A
new tab le is then c onstru c ted (tab le 10).
From this tab le one c an now draw a new network u sing c rash times.
Figu re 82 shows a new c ritic al path of 15 days. Thu s the projec t du ration c ou ld
b e redu c ed f rom 25 to 15 days at a c ost of $36,700 instead of the original
$25,750. There are ob v iou sly options in b etween.
For example, ac tiv ities 9 and 10 c ou ld start af ter day 1 and c ou ld f inish
any time b ef ore day 14. It wou ld theref ore b e a waste of f u nds to ac c elerate
their exec u tion b y c ompressing their times to c rash times and spending an extra
$1,050 in the proc ess.
As the nu mb er of ac tiv ities inc rease and the options f or dec ision-making
are taken more and more into c onsideration, it b ec omes c u mb ersome to draw
network diagrams f or CPM. Instead good projec t management sof tware exists
whic h allows the proc essing of all the desired inf ormation f or planning, as well
as f or c ontrol pu rposes.
5. Work study and production planning and control
In Chapter 2 we indic ated that work stu dy has two b asic c omponents, method
stu dy and work measu rement. In the f ollowing c hapters we went on to indic ate
how method stu dy c an simplif y the methods of work and redu c e the time of the
operation. Onc e this is done, work measu rement then determines the time it
takes to perf orm the new improv ed method.
Produ c tion planning and c ontrol c an b e c arried ou t only if the times of
v ariou s ac tiv ities are known. It f ollows that the resu lts of work measu rement 227
Figure 82. A network diagram using crash times
shou ld c onstitu te the b u ilding b loc ks of the planning proc ess. It also f ollows
that eac h time a work stu dy prac titioner c hanges the sequ enc e of operations
and its timing, this c an play hav oc with planning u nless the resu lts of his or her
work f eed into the estab lished system f or produ c tion planning.
On the other hand, throu gh produ c tion c ontrol, operations managers are
ab le to detec t trou b le spots, too lengthy set-u p times or lead times, f requ ent
shortages of materials, or u nev en u tilization of resou rc es resu lting in delays.
These are all pointers to the work stu dy person, who c an u sef u lly b e c alled in
to improv e the situ ation.
228
CHAPTER 1 6
Inventory control
1. The nature of the inventory problem
Ev ery enterprise c arries v ariou s qu antities and v arieties of materials in stoc k.
These are raw materials needed primarily f or its operation, as well as other
anc illary materials su c h as lu b ric ants, spare parts, paints, and so on. The
materials v ary f rom the expensiv e, su c h as tools and spare parts, to the
relativ ely c heap, su c h as paper and pens needed f or c leric al work. This
inv entory of v ariou s materials c osts the enterprise so-c alled carrying costs
whic h inc lu de loss of interest had these f u nds b een inv ested, the c ost of storage
spac e, rent and other expenses su c h as light, hu midity and temperatu re c ontrol,
if any, stores operation c osts inc lu ding rec ord keeping, taxes and insu ranc e, and
deprec iation and deterioration or ob solesc enc e.
Thu s an enterprise manager is f ac ed with a dilemma. On the one hand, he
or she shou ld not c arry u nnec essary stoc ks, otherwise high c arrying c harges are
inc u rred; on the other hand, if he or she ru ns ou t of stoc k du e to v ery low stoc k
lev els, this c an c au se work stoppage, loss of sales opportu nities and redu c ed
orders b y impatient c u stomers, in other words so-c alled stockout costs.
What is needed theref ore is to dev elop a strategy whic h aims at
minimizing c arrying c osts withou t losing opportu nities f or sales or inc u rring
stoc kou t c osts.
Apart f rom the v ariou s primary and anc illary materials stored, temporary
storage of v ariou s parts takes plac e du ring the produ c tion proc ess. These are
so-c alled goods-in-progress. Thu s parts of a produ c t may u ndergo one
produ c tion operation and are then stored temporarily b ef ore they go to another
operation or to assemb ly. Again, goods-in-progress represent an inv entory c ost
with c arrying c harges as well. Minimizing the v olu me of goods-in-progress c an
also c u t down manu f ac tu ring c osts c onsiderab ly.
2. Traditional approaches to inventory control
In the prev iou s sec tion we mentioned that an enterprise c arries a large v ariety
of stoc k of dif f erent materials. It wou ld b e imprac tic al to inv estigate the
optimu m lev el of stoc k that needs to b e c arried f or all the materials in stoc k.
This wou ld b e a c u mb ersome and c ostly operation. Rather, it wou ld b e more
opportu ne to c onc entrate on the relativ ely f ew items of inv entory that ac c ou nt
f or the largest monetary v alu e, sinc e it is these items that ac c ou nt f or
su b stantial c arrying c harges. 229
Figure 83. The relationship between total costs to order and to carry and the
number of orders placed
Total costs
Total costs to
order and to carry
No. of orders per year
Optimum
number of
orders
230
To do this, a Pareto analysis wou ld b e c arried ou t (this was disc u ssed in
Chapter 6). If the v ariou s items in stoc k are mu ltiplied b y their pu rc hasing
pric e, one is ab le to determine the "A" items, those f ew that ac c ou nt f or the
highest v alu e, the "B" items, those that c ome next and ac c ou nt f or less v alu e,
and the "C" items, the remaining large nu mb er of items that hav e a f ar smaller
share of the total v alu e of inv entory. By c onc entrating on the "A" items and
then the "B" items one c an dev elop a strategy that rests on redu c ing the
qu antities of "A" and "B" items held in stoc k to the optimu m lev el. An
important element of this strategy c onsists of plac ing sev eral orders of smaller
qu antities of "A" and "B" items per year instead of plac ing one order f or the
whole year and keeping these in stoc k. The smaller the size of the order, the
less are the c arrying c osts. Bu t at the same time, if more orders are plac ed then
an extra c ost is inc u rred as this may entail hiring more personnel to plac e and
proc ess these orders, and inc reased paperwork. Theref ore the greater nu mb er of
orders in smaller qu antities, the lower will b e the c arrying c osts, b u t the
ordering c osts may inc rease. The optimu m solu tion wou ld b e where the two
c u rv es intersec t (f igu re 83).
In dev eloping an ordering strategy we need to take two dec isions: how
mu c h to order of eac h item in the "A" and "B" c ategories or what is the
INVENTORYCONTROL
economic order quantity (EOQ); and when to order this qu antity or the
reorder point.
To determine the EOQ , three f igu res are needed: the f irst two are the
average inventory f or the item in monetary terms, and the ordering costs,
taken as the inc remental c ost per order or the c ost of eac h additional order. If
an enterprise plac es more orders, there is an inc reased c ost c onsisting mainly of
the salaries of the extra staf f that will b e requ ired, as well as extra stationery
and su pplies. The third f igu re that is needed is the carrying costs (the natu re of
these c osts were explained in sec tion 1). The c arrying c osts are estimated in a
similar way to the ordering c harge, i.e. at two dif f erent inv entory lev els f rom
whic h the inc remental c ost per order is dedu c ed. This is u su ally expressed as a
perc entage of av erage inv entory v alu e. By u sing the f ollowing equ ation one
c an determine the EOQ f or the item in qu estion:
I;OQ = A/^
where A = the total nu mb er of u nits u sed per year, P = the ordering c ost per
order, R = the pric e of eac h u nit and C = the c arrying c ost expressed as a
perc entage of av erage inv entory.
To take a simple example, an enterprise u ses $10,000 worth of a c ertain
item (assu ming 10,000 u nits at $1 eac h), the ordering c osts are $5 per order and
the c arrying c osts are 10 per c ent of the av erage inv entory :
EOQ = W 2 x 1Q ,00Q _X5_
=
W
1)0
oo,000= 1,000 u nits per order.
We c ome now to the sec ond issu e to b e resolv ed, that is determining the
re-order point. If we c ontinu e with ou r example, sinc e the total amou nt u sed is
10,000 u nits and the EOQ is 1,000 u nits, it f ollows that in the c ou rse of a year
we mu st plac e an order ev ery 36 days. If it takes six days f rom the time the
order is plac ed u ntil it is deliv ered, this means that when the stoc k drops f rom
1,000 u nits to 200 u nits (the latter f igu re equ iv alent to six days' stoc k) then a
sec ond order is plac ed, and the proc ess is repeated ten times a year. Howev er,
one mu st allow f or slight delays in deliv ery or f or an u psu rge of demand, whic h
means that the stoc k c ou ld b e exhau sted at a f aster rate. For this pu rpose a so-
c alled "b u f f er stoc k" is c onstitu ted to allow f or these ev entu alities (f igu re 84).
To determine the optimu m lev el of b u f f er stoc k, one attempts to b alanc e
c arrying c osts with stoc kou t c osts.
While this approac h remains a v alid one, sev eral prac tic al situ ations arise
whic h nec essitate the u se of added analytic al and mathematic al tools to solv e
inv entory prob lems, f or the ab ov e approac h is b ased on sev eral assu mptions
su c h as a c onstant demand, a c onstant pu rc hase pric e, a c onstant lead time f or
deliv ery and c onstant c arrying and ordering c harges. In prac tic e this is seldom
the c ase. Of ten a manager or a pu rc hasing agent may hav e to v ary the ab ov e
c alc u lations b y introdu c ing v ariab les su c h as u nc ertainty in deliv ery times, how
to handle qu antity disc ou nts f or pu rc hases, expec tations of pric e inc reases, and
so on. It wou ld f all b eyond the sc ope of this b ook to go into the details of 231
Figure 84. Re-order point and buffer stock
No. of units
000
\
\ Reorder
\/ \ /
\ / points
200

\
1
1
Buffer st
i
ock
Time
6 days
c alc u lations inv olv ing mu ltiple dec ision c riteria. S ev eral produ c tion manage-
ment b ooks deal with this issu e in more detail.
1
3. J ust-in-time inventory method
In their qu est to improv e produ c tiv ity and prof itab ility, Japanese management
c ame to look u pon inv entory as u nnec essary and wastef u l. Toyota was the f irst
to dev elop an approac h to c u t down drastic ally on stoc ks, whether f or goods-
in-progress or f or goods in the storeroom: Kanban, or "ju st-in-time inv entory
management". The b asic idea is that u nder traditional approac hes, the
pu rc hasing department b u ys the raw material and pushes it throu gh operations.
In ju st-in-time (JIT), the material is pulled in one workstation f rom the
prec eding station and u ltimately f rom the raw material stoc k. In the same v ein,
it is also pu lled f rom the su ppliers only when it is needed, and in the desired
qu antities. S toc ks are held down to b are minimu m lev els, almost totally
eliminating b u f f er stoc ks.
With experienc e, JIT dev eloped to b e a philosophy of management and a
dif f erent approac h to produ c tion planning and c ontrol, as well as to inv entory
c ontrol. If we want to redu c e c arrying c harges, then we mu st order in small
lots. It f ollows that we shou ld attempt to hav e standard qu antities of goods-in-
progress to matc h. It also f ollows that we mu st smooth ou t irregu larities in the
produ c tion f low, otherwise some parts will b e produ c ed and wait as an
inv entory f or other parts to b e proc essed so as to b e assemb led together. This
means that we hav e to measu re the c yc le time f or eac h operation, train workers
to perf orm v ariou s f u nc tions and pu rsu e standardization of operation
' S ee, f or example, Donald Del Mar: Operations and industrial management: Designing and
232 managing for productivity (New Y ork, Mc G raw Hill, 1985), pp. 261-303.
INVENTORYCONTROL
Figure 85 . A simplified JIT (Kanban) scheme
Small lot
size
Short
set-up
time
Smoothing
of
production
Multi-
functioned
operator
Standard
operations
routeing
Standard
quantity in
process
Defined
cycle time
Standardi-
zation
of jobs
Production flow using Kanban produces
necessary units in necessary quantities
at the needed time
proc essing and standard b atc hes of work proc essed eac h at a time. A sc hematic
diagram of JIT is shown in f igu re 85.
JIT theref ore works b est with a limited produ c t line in whic h most of the
c omponent parts are repetitiv ely produ c ed b y the f irm or prov ided b y su ppliers.
The mec hanic s of the operation, simply explained, c onsists of mov ing
u pstream b eginning with the last operation (f igu re 86). Thu s, when a f inal
assemb ly sec tion requ ires parts f rom workstation 2 it remov es the job c ard
(also c alled the Kanban) f rom the c ontainer whic h has the parts and passes it
on to workstation 2. This Kanban in tu rn b ec omes a job order f or workstation
2, whic h starts produ c ing replac ements f or the parts remov ed and at the same
time sends the Kanban to workstation 1 to do the same. This f inally reac hes the
raw material inv entory where withdrawals are also made in small lots, and henc e
the orders are su pplied equ ally in small lots and f requ ently on a daily b asis.
The su c c ess of JIT in Japan has also b een du e to the relationship that a produ c -
ing enterprise dev elops with its su pphers, whic h has the f ollowing main f eatu res:
D The enterprise pref ers to deal with one su pplier. To qu alif y to b e a
su pplier, the v endor mu st of f er the lowest pric e f or the highest qu ality and
take responsib ility f or b u f f er stoc k. In retu rn he or she is assu red of a high
v olu me of orders.
D S u ppliers prov ide orders in small lots almost daily and are enc ou raged to
loc ate near the enterprise to redu c e the enterprise's transportation c ost and
lead time.
D Close c ooperation exists b etween the enterprise management and
su ppliers, whic h may take the f orm of tec hnic al and f inanc ial assistanc e
to su ppliers who see themselv es as b eing in "the same b oat" as the
enterprise and theref ore striv e f or b u ilt-in produ c t qu ality and the lowest
pric e. 233
Figure 86. A simplified illustration of Kanban movement
Raw
material
Work-
station
1
Finished
parts
Work-
station
2
Finished
parts
Assembly
Finished
products
Movement of
material in
containers
Movement of
Kanban (job
order card)
234
INVENTORYCONTROL
JIT has b een introdu c ed in sev eral enterprises in the United S tates,
Eu rope and elsewhere, sometimes with exc ellent resu lts.
2
As c an b e seen,
howev er, mu c h depends on the ab ility to restru c tu re and smooth ou t produ c tion
operations and b u ild a strong and dif f erent type of relationship with su ppliers.
4. Work study and inventory control
The work stu dy person is rarely, if ev er, inv olv ed in setting u p ec onomic order
qu antities of raw materials f rom su ppliers or in c onsidering how to adju st su c h
orders u nder u nc ertainty or to b enef it f rom spec ial opportu nities su c h as
qu antity disc ou nts. Nev ertheless, some of the work done in the area of produ c t
design and materials u tilization, as indic ated in Chapter 12, c an inf lu enc e the
range and v olu me of items that need to b e c arried in inv entory.
Work stu dy b ec omes more direc tly related to inv entory c ontrol when a
JIT system is b eing introdu c ed. This c hapter has shown that prerequ isites f or
su c h a system are standardization of operations rou teing, estab lishing reliab le
c yc le times and thereb y hav ing standard qu antities of small lots f low throu gh
the operations line. We hav e also seen that smoothing of produ c tion operations
with minimu m f lu c tu ations in produ c tion targets f rom one operation to the next
is needed, as well as sync hronization of c onv erging su b assemb ly if JIT is to b e
ef f ec tiv e. These are all areas where the work stu dy spec ialist c an make a
v alu ab le c ontrib u tion throu gh method stu dy and work measu rement.
2
S ee, f or example, L . A. Martin-V ega et al.: "Applying ju st-in-time in a waf er f ab : A c ase stu dy", in
Johnson A. Edosomwan (d.): People and product management in manufacturing (Amsterdam, Elsev ier
S c ienc e Pu b lishers, 1990), pp. 121-135. 235
CHAPTER 1 7
Maintenance
1. The scope of maintenance
The maintenanc e f u nc tion has not always rec eiv ed the importanc e it deserv es.
It is sometimes looked u pon as an anc illary ac tiv ity that is perf ormed
sporadic ally and when nec essary. S ome produ c tion managers f eel that stopping
a mac hine or a produ c tion line to ef f ec t inspec tions or c arry ou t prev entiv e
maintenanc e is an u nnec essary nu isanc e. It is only when su c h mac hines b reak
down that the importanc e of maintenanc e b ec omes apparent. Y et, the losses
inc u rred f rom poor maintenanc e c an b e enormou s, f or apart f rom stoppages
and lost produ c tion there is the c ost of produ c t def ec ts du e to lac k of
maintenanc e, and losses du e to shorter mac hine lif e, whic h c an b e su b stantial
in dev eloping c ou ntries, sinc e mac hines are replac ed b y drawing on sc arc e
f oreign exc hange.
With adv anc ed tec hnology, the prob lem of maintenanc e is b ec oming more
ac u te. Adv anc ed-tec hnology mac hines produ c e a high v olu me, so that the
ef f ec t of work stoppages is amplif ied. Fu rthermore, the trend towards line
operations, au tomation and FMS has linked mac hines together either physic ally
or throu gh inf ormation systems making the operation of eac h dependent on the
other, so that a whole produ c tion line c an b e stopped b ec au se of the f ailu re of
one single inexpensiv e part.
At present, two trends in maintenanc e c an b e asc ertained. First, the ratio
of maintenanc e workers to direc t produ c tion workers is growing in
indu strialized c ou ntries, partly in response to the growing sophistic ation of the
mac hines u sed and partly b ec au se of the dec reased amou nt of direc t lab ou r as a
resu lt of au tomation. S ec ond, there is a growing realization of the need to
organize maintenanc e dif f erently, and in a way where it b ec omes ev eryb ody's
b u siness to a large or a smaller degree and not solely the c onc ern of
maintenanc e c rews.
There are two major types of maintenanc e:
D Breakdown maintenance: This is a responsiv e approac h b y the
maintenanc e department to requ ests f or repairs, b ec au se of either mac hine
and equ ipment f ailu re, or inc onsistent or u nsaf e work resu lting f rom the
poor c ondition of mac hinery. In this c ase, the maintenanc e department
tries to respond as b est it c an to the v ariou s requ ests rec eiv ed. If there are
sev eral simu ltaneou s requ ests, as is normally the c ase, the mac hine down-
time inc reases. In many c ases leav ing a mac hine to ru n down to b reaking- 237
point c an also mean lengthy repairs, and sometimes c ostly and more
lengthy ov erhau ls.
D Preventive maintenance: This approac h is b ased on the well-known
wisdom that prev ention is b etter than c u re. It c onsists of diagnosing
mac hine maintenanc e needs ranging f rom simple lu b ric ation and greasing
to more c omplic ated prev entiv e repairs. Fac tors that are taken into
c onsideration are noise emission, v ib ration, temperatu re c hange and
def ec tiv e produ c tion, as well as an analysis of past perf ormanc e and
maintenanc e rec ords to predic t when f ailu re is imminent. A sc hedu le is
then drawn u p to plan systematic interv entions of maintenanc e and repair
to pre-empt b reakdowns.
Most enterprise maintenanc e programmes are b ased on a c omb ination of
b oth prev entiv e and b reakdown maintenanc e, althou gh it has b een shown that
an emphasis on prev entiv e maintenanc e c an c onsiderab ly redu c e the need f or
b reakdown maintenanc e.
2. Organization of maintenance
The organization of maintenanc e inv olv es two key issu es:
D the organization of the maintenanc e f u nc tion that is perf ormed b y the
maintenanc e spec ialists; and
D c hanging attitu des in an enterprise to dev elop a maintenanc e-c onsc iou s
and su pportiv e attitu de.
Eac h of these will b e dealt with b rief ly.
Maintenance as a specialized function
As a spec ialized f u nc tion, maintenanc e requ ires attention to a nu mb er of key
aspec ts:
D Needs assessment of skills and upgrading of maintenanc e c rews:
Maintenanc e operations requ ire a relativ ely large proportion of manu al
work. Attaining a high degree of skill is espec ially important b ec au se of
adv anc ed tec hnology that also requ ires c ontinu ou s u pgrading of skills. In
f ac t, an important preoc c u pation of management b ef ore ac qu iring a new
piec e of equ ipment is to plan its maintenanc e and dev elop the skills
needed to do so. Perf orming maintenanc e work also requ ires a mu ltitu de
of skills. An elec tric motor detac hment, replac ement and repair c ou ld
requ ire b oth elec tric al and mec hanic al skills. If the motor is pu mping
water or liqu id, plu mb ing skills may also b e needed. That is why the
mu lti-skilling of operators in maintenanc e is b ec oming more important.
D Scheduling of maintenanc e operations f or prev entiv e maintenanc e shou ld
allow a c ontingenc y time f or b reakdown maintenanc e. The latter is
u su ally b ased on experienc e with indiv idu al mac hines' history of
b reakdowns and is an estimate at b est. With time the estimation of the
b reakdown maintenanc e period improv es. S c hedu ling is important
238 b ec au se it af f ec ts produ c tion planning. The preparation of su c h
MAINTENANCE
maintenanc e sc hedu les needs to b e disc u ssed and agreed with the
produ c tion personnel, who may b e ab le to su ggest times that are more
su itab le than others f or maintaining some mac hines and equ ipment. In
large modern enterprises, prev entiv e maintenanc e sc hedu les are
c ompu terized and inv olv e the v ariou s mac hines as well as anc illary non-
produ c tiv e f ac ilities.
D Division of work: Not all maintenanc e operations need to b e done b y
spec ialists. Periodic lu b ric ation and greasing, f or example, c an b ec ome
the responsib ility of produ c tion operators. There is theref ore a need to
dec ide on the div ision and distrib u tion of work among the v ariou s persons
who c an b e inv olv ed in maintenanc e.
D Spare parts inventory control is an important f ac et of maintenanc e
organization. A system f or spare parts inv entory c ontrol needs to b e
estab lished to minimize the risk of ru nning ou t of spares, partic u larly f or
parts whic h are dif f ic u lt to ob tain readily on the loc al market, and at the
same time to av oid high c arrying c harges and ob solesc enc e.
D Effectiveness: The c ontrol of maintenanc e is like any other f u nc tion if
one c annot measu re the resu lts ob tained, one c annot c ontrol the operation.
Fu rthermore, a rec u rrent qu estion is whether one is ov er- or u nder-
spending on maintenanc e giv en the resu lts ac hiev ed.
An ef f ec tiv e index sometimes u sed relates to total hou rs worked on
maintenanc e in a giv en period, say a month or a qu arter, c ompared with total
hou rs of produ c tion time lost. Other su itab le measu res c onsist of c omparing
hou rs of produ c tion lost b ec au se of b reakdowns and prev entiv e maintenanc e
ov er su c c essiv e periods of time. Here it is assu med that maintenanc e c osts are
more or less c onstant as they c onsist mostly of payroll c osts and spare parts
whose total annu al u se may b e alloc ated on a monthly or qu arterly b asis. An
important adv antage of keeping c ost and ef f ec tiv eness rec ords is that they
allow management to take important c ost dec isions su c h as whether to replac e
or ov erhau l a mac hine, and when to do so.
Maintenance as an enterprise-wide responsibility
With a realization of the impac t of poor maintenanc e on enterprises'
prof itab ility, many managers are mou nting c ampaign driv es or rev ising the
v iew whic h c onsisted of relegating maintenanc e to a spec ialized c rew. The
essenc e of a new approac h is to c u ltiv ate maintenanc e c onsc iou sness. This
requ ires attitu dinal c hange. S u c h an approac h needs to hav e the c ommitment of
top management and its willingness to experiment with new approac hes.
Training seminars need to b e held; some of them will b e indu c tion
seminars f or top managers. Middle management seminars c an inv olv e
maintenanc e spec ialists and other managers who are af f ec ted b y maintenanc e
prob lems. The pu rpose wou ld b e to hav e the partic ipants identif y the major
prob lems in their working area, possib le c au ses and how they will b e ab le to
assess the resu lts if remedies are f ou nd. This wou ld then b e c ou pled with a
b rief c ou rse on maintenanc e f or non-maintenanc e spec ialists. The c ou rse wou ld
assist the grou ps whic h meet regu larly in f ac t-f inding and in disc u ssing 239
the prob lems inv olv ed in an interac tiv e manner. It wou ld also b u ild strong
su pport within the enterprise f or an ou tside c onsu ltant, shou ld this b e requ ired.
The emphasis here is on solv ing ac tu al prob lems with a v iew to ob taining
resu lts rather than a c lassroom type of training. Additional training is also
extended to the operators if need b e, where it is c ou pled with v isu al gu idelines
on proper operation and rou tine maintenanc e of the mac hines or equ ipment
with whic h they are entru sted. The IL O has ru n sev eral programmes of this
natu re in v ariou s c ou ntries.
1
3. Work study and maintenance
A work stu dy person has to take prev entiv e maintenanc e needs into ac c ou nt
when c alc u lating c yc le times whic h in tu rn af f ec t produ c tion planning and
sc hedu ling. Fu rthermore, some of the improv ements introdu c ed throu gh
method stu dy may lead to redu c ed maintenanc e times. Thu s the u se of more
su itab le transport and handling equ ipment or a c hanged produ c t or proc ess
design c an af f ec t the time that wou ld b e needed f or maintenanc e.
On the other hand, like any other f u nc tion, the maintenanc e operation
itself c an b e a su b jec t of stu dy b y the work stu dy person. Method stu dy c an
examine the mov ements of maintenanc e workers in a working area and their
methods of work. Maintenanc e operations c an b e timed, the work inv olv ed
measu red and standard times dev eloped f or v ariou s maintenanc e assignments
u sing su itab le standard data systems su c h as the Univ ersal Maintenanc e
S tandards S ystem (UMS ).
2
S tandard data will b e ref erred to later in Chapter 27.
1
S ee, f or example, IL O: Improving maintenance in developing countries: The ILO approach.
Management Dev elopment Programme tec hnic al paper Man Dev 44 (G enev a, 1987).
2
For an explanation of UMS , see H. B. Maynard (d.): Industrial engineering handbook (New Y ork,
240 Mc G raw Hill, 1971).
PART FOUR
Work measurement
241
CHAPTER 1 8
General remarks
on work measurement
1. Definition
In Chapter 3 it was said that work stu dy c onsists of two c omplementary
tec hniqu es method stu dy and work measu rement. In that c hapter b oth were
def ined; b ef ore we go on to disc u ss work measu rement it is worthwhile
repeating the def inition of that tec hniqu e giv en there.
Work measurement is the application of techniques designed to
establish the time for a qualified worker to carry out a task at a
defined rate of working
We shall hav e oc c asion to examine sev eral f eatu res of this c aref u lly
thou ght-ou t def inition in more detail in later c hapters. For instanc e, the reader
will hav e noted the ref erenc es to "a qu alif ied worker", and to "a def ined rate of
working". We need not c onc ern ou rselv es with the exac t meaning of these
terms f or the moment. It is worth noting, howev er, that the term "work
measu rement", whic h we hav e ref erred to hitherto as a tec hniqu e, is really a
term u sed to desc rib e a f amily of tec hniqu es, any one of whic h c an b e u sed to
measu re work, rather than a single tec hniqu e b y itself . The princ ipal tec hniqu es
whic h are c lassed as work measu rement tec hniqu es are listed in sec tion 5 of
this c hapter.
2. The purpose of work measurement
In Chapter 2 we disc u ssed the way in whic h the total time of manu f ac tu re of an
artic le was inc reased b y u ndesirab le f eatu res of the produ c t itself , b y a poorly
designed proc ess and b y inef f ec tiv e time added in the c ou rse of produ c tion and
b y ac tions du e to the hu man element. All these f ac tors tended to redu c e the
produ c tiv ity of the enterprise.
We also disc u ssed the management tec hniqu es b y whic h these f ac tors
c ou ld b e eliminated or, at any rate, redu c ed. Method stu dy has b een shown to
b e one of the princ ipal tec hniqu es b y whic h the work inv olv ed in the produ c t or 243
the proc ess c ou ld b e dec reased b y the systematic inv estigation and c ritic al
examination of existing methods and proc esses and the dev elopment and
installation of improv ed methods.
Method stu dy is the princ ipal tec hniqu e f or redu c ing the work inv olv ed,
primarily b y eliminating unnecessary movement on the part of material or
operativ es and b y su b stitu ting good methods f or poor ones. Work measu rement
is c onc erned with inv estigating, redu c ing and su b sequ ently eliminating
ineffective time, that is time du ring whic h no ef f ec tiv e work is b eing
perf ormed, whatev er the c au se.
Work measu rement, as the name su ggests, prov ides management with a
means of measu ring the time taken in the perf ormanc e of an operation or series
of operations in su c h a way that inef f ec tiv e time is shown u p and c an b e
separated f rom ef f ec tiv e time. In this way its existenc e, natu re and extent
b ec ome known where prev iou sly they were c onc ealed within the total. One of
the su rprising things ab ou t plants where work measu rement has nev er b een
employed is the amou nt of inef f ec tiv e time whose v ery existenc e is
u nsu spec ted or whic h is ac c epted as "the u su al thing" and something
inev itab le that no one c an do mu c h ab ou t that is b u ilt into the proc ess. Onc e
the existenc e of inef f ec tiv e time has b een rev ealed and the reasons f or it
trac ked down, steps c an u su ally b e taken to redu c e it.
Here work measu rement has another role to play. Not only c an it rev eal
the existenc e of inef f ec tiv e time; it c an also b e u sed to set standard times f or
c arrying ou t the work, so that, if any inef f ec tiv e time does c reep in later, it will
immediately b e shown u p as an exc ess ov er the standard time and will thu s b e
b rou ght to the attention of management.
Earlier it was mentioned that method stu dy c an rev eal shortc omings of
design, material and method of manu f ac tu re, and, as su c h, af f ec ts mainly
tec hnic al people. Work measu rement is more likely to show u p management
itself and the b ehav iou r of the workers. Bec au se of this it is apt to meet with f ar
greater resistanc e than method stu dy. Nev ertheless, if the ef f ic ient operation of
the enterprise as a whole is b eing sou ght, the applic ation of work measu rement,
properly c arried ou t, is one of the b est means of ac hiev ing it.
It is u nf ortu nate that work measu rement and in partic u lar time stu dy,
its princ ipal tec hniqu e ac qu ired a b ad repu tation in the past, espec ially in
trade u nion c irc les. This was b ec au se in many early applic ations it was direc ted
almost exc lu siv ely to redu c ing the inef f ec tiv e time within the c ontrol of the
operativ es b y setting standards of perf ormanc e f or them, while the inef f ec tiv e
time within the c ontrol of management was v irtu ally ignored. The c au ses of
inef f ec tiv e time ov er whic h management has some c ontrol are mu c h more
nu merou s than those whic h lie within the direc t c ontrol of the workers.
Fu rthermore, experienc e has shown that, if c au ses of inef f ec tiv e time su c h as
hold-u ps du e to lac k of raw materials or to plant b reakdowns are allowed to go
on withou t real ef f orts b eing made to eliminate them, operativ es tend to get
disc ou raged and slac k, and "workers' inef f ec tiv e time" inc reases. This is only
to b e expec ted: the attitu de taken b y the workers is, qu ite simply: "Well, if we
are going to b e stopped f rom doing ou r job s b y something whic h we c an do
244 nothing ab ou t and whic h it is management's job to pu t right, why shou ld we
GENERAL REMARKSONWORKMEASUREMENT
work harder? L et management pu t its own hou se in order f irst." It is an
argu ment that c an hardly b e c ou ntered.
Ju st as method stu dy shou ld prec ede work measu rement in any
reorganization that takes plac e, so mu st the elimination of inef f ec tiv e time du e
to management shortc omings prec ede any attac k on the inef f ec tiv e time within
the c ontrol of the workers. Indeed, the mere f ac t of redu c ing the hold-u ps and
stoppages within the c ontrol of management will tend to redu c e the waste of
time b y the operativ es, b ec au se they will f ind themselv es f ac ed with proper
su pplies of work and of material, and will hav e the general f eeling that the
management is "on its toes". This will in itself hav e a b enef ic ial ef f ec t withou t
the applic ation of inc entiv e sc hemes or of any f orm of c oerc ion.
Work measurement may start a chain reaction throughout the
organization. How does this c ome ab ou t?
The f irst thing to realize is that b reakdowns and stoppages taking ef f ec t at
the shop-f loor lev el are generally only the end resu lts of a series of
management ac tions or f ailu res to ac t.
L et u s take an example of exc essiv e idle time of an expensiv e mac hine in
a b atc h produ c tion type of operation. This exc essiv e idle time was rev ealed b y
a stu dy taken ov er sev eral days. The piec e of plant is v ery produ c tiv e when
operating b u t takes a long time to set u p. It is f ou nd that a great deal of the idle
time is du e to the f ac t that the b atc hes of work b eing pu t on this mac hine are
v ery small, so that almost as mu c h time is spent in resetting it to do new
operations as is spent in ac tu al produ c tion. The c hain of reac tions resu lting
f rom this disc ov ery may b e something like this:
D The work study department
reports that work measu rement rev eals that the mac hine is idle f or
exc essiv ely long periods b ec au se of small orders c oming f rom the
planning department. This is su b stantially inc reasing the c ost of
manu f ac tu re. It su ggests that the planning department shou ld do some
proper planning and either c omb ine sev eral orders f or the same produ c t
into one large order or make more f or stoc k.
D The planning department
c omplains that it has to work on the instru c tions of the marketing
department, whic h nev er seems to sell enou gh of any one produ c t to make
u p a dec ent-sized b atc h and c annot giv e any f orec ast of f u tu re orders so
that more c an b e made f or stoc k.
The marketing department
says that it c annot possib ly make f orec asts or prov ide large orders of any
one produ c t as long as it remains the polic y of top management to ac c ept
ev ery v ariation that c u stomers like to ask f or. Already the c atalogu e is
b ec oming too large: almost ev ery job is now a "spec ial".
D The managing director
is su rprised when the ef f ec t of marketing polic y (or lac k of it) on the
produ c tion c osts is highlighted and says that the aim was to prev ent
orders going to c ompetitors b y b eing as ob liging to c u stomers as possib le. 245
One of the princ ipal pu rposes of work stu dy will hav e b een serv ed if the
original inv estigation leads the managing direc tor to think again ab ou t
marketing polic y. Enthu siastic work stu dy persons may, howev er, f ind it well to
pau se a moment and think ab ou t the f ac t that su c h c hains of reac tion tend to
make someone ask: "Who started this, anyway?" People do not like b eing
"shown u p". This is one of the situ ations in whic h a good deal of tac t may hav e
to b e u sed. It is not the task of a work stu dy spec ialist to dic tate marketing
polic y, b u t merely to b ring to the attention of management the ef f ec t of that
polic y on the c ompany's c osts and henc e on its c ompetitiv e position.
Thu s it c an b e seen that the pu rposes of work measu rement are to rev eal
the natu re and extent of inef f ec tiv e time, f rom whatev er c au se, so that ac tion
c an b e taken to eliminate it; and then to set standards of perf ormanc e of su c h a
kind that they will b e attainab le only if all av oidab le inef f ec tiv e time is
eliminated and the work is perf ormed b y the b est av ailab le method and b y
appropriately trained and c apab le personnel.
We c an now go on to disc u ss in greater detail the u ses and tec hniqu es of
work measu rement.
3. The uses of work measurement
Rev ealing existing c au ses of inef f ec tiv e time throu gh stu dy, important thou gh it
is, is perhaps less important in the long term than the setting of sou nd time
standards, sinc e these will c ontinu e to apply as long as the work to whic h they
ref er c ontinu es to b e done and will show u p any inef f ec tiv e time or additional
work whic h may oc c u r onc e they hav e b een estab lished.
In the proc ess of setting standards it may b e nec essary to u se work
measu rement:
(1) To c ompare the ef f ic ienc y of alternativ e methods. Other c onditions b eing
equ al, the method whic h takes the least time will b e the b est method.
(2) To b alanc e the work of memb ers of teams, in assoc iation with mu ltiple
ac tiv ity c harts, so that, as nearly as possib le, eac h memb er has a task
taking an equ al time to perf orm (see Chapter 8, sec tion 4).
(3) To determine, in assoc iation with worker and mac hine mu ltiple ac tiv ity
c harts, the nu mb er of mac hines an operativ e c an ru n (see Chapter 8,
sec tion 4).
The time standards, onc e set, may then b e u sed:
(4) To prov ide the b asis f or produ c tion planning and c ontrol f or the c hoic e of
a b etter layou t and f or proc ess planning, and f or estab lishing ju st-in-time
inv entory c ontrol systems (see Chapter 16, sec tion 3).
(5) To prov ide inf ormation that c an enab le estimates to b e made f or tenders,
selling pric es and deliv ery dates.
(6) To set standards of mac hine u tilization and lab ou r perf ormanc e whic h c an
b e u sed f or any of the ab ov e pu rposes and as a b asis f or inc entiv e
sc hemes.
(7) To prov ide inf ormation f or lab ou r-c ost c ontrol and to enab le standard
246 c osts to b e f ixed and maintained.
GENERAL REMARKSONWORKMEASUREMENT
It is thu s c lear that work measu rement prov ides the b asic inf ormation
nec essary f or all the ac tiv ities of organizing and c ontrolling the work of an
enterprise in whic h the time element plays a part. Its u ses in c onnec tion with
these ac tiv ities will b e more c learly seen when we hav e shown how the
standard time is ob tained.
4. The basic procedure
In sec tion 3 of Chapter 3 we desc rib ed the b asic steps of work stu dy,
emb rac ing b oth method stu dy and work measu rement. We shall now isolate
those steps whic h are nec essary f or the systematic c arrying ou t of work
measu rement. These steps are:
D SELECT the work to be studied.
D RECORD all the relevant data relating to the circumstances in
which the work is being done, the methods and
the elements of activity in them.
D EXAMINE the recorded data and the detailed breakdown
critically to ensure that the most effective method
and motions are being used and that unproductive
and foreign elements are separated from
productive elements.
D MEASURE the quantity of work involved in each element, in
terms of time, using the appropriate work
measurement technique.
COMPILE the standard time for the operation, which in the
case of stop-watch time study will include time
allowances to cover relaxation, personal needs, etc.
D DEFINE precisely the series of activities and method of
operation for which the time has been compiled
and issue the time as standard for the activities and
methods specified.
It will b e nec essary to take the f u ll range of steps listed ab ov e only if a
time is to b e pu b lished as a standard. When work measu rement is b eing u sed
only as a tool of inv estigation of inef f ec tiv e time b ef ore or du ring a method
stu dy, or to c ompare the ef f ec tiv eness of alternativ e methods, only the f irst f ou r
steps are likely to b e needed.
5. The techniques of work measurement
The f ollowing are the princ ipal tec hniqu es b y whic h work measu rement is
c arried ou t (f igu re 87):
247
Figure 87. Work measurement
Select, record, examine and measure quantity
of work performed using either one or
a combination of the following methods:
work
sampling
structured
estimating
time
study
predetermined
time standards
Compile
I
with appropriate allowances to
get standard time of operations
Compile
I
to establish
standard data banks
D work sampling;
D stru c tu red estimating;
D time stu dy;
D predetermined time standards (PTS );
D standard data.
In the next f ew c hapters we shall desc rib e eac h of these tec hniqu es in
some detail.
248
CHAPTER 1 9
Work sampling and
structured estimating
Work sampling is a method of finding the percentage occurrence
of a certain activity by statistical sampling and random observations
1. The need for work sampling
Work sampling (also known as "ac tiv ity sampling", "ratio-delay stu dy",
"random ob serv ation method", "snap-reading method" and "ob serv ation ratio
stu dy") is, as the name implies, a sampling tec hniqu e. L et u s f irst see why su c h
a tec hniqu e is needed.
In order to ob tain a c omplete and ac c u rate pic tu re of the produ c tiv e time
and idle time of the mac hines in a spec if ic produ c tion area, it wou ld b e
nec essary to ob serv e c ontinu ou sly all the mac hines in that area and to rec ord
when and why any of the mac hines were stopped. It wou ld of c ou rse b e qu ite
impossib le to do this u nless a large nu mb er of workers spent the whole of their
time on this task alone an u nrealistic proposition.
If it were possib le to note at a glanc e the state of ev ery mac hine in a
f ac tory at a giv en moment, howev er, it might b e f ou nd that, say, 80 per c ent of
the mac hines were working and 20 per c ent were stopped. If this ac tion was
repeated 20 or more times at dif f erent times of the day and if eac h time the
proportion of mac hines working was always 80 per c ent, it wou ld b e possib le
to say with some c onf idenc e that at any one time there were always 80 per c ent
of the mac hines working.
As it is not generally possib le to do this either, the next b est method has to
b e adopted; that of making tou rs of the f ac tory at random interv als, noting
whic h mac hines are working and whic h are stopped, and noting the c au se of
eac h stoppage. This is the b asis of the work sampling tec hniqu e. When the
sample size is large enou gh and the ob serv ations made are indeed at random,
there is qu ite a high prob ab ility that these ob serv ations will ref lec t the real
situ ation, plu s or minu s a c ertain margin of error.
249
2. A few words about sampling
Unlike the c ostly and imprac tic al method of c ontinu ou s ob serv ation, sampling
is mainly b ased on probability. Prob ab ility has b een def ined as "the extent to
whic h an ev ent is likely to oc c u r". A simple and of ten-mentioned example that
illu strates the point is that of tossing a c oin. When we toss a c oin there are two
possib ilities: that it will c ome down "heads", or that it will c ome down "tails".
The law of prob ab ility says that we are likely to hav e 50 heads and 50 tails in
ev ery 100 tosses of the c oin. Note that we u se the term "likely to hav e". In f ac t,
we might hav e a sc ore of 55-45, say, or 48-52, or some other ratio. Bu t it has
b een prov ed that the law b ec omes inc reasingly ac c u rate as the nu mb er of tosses
inc rease. In other words, the greater the nu mb er of tosses, the more c hanc e we
hav e of arriv ing at a ratio of 50 heads to 50 tails. This su ggests that the larger
the size of the sample, the more ac c u rate or representativ e it b ec omes with
respec t to the original "popu lation", or grou p of items u nder c onsideration.
We c an theref ore v isu alize a sc ale where, at one end, we c an hav e the
c omplete ac c u rac y ac hiev ed b y c ontinu ou s ob serv ation and, at the other end,
v ery dou b tf u l resu lts deriv ed f rom a f ew ob serv ations only. The size of the
sample is theref ore important, and we c an express ou r c onf idenc e in whether or
not the sample is representativ e b y u sing a c ertain confidence level.
3. Establishing confidence levels
L et u s go b ac k to ou r prev iou s example and toss f iv e c oins at a time, and then
rec ord the nu mb er of times we hav e heads and the nu mb er of times we hav e tails
f or eac h toss of these f iv e c oins. L et u s then repeat this operation 100 times.
The resu lts c ou ld b e presented as in tab le 11, or graphic ally as in f igu re 88.
If we c onsiderab ly inc rease the nu mb er of tosses and in eac h c ase toss a
large nu mb er of c oins at a time, we c an ob tain a smoother c u rv e, su c h as that
shown in f igu re 89.
Figure 88. Proportional distribution of "heads" and "tails" (1 00 tosses of five coins
at a time)
25 0
Number of
combinations
_30
_25
_20
_1 5
_1 0
_ 5
ll 1 1
P o
1 2 3 4 5
q 5 4 3 2
Combination
1 0
WORKSAMPLING ANDSTRUCTUREDESTIMATING
Table 1 1 . Proportional distribution of "heads" and "tails" (1 00 tosses of five coins
at a time)
Combination No. of combinations
Heads Tails
(P) (q)
5 0 3
4 1 1 7
3 2 30
2 3 30
1 4 1 7
0 5 3
1 00
Figure 89. Distribution curve showing probabilities of combinations when large
samples are used
_40 _
-i
_30 r
1
_20 r
1
_io r
^rrrnfT
T^n-rr
Combinations of p and q
(from, say, p= 0,c?= 1 00top= 1 00,(7= 0)
This c u rv e, c alled the curve of normal distribution, may also b e
depic ted as in f igu re 90. Basic ally, this c u rv e tells u s that, in the majority of
c ases, the tendenc y is f or the nu mb er of heads to equ al the nu mb er of tails in
any one series of tosses (when p = q the nu mb er of tosses is a maximu m). In
f ew c ases, howev er, is p markedly dif f erent f rom q du e to mere c hanc e.
Cu rv es of normal distrib u tion may b e of many shapes. They may b e
f latter, or more rou nded. To desc rib e these c u rv es we u se two attrib u tes: x, whic h
is the av erage or measu re of c entral dispersion; and a, whic h is the dev iation f rom
the av erage, ref erred to as standard dev iation. S inc e in this c ase we are dealing
with a proportion, we u se op to denote the standard error of the proportion.
The area u nder the c u rv e of normal distrib u tion c an b e c alc u lated. In
f igu re 90 one op on b oth sides of x giv es an area of 68.27 per c ent of the total
area; two op on b oth sides of x giv es an area of 95.45 per c ent and three op on
b oth sides of J giv es an area of 99.73 per c ent. We c an pu t this in another way
and say that, prov ided that we are not b iased in ou r random sampling, 95.45 per 25 1
Figure 90. Curve of normal distribution
/ B8 71% m \
X, ' PRAR% ' X
1 , S ' qqv-W,, ' \^ . 1
-3 ox - lax - \ax lax 2 ax 3< TX
c ent of all ou r ob serv ations will f all within x 2 op and 99.73 per c ent of all
ou r ob serv ations will f all within x3 ap.
This is in f ac t the degree of c onf idenc e we hav e in ou r ob serv ations. To
make things easier, howev er, we try to av oid u sing dec imal perc entages; it is
more c onv enient to speak of a 95 per c ent c onf idenc e lev el than of a 95.45 per
c ent c onf idenc e lev el. To ac hiev e this we c an c hange ou r c alc u lations and ob tain:
D 95 per c ent c onf idenc e lev el or 95 per c ent of the area u nder the c u rv e
= 1.96 op;
D 99 per c ent c onf idenc e lev el or 99 per c ent of the area u nder the c u rv e
= 2.58 op;
D 99.9 per c ent c onf idenc e lev el or 99.9 per c ent of the area u nder the c u rv e
=3.3 op.
In this c ase we c an say that if we take a large sample at random we c an
b e c onf ident that in 95 per c ent of the c ases ou r ob serv ations will f all within
1.96 op.
In work sampling the most c ommonly u sed lev el is the 95 per c ent
c onf idenc e lev el.
25 2
4. Determination of sample size
As well as def ining the c onf idenc e lev el f or ou r ob serv ations we hav e to dec ide
on the margin of error that we c an allow f or these ob serv ations. We mu st b e
ab le to say that: "We are c onf ident that f or 95 per c ent of the time this
partic u lar ob serv ation is c orrec t within 5 per c ent, or 10 per c ent", or
whatev er other range of ac c u rac y we may dec ide on.
L et u s now retu rn to ou r example ab ou t the produ c tiv e time and the idle
time of the mac hines in a f ac tory. There are two methods of determining the
sample size that wou ld b e appropriate f or this example: the statistic al method
and the nomogram method.
Statistical method
The f ormu la u sed in this method is:
"-y f
where
op = standard error of proportion
p = perc entage of idle time
q = perc entage of working time
n = nu mb er of ob serv ations or sample size we wish to determine.
Bef ore we c an u se this f ormu la, howev er, we need to hav e at least an idea
of the v alu es ofp and q. The f irst step is theref ore to c arry ou t a nu mb er of random
ob serv ations in the working area. L et u s assu me that some 100 ob serv ations
were c arried ou t as a preliminary stu dy and at random, and that these showed
the mac hine to b e idle in 25 per c ent of the c ases (p = 25) and to b e working 75
per c ent of the time (q = 75). We thu s hav e approximate v alu es f or p and q; in
order now to determine the v alu e of n, we mu st f ind ou t the v alu e of ap.
L et u s c hoose a c onf idenc e lev el of 95 per c ent with a 10 per c ent margin
of error (that is, we are c onf ident that in 95 per c ent of the c ases ou r estimates
will b e 10 per c ent of the real v alu e).
At the 95 per c ent c onf idenc e lev el:
1.96 op = 10
ap= 5 (approx.).
We c an now go b ac k to ou r original equ ation to deriv e n :
=Vf
op- ' '
p(l
5 =
25x75
n = 75 ob serv ations.
If we redu c e the margin of error to 5 per c ent, we hav e
1.96 ap= 5
op= 2.5 (approx.)
= v
2.5 = A/
25x75
n
25x75
n =
(2.5f
300 ob serv ations. 253
In other words, if we redu c e the margin of error b y half , the sample size
will hav e to b e qu adru pled.
Nomogram method
An easier way to determine sample size is to read of f the nu mb er of
ob serv ations needed direc tly f rom a nomogram su c h as the one reprodu c ed in
f igu re 91. Taking ou r prev iou s example, we draw a line f rom the "perc entage
oc c u rrenc e" ordinate p (in this c ase 25-75) to interc ept the "error (ac c u rac y
requ ired)" ordinate (say, 5 per c ent) and extend it u ntil it meets the "nu mb er of
ob serv ations" ordinate n, whic h it interc epts at 300 f or the 95 per c ent
c onf idenc e lev el. This is a v ery qu ic k way of determining sample size.
5. Making random observations
Ou r prev iou s c onc lu sions are v alid prov ided that we c an make the nu mb er of
ob serv ations needed to attain the c onf idenc e lev el and ac c u rac y requ ired, and
also prov ided that these ob serv ations are made at random.
To ensu re that ou r ob serv ations are in f ac t made at random, we c an u se a
random tab le su c h as the one in tab le 12. V ariou s types of random tab le exist,
and these c an b e u sed in dif f erent ways. In ou r c ase let u s assu me that we shall
c arry ou t ou r ob serv ations du ring a day shif t of eight hou rs, f rom 7 a.m. to
3 p.m. An eight-hou r day has 480 minu tes. These may b e div ided into 48 ten-
minu te periods.
We c an start b y c hoosing any nu mb er at random f rom ou r tab le, f or
example b y c losing ou r eyes and plac ing a penc il point somewhere on the
tab le. L et u s assu me that in this c ase we pic k, b y mere c hanc e, the nu mb er 11
whic h is in the sec ond b loc k, f ou rth c olu mn, f ou rth row (tab le 12). We now
c hoose any nu mb er b etween 1 and 10. Assu me that we c hoose the nu mb er 2;
we now go down the c olu mn pic king ou t ev ery sec ond reading and noting it
down, as shown b elow (if we had c hosen the nu mb er 3, we shou ld pic k ou t
ev ery third f igu re, and so on).
11 38 45 87 68 20 11 26 49 05
L ooking at these nu mb ers, we f ind that we hav e to disc ard 87, 68 and 49
b ec au se they are too high (sinc e we hav e only 48 ten-minu te periods, any
nu mb er ab ov e 48 has to b e disc arded). S imilarly, the sec ond 11 will also hav e
to b e disc arded sinc e it is a nu mb er that has already b een pic ked ou t. We
theref ore hav e to c ontinu e with ou r readings to replac e the f ou r nu mb ers we
hav e disc arded. Using the same method, that is c hoosing ev ery sec ond nu mb er
af ter the last one (05), we now hav e
14 15 47 22
These f ou r nu mb ers are within the desired range and hav e not appeared b ef ore.
Ou r f inal selec tion may now b e arranged nu meric ally and the times of
ob serv ation throu ghou t the eight-hou r day worked ou t. Thu s ou r smallest
nu mb er (05) represents the f if th ten-minu te period af ter the work b egan at
254 7 a.m. Thu s ou r f irst ob serv ation will b e at 7.50 a.m., and so on (tab le 13).
Figure 91 . Nomogram for determining number of observations
Percentage
occurrence (p)
1 - , - 9 9
E r r o r Number o f
(accur acy r eq ui r ed ) o bser vati o ns (n)
2 . , 9 8
3 . . 9 7
2 5
3 0
5 0
9 6
5 _ . 9 5
6 - - 9 4
9 3
- 9 2
9 1
1 0 . . 9 0
1 1 - - 89
1 2
H
_ 88
1 3 . _ 87
1 4 - - 86
1 5 - - 85
1 6 _ _ 84
1 8 _ - 82
2 0 80
^5
7 0
40 _ . 6 0
5 0
_ 0. 5 %
1 . 0
_ 2 . 0
3 . 0
1 4. 0
-
^'5 . 0
6 . 0
_ 7 . 0
8. 0
9 . 0
1 0
1 1
1 2
1 3
1 4
1 5
4000 -
3 5 00
3 000
2 5 00
2 000 _ J
1 5 00 _
1 3 00 _ -
1 2 00 _
1 1 00
1 000
9 00
800
7 00
6 p 0' _
5 00
400 -
3 00 _ -
2 00
2 000
1 6 00
1 5 00
1 400
1 3 00
1 2 00
1 1 00
1 000
9 00
800
7 00
6 00
5 00
400
_ 3 00
1 00
2 00
1 00
9 0
80
7 0
6 0
5 0
t t
9 9 . 8% 9 5 %
co nf i d ence
l evel
2 5 5
Table 1 2. Table of random numbers
49 5 4 43 5 4 82 M 37 93 23 78 87 3 5 2 0 9 6 43 84 2 6 3 4 9 1 6 4
5 7 2 4 5 5 06 88 7 7 04 7 4 47 6 7 2 1 7 6 3 3 5 0 2 5 83 9 2 1 2 06 7 6
1 6 9 5 5 5 6 7 1 9 9 8 1 0 5 0 7 1 7 5 1 2 86 7 3 5 8 07 44 3 9 5 2 3 8 7 9
7 8 6 4 5 6 07 82 5 2 42 07 44 3 8 1 5 5 1 00 1 3 42 9 9 6 6 02 7 9 5 4
09 47 2 7 9 6 5 4 49 1 7 46 09 6 2 9 0 5 2 84 7 7 2 7 08 02 7 3 43 2 8
44 1 7 1 6 5 8 09 7 9 83 86 1 9 6 2 06 7 6 5 0 03 1 0 5 5 2 3 6 4 05 05
82 9 7 7 7 7 7 9 9 83 1 1 46 3 2 2 4 2 01 485 8845 1 09 3 7 2 887 1
82 9 7 7 7 7 7 81 07 45 3 2 1 4 08 3 2 9 8 9 4 07 7 2 9 3 85 7 9 1 0 7 5
5 0 9 2 2 6 9 7 00 5 6 7 6 3 1 3 8 80 2 2 02 5 3 5 3 86 6 0 42 04 5 3
83 3 9 5 0 08 3 0 42 3 4 07 9 6 88 5 4 42 06 87 9 8 3 5 85 2 9 48 3 9
40 3 3 2 0 3 8 2 6 1 3 89 5 1 03 7 4 1 7 7 5 3 7 1 3 04 07 7 4 2 1 1 9 3 0
9 6 83 5 0 87 7 5 9 7 1 2 2 5 9 3 47 7 0 3 3 2 4 03 5 4 9 7 7 7 46 44 80
88 42 9 5 45 7 2 1 6 6 4 3 6 1 6 00 04 43 1 8 6 6 7 9 9 4 7 7 2 4 2 1 9 0
3 3 2 7 1 4 3 4 09 45 5 9 3 4 6 8 49 1 2 7 2 07 3 4 45 9 9 2 7 7 2 9 5 1 4
5 0 2 7 89 87 1 9 2 0 1 5 3 7 00 49 5 2 85 6 6 6 0 44 3 8 6 8 88 1 1 80
5 5 7 4 3 0 7 7 40 44 2 2 7 8 84 2 6 04 3 3 46 09 5 2 6 8 07 9 7 06 5 7
5 9 2 9 9 7 6 8 6 0 7 1 9 1 3 8 6 7 5 4 1 3 5 8 1 8 2 4 7 6 1 5 5 4 5 5 9 5 5 2
48 5 5 9 0 6 5 7 2 9 6 5 7 6 9 3 6 1 0 9 6 46 9 2 42 45 9 7 6 0 49 04 9 1
6 6 3 7 3 2 2 0 3 0 7 7 84 5 7 03 2 9 1 0 45 6 5 04 2 6 1 1 04 9 6 6 7 2 4
6 8 49 6 9 1 0 82 5 3 7 5 9 1 9 3 3 0 3 4 2 5 2 0 5 7 2 7 40 48 7 3 5 1 9 2
83 6 2 6 4 1 1 1 2 6 7 1 9 00 7 1 7 4 6 0 47 2 1 2 9 6 8 02 02 3 7 03 3 1
06 09 1 9 7 4 6 6 02 9 4 3 7 3 4 02 7 6 7 0 9 0 3 0 86 3 8 45 9 4 3 0 3 8
3 3 3 2 5 1 2 6 3 8 7 9 7 8 45 04 9 1 1 6 9 2 5 3 5 6 1 6 02 7 5 5 0 9 5 9 8
42 3 8 9 7 01 5 0 87 7 5 6 6 81 41 40 01 7 4 9 1 6 2 48 5 1 84 08 3 2
9 6 44 3 3 49 1 3 3 4 86 82 5 3 9 1 00 5 2 43 48 85 2 7 5 5 2 6 89 6 2
6 4 05 7 1 9 5 85 1 1 05 6 5 09 6 8 7 6 83 2 0 3 7 9 0 5 7 1 5 00 1 1 6 6
7 5 7 3 88 05 9 0 5 2 2 7 41 1 4 86 2 2 9 8 1 2 2 2 08 07 5 2 7 4 9 5 80
3 3 9 6 02 7 5 1 9 07 6 0 6 2 9 3 5 5 5 9 3 3 82 43 9 0 49 3 7 3 8 44 5 9
9 7 5 1 40 1 4 02 04 02 3 3 3 1 08 3 9 5 41 6 49 3 6 47 9 5 9 3 1 3 3 0
1 5 06 1 5 9 3 2 0 01 9 0 1 0 7 5 06 40 7 8 7 8 89 6 2 02 5 7 7 4 1 7 3 3
2 2 3 5 85 1 5 3 3 9 2 03 5 1 5 9 7 7 5 9 5 6 7 8 06 83 5 2 9 1 05 7 0 7 4
09 9 8 42 9 9 6 4 6 1 7 1 5 2 9 9 1 5 06 5 1 2 9 1 6 9 3 5 8 05 7 7 09 5 1
5 4 87 6 6 47 5 4 7 3 3 2 08 1 1 1 2 44 9 5 9 2 5 3 1 6 2 9 5 6 2 4 2 9 48
5 8 3 7 7 8 80 7 0 42 1 0 5 0 6 7 42 3 2 1 7 5 5 85 7 4 9 4 44 6 7 1 6 9 4
87 5 9 3 6 2 2 41 2 5 7 8 6 3 06 5 5 1 3 08 2 7 01 5 0 1 5 2 9 3 9 3 9 43
7 1 41 6 1 5 0 7 2 1 2 41 9 4 9 6 2 5 44 9 5 2 7 3 6 9 9 02 9 6 7 4 3 0 83
2 3 5 2 2 3 3 3 1 2 9 6 9 3 02 1 8 3 9 07 02 1 8 3 6 07 2 5 9 9 3 2 7 0 2 3
3 1 04 49 6 9 9 6 1 0 47 48 45 88 1 3 41 43 89 2 0 9 7 1 7 1 4 49 1 7
3 1 9 9 7 3 6 8 6 8 3 5 81 3 3 03 7 6 2 4 3 0 1 2 48 6 0 1 8 9 9 1 0 7 2 3 4
9 4 5 8 2 8 41 3 5 45 3 7 5 9 03 09 9 0 3 5 5 7 2 9 1 2 82 5 2 5 4 5 5 6 0
2 5 6
Table 1 3. Determining the sequence of time for random observations
Usable numbers as selected Arranged in Time of observation'
from the random table numerical order
1 1 05 7 . 5 0 a. m.
3 8 1 1 8. 5 0 a. m.
45 1 4 9 . 2 0 a. m.
2 0 1 5 9 . 3 0 a. m.
2 5 2 0 1 0. 2 0 a. m.
05 2 2 1 0. 40 a. m.
1 4 2 6 1 1 . 2 0 a. m.
1 5 3 8 1 . 2 0 p . m.
47 45 2 . 3 0 p . m.
2 2 47 2 . 5 0 p . m.
' Multiply each number by ten minutes and start from 7 a.m.
6. Conducting the study
Determining the scope of the study
Bef ore making ou r ac tu al ob serv ations, it is important that we dec ide on the
objective of ou r work sampling. The simplest ob jec tiv e is that of determining
whether a giv en mac hine is idle or working. In su c h a c ase, ou r ob serv ations
aim at detec ting one of two possib ilities only:
Ob serv ations
i " i
Mac hine working Mac hine idle
We c an, howev er, extend this simple model to try to f ind ou t the c au se of
the stoppage of the mac hine:
Ob serv ations
i
i
Mac hine working
i
Mac hine idle
i
i
Waiting
f or
repairs
Waiting
f or
su pplies
i
Personal Id]
needs of
workers
Again, we may b e interested in determining the perc entage of time spent
on eac h ac tiv ity while the mac hine is working:
Ob serv ations
i
i
Mac hine working Mac hine idle
i ' 1
Cu tting Boring Filing 257
Or perhaps we may wish to get an idea of the perc entage distrib u tion of
time when the mac hine is working and when it is idle, in whic h c ase we
c omb ine the last two models.
We may also b e interested in the perc entage time spent b y a worker or
grou ps of workers on a giv en element of work. If a c ertain job c onsists of ten
dif f erent elements, b y ob serv ing a worker at the def ined points in time we c an
rec ord on whic h element he or she is working and theref ore arriv e at a
perc entage distrib u tion of the time he or she has b een spending on eac h
element.
The ob jec tiv es to b e reac hed b y the stu dy will theref ore determine the
design of the rec ording sheet u sed in work sampling, as c an b e seen f rom
f igu res 92, 93 and 94.
Making the observations
S o f ar we hav e taken the f irst f iv e logic al steps in c ondu c ting a work sampling
stu dy. To rec apitu late, these c onsist of :
D selec ting the job to b e stu died and determining the ob jec tiv es of the stu dy;
D making a preliminary ob serv ation to determine the approximate v alu es of
p andq;
D in terms of a c hosen c onf idenc e lev el and ac c u rac y range, determining n
(the nu mb er of ob serv ations needed);
D determining the f requ enc y of ob serv ations, u sing random tab les;
D designing rec ord sheets to meet the ob jec tiv es of the stu dy.
There is one more step to take: that of making and rec ording the
ob serv ations and analyzing the resu lts. In making the ob serv ations, it is
essential f rom the ou tset that the work stu dy person is c lear ab ou t what is to b e
ac hiev ed and why. Amb igu ity shou ld b e av oided when c lassif ying ac tiv ities.
For example, if the engine of a f ork-lif t tru c k is ru nning while the tru c k is
waiting to b e loaded or u nloaded, it shou ld b e dec ided b ef orehand whether this
means that the tru c k is working or idle. It is also essential f or the work stu dy
person to c ontac t the persons he or she wishes to ob serv e, explaining to them
the pu rpose of the stu dy, indic ating to them that they shou ld work at their
normal pac e and endeav ou ring to gain their c onf idenc e and c ooperation.
The ob serv ation itself shou ld b e made at the same point relativ e to eac h
mac hine. The work stu dy person shou ld not note what is happening at the
mac hines ahead, as this tends to f alsif y the stu dy. For example, in a weav ing
department, the ob serv er may notic e a loom that is stopped, ju st ahead of the
one he or she is ob serv ing. The weav er may hav e it ru nning again b y the time
the ob serv er reac hes it. The ob serv er wou ld, b y noting it as idle, b e giv ing an
u ntru e pic tu re.
The rec ording itself , as c an b e seen, c onsists simply of making a stroke in
f ront of the appropriate ac tiv ity on the rec ord sheet at the proper and
predetermined time. No stop-watc hes are u sed.
The analysis of resu lts c an b e c alc u lated readily on the rec ord sheet. It is
258 possib le to f ind ou t the perc entage of ef f ec tiv e time c ompared with that of
Figure 92. Example of a simple work sampling record sheet
Date: Observer: Study No.:
Number of observations: 75 Total Percentage
Machine
running mmmmmmw
62 82.7
Machine
idle
00/1 1
1 3 1 7.3
Figure 93. Work sampling record sheet showing machine utilization and distribution
of idle time
Number of observations: 75 Total Percentage
Machine running
0000000000001 1
62 82.7
Machine
idle
Repairs
II
2 2.7
Supplies
0
6
8.0
Personal
1
1 1 .3
Idle
mi
4 5 .3
Figure 94. Work sampling record sheet showing distribution of time on ten elements
of work performed by a group of four workers
Number of observations: 75
Elements of work
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0
Worker No. 1
Worker No. 2
Worker No. 3
Worker No. 4
259
delays, to analyze the reasons f or inef f ec tiv e time and to asc ertain the
perc entage time spent b y a worker, grou ps of workers or a mac hine on a giv en
work element. These, in themselv es, prov ide u sef u l inf ormation in a simple and
reasonab ly qu ic k way.
7. Rated work sampling
In Chapter 22 we shall disc u ss the prob lem of rating a worker's perf ormanc e
relativ e to a c onc eiv ed standard pac e. Thu s qu alif ied workers who work
ac c ording to a spec if ied method and who are motiv ated to apply themselv es to
work b riskly b u t natu rally withou t ov er-exertion are said to b e working at 100
per c ent standard rating on the perf ormanc e sc ale. As will b ec ome apparent in
that c hapter, rating is an important f ac tor in deriv ing a time f or an operation
sinc e not all workers work at the same pac e. As a resu lt, a work stu dy person
has to take the pac e of work into c onsideration when timing a stu dy.
This rating of pac e c an equ ally b e c omb ined with work sampling to giv e
what is known as rated work sampling or rated activity sampling.
In this method, ob serv ations are taken at f ixed interv als rather than at
random times. When u sing f ixed interv al sampling, c are mu st b e taken to
ensu re that the f ixed interv al selec ted does not c oinc ide with a natu ral c yc le in
the work. S u c h a c oinc idenc e wou ld distort the resu lts, b u t generally if the
interv al is short enou gh when c ompared to the ov erall job c yc le time, normal
v ariations in the work will av oid su c h a prob lem oc c u rring.
Du ring the sampling stu dy, in addition to the ac tiv ity b eing u ndertaken at
the instant of the ob serv ation, a rec ording is also made of the pac e of the
worker u sing a perf ormanc e rating sc ale. This rating c an b e u sed to modif y the
resu lts of the stu dy throu gh the proc ess of extension (c onv erting ob serv ed
times to b asic times) whic h is disc u ssed in Chapter 22.
8. Group sampling techniques
As the name su ggests, these are designed f or the measu rement of work c arried
ou t b y grou ps of workers. The tec hniqu es are sometimes ref erred to b y the term
"high-f requ enc y sampling" sinc e, when u sed f or the measu rement of short-
c yc le work, they u se f ixed short-time interv als with the ob serv er in c onstant
attendanc e. They are thu s v ery c lose to time stu dy b u t hav e the adv antage that
the ob serv er c an c ov er the work of the grou p. G rou p sampling tec hniqu es may
make u se of rating.
Consider a v ery simple example of three workers eac h produ c ing the
same parts b y a proc ess that inv olv es only hand tools. The sampling is c arried
ou t at 0.5 minu te interv als and inv olv es the c ategories of "working" and "not
working" only. The sampling ob serv ations hav e b een rated and this is thu s an
example of b oth rated ac tiv ity sampling and grou p sampling.
The sampling sheet wou ld look as shown in tab le 14.
260
Table 1 4. Rated work sampling recording sheet
Time Operator 1 Operator 2
Working Not working Working Not working
Operator 3
Working Not working
9.00 85 90 80
9.005 90 85
9.01 90 90
9.01 5
9.02 95
9.025
Total time of observation = 25 0 mln.
No. of observations on each operator = 5 00 min.
Total number of observations working = 1 ,370 min.
not working = 1 30min.
Average rating for the three workers = 87% (based on a 1 00%
standard performance)
Total number of parts produced = 62
Then, total working time = 1 ,370x0.5 = 685 min.
Conversion to basic time =
685

x

87
= 5 96 basic min.
1 00
Basic min. per part = = 9.6 min.
62
If rating is not taken into consideration then group sampling results would be = = 1 1 .04 min.
9. Using work sampling
Work sampling either indiv idu ally or b y grou p, with or withou t rating, is
widely u sed. It is a relativ ely simple tec hniqu e that c an b e u sed adv antageou sly
in a wide v ariety of situ ations, su c h as manu f ac tu ring, serv ic e and of f ic e
operations. Apart f rom prov iding a qu ic k resu lt, it is a f airly low-c ost method
and one that is less c ontrov ersial than time stu dy. The inf ormation deriv ed f rom
work sampling c an b e u sed to prov ide f or a more equ itab le distrib u tion of work
in a grou p and, in general, to prov ide the management with an apprec iation of
the perc entage of and reasons b ehind inef f ec tiv e time. As a resu lt it may
indic ate where method stu dy needs to b e applied, materials handling improv ed
or b etter produ c tion planning methods introdu c ed, as may b e the c ase if work
sampling shows that a c onsiderab le perc entage of mac hine time is spent idle,
waiting f or su pplies to arriv e. 261
10. Structured estimating
Estimating is prob ab ly the earliest "measu rement" tec hniqu e. People hav e
always u sed the b asis of past experienc e to predic t f u tu re ev ents. Normally,
howev er, simple estimates are too u nreliab le to b e u sed as the b asis of ef f ec tiv e
planning and c ontrol. The ac c u rac y of estimating depends on the experienc e of
the estimator in the f ield in whic h he or she is estimating. S tru c tu red estimating
tec hniqu es are an attempt to make u se of this f ac t and at the same time to
impose a stru c tu re and a disc ipline on the estimating proc ess so that resu lts
deriv ed f rom it c an b e treated with c onf idenc e.
The adv antages of estimating are that:
D it is c heap to apply, and theref ore may b e the only tec hniqu e appropriate
to one-of f job s;
D it c an b e u sed to predic t times f or work whic h has not b een ob serv ed and
thu s c an b e u sed as a b asis f or pric e estimating f or large, one-of f job s.
Estimating is normally u sed where the requ ired time v alu es are not
requ ired in great detail. Thu s su c h tec hniqu es are u sef u l in long-c yc le work and
in situ ations where aggregated measu rement data are u sed f or planning, c ontrol
or payment ov er reasonab ly lengthy time periods.
Analytical estimating
Analytic al estimating is a c omb ination of estimating and synthesis f rom
standard data. The tec hniqu e is b ased on the f ac t that if job s are b roken down
into c onstitu ent elements and indiv idu al elements are measu red or estimated,
errors in those indiv idu al times will b e random and will c ompensate f or one
another to leav e an ov erall time that will b e within ac c eptab le limits. S imilarly,
when a nu mb er of job s are c omb ined into a larger time ac c u mu lation (su c h as
the workload f or a giv en week), indiv idu al errors in job times will b e random
and c ompensated b y one another, leav ing an ov erall time that is ac c eptab le.
The estimating is normally c arried ou t b y a worker who is skilled in the
area of work b eing measu red and who has b een trained in work stu dy
tec hniqu es. The estimator then:
D b reaks a job into elements;
D applies any standard or synthetic data that are av ailab le;
D c arries ou t measu rement on elements whic h are c onsidered to warrant
su c h ef f ort and expenditu re;
D estimates any remaining elements u sing his or her experienc e and
knowledge of the working c onditions, saf ety f ac tors, etc .
Element times whic h are estimated may then b e inc orporated into the
standard data f or f u tu re u se, althou gh su c h data shou ld b e rev alidated at interv als.
Comparative estimating
Comparativ e estimating relies on the identif ic ation and measu rement of
"b enc hmark" job s of known work c ontent against whic h all other job s to b e
262 measu red are c ompared. The b enc hmark job s are selec ted to represent the
whole range of work inv olv ed and to represent intermediate points on the
ov erall sc ale of job . These b enc hmark job s are measu red with some prec ision
u sing an estab lished work measu rement tec hniqu e.
The next stage is to identif y time b ands or slots. These are determined b y
statistic al analysis and may not b e of equ al width. Commonly, a logarithmic
progression is selec ted with eac h slot b eing alloc ated a b asic or standard time
equ iv alent to its mid-point.
Thu s:
S lot 1
Range (min.) 0-30 31-60 61-120 121-240
Basic time 15 45 90 180
Eac h of the b enc hmark job s is assigned to the appropriate slot.
When estimating work su b sequ ently, the estimator ref ers to the
b enc hmark job s and c ompares the job b eing measu red. On the b asis of
experienc e, he or she makes a c omparison of the work c ontent of the job to b e
estimated with a nu mb er of the b enc hmark job s. When he or she is satisf ied
that the c orrec t slot f or the job has b een identif ied, he or she assigns the slot
b asic time to that job . Bec au se this time is to b e c omb ined with others to giv e a
total workload ov er a long period, the f ac t that this one time is "inac c u rate"
does not matter. It is dangerou s, howev er, to u se su c h indiv idu al times ou tside
the planned period designed to of f er the statistic ally c orrec t error c ompensation
period.
Bec au se of the high set-u p c ost of this system (in terms of measu ring all
the b enc hmark job s, training estimators, and so on), c omparativ e estimating is
most su itab le f or situ ations where there is a lot of long-c yc le, non-repetitiv e
work. A c ommon area of applic ation is in maintenanc e work, where the work
is similar b u t no two job s may b e identic al. To redu c e the set-u p time, it is
possib le to "import" data on b enc hmark job s f rom another organization (su c h
as a c onsu lting f irm). If this is done, it is important to v alidate the data (as with
any imported standard data) in its f ield of operation throu gh c arrying ou t some
c omparativ e stu dies.
263
CHAPTER 20
Time study:
The equipment
1. What is time study?
In Chapter 18 we listed the main tec hniqu es of work measu rement. We shall
now examine, in the next f ew c hapters, one of the most important of these
tec hniqu es, namely time study.
Time study is a work measurement technique for recording the
times of performing a certain specific job or its elements carried
out under specified conditions, and for analysing the data so as to
obtain the time necessary for an operator to carry it out at a
defined rate of performance
2. Time study equipment
If time stu dies are to b e made, c ertain items of equ ipment are essential. Basic
time stu dy equ ipment c onsists of :
D a stop-watc h;
D a stu dy b oard;
D time stu dy f orms;
althou gh any or all of these may b e replac ed with elec tronic equ iv alents as will
b e indic ated later on.
The stu dy person will need to b e c arrying the timing and rec ording
dev ic es whenev er a time stu dy is made. In addition, in the stu dy of f ic e, there
mu st b e f ac ilities f or assisting with the analysis of the time stu dy. These may
v ary f rom a small c alc u lator to a personal c ompu ter.
Other measu ring instru ments will b e requ ired f rom time to time to ob tain
data on the work b eing measu red most work stu dy of f ic es will hav e (ac c ess
to) su c h dev ic es as tape measu res, steel ru les, mic rometers, spring b alanc es,
and so on.
In addition, the of f ic e shou ld hav e a c lear, reliab le c loc k with a sec ond
hand f or rec ording stu dy start and f inish times. 265
The stop-watch
There are two main types of watc h in general u se f or time stu dy the
mec hanic al and the elec tronic . Mec hanic al watc hes c an again b e su b div ided
into the f lyb ac k and non-f lyb ac k types, with a third type the split-hand stop-
watc h in less c ommon u se. Elec tronic stop-watc hes may b e part of a
spec ially designed stu dy b oard or data c aptu re dev ic e.
S top-watc h
i
i
Elec tronic Mec hanic al
I 1 i 1 1
S tand-alone Elec tronic Flyb ac k Non-f lyb ac k
stop-watc h stu dy b oard S plit-hand
Mec hanic al-type watc hes may b e ob tained with any one of three
gradu ated sc ales:
D rec ording one minu te per rev olu tion b y interv als of one-f if th of a sec ond,
with a small hand rec ording 30 minu tes;
D rec ording one minu te per rev olu tion c alib rated in 1/lOOths of a minu te,
with a small hand rec ording 30 minu tes (the dec imal-minu te watc h);
D rec ording 1/lOOth of an hou r per rev olu tion c alib rated in l/10,000ths of
an hou r; a small hand rec ords u p to one hou r in 100 div isions (the
dec imal-hou r watc h).
It is also possib le to ob tain watc hes with the main sc ale in dec imal
minu tes and an au xiliary sc ale ou tside it, u su ally in red, gradu ated in sec onds
and f if ths of a sec ond.
A f lyb ac k dec imal-minu te stop-watc h prob ab ly the type in most
general u se today is shown in f igu re 95. The hand of the small dial makes
l/30th of a rev olu tion f or eac h rev olu tion of the main hand, and thu s makes a
c omplete tu rn ev ery 30 minu tes.
In this type of watc h the mov ement is started and stopped b y a slide (A) at
the side of the winding-knob (B). Pressu re on the top of the winding-knob
c au ses b oth the hands to f ly b ac k to zero withou t stopping the mec hanism,
f rom whic h point they immediately mov e f orward again. If the slide is u sed,
the hands c an b e stopped at any point on the dial and restarted withou t
retu rning to zero as soon as the slide is released. This type of watc h c an b e
u sed f or either "f lyb ac k" or "c u mu lativ e" timing (see Chapter 21, sec tion 9).
The non-f lyb ac k type is c ontrolled b y pressu re on the top of the winding-
knob . The f irst pressu re starts the watc h; the sec ond pressu re stops it; the third
pressu re retu rns the hands to zero. This watc h is su itab le only f or c u mu lativ e
timing.
In the split-hand type of watc h, pressing a sec ondary knob c au ses one of
the hands to stand still while the other c ontinu es to measu re time. When the
knob is pressed a sec ond time, the stopped hand retu rns to the mov ing one and
the two go on together. In this way, when a reading is taken, a stopped hand is
266 read instead of a mov ing one, giv ing greater ac c u rac y of reading.
TIME STUDY: THE EQUIPMENT
Figure 95 . A decimal-minute stop-watch
A = Slide for stopping and starting the movement.
B = Winding knob. Pressure on this knob returns both the hands to zero.
The split-hand watc h is easier to read, b u t is heav ier, more expensiv e and,
b ec au se of its c omplexity, more trou b lesome to repair. With properly trained
time stu dy persons, equ ally good resu lts c an b e ob tained with a simpler, lighter
and less expensiv e watc h. Unless there are spec ial reasons f or pref erring one of
the other types, the single-pressu re, c entre-sweep hand, f lyb ac k watc h with the
main dial gradu ated in 1/lOOths of a minu te and the smaller dial rec ording 30
minu tes will b e f ou nd most serv ic eab le f or time stu dy. This is the type
illu strated in f igu re 95.
Whatev er type of watc h is u sed, it shou ld always b e rememb ered that it is
a delic ate instru ment whic h mu st b e treated with c are. Watc hes shou ld b e
wou nd f u lly b ef ore eac h stu dy, and shou ld b e allowed to ru n down ov ernight.
At regu lar interv als they shou ld b e sent to a watc hmaker f or c leaning and
rou tine ov erhau l.
The study board
The stu dy b oard is simply a f lat b oard, u su ally of plywood or of su itab le plastic
sheet, needed f or plac ing the time stu dy f orms. It shou ld b e rigid and larger
than the largest f orm likely to b e u sed. It may hav e a f itting to hold the watc h,
so that the hands of the work stu dy person are lef t relativ ely f ree and the watc h
is in a position to b e read easily. For right-handed people the watc h is normally
plac ed at the top of the b oard on the right-hand side, so that the b oard may b e
rested on the lef t f orearm with the b ottom edge against the b ody and the 267
f oref inger or middle f inger of the lef t hand u sed to press the winding knob
when resetting the watc h (f igu re 96). S ome work stu dy persons pref er to attac h
their watc hes with strong ru b b er b ands or leather thongs arou nd the two middle
f ingers of their lef t hands and to hold them at the top of the b oard in that way.
It is largely a matter of indiv idu al pref erenc e, prov ided that the watc h is
sec u rely held and c an b e easily read and manipu lated. A strong spring c lip
shou ld also b e f itted to the b oard to hold the f orms on whic h the stu dy is
rec orded.
A stu dy b oard whic h is either too short or too long f or the stu dy person's
arm soon b ec omes tiring to u se. Most stu dy persons pref er theref ore to hav e
their own indiv idu al b oards made u p to f it their own arm lengths, af ter they
hav e had su f f ic ient prac tic e to know whic h size will b e most c omf ortab le.
Electronic stop-watches and study boards
An elec tronic stop-watc h (f igu re 97) perf orms exac tly the same role as a
mec hanic al one the rec ording of element du rations. One of the main
adv antages is that it allows f lyb ac k timing to b e perf ormed withou t any loss of
ac c u rac y. (With a mec hanic al watc h the time taken f or the hand to retu rn to
zero is "lost". With an experienc ed prac titioner, this time is minimal b u t with a
trainee or inexperienc ed ob serv er, it c an b e signif ic ant and c an jeopardize the
ac c u rac y of a time stu dy.) With an elec tronic watc h the timing dev ic e is
ru nning c ontinu ally and it is only the display that is u pdated as the "f lyb ac k"
b u tton is pressed to reset the display to zero. At the end of the time stu dy with
most watc hes it is possib le to read of f the total elapsed time.
Elec tronic watc hes c an of ten b e u sed in a nu mb er of c alib ration modes
they c an b e set to rec ord in f rac tions of sec onds, minu tes or hou rs.
Elec tronic data c aptu re dev ic es or stu dy b oards are u nits whic h are u sed
to rec ord ac tiv ity du ring a time stu dy and whic h inc lu de an elec tronic timing
dev ic e whic h au tomatic ally assigns times to elements.
The most u su al proc edu re is that as work proc eeds, the ob serv er keys into
the dev ic e a c ode that identif ies the element b eing c arried ou t and then keys in
the rating assigned to the element. At the moment of the b reakpoint, the
ob serv er hits a key to terminate the element. This c au ses the time to b e
rec orded (b u t not displayed) and the rec ording of the next element to b egin.
The b oard or data c aptu re u nit rec ords all this data (element c ode, rating and
element du ration) in its internal memory f or later analysis, of ten v ia transf er to
a personal c ompu ter.
There are two types of u nit in c ommon u se. The f irst are hand-held
c ompu ters whic h hav e b een modif ied f or time stu dy pu rposes (mainly throu gh
the addition of time stu dy sof tware, b u t the "c u stomization" proc ess may
inc lu de su c h things as new legends on the keys) and the sec ond are spec ially
designed elec tronic time stu dy b oards. The f irst hav e the adv antage that when
not b eing u sed f or time stu dy they may, in addition to other sof tware, b e u sed
f or other applic ations. Conv ersely, hand-held c ompu ters may requ ire the u se of
a stu dy b oard as well, to take notes, and c omb ining the two may b e dif f ic u lt
268 and c u mb ersome. The spec ially designed b oards hav e the adv antage that they
Figure 96. Time study boards
(a) Study board for general purpose form
(b) Study board for short cycle form
269
Figure 97. An electronic stop-watch
are generally easier to u se f or time stu dy rec ording. For example, they may
hav e keys lab elled "OC" f or oc c asional element, "FE" f or f oreign element, and
so on.
An example of an elec tronic stu dy b oard is shown in f igu re 98.
One of the adv antages of elec tronic data c aptu re is that, b ec au se the time
is nev er v isib le to the ob serv er, it b ec omes impossib le to "c loc k rate", in other
words to b e tempted to adju st the rating as will b e ref erred to later in Chapter
21, sec tion 9. Another important adv antage is that the ob serv er is requ ired to
c arry ou t less writing (if any at all) and c an pay more attention to the work
b eing measu red. (Notes may hav e to b e made ab ou t f oreign elements,
f requ enc ies, ab normal oc c u rrenc es, and so on, and thu s the elec tronic stu dy
b oard normally has spac e f or a writing pad.)
270
3. Time study forms
Taking a time stu dy requ ires the rec ording of su b stantial amou nts of data.
These data are in a regu lar f orm c onsisting of element c odes or desc riptions,
ratings and element du rations (perhaps with additional explanatory notes).
Althou gh the data c ou ld b e rec orded on plain paper, it is more c onv enient to
u se pre-printed f orms whic h ensu re that eac h stu dy is of the same c onsistent
f ormat, that all relev ant data are rec orded and that f iling and retriev al of
c ompleted stu dies is more reliab le.
Figure 98. An electronic study board
Source: GP-1 Time Study Board supplied byTectime Data Systems, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, United Kingdom.
There are nu merou s designs of f orms; most work stu dy prac titioners hav e
their own ideas on the ideal layou t. The examples shown in this b ook represent
designs whic h hav e b een prov ed in prac tic e to b e satisf ac tory f or general work.
The princ ipal f orms u sed in time stu dy f all into two grou ps: those u sed at
the point of ob serv ation while ac tu ally making the stu dy, and whic h shou ld
theref ore b e designed or selec ted to f it the stu dy b oard in u se; and those whic h
are u sed af ter the stu dy, as part of the analysis proc ess, in the stu dy of f ic e.
Elec tronic stu dy b oards and data-c aptu re dev ic es eliminate most of the
need f or time stu dy f orms. Howev er, it is still important to rec ord notes whic h
relate to the work b eing ob serv ed, espec ially where it is seen to dev iate f rom
normal prac tic e or c onditions, and a simple f orm whic h has as a minimu m the
rec ording of the date, time, ob serv er and operator will su f f ic e. S imilarly, when
it c omes to the analysis stage, many of the f orms u sed in the analysis of stu dies
271
Figure 99. General-purpose time study top sheet
Time study top sheet
Department: Study No.:
Sheet No.: of
Operation: MS No.:
Plant/Machine: No.:
Tools and gauges:
Time off:
Time on:
Elapsed time:
Operative:
Clock No.;
Product/Part: No.:
DWG No.: Material:
Quality:
Studied by;
Date:
Checked:
Note: Sketch the workplace laycut/set-up/part on the reverse, or on a separate sheet and attach.
Element description R WR ST BT Element description R WR ST BT
Note: R = Rating. WR = Watch reading. ST = Subtracted time. BT = Basic time.
taken with a c onv entional stop-watc h will not b e requ ired sinc e the analysis
may b e c arried ou t b y c ompu ter. The f orms desc rib ed here are theref ore those
whic h wou ld b e u sed b y an ob serv er taking c onv entional time stu dies with a
mec hanic al or elec tronic stop-watc h and rec ording the data b y hand.
Forms used on the study board
D Time study top sheet: The top and introdu c tory sheet of a stu dy, on
whic h is rec orded all the essential inf ormation ab ou t the stu dy, the
elements into whic h the operation b eing stu died has b een b roken down,
and the b reakpoints u sed. It may also rec ord the f irst f ew c yc les of the
stu dy itself . The example shown in f igu re 99 has spac es in the heading f or
all the inf ormation normally requ ired ab ou t a stu dy exc ept the sketc h of
the workplac e layou t, whic h shou ld b e drawn either on the rev erse of the
sheet, if the layou t is v ery simple, or on a separate sheet (pref erab ly of
squ ared paper) and attac hed to the stu dy.
D Continuation sheet: This f orm is u sed f or f u rther c yc les of the stu dy. An
example is shown in f igu re 100, f rom whic h it will b e seen that the f orm
c onsists only of the c olu mns and spac e f or the stu dy and sheet nu mb er. It
is u su al to print this ru ling on b oth sides of the paper; on the rev erse side
the heading is not nec essary.
These two f orms are the ones most generally u sed. Together they are
adequ ate f or most general time stu dy work. For the rec ording of short
c yc le repetitiv e operations, howev er, it is c onv enient to u se a spec ially
ru led f orm instead.
D Short cycle study form: Two examples of a short c yc le f orm are
illu strated. That in f igu re 101 shows a simple type of f orm whic h serv es
v ery well f or most c ommon short c yc le work. The other, shown in f igu re
102 and in f igu re 103, is a more c omplic ated f orm, adapted f rom one in
general u se in the United S tates; it may b e more su itab le if short c yc le
work is the ru le rather than the exc eption.
Forms used in the study office
D Working sheet f or analysing the readings ob tained du ring the stu dy and
ob taining representativ e times f or eac h element of the operation. One
example of a working sheet is shown in f igu re 125 in Chapter 25. As will
b e seen later, there are v ariou s ways in whic h the analysis may b e made,
eac h requ iring a dif f erent ru ling on the sheet. For this reason many time
stu dy persons pref er to u se simple lined sheets, of the same size as the
stu dy sheets, f or making their analyses, c lipping these to the stu dy sheets
when c omplete.
D Study summary sheet to whic h the selec ted or deriv ed times f or' all the
elements are transf erred, with the f requ enc ies of the elements'
oc c u rrenc e. This sheet, as its name su ggests, su mmarizes neatly all the
inf ormation whic h has b een ob tained du ring the c ou rse of the stu dy. The
heading inc lu des all the details rec orded ab ou t the operation at the top of 273
Figure 1 00. Continuation sheet for general-purpose time study (front)
274
Study No.: Time study continuation sheet Sheet No. of
Note: Reverse side similar, but without upper line of heading.
Figure 1 01 . Simple type of short cycle study form
Short cycle study form
Department: Section: Study No.:
Sheet No.: of
Operation: MS No.:
Plant/Machine: No.:
Tools and gauges:
Time off:
Time on:
Elapsed time:
Operative:
Clock No.:
Product/Part: No.:
DWG No.: Material:
Quality: Working conditions:
Studied by:
Date:
Checked ;
Note: Sketch the workplace overleaf.
El.
No.
Element description
Observed time
Total
OT
Aver-
age
OT
R BT
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0
Note: R = Rating. OT = Observed time. BT = Basic time.
275
O
Fig ure 1 02. Short cycle study form (front)
Date of study
Time finished
Time started
Elapsed time
-
Short cycle study sheet
Study IMn.
Sht. of Shts.
Dfipartmfnt
Part nar
DWG N
ne
0. Part No.
Basin cycle time Min.
or
Total ave. element time Min.
Operation
-
Spfied r.p.m.
Rating factor _
Tools used
reen ivim/ivnn. Basic cycie Time ivnn.
Mar.hinfi and Nn.
Operated Auto D Foot D Hand D
Standard Reason for study
Original study D
Method study change D
To check estb. standard D
Allowances
Personal %
Delay %
Fatigue %
Others %
_ % Min.
Material
Workplace layout Description of method
Remarks:
o
o
H
O
g
O
Figure 1 03. Short cycle study form (back]
Date of study
Time finished
Time started
Elapsed time
Short cycle study sheet
Study No.
Sht. of Shts.
Element No. 1
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0 Name of operative
Standing D / y/ y^ y^ y^ y/ y^ y/ y/ /^
/
/Clock No.
Sitting / / / / / / / y / /
/Observed by
ivioving U/ / / / / / / / / /
abOUt >/ /^ yS y' yS yS /^ yS y^ yS
^Âpproved by
/ Foreign elements
Cycle
No.
Symbol Description
1 A
2 B
3 C
4 D
5 E
6 F
7 G
8 H
9 I
1 0 J
1 1 K
1 2 L
1 3 M
1 4 N
1 5 0
1 6 P
1 7 Q
1 8 R
1 9 S
20 T
Total
No. of
Obs.
Average
Rating
%
Basic
time
c
o
<
o
c
^1
Figure 1 04. Study summary sheet
278
Study summary sheet
Department: Section: Study No:
Sheet No.: of
Operation: MS No.:
Plant/Machine: No.:
Tools and gauges:
Date:
Time off:
Time on:
Elapsed time:
Check time:
Product/Part: No.:
DWG No.: Material:
Quality: Working conditions:
Net time:
Obs. time:
Unacc. time:
UT as %
Studied by:
Checked : Operative: M/F Clock No.:
Sketch and notes on back of sheet 1 .
El. No. Element description BT F Obs.
Note: BT = Basic time. F = Frequency of occurrence per cycle. Obs. = No. of observations.
Figure 105. Analysis of studies sheet
Analysis of studies
Operation:
Details of machine, materials, etc.:
Study No.:
Date made:
Operative:
Clock No.:
Machine No.;
Study taken by:
No. of cycles studied:
El. No. Element description
Note: El. = element; BM = Basic minutes; SM = Standard minutes; SH = Standard hours.
M
ID
the time stu dy top sheet. The c ompleted stu dy su mmary sheet is c lipped
on top of all the other stu dy sheets and is thu s f iled with them. The
su mmary sheet shou ld theref ore b e of the same size as that c hosen f or the
stu dy sheets. An example is shown in f igu re 104, f rom whic h it will b e
seen that the main b ody of the sheet has spac e f or the ru ling of additional
c olu mns, shou ld these b e needed f or the partic u lar stu dy b eing
su mmarized.
D Analysis of studies sheet on whic h are rec orded, f rom the stu dy
su mmary sheets, the resu lts ob tained in all the stu dies made on an
operation. The analysis of stu dies sheet rec ords the resu lts of all the
stu dies made of a partic u lar operation, no matter when they were made or
b y whom. It is f rom the analysis of stu dies sheets that the b asic times f or
the elements of the operation are f inally c ompiled. The sheet is of ten
mu c h larger than the ordinary stu dy f orms. S ee f igu re 105 and f igu re 127
in Chapter 25.
D A spec ially ru led sheet f or the c ompilation of relaxation allowances is
also of ten u sed.
The u se of all these f orms, b oth those employed when ac tu ally making the
stu dy and those u sed af terwards to analyse and rec ord it, will b e desc rib ed in
detail in su b sequ ent c hapters.
4. Other equipment
The stop-watc h or elec tronic data c aptu re dev ic e prov ides the nec essary
ac c u rac y f or all general-pu rpose work. Where this is not so, f or example in
highly repetitiv e, v ery short-c yc le work, then some other measu rement
tec hniqu e is more appropriate than time stu dy. Time stu dy c an b e extended into
su c h areas u sing f ilms or v ideos of work (see Chapter 9). With f ilm, the
nu mb er of f rames c an b e c ou nted f or a v ery short sequ enc e of work to giv e an
ac c u rate time du ration as long as it is v alidated that the projec tion of the
f ilm is at prec isely the same speed as that of the c amera that took the f ilm. An
alternativ e, f or b oth f ilm and v ideo, is to rec ord the work with an ac c u rate and
detailed timing dev ic e kept "in shot" while the rec ording is taking plac e. Times
c an then b e read of f this timing dev ic e when the f ilm or v ideo is replayed at
slower speeds.
280
CHAPTER 21
Time study: Selecting
and timing the job
1. Selecting the job
As in method stu dy, the f irst step in time stu dy is to selec t the job to b e stu died.
G enerally speaking, there are f ew oc c asions when a work stu dy person c an go
into a working area or a department and selec t a job at random. There is nearly
always a reason why a partic u lar job requ ires attention. S ome possib le reasons
are:
(1) The job in qu estion is a new one, not prev iou sly c arried ou t (new produ c t,
c omponent, operation or set of ac tiv ities).
(2) A c hange in material or method of working has b een made and a new
time standard is requ ired.
(3) A c omplaint has b een rec eiv ed f rom a worker or workers' representativ e
ab ou t the time standard f or an operation.
(4) A partic u lar operation appears to b e a "b ottlenec k" holding u p su b sequ ent
operations and possib ly (throu gh ac c u mu lations of work in proc ess
b ehind it) prev iou s operations.
(5) S tandard times are requ ired b ef ore an inc entiv e sc heme is introdu c ed.
(6) A piec e of equ ipment appears to b e idle f or an exc essiv e time or its ou tpu t
is low, and it theref ore b ec omes nec essary to inv estigate the method of its
u se.
(7) The job needs stu dying as a preliminary to making a method stu dy, or to
c ompare the ef f ic ienc y of two proposed methods.
(8) The c ost of a partic u lar job appears to b e exc essiv e, as may b e ev idenc ed
b y a Pareto type of analysis.
If the pu rpose of the stu dy is the setting of perf ormanc e standards, it
shou ld not normally b e u ndertaken u ntil method stu dy has b een u sed to
estab lish and def ine the most satisf ac tory way of doing the job . The reason f or
this is ob v iou s; if the b est method has not b een disc ov ered b y systematic stu dy,
there is always the possib ility that a mu c h b etter way of doing it may b e
ev olv ed, either b y the workers themselv es or b y tec hnic al staf f a way whic h
may need c onsiderab ly less work to ac hiev e the resu lts requ ired. The amou nt
and natu re of the redu c tion in work may v ary at dif f erent times, ac c ording to
whic h worker happens to b e doing the job and the method c hosen. The qu antity
of work inv olv ed in the proc ess or operation may ac tu ally inc rease, if an
operativ e less skilled than the one originally timed does the job later on and
u ses a method more lab oriou s than that on the b asis of whic h the time was set. 281
Until the b est method has b een dev eloped, def ined and standardized, the
amou nt of work whic h the job or proc ess inv olv es will not b e stab le. Planning
of programmes will b e thrown ou t and, if the time standard is u sed f or
inc entiv e pu rposes, the payment made to the operativ e may b ec ome
u nec onomic f or the job . The workers may f ind the time u nattainab le, or, in the
opposite c ase, may f ind that the work c an b e c ompleted in a mu c h shorter time
than that set as the standard. If so, they will v ery prob ab ly restric t their ou tpu t
to the maximu m whic h they think the management will tolerate withou t
starting to make inqu iries into the v alidity of the time standard whic h has b een
set. Althou gh, in c ollec tiv e agreements introdu c ing work stu dy, it is c u stomary
to inc lu de a c lau se permitting the retiming of job s when the work c ontent is
altered in either direc tion (and the management wou ld, in theory, b e ju stif ied in
inv oking this c lau se where a redu c tion in work c ontent has b een made, whether
b y worker or management), the retiming of job s in su c h c irc u mstanc es always
tends to c au se resentment, and if it is done f requ ently it will qu ic kly shatter the
c onf idenc e of the workers in b oth the c ompetenc e of the work stu dy staf f and
the honesty of management. Theref ore make sure first that the method is
right. Rememb er, too, that any one time shou ld ref er only to one spec if ied
method.
There are prob lems in the selec tion of job s to b e stu died whic h hav e
nothing to do with the importanc e of the job s to the enterprise or the ab ilities of
the operativ es. One dif f ic u lt prob lem whic h may arise in f ac tories where a
piec e-work system is already in operation is that the existing piec e-work times
on c ertain job s, f ixed b y b argaining or estimation, may b e so lib eral that the
workers hav e b een earning high b onu ses whic h c annot possib ly b e maintained
if the job s are properly reassessed. Attempts to alter the methods, whic h shou ld
au tomatic ally b ring ab ou t a reassessment of the times allowed, may meet with
su c h resistanc e that it is u nwise to proc eed with the stu dies. If this is the c ase, it
is b etter, in an initial applic ation, to tac kle a nu mb er of job s where it is ev ident
that the earnings of the workers c an b e increased b y the applic ation of time
stu dy, ev en thou gh these job s may b e less important to the perf ormanc e of the
working area as a whole. When the rest of the job s in the working area hav e
b een stu died and c onf idenc e in the integrity of the work stu dy person has b een
estab lished, it may b e possib le to retu rn to the "prob lem" job s. It will almost
c ertainly b e nec essary to negotiate on these prob lem job s with the workers'
representativ es, and it may b e nec essary to c ompensate the workers c onc erned.
It is nev ertheless possib le to c arry throu gh su c h negotiations su c c essf u lly, if the
pu rpose of the c hange is f u lly u nderstood b y all c onc erned.
2. The approach to the worker
The qu estion of relationships b etween the work stu dy person and the
su perv isors and workers in the enterprise was dealt with at some length in
Chapter 4. The reason f or mentioning it here is that what was said ab ou t work
stu dy in general applies with ev en more f orc e to time stu dy, espec ially with
282 respec t to the workers.
TIME STUDY: SELECTING ANDTIMING JOBS
The pu rpose of a method stu dy is u su ally ob v iou s to ev eryone: it is to
improv e the method of doing the job , and ev eryone c an see that it is a proper
ac tiv ity f or the work stu dy spec ialist to engage in. The ef f orts of the work stu dy
person may ev en b e welc omed b y operativ es who may then b e reliev ed of
f atigu ing or u npleasant work. The pu rpose of a time stu dy is less ob v iou s and,
u nless it is v ery c aref u lly explained to ev eryone c onc erned, its ob jec t may b e
c ompletely misu nderstood or misrepresented, with c onsequ ent u nrest and ev en
strikes.
It is assu med that the work stu dy spec ialist has already b ec ome a f amiliar
f igu re in the enterprise while making method stu dies and that this person is
well known to the su perv isor and the workers' representativ es. Nev ertheless, if
no time stu dies hav e prev iou sly b een made there, the workers' representativ es
and the su perv isors shou ld f irst b e b rou ght together and it shou ld b e explained
to them in simple terms what is going to b e done and why, and they shou ld b e
inv ited to handle the watc h. All qu estions shou ld b e answered f rankly. This is
where the v alu e of work stu dy c ou rses f or workers' representativ es and
su perv isors shows itself .
If a c hoic e of workers is av ailab le, it is good polic y to ask the su perv isor
and workers' representativ es to su ggest the one most su itab le to b e stu died
f irst, emphasizing that this shou ld b e a c ompetent, steady person whose rate of
working shou ld b e av erage or slightly b etter than av erage. Ef f orts shou ld b e
made not to selec t people temperamentally u nsu ited to b eing stu died and who
c annot work normally while b eing watc hed.
It is important, where the job is one likely to b e done on a large sc ale
(possib ly b y a large nu mb er of workers), to take stu dies on a nu mb er of
qu alif ied workers.
A distinc tion is made in time stu dy prac tic e b etween what are termed
representativ e workers and qu alif ied workers. A representative worker is one
whose skill and perf ormanc e is the av erage of the grou p u nder c onsideration,
and who is not nec essarily a qualified worker. The c onc ept of the qu alif ied
worker is an important one in time stu dy. This person is def ined as f ollows:
A qualified worker is one who has acquired the skill, knowledge
and other attributes to carry out the work in hand to satisfactory
standards of quantity, quality and safety
1
There is a reason f or this insistenc e on selec ting qu alif ied workers. In
setting time standards, espec ially when they are to b e u sed f or inc entiv es, the
standard to b e aimed at is one whic h c an b e attained b y the qu alif ied worker,
and whic h c an b e maintained withou t c au sing u ndu e f atigu e. Bec au se workers
work at dif f erent speeds, ob serv ed times hav e to b e adju sted b y f ac tors to giv e
su c h a standard. These f ac tors are dependent on the ju dgement of the stu dy
person. Experienc e has shown that ac c u rac y of ju dgement is attainab le only
1
BS I: Glossary ofterms used in management services, BS I3138 (L ondon, 1991). 283
within a f airly narrow range of speeds c lose to that whic h is normal f or a
qu alif ied worker. The stu dy of slow or u nskilled workers or of exc eptionally
f ast workers will tend to resu lt in the setting of time standards that are either
u ndu ly large (known as "loose" times), and henc e u nec onomic , or u ndu ly short
(known as "tight" times), in whic h c ase they are u nf air to the worker and will
prob ab ly b e the su b jec t of c omplaints later.
When the worker whose work is to b e stu died f irst has b een selec ted, he
or she shou ld b e approac hed in c ompany with the su perv isor and the workers'
representativ e. The pu rpose of the stu dy and what is requ ired shou ld b e
c aref u lly explained. The worker shou ld b e asked to work at his or her u su al
pac e, taking whatev er rest is normally taken, and shou ld b e inv ited to explain
any dif f ic u lties whic h may b e enc ou ntered. (This proc edu re b ec omes
u nnec essary as soon as work stu dy is f irmly estab lished and its pu rpose well
u nderstood. It shou ld, howev er, b e c arried ou t with new workers, and new
memb ers of the work stu dy staf f shou ld b e introdu c ed to su perv isors and
workers when they start stu dies.) It is important to impress on the su perv isor
that the worker is then to b e left alone. S ome workers are liab le to b ec ome
apprehensiv e if one of their direc t su perv isors is standing ov er them and
watc hing them.
If a new method has b een installed, the worker mu st b e allowed plenty of
time to settle down b ef ore timing starts. It takes qu ite a long time f or an
operativ e to adapt and to reac h a maximu m steady speed. Depending on the
du ration and intric ac y of the operation, it may b e nec essary to allow a job to
ru n f or days or ev en weeks b ef ore it is ready to b e timed f or the pu rpose of
setting standards. In the same way, the work done b y new operativ es shou ld
nev er b e u sed f or timing u ntil they hav e grown thorou ghly ac c u stomed to their
job s.
The ob serv ation position, in relation to the operativ e, is important. The
stu dy person shou ld b e so plac ed that ev erything the operativ e does c an b e seen
(espec ially hand mov ements), withou t interf ering with f ree mov ement or
distrac ting his or her attention. The stu dy person shou ld not stand direc tly in
f ront of the worker, nor in su c h c lose proximity that the worker has the f eeling
of "hav ing someone standing ov er him or her" a f requ ent c omplaint made
against time stu dy. The stu dy person's exac t position will b e determined b y the
type of operation b eing stu died, b u t the position generally rec ommended is to
one side of the operativ e, slightly to the rear and ab ou t 2 metres away. In this
position the operativ e c an see the stu dy person b y tu rning his or her head a
little, and they c an speak if it is nec essary to ask a qu estion or explain some
point in c onnec tion with the operation. The stu dy b oard and watc h shou ld b e
held well u p in line with the job , to make reading the watc h and rec ording easy
while maintaining c ontinu ou s ob serv ation.
On no account should any attempt be made to time the operative
without his or her knowledge, from a concealed position or with the watch
in the pocket. It is dishonest and, in any c ase, someone is su re to see and the
news will spread like wildf ire. Work stu dy shou ld hav e nothing to hide.
It is equ ally important that the stu dy person shou ld stand u p while making
284 a stu dy. There is a tendenc y on the part of workers to regard themselv es as
hav ing to do all the work while the stu dy person simply stands arou nd and
watc hes them. The workers' respec t will qu ic kly b e lost if the stu dy person
looks too c omf ortab ly positioned while making the stu dy. It shou ld b e
rememb ered thou gh that, du ring the stu dy, a position shou ld b e adopted whic h
c an b e maintained, if nec essary, ov er a long period. Time stu dy demands
intense c onc entration and alertness, espec ially when timing v ery short
"elements" or "c yc les" (def ined later in this c hapter), and it is generally agreed
that this is b etter attained when standing.
Most operativ es will qu ic kly settle down to their normal working pac e,
b u t nerv ou s workers hav e a tendenc y to work u nnatu rally f ast, whic h will
c au se them to f u mb le and make errors. If this happens, the stu dy person shou ld
stop the stu dy and hav e a c hat with the operativ e to pu t him or her at ease, or
ev en leav e him or her to settle down f or a b it.
On repetitiv e work it is generally easy to detec t operativ es who are
delib erately working at a pac e whic h is not natu ral to them b ec au se, if they are
working natu rally, there will b e v ery little v ariation in the times of the dif f erent
c yc les onc e they hav e got going, whereas it is dif f ic u lt f or them to c ontrol these
times when they are not. When there are wide v ariations in su c c essiv e c yc le
times, and when these are not du e to v ariations in the material b eing worked on
or to the tools or mac hine (in whic h c ase the stu dy person shou ld report the
v ariations to the proper au thorities), the dif f ering c yc le times mu st b e du e to
ac tion on the operativ e's part. If this is the c ase, the stu dy person shou ld
disc ontinu e the stu dy and see the su perv isor. As a matter of prac tic al
diplomac y it may b e wiser not to report the operativ e f or the attempted "leg
pu lling", b u t to ask the su perv isor to c ome and look at the job as it does not
seem to b e ru nning qu ite right. This is the sort of hu man situ ation that mu st b e
dealt with ac c ording to its merits if the stu dy person is not going to risk
u nnec essary u npopu larity and is one of the reasons why the personal qu alities
of the stu dy person listed in Chapter 4 are so essential.
When tec hnic al c onsiderations hav e a c onsiderab le inf lu enc e on the job
b eing stu died, it may b e mu c h less easy to detec t attempts to stretc h the time of
the job , u nless the stu dy person is an expert in the proc ess. This is espec ially so
where c raf t skill is inv olv ed (as in some sheet-metal work, or tu rning and
sc rew-c u tting operations to f ine toleranc es and high f inish on c entre lathes),
ev en where speeds and f eeds hav e b een spec if ied b y the proc ess planning
department. It is dif f ic u lt to argu e with a skilled c raf tsman if you are not one
you rself ! This is one of the reasons why it is so important to estab lish prec isely
the method and c onditions of an operation b ef ore attempting to time it. A really
good method stu dy b ef ore the job is timed simplif ies immensely the task of
setting time standards.
In the f oregoing paragraphs an ef f ort has b een made to su ggest some of
the prac tic al prob lems the stu dy person will hav e to f ac e in ob taining
representativ e times; b u t there are many others whic h c an b e learned only in
the hard sc hool of experienc e, in the atmosphere of the working area, among
the men and women who work there. They c annot b e translated into print. The
hu man-hearted person will delight in them; the other sort shou ld not take u p a
c areer in work stu dy. 285
3. Steps in making a time study
When the work to b e measu red has b een selec ted, the making of a time stu dy
u su ally c onsists of the f ollowing eight steps (see also f igu re 87):
(1) Ob taining and rec ording all the inf ormation av ailab le ab ou t the job , the
operativ e and the su rrou nding c onditions, whic h is likely to af f ec t the
c arrying ou t of the work.
(2) Rec ording a c omplete desc ription of the method, b reaking down the
operation into "elements".
(3) Examining the detailed b reakdown to ensu re that the most ef f ec tiv e
method and motions are b eing u sed, and determining the sample size.
(4) Measu ring with a timing dev ic e (u su ally a stop-watc h) and rec ording the
time taken b y the operativ e to perf orm eac h "element" of the operation.
(5) At the same time, assessing the ef f ec tiv e speed of working of the
operativ e relativ e to the ob serv er's c onc ept of the rate c orresponding to
standard rating.
(6) Extending the ob serv ed times to "b asic times".
(7) Determining the allowanc es to b e made ov er and ab ov e the b asic time f or
the operation.
(8) Determining the "standard time" f or the operation.
4. Obtaining and recording information
The f ollowing inf ormation (or those items whic h apply to the operation b eing
stu died) shou ld b e rec orded f rom ob serv ation b ef ore starting the stu dy proper.
It is u su al to do so on the time stu dy top sheet. If the v ariou s headings are
printed, this helps to ensu re that no v ital piec e of inf ormation is ov erlooked.
The exac t nu mb er of the items listed b elow whic h may hav e to b e inc lu ded
when a time stu dy f orm is designed will depend on the type of work c arried ou t
in the enterprise in whic h it is to b e u sed. In non-manu f ac tu ring indu stries su c h
as transport and c atering, it shou ld not b e nec essary to inc lu de spac e f or the
"produ c t", etc . Working areas where all the work is manu al will requ ire spac e
f or "tools" b u t not f or "plant or mac hine".
Details of the workplac e c an b e rec orded more qu ic kly and with greater
ac c u rac y when they are photographed with a simple instant-print-type c amera
with f lash attac hment.
The f illing-in of all the relev ant inf ormation from direct observation is
important in c ase the time stu dy has to b e ref erred to later; inc omplete
inf ormation may make a stu dy prac tic ally u seless a f ew months af ter it has
b een made. The f orms shown in f igu res 99 to 103 are designed f or
manu f ac tu ring indu stry to show the maximu m amou nt of inf ormation that is
u su ally nec essary.
The inf ormation to b e ob tained may b e grou ped as f ollows:
A. Information to enable the study to be found and identified quickly
286 when needed
S tu dy nu mb er.
S heet nu mb er and nu mb er of sheets.
Name or initials of the stu dy person making the stu dy.
Date of the stu dy.
Name of the person approv ing the stu dy (head of the work stu dy
department, produ c tion manager or other appropriate exec u tiv e).
B. Information to enable the product or part being processed to be
accurately identified
Name of produ c t or part.
Drawing or spec if ic ation nu mb er.
Part nu mb er (if dif f erent f rom drawing nu mb er).
Material.
Q u ality requ irements.
2
C. Information to enable the process, method, plant or machine to be
accurately identified
Department or loc ation where the operation is taking plac e.
Desc ription of the operation or ac tiv ity.
Method stu dy or standard prac tic e sheet nu mb ers (where they exist).
Plant or mac hine (maker's name, type, size or c apac ity).
Tools, jigs, f ixtu res and gau ges u sed.
S ketc h of the workplac e layou t, mac hine set-u p and/or part showing
su rf ac es worked (on the rev erse of the time stu dy top sheet, or on a
separate sheet attac hed to the stu dy if nec essary).
Mac hine speeds and f eeds or other setting inf ormation gov erning the rate
of produ c tion of the mac hine or proc ess (e.g. temperatu re, pressu re, f low,
etc .). It is good prac tic e to hav e the su perv isor initial the stu dy f orm
b eside the rec ord of inf ormation of this sort, as an endorsement of its
c orrec tness.
D. Information to enable the operative to be identified
Operativ e's name.
Cloc k nu mb er.
3
E. Duration of the study
The start of the stu dy ("Time on").
The f inish of the stu dy ("Time of f ).
Elapsed time.
2
In the c ase of some engineering produ c ts, parts may b e modif ied f rom time to time and the
drawings reissu ed. It may theref ore also b e nec essary to note the issu e nu mb er. For "Q u ality requ irements"
it may simply b e su f f ic ient to pu t a standard spec if ic ation nu mb er or "G ood f inish". In engineering prac tic e,
toleranc es and f inish are generally spec if ied on the drawing.
3
In the c ase of new job s or new operativ es, it may b e desirab le to note the amou nt of experienc e the
operativ e has had on the partic u lar operation at the time of the stu dy, so that the point reac hed in learning
the job c an b e assessed. 287
F. Working conditions
Temperatu re, hu midity, adequ ac y of the lighting, etc ., as a su pplement to
the inf ormation rec orded on the sketc h of the workplac e layou t.
Where an elec tronic stu dy b oard is b eing u sed, it is still important to
rec ord the same kinds of identif ying data. If the sof tware b eing u sed f or the
stu dy does not allow su c h data to b e keyed into the b oard, the data mu st b e
rec orded on a separate stu dy top sheet, designed f or this pu rpose. This sheet
will b e similar to a normal time stu dy top sheet b u t will inc lu de a c ross-
ref erenc e to an identif ying c ode whic h is part of the data rec orded on the b oard
(su c h as the stu dy ref erenc e).
5. Checking the method
Bef ore proc eeding with the stu dy, it is important to c hec k the method b eing
u sed b y the operativ e. If the stu dy is f or the pu rpose of setting a time standard,
a method stu dy shou ld already hav e b een made and a written standard prac tic e
sheet c ompleted. In this c ase it is simply a qu estion of c omparing what is
ac tu ally b eing done with what is spec if ied on the sheet. If the stu dy is b eing
made as the resu lt of a c omplaint f rom workers that they are u nab le to attain
the ou tpu t set b y a prev iou s stu dy, their methods mu st b e v ery c aref u lly
c ompared with that u sed when the original stu dy was made. It will of ten b e
f ou nd in su c h c ases that the operativ es are not c arrying ou t the work as
originally spec if ied: they may b e u sing dif f erent tools, a dif f erent mac hine set-
u p or dif f erent speeds and f eeds, temperatu res, rates of f low or whatev er the
requ irements of the proc ess may b e, or additional work may hav e c rept in.
It may b e that the c u tting tools are worn, or hav e b een sharpened to
inc orrec t prof iles. Times ob tained when ob serv ing work c arried ou t with worn
tools or inc orrec t proc ess c onditions shou ld not b e u sed f or the c ompilation of
time standards.
In highly repetitiv e short c yc le work, su c h as work on a c onv eyor b and
(light assemb ly, pac king b isc u its, sorting tiles), c hanges in method may b e
mu c h more dif f ic u lt to detec t, sinc e they may inv olv e c hanges in the
mov ements of the arms and hands of the operativ e ("motion patterns") whic h
c an b e ob serv ed only with dif f ic u lty b y the naked eye and requ ire spec ial
apparatu s to analyse.
Althou gh it has b een emphasized repeatedly in this b ook that a proper
method stu dy shou ld b e made b ef ore a time stu dy is u ndertaken f or the pu rpose
of setting time standards, there are oc c asions when time standards may hav e to
b e set withou t a f u ll-sc ale method stu dy b eing c ondu c ted b ef orehand. This is
most likely to oc c u r with short-ru n job s whic h are only done a f ew times a year
in the working area c onc erned. In su c h c ases the stu dy person shou ld make a
c aref u l rec ord of the method b y whic h the job is b eing done, af ter pu tting right
any ob v iou s inef f ic ienc ies in organization, f or instanc e, b y prov iding
c ontainers f or f inished work in the proper positions or b y c hec king mac hine
288 speeds. This rec ord b ec omes espec ially important as it will b e the only rec ord
av ailab le, and c hanges in methods will b e more likely to oc c u r where
operativ es hav e not b een instru c ted in one def inite method.
6. Breaking the job into elements
Onc e the stu dy person has rec orded all the inf ormation ab ou t the operation and
the operativ e needed f or proper identif ic ation in the f u tu re, and is satisf ied that
the method b eing u sed is the c orrec t one or the b est possib le in the prev ailing
c irc u mstanc es, it mu st b e b roken down into elements.
An element is a distinct part of a specified job selected for
convenience of observation, measurement and analysis
A work cycle is the sequence of elements which are required to
perform a job or yield a unit of production. The sequence may
sometimes include occasional elements
A work c yc le starts at the b eginning of the f irst element of the operation
or ac tiv ity and c ontinu es to the same point in a repetition of the operation or
ac tiv ity. That is the start of the sec ond c yc le. This is illu strated in the f u lly
worked-ou t example of a time stu dy in Chapter 25.
A detailed b reakdown into elements is nec essary:
(1) To ensu re that produ c tiv e work (or ef f ec tiv e time) is separated f rom
u nprodu c tiv e ac tiv ity (or inef f ec tiv e time).
(2) To permit the rate of working to b e assessed more ac c u rately than wou ld
b e possib le if the assessment were made ov er a c omplete c yc le. The
operativ e may not work at the same pac e throu ghou t the c yc le, and may
tend to perf orm some elements more qu ic kly than others.
(3) To enab le the dif f erent types of element (see b elow) to b e identif ied and
distingu ished, so that eac h may b e ac c orded the treatment appropriate to
its type.
(4) To enab le elements inv olv ing a high degree of f atigu e to b e isolated and
to make the alloc ation of f atigu e allowanc es more ac c u rate.
(5) To f ac ilitate c hec king the method so that the su b sequ ent omission or
insertion of elements may b e detec ted qu ic kly. This may b ec ome
nec essary if at a f u tu re date the time standard f or the job is qu eried.
(6) To enab le a detailed work spec if ic ation (see Chapter 28) to b e produ c ed.
(7) To enab le time v alu es f or f requ ently rec u rring elements, su c h as the
operation of mac hine c ontrols or loading and u nloading workpiec es f rom 289
f ixtu res, to b e extrac ted and u sed in the c ompilation of standard data
(see Chapter 27).
Types of element
Eight types of element are distingu ished: repetitiv e, oc c asional, c onstant,
v ariab le, manu al, mac hine, gov erning, and f oreign elements. The def inition of
eac h is listed b elow, together with examples:
D A repetitive element is an element whic h oc c u rs in ev ery work c yc le of
an operation.
Examples: the element of pic king u p a part prior to an assemb ly
operation; the element of loc ating a workpiec e in a holding dev ic e;
pu tting aside a f inished c omponent or assemb ly.
D An occasional element is an element whic h does not oc c u r in ev ery work
c yc le of an operation b u t whic h may oc c u r at regu lar or irregu lar
interv als.
Examples: adju sting the tension, or mac hine setting; rec eiv ing
instru c tions f rom the su perv isor. The oc c asional element is u sef u l work
and a part of the job . It will b e inc orporated in the f inal standard time f or
the job .
D A constant element is an element f or whic h the b asic time remains
c onstant whenev er it is perf ormed.
Examples: switc h on mac hine; gau ge diameter; sc rew on and tighten nu t;
insert a partic u lar c u tting tool into mac hine.
D A variable element is an element f or whic h the b asic time v aries in
relation to some c harac teristic s of the produ c t, equ ipment or proc ess, e.g.
dimensions, weight, qu ality, etc .
Examples: saw logs with handsaw (time v aries with hardness and
diameter); sweep f loor (v aries with area); pu sh trolley of parts to next
shop (v aries with distanc e).
D A manual element is an element perf ormed b y a worker.
D A machine element is an element perf ormed au tomatic ally b y any
proc ess, physic al, c hemic al or otherwise that, onc e started, c annot b e
inf lu enc ed b y a worker exc ept to terminate it prematu rely.
Examples: anneal tu b es, f ire tiles; f orm glass b ottles; press c ar b ody shell
to shape; most ac tu al c u tting elements on mac hine tools.
D A governing element is an element oc c u pying a longer time within a
work c yc le than that of any other element whic h is b eing perf ormed
c onc u rrently.
Examples: tu rn diameter on a lathe, while gau ging f rom time to time; b oil
kettle of water, while setting ou t teapot and c u ps; dev elop photographic
negativ e, while agitating the solu tion oc c asionally.
D A foreign element is an element ob serv ed whic h does not f orm a part of
290 the operation(s) b eing stu died.
Examples: in f u rnitu re manu f ac tu re, sanding the edge of a b oard b ef ore
planing has b een c ompleted; degreasing a part that has still to b e
mac hined f u rther.
It will b e c lear f rom the def initions giv en ab ov e that a repetitiv e element may
also b e a c onstant element, or a v ariab le one. S imilarly, a c onstant element may
also b e repetitiv e or oc c asional; an oc c asional element may b e c onstant or
v ariab le, and so on, f or the c ategories are not mu tu ally exc lu siv e.
7. Deciding on the elements
There are some general ru les c onc erning the way in whic h a job shou ld b e
b roken down into elements. They inc lu de the f ollowing:
D Elements shou ld b e easily identif iab le, with def inite b eginnings and
endings so that, onc e estab lished, they c an b e repeatedly rec ognized.
These b eginnings and endings c an of ten b e rec ognized b y a sou nd (e.g.
the stopping of a mac hine, u nloc king a c atc h of a jig, pu tting down a tool)
or b y a c hange of direc tion of hand or arm. They are known as the "b reak
points" and shou ld b e c learly desc rib ed on the stu dy sheet. A b reak point
is thu s the instant at whic h one element in a work c yc le ends and another
b egins.
D Elements shou ld b e as short as c an b e c onv eniently timed b y a trained
ob serv er. Opinion dif f ers on the smallest prac tic al u nit that c an b e timed
with a stop-watc h, b u t it is generally c onsidered to b e ab ou t 0.04 min.
(2.4 sec ). For less highly trained ob serv ers it may b e 0.07 to 0.10 min.
V ery short elements shou ld, if possib le, b e next to longer elements f or
ac c u rate timing and rec ording. L ong manu al elements shou ld b e rated
ab ou t ev ery 0.33 min. (20 sec ). (Rating is desc rib ed and disc u ssed in the
next c hapter.)
D As f ar as possib le, elements partic u larly manu al ones shou ld b e
c hosen so that they represent natu rally u nif ied and rec ognizab ly distinc t
segments of the operation. For example, c onsider the ac tion of reac hing
f or a wrenc h, mov ing it to the work and positioning it to tighten a nu t. It
is possib le to identif y the ac tions of reac hing, grasping, mov ing to the
workpiec e, shif ting the wrenc h in the hand to the position giv ing the b est
grip f or tu rning it, and positioning. The worker will prob ab ly perf orm all
these as one natu ral set of motions rather than as a series of independent
ac ts. It is b etter to treat the grou p as a whole, def ining the element as "get
wrenc h" or "get and position wrenc h" and to time the whole set of
motions whic h make u p the grou p, than to selec t a b reak point at, say, the
instant the f ingers f irst tou c h the wrenc h, whic h wou ld resu lt in the
natu ral grou p of motions b eing div ided b etween two elements.
D Manu al elements shou ld b e separated f rom mac hine elements. This may
sometimes b e dif f ic u lt f or short c yc les. Howev er, althou gh manu al and
mac hine time may ru n c onc u rrently it may b e nec essary to measu re them
separately to deriv e standard data. Mac hine time with au tomatic f eeds or
291
f ixed speeds c an b e c alc u lated and u sed as a c hec k on the stop-watc h data.
Hand time is normally c ompletely within the c ontrol of the operativ e.
D Constant elements shou ld b e separated f rom v ariab le elements.
D Elements whic h do not oc c u r in ev ery c yc le (i.e. oc c asional and f oreign
elements) shou ld b e timed separately f rom those that do.
The nec essity f or a f ine b reakdown of elements depends largely on the
type of manu f ac tu ring, the natu re of the operation and the resu lts desired.
Assemb ly operations in the light elec tric al and radio indu stries, f or example,
generally hav e short c yc le operations with v ery short elements.
The importanc e of the proper selec tion, def inition and desc ription of
elements mu st again b e emphasized. The amou nt of detail in the desc ription
will depend on a nu mb er of f ac tors, f or instanc e:
D S mall b atc h job s whic h oc c u r inf requ ently requ ire less detailed element
desc riptions than long-ru nning, high-ou tpu t lines.
D Mov ement f rom plac e to plac e generally requ ires less desc ription than
hand and arm mov ements.
Elements shou ld b e c hec ked throu gh a nu mb er of c yc les and written
down b ef ore timing b egins.
Examples of element desc riptions and of v ariou s types of element are
shown in f igu res 120 and 122.
8. Sample size
Mu c h of what was said in Chapter 19 on sampling, c onf idenc e lev els and the
applic ation of random tab les applies here also. In this c ase, howev er, we are
not c onc erned with a proportion b u t with f inding ou t the v alu e of the
representativ e av erage f or eac h element. Ou r prob lem, theref ore, is to
determine the sample size or nu mb er of readings that mu st b e made f or eac h
element, giv en a predetermined c onf idenc e lev el and ac c u rac y margin.
Here again, we c an apply a statistic al method or a c onv entional method.
For the statistic al method, we hav e f irst to take a nu mb er of preliminary
readings (n'). We then apply the f ollowing equ ation
4
f or the 95.45 c onf idenc e
lev el and a margin of error of 5 per c ent:
n=
V Zx )
where
n = sample size we wish to determine
n' = nu mb er of readings taken in the preliminary stu dy
= su m of v alu es
x = v alu e of the readings.
4
The explanation of the deriv ation of this f ormu la f alls ou tside the sc ope of this b ook. S ee Raymond
Mayer: Production and operations management (New Y ork and L ondon, Mc G raw-Hill, 3rd d., 1975),
292 pp. 516-517.
An example will make the point c lear. L et u s su ppose that we take f iv e
readings f or a giv en element, and f ind that the v alu e of the elapsed time in
1/lOOths of a minu te is 7, 6, 7, 7, 6. We c an then c alc u late the squ ares and the
su m of the squ ares of these nu mb ers :
X X
2
7 49
6 36
7 49
7 49
6 36
Ex = 33 Ex
2
= 219
of n:
n' = 5 readings.
By su b stitu ting these v alu es in the ab ov e f ormu la, we ob tain the v alu e
^40V 5(219)-(33)
2
V
Q C1
Q ,.
n = I
v

J
^^-1 = 8.81 or 9 readings.
S inc e the nu mb er of preliminary readings n' that we took is less than the
requ ired sample size of nine, the sample size mu st b e inc reased. Howev er, we
c annot simply say that f ou r more ob serv ations are needed. When we add the
v alu es ob tained f rom these f ou r additional ob serv ations, the v alu es of x and x
2
will c hange, and this may af f ec t the v alu e of n. Consequ ently it may b e f ou nd
either that a still larger sample is requ ired, or that the sample taken was in f ac t
adequ ate or more than adequ ate.
If we c hoose a dif f erent c onf idenc e lev el and ac c u rac y margin, the
f ormu la c hanges as well. Normally, howev er, we c hoose either the 95 or the
95.45 c onf idenc e lev el.
The statistic al method of determining the sample size is v alid to the extent
that the assu mptions made in deriv ing the f ormu la are v alid in other words,
that the ob serv ed v ariations in the readings are du e to mere c hanc e and are not
made intentionally b y the operativ e. The statistic al method c an b e
c u mb ersome, sinc e a giv en work c yc le is c omposed of sev eral elements. As the
sample size will v ary with the readings f or eac h element, we c an arriv e at
dif f erent sample sizes f or eac h element within a giv en c yc le, u nless of c ou rse
the elements hav e more or less the same av erage. As a resu lt, we may hav e to
c alc u late the sample size, in the c ase of c u mu lativ e timing, b y b asing it on the
element that will c all f or the largest sample size.
S ome au thors, and c ompanies su c h as G eneral Elec tric , hav e theref ore
adopted a c onv entional gu ide f or the nu mb er of c yc les to b e timed, b ased on
the total nu mb er of minu tes per c yc le (tab le 15).
It is also important that the readings b e c ontinu ed ov er a nu mb er of c yc les
in order to ensu re that oc c asional elements (su c h as handling b oxes of f inished
parts, periodic al c leaning of mac hines or sharpening of tools) c an b e ob serv ed
sev eral times.
In c ondu c ting the stu dy the tab le of random nu mb ers (see Chapter 19)
may b e u sed to determine the times at whic h the readings are to b e taken. 293
Table 1 5 . Number of recommended cycles for time study
Minutes per
cycle
To
0.1 0
To
0.25
To
0.5 0
To
0.75
To
1 .0
To
2,0
To
5 .0
To
1 0.0
To
20.0
To
40.0
Over
40
Number of
cycles
recommended 200 1 00 60 40 30 20 1 5 1 0 8
Source: A. E. Shaw: "Stop-watch time study", in H. B. Maynard (ed,): Industrial engineering handbook (New York
3rd d., 1 971 ). Reproduced by kind permission of the McGraw-Hill Book Company.
5
5 nd London,
3
McGraw-Hiii,
9. Timing each element: Stop-watch procedure
When the elements hav e b een selec ted and written down, timing c an start.
There are two princ ipal methods of timing with the stop-watc h:
D Cu mu lativ e timing;
D Flyb ac k timing.
In cumulative timing the watc h ru ns c ontinu ou sly throu ghou t the stu dy.
It is started at the b eginning of the f irst element of the f irst c yc le to b e timed
and is not stopped u ntil the whole stu dy is c ompleted. At the end of eac h
element the watc h reading is rec orded. The indiv idu al element times are
ob tained b y su c c essiv e su b trac tions af ter the stu dy is c ompleted. The pu rpose
of this proc edu re is to ensu re that all the time du ring whic h the job is ob serv ed
is rec orded in the stu dy.
In flyback timing the hands of the stopwatc h are retu rned to zero at the
end of eac h element and are allowed to start immediately, the time f or eac h
element b eing ob tained direc tly. The mec hanism of the watc h is nev er stopped
and the hand immediately starts to rec ord the time of the next element.
In all time stu dies it is u su al to take an independent c hec k of the ov erall
time of the stu dy, u sing either a wrist-watc h or the c loc k in the stu dy of f ic e.
This also serv es the pu rpose of noting the time of day at whic h the stu dy was
taken, whic h may b e important if a retiming is asked f or. For example, the
c yc le time of operativ es on a repetitiv e job may b e shorter in the f irst hou r or
two of the morning, when they are f resh, than late in the af ternoon, when they
are tired.
In the c ase of f lyb ac k timing, the stu dy person walks to the c loc k; at an
exac t minu te, pref erab ly at the next major div ision su c h as the hou r or one of
the f iv e-minu te points, the stop-watc h is set ru nning, and the exac t time is
noted in the "time on" spac e on the f orm. The stu dy person retu rns to the
workplac e where the time stu dy is going to b e c arried ou t with the watc h
ru nning, and allows it to do so c ontinu ou sly u ntil ready to start timing. At the
b eginning of the f irst element of the f irst work c yc le, the hand is snapped b ac k
and, as the f irst entry on the b ody of the stu dy sheet, the time that has elapsed
is noted. At the end of the stu dy, the hand is snapped b ac k to zero on
c ompletion of the last element of the last c yc le and thereaf ter allowed to ru n
c ontinu ou sly u ntil the c loc k c an again b e reac hed and the time of f inishing
noted, when the watc h is f inally stopped. The f inal c loc k time is entered in the
294 "time of f spac e on the f orm. The two times rec orded b ef ore and af ter the stu dy
are known as "c hec k times". The c loc k reading at the b eginning of the stu dy is
su b trac ted f rom the c loc k reading at the end of the stu dy to giv e the "elapsed
time", whic h is entered on the f orm.
The su m of the times of all the elements and other ac tiv ities noted in the
stu dy plu s inef f ec tiv e time plu s the c hec k times is known as the "rec orded
time" and is also noted. It shou ld in theory agree with the elapsed time, b u t in
prac tic e there is u su ally a small dif f erenc e owing to the c u mu lativ e loss of v ery
small f rac tions of time at the retu rn of the hand to zero and, possib ly, b ad
reading or missed elements. In c ertain f irms it is the prac tic e to disc ard any
stu dy in whic h the elapsed time dif f ers f rom the rec orded time b y more than
2 per c ent.
When the same prac tic e is f ollowed u sing c u mu lativ e timing, the elapsed
time and rec orded time shou ld b e identic al sinc e the stop-watc h is only read
and not snapped b ac k.
Cu mu lativ e timing has the adv antage that, ev en if an element is missed or
some oc c asional ac tiv ity not rec orded, this will hav e no ef f ec t on the ov erall
time. It is strongly f av ou red b y many trade u nions, espec ially in the United
S tates, sinc e it is regarded b y them as more ac c u rate than f lyb ac k timing and
giv es no opportu nity f or altering times in f av ou r of the management b y
omitting elements or other ac tiv ities. Its disadv antage is, of c ou rse, the amou nt
of su b trac tion whic h has to b e done to arriv e at indiv idu al element times, whic h
greatly inc reases the time taken in working u p the stu dy af terwards.
Flyb ac k timing is still widely u sed. In c ompetent hands it is almost as
ac c u rate as c u mu lativ e timing. There is reason to su ppose that people b eing
trained in the u se of the stop-watc h attain a f air degree of ac c u rac y more
qu ic kly when u sing the c u mu lativ e method than when u sing the f lyb ac k
method.
The experienc e of IL O missions in training in and applying time stu dy
has in f ac t shown that, generally speaking, c u mu lativ e timing shou ld b e tau ght
and u sed, f or the f ollowing reasons:
(1) Experienc e su ggests that trainees ac hiev e reasonab le ac c u rac y in the u se
of the stop-watc h more qu ic kly if they u se the c u mu lativ e method.
(2) It does not matter if element times are oc c asionally missed b y
inexperienc ed ob serv ers; the ov erall time of the stu dy will not b e af f ec ted.
Foreign elements and interru ptions are au tomatic ally inc lu ded sinc e the
watc h is nev er stopped.
(3) In assessing the working pac e of the operativ e ("rating"), it is less easy to
f all into the temptation to adju st the rating to the time taken b y the
element than with the f lyb ac k method, sinc e only watc h readings and not
ac tu al times are rec orded.
(4) Workers and their representativ es are likely to hav e greater f aith in the
f airness of time stu dies as a b asis f or inc entiv e plans if they c an see that
no time c ou ld hav e b een omitted. The introdu c tion of time stu dy into an
enterprise or an indu stry may b e made easier.
In the f lyb ac k method, errors in reading the watc h may b e added to the
slight delay whic h oc c u rs when the hand is snapped b ac k to zero. The 295
perc entage error b ec omes greater f or short elements. Cu mu lativ e timing is
theref ore likely to b e more ac c u rate f or short-element short-c yc le work, while
f lyb ac k timing c an b e more saf ely u sed in job s with long elements and c yc les,
sinc e the error b ec omes too small to matter. The qu estion of the c onf idenc e of
the workers is important as well.
Elec tronic stop-watc hes hav e the b enef it of allowing times f or indiv idu al
elements to b e rec orded on a f lyb ac k b asis, withou t any error introdu c ed b y the
mec hanic al f lyb ac k mec hanism of a c onv entional watc h. It thu s of f ers the same
lev els of ac c u rac y as c u mu lativ e timing withou t the inc onv enienc e of
perf orming the su b trac tions. It is, howev er, still possib le to misread the watc h
and a c hec k on the su m of all rec orded times against the total elapsed time
shou ld still b e c arried ou t.
With elec tronic stu dy b oards and data c aptu re dev ic es, the stu dy person
does not make readings of element times these are au tomatic ally rec orded as
the stu dy person identif ies the element b reak points. No errors are theref ore
introdu c ed b y the rec ording proc ess.
There is a third method of timing whic h is employed f or short-element
short-c yc le work, and whic h may indeed b e the only way of getting ac c u rate
times with a stop-watc h, f or elements whic h are so v ery short that there is not
enou gh time f or the stu dy person to read the watc h and make a rec ording on his
or her stu dy sheet. In this situ ation the method u sed is that known as
dif f erential timing. With dif f erential timing, elements are timed in grou ps, f irst
inc lu ding and then exc lu ding eac h small element, the time f or eac h element
b eing ob tained su b sequ ently b y su b trac tion. For example, if the job c onsists of
sev en short elements, the stu dy person may time nu mb ers 1 to 3, and 4 to 7 f or
the f irst f ew c yc les, rec ording only these two readings per c yc le. The timing is
then rec orded f or 1 to 4 and 5 to 7 f or a f ew c yc les, and so on. If dif f erential
timing is applied in this f ashion, either the c u mu lativ e or the f lyb ac k method of
watc h manipu lation may b e u sed.
We hav e now disc u ssed all the preliminaries to making a time stu dy, f rom
the selec tion of the job , throu gh the rec ording of all relev ant data, the
b reakdown of the job into elements and the examination of the methods
employed, to the rec ording of the ac tu al element times. In the next c hapter we
shall disc u ss the means of modif ying these ob serv ed times to take into ac c ou nt
v ariations in rates of working.
296
CHAPTER 22
Time study: Rating
In sec tion 3 of the prev iou s c hapter the making of a time stu dy was b roken
down into eight steps or stages, the f irst f ou r of whic h were disc u ssed in that
c hapter. We now c ome to the f if th step, namely "assessing the ef f ec tiv e speed
of working of the operativ e relativ e to the ob serv er's c onc ept of the rate
c orresponding to standard rating".
The treatment of rating whic h f ollows has b een selec ted b ec au se
experienc e in the u se of this b ook f or training pu rposes b y IL O management
and produ c tiv ity missions su ggests that this approac h to the su b jec t is b est
su ited to the c onditions in most of the c ou ntries f or whic h the b ook is primarily
intended.
Rating and "allowanc es" (dealt with in the next c hapter) are the two most
c ontrov ersial aspec ts of time stu dy. Most time stu dies in indu stry are u sed to
determine standard times f or setting workloads and as a b asis f or inc entiv e
plans. The proc edu res employed hav e a b earing on the earnings of the workers
as well as on the produ c tiv ity and, possib ly, the prof its of the enterprise. Time
stu dy is not an exac t sc ienc e, althou gh mu c h researc h has b een and c ontinu es
to b e u ndertaken to attempt to estab lish a sc ientif ic b asis f or it. Rating (the
assessment of a worker's rate of working) and the allowanc es to b e giv en f or
rec ov ery f rom f atigu e and other pu rposes are still, howev er, largely matters of
ju dgement and theref ore of b argaining b etween management and lab ou r.
V ariou s methods of assessing the rate of working, eac h of whic h has its
good and b ad points, hav e b een dev eloped. The proc edu res set ou t in this
c hapter represent sou nd c u rrent prac tic e and, properly applied, shou ld b e
ac c eptab le to management and workers alike, partic u larly when u sed to
determine standards f or mediu m-b atc h produ c tion, whic h is the most c ommon
type in indu stry all ov er the world ou tside the United S tates and a f ew large or
spec ialized enterprises elsewhere. They will c ertainly prov ide the reader with a
sou nd b asic system whic h will b e su itab le f or most general applic ations, and
one whic h c an later b e ref ined if the partic u lar natu re of c ertain spec ial
operations requ ires a modif ic ation of the system, so as to rate something other
than ef f ec tiv e speed.
1. The qualified worker
It has already b een said that time stu dies shou ld b e made, as f ar as possib le, on
a nu mb er of qu alif ied workers; and that v ery f ast or v ery slow workers shou ld 297
b e av oided, at least while making the f irst f ew stu dies of an operation. What is
a "qu alif ied worker"?
Dif f erent job s requ ire dif f erent hu man ab ilities. For example, some
demand mental alertness, c onc entration, v isu al ac u ity; others, physic al
strength; most, some ac qu ired skill or spec ial knowledge. Not all workers will
hav e the ab ilities requ ired to perf orm a partic u lar job , thou gh if the
management makes u se of sou nd selec tion proc edu res and job training
programmes, it shou ld normally b e possib le to arrange that most of the workers
engaged on it hav e the attrib u tes needed to f it them f or the task. The def inition
of a qu alif ied worker giv en in the prev iou s c hapter is repeated here:
A qualified worker is one who has acquired the skill, knowledge
and other attributes to carry out the work in hand to satisfactory
standards of quantity, quality and safety
The ac qu isition of skill is a c omplic ated proc ess. It has b een ob serv ed
1
that among the attrib u tes whic h dif f erentiate the experienc ed worker f rom the
inexperienc ed are the f ollowing. The experienc ed worker:
D ac hiev es smooth and c onsistent mov ements;
D ac qu ires rhythm;
D responds more rapidly to signals;
D antic ipates dif f ic u lties and is more ready to ov erc ome them;
D c arries ou t the task withou t giv ing the appearanc e of c onsc iou s attention,
and is theref ore more relaxed.
It may take a good deal of time f or a worker to b ec ome f u lly skilled in the
perf ormanc e of a job . In one stu dy it was noted that it was only af ter some
8,000 c yc les of prac tic e that the times taken b y workers b egan to approac h a
c onstant f igu re whic h was itself half the time they took when they f irst tried
the operation. Thu s time standards set on the b asis of the rate of working of
inexperienc ed workers c ou ld tu rn ou t to b e qu ite b adly wrong, if the job is one
with a long learning period. S ome job s, of c ou rse, c an b e learned v ery qu ic kly.
It wou ld b e ideal if the time stu dy person c ou ld b e su re that, whatev er job
is selec ted f or stu dy, only properly qu alif ied workers wou ld b e f ou nd
perf orming it. In prac tic e, this is too mu c h to hope f or. It may indeed b e that
none of the workers engaged on the task c an really b e said to b e c ompletely
qu alif ied to c arry it ou t, thou gh it may b e possib le to alter this in time, b y
training; or that, thou gh some of the workers are qu alif ied, these are so f ew in
nu mb er that they c annot b e c onsidered to b e av erage or representativ e of the
grou p. A representativ e worker is def ined as one whose skill and perf ormanc e
is the av erage of a grou p u nder c onsideration and who is not nec essarily a
qu alif ied worker.
298 ' W. D. S eymou r: Industrial training for manual operations (L ondon, Pitman, 1966).
TIME STUDY: RATING
If the working grou p is made u p wholly or mainly of qu alif ied workers,
there will b e one or perhaps sev eral of these qu alif ied workers who c an
b e c onsidered as representativ e workers also. S tandard time is the time a job or
operation shou ld normally take the av erage qu alif ied worker, working in an
ordinary f ashion, prov ided there is su f f ic ient motiv ation to want to get on with
the job . In theory, theref ore, the time stu dy person shou ld b e looking f or the
av erage qu alif ied worker to stu dy. In prac tic e, this is not as easy as it might
seem. It is worth looking more c losely into what "av erage" might mean in this
c ontext.
2. The "average" worker
The tru ly av erage worker is no more than an idea. A c ompletely av erage
worker does not exist, any more than an "av erage f amily" or an "av erage
woman" exists. They are the inv entions of statistic ians. We are all indiv idu als:
no two of u s are exac tly alike. Nev ertheless, among a large nu mb er of people
f rom, f or instanc e, the same c ou ntry or area, v ariations in measu rab le
c harac teristic s su c h as height and weight tend to f orm a pattern whic h, when
represented graphic ally, is c alled the "normal distrib u tion c u rv e". To take one
c harac teristic , height: in many western Eu ropean c ou ntries the av erage height
f or a man is ab ou t 5 f t. 8 in. (172 c m). In a western Eu ropean c rowd, a large
nu mb er of the men in it will b e b etween 5 f t. 7 in. and 5 f t. 9 in. tall (170-175
c m). The nu mb er of men of heights greater or smaller than this will b ec ome
f ewer and f ewer as those heights approac h the extremes of tallness and
shortness.
The c ase as regards the perf ormanc e of operativ es is exac tly the same.
This c an b e shown v ery c onv eniently in a diagram (f igu re 106). If 500
qu alif ied workers in a giv en f ac tory were to do the same operation b y the same
methods and u nder the same c onditions, the whole operation b eing within the
c ontrol of the workers themselv es, the times taken to perf orm the operation
wou ld b e distrib u ted in the manner shown in the f igu re. To simplif y the f igu re,
the times hav e b een div ided into grou ps at interv als of f ou r sec onds. It will b e
seen that the workers f all into the grou ps shown in tab le 16.
If the time grou ps are examined, it will b e seen that 32.4 per c ent of the
times are less than 46 sec onds and 34.8 per c ent of the times are greater than 50
sec onds. The largest single grou p of times (32.8 per c ent) lies b etween 46 and
50 sec onds. We shou ld theref ore b e ju stif ied in saying that f or this grou p of 500
workers the av erage time taken to perf orm this operation was b etween 46 and
50 sec onds (say, 48 sec onds). We c ou ld c all 48 sec onds the time taken b y the
av erage qu alif ied worker to do this job u nder these c onditions. The time might
not hold good f or any other f ac tory. Fac tories whic h are well ru n, where
working c onditions and pay are good, tend to attrac t and keep the b est workers,
so that in a b etter-ru n f ac tory the av erage worker's time might b e less (say, 44
sec onds), while in a poorly ru n f ac tory with less ab le workers it might b e more
(say, 52 sec onds). 299
O
O
Figure 1 06. Distribution of times taken by workers to perform a given job
No. of workers
_1 60
.30
_1 20
.20
.1 0
Normal distribution
curve "-
Seconds
o
S
2 (0.4%)
66
TIME STUDY: RATING
Table 1 6. Specimen performance distribution
Time group (sec.) Number of workers {out of 5 00) Percentage of total workers
30-34
34-38
38-42
42-46
4
16
38
1 04
0.8
3.2
7.6
20.8
32.4
46-50 164 32.8 32.8
50-54
54-58
58-62
62-66
1 1 3
48
1 1
2
5 00
22.6
9.6
2.2
0.4
1 00.0
34.8
100.0
If a c u rv e is drawn to f it this distrib u tion it will b e f ou nd to assu me the
shape of the c u rv e in the f igu re. This is known as the "normal distrib u tion
c u rv e". In general, the larger the sample the more the c u rv e will tend to b e
symmetric al ab ou t the peak v alu e, b u t this c an b e altered if spec ial c onditions
are introdu c ed. For example, of the slower workers were to b e transf erred to
other work, the right-hand side of the c u rv e of perf ormanc es of the grou p
wou ld prob ab ly b ec ome f oreshortened, f or there wou ld b e f ewer workers
retu rning the v ery long times.
3. Standard rating and standard performance
In Chapter 18 it was said that the princ ipal u se of work measu rement (and
henc e of time stu dy) is to set time standards whic h c an b e u sed f or a nu mb er of
dif f erent pu rposes (inc lu ding programme planning, estimating and as a b asis
f or inc entiv es) f or the v ariou s job s c arried ou t in the enterprise. Ob v iou sly, if
those time standards are to b e of any v alu e at all, their ac hiev ement mu st b e
within the c apac ity of the majority of workers in the enterprise. It wou ld b e no
u se setting standards so high that only the b est c ou ld attain them, sinc e
programmes or estimates b ased on them wou ld nev er b e f u lf illed. Equ ally, to
set standards well within the ac hiev ement of the slowest workers wou ld not b e
c ondu c iv e to ef f ic ienc y.
How does the work stu dy person ob tain su c h a f air time f rom time
stu dies?
We hav e already said that, as f ar as possib le, stu dies shou ld b e taken on
qu alif ied workers. If it were possib le to ob tain the times taken b y 500 qu alif ied
operativ es f or a single operation and plot them in the manner shown in f igu re
106, a reliab le av erage time wou ld b e ob tained. Unf ortu nately, this is hardly
ev er possib le. It is not always possib le to time a job on an av erage qu alif ied
worker; moreov er, ev en if it were, people do not work c onsistently f rom day to 301
day or ev en f rom minu te to minu te. The work stu dy person has to hav e some
means of assessing the rate of working of the operativ e he or she is ob serv ing
and of relating it to standard pac e. This proc ess is known as rating.
Rating is the assessment of the worker's rate of working relative to
the observer's concept of the rate corresponding to standard pace
By def inition, rating is a c omparison of the rate of working ob serv ed b y
the work stu dy person with a pic tu re of some standard lev el in mind. This
standard lev el is the av erage rate at whic h qu alif ied workers will natu rally
work at a job , when u sing the c orrec t method and when motiv ated to apply
themselv es to their work. This rate of working c orresponds to what is termed
the standard rating, and is denoted b y 100 on the rating sc ale rec ommended
to readers of this b ook (see sec tion 7, b elow). If the standard pac e is maintained
and the appropriate relaxation is taken, a worker will ac hiev e standard
performance ov er the working day or shif t.
Standard performance is the rate of output which qualified
workers will naturally achieve without over-exertion as an average
over the working day or shift, provided that they know and adhere
to the specified method and provided that they are motivated to
apply themselves to their work
This performance is denoted as 1 00 on the standard rating and
performance scales
302
The rate of working most generally ac c epted in the United Kingdom and
the United S tates as c orresponding to the standard rating is equ iv alent to the
speed of motion of the limb s of a man of av erage physiqu e walking withou t
a load in a straight line on lev el grou nd at a speed of 4 miles an hou r
(6.4 kilometres per hou r). This is a b risk, b u siness-like rate of walking, whic h a
man of the right physiqu e and well ac c u stomed to walking might b e expec ted
to maintain, prov ided that he took appropriate rest pau ses ev ery so of ten. This
pac e has b een selec ted, as a resu lt of long experienc e, as prov iding a su itab le
b enc hmark to c orrespond to a rate of working whic h wou ld enab le the av erage
qu alif ied worker who is prepared to apply himself to his task to earn a f air
b onu s b y working at that rate, withou t there b eing any risk of imposing on him
any u ndu e strain that wou ld af f ec t his health, ev en ov er a long period of time.
(As a matter of interest, a man walking at 4 miles an hou r (6.4 km/hr.) appears
to b e mov ing with some pu rpose or destination in mind: he is not sau ntering,
b u t on the other hand he is not hu rrying. People hu rrying, to c atc h a train f or
instanc e, of ten walk at a c onsiderab ly f aster pac e b ef ore b reaking ou t into a trot
or a ru n, b u t it is a pac e whic h they wou ld not wish to keep u p f or v ery long.)
TIME STUDY: RATING
It shou ld b e noted, howev er, that the "standard pac e" applies to Eu ropeans
and North Americ ans working in temperate c onditions; it may not b e a proper
pac e to c onsider standard in other parts of the world. In general, howev er,
giv en workers of proper physiqu e, adequ ately nou rished, f u lly trained and
su itab ly motiv ated, there seems little ev idenc e to su ggest that dif f erent
standards f or rates of working are needed in dif f erent loc alities, thou gh the
periods of time ov er whic h workers may b e expec ted to av erage the standard
pac e will v ary v ery widely with the env ironmental c onditions. At the v ery
least, the standard rate as desc rib ed ab ov e prov ides a theoretic al datu m line
with whic h c omparisons of perf ormanc e in dif f erent parts of the world c ou ld
b e made in order to determine whether any adju stment may b e nec essary.
Another ac c epted example of working at the standard rate is dealing a pac k of
52 playing c ards in 0.375 minu tes.
S tandard perf ormanc e on the part of av erage qu alif ied workers (that is,
those with su f f ic ient intelligenc e and physiqu e, adequ ately trained and
experienc ed in the job they are doing) will prob ab ly show as su c h only ov er a
period of sev eral hou rs. Those doing manu al work will generally c arry ou t the
motions direc tly c onc erned with their work at their own natu ral working rate,
whic h may not b e exac tly the standard rate, sinc e some people work f aster than
others. There will of c ou rse b e dif f erent standard pac es (or speeds of
mov ement) f or dif f erent ac tiv ities, ac c ording to the c omplexity or ardu ou sness
of the element making u p the ac tiv ity (among other things), so that working at
the standard rate will not always mean mov ing the hands or limb s at the same
speed. And in any ev ent, it is not u nc ommon f or workers to work f aster at
some periods of the day than at others, so that the standard perf ormanc e is
rarely ac hiev ed as the resu lt of working, withou t any dev iation, at the standard
rate throu ghou t the working periods of the shif t, b u t rather as the c u mu lativ e
ou tc ome of periods of work at v arying pac es.
When time standards are u sed as a b asis f or payment b y resu lts, many
u nion-management agreements stipu late that the time standards shou ld b e su c h
that a representativ e or av erage qu alif ied worker on inc entiv e pay c an earn
20-35 per c ent ab ov e the time rate b y ac hiev ing the standard perf ormanc e. If
these workers hav e no target to aim at and no inc entiv e to make them desire a
higher ou tpu t, they will (apart f rom any time c onsc iou sly wasted) tolerate the
intru sion of small amou nts of inef f ec tiv e time, of ten sec onds or f rac tions of
sec onds b etween and within elements of work. In this way they may easily
redu c e their perf ormanc e ov er an hou r or so to a lev el well b elow that of the
standard perf ormanc e. If , howev er, they are giv en enou gh inc entiv e to make
them want to inc rease their ou tpu t, they will get rid of these small periods of
inef f ec tiv e time, and the gaps b etween their produ c tiv e mov ements will
narrow. This may also alter the pattern of their mov ements.
2
The ef f ec t of the
elimination of these small periods of inef f ec tiv e time u nder the inf lu enc e of an
inc entiv e c an b e illu strated diagrammatic ally (f igu re 107).
What happens may b e seen in the c ase of operativ es working a lathe who
hav e to gau ge their workpiec e f rom time to time. The gau ge is laid on the tool
2
Researc h c arried ou t u nder the late Prof essor T. U. Matthew at the Univ ersity of Birmingham
(United Kingdom) tended to c onf irm this. 303
Figure 1 07. Effect of ineffective time on performance
Worker A
I
1 5 min. 30 min.
I
45 min. 1 h
Worker B
1 5 min. 30 min. 45 min. 1 h
Work done in one hour by A
Work done in one hour by B
H Productive time I I Ineffective time
304
loc ker b eside them. If they hav e no partic u lar reason to hu rry, they may tu rn
the whole b ody rou nd ev ery time they wish to pic k u p the gau ge, tu rn b ac k to
the lathe, gau ge the workpiec e and tu rn again to pu t the gau ge down, eac h of
these mov ements b eing c arried ou t at their natu ral pac e. As soon as they hav e
reason to speed u p their rate of working, instead of tu rning the whole b ody they
will merely stretc h ou t an arm, perhaps glanc ing rou nd to c hec k the position of
the gau ge on the loc ker, pic k u p the gau ge, gau ge the workpiec e and replac e
the gau ge on the loc ker with a mov ement of the arm, withou t b othering to look.
In neither c ase wou ld there b e a delib erate stopping of work, b u t in the sec ond,
some mov ements ef f ec tiv e f rom the point of v iew of f u rthering the
operation wou ld hav e b een eliminated.
The ef f ec t of pu tting a whole working area or a plant (su c h as the 500
workers in f igu re 106) on an inc entiv e is shown in f igu re 108.
Of f ering an inc entiv e in the f orm of payment in proportion to ou tpu t will
not make the u nskilled or slow worker as f ast or as skilled as the skilled or
natu rally f ast worker; b u t if ev eryone in the working area is pu t on a well-
designed inc entiv e plan, other c onditions remaining the same, the resu lt will b e
that ev eryone will tend to work more c onsistently. The short periods of
inef f ec tiv e time disc u ssed ab ov e will disappear, and ev eryone's av erage time
f or the job will b e redu c ed. (This is an ov er-simplif ic ation b u t tru e enou gh f or
pu rposes of illu stration.) The normal distrib u tion c u rv e shown in f igu re 106
will mov e to the lef t while retaining approximately the same shape. This is
qu ite c learly shown in f igu re 108, where the peak of the c u rv e (the av erage
time) now c omes at 36 sec onds instead of 48 a redu c tion of 25 per c ent.
It shou ld b e added that, althou gh the standard rate of working is that at
whic h av erage qu alif ied workers will natu rally perf orm their mov ements when
motiv ated to apply themselv es to the task, it is of c ou rse qu ite possib le and
indeed normal f or them to exc eed this rate of working if they wish to do so.
TIME STUDY: RATING
Figure 1 08. Effect of a payment-by-results incentive on the time taken to perform an
operation
No. of workers
Seconds 36
Workers on
incentive
48
Workers not
on incentive
Operators will b e ob serv ed to b e working, sometimes f aster, sometimes slower
than the standard rate, du ring short periods. S tandard perf ormanc e is ac hiev ed
b y working ov er the shif t at pac es whic h av erage the standard rate.
4. Comparing the observed rate of working with the
standard
How is it possib le ac c u rately to c ompare the ob serv ed rate of working with the
theoretic al standard? By long prac tic e.
L et u s retu rn onc e more to ou r walker. Most people, if asked, wou ld b e
ab le to ju dge the rate at whic h a person is walking. They wou ld start b y c lassif y-
ing rates of walking as slow, av erage or f ast. With a little prac tic e they wou ld b e
ab le to say: "Ab ou t 3 miles an hou r, ab ou t 4 miles an hou r, or ab ou t 5 miles an
hou r" (or of c ou rse the equ iv alent rates in kilometres if they are more u sed to
kilometres). If , howev er, a reasonab ly intelligent person were to spend a great
deal of time watc hing people walking at dif f erent speeds, the point wou ld soon
b e reac hed where he or she c ou ld say: "That person is walking at 2 '^miles an
hou r and this one at 4% miles an hou r", and this wou ld b e right, within c lose
limits. In order to ac hiev e su c h ac c u rac y, howev er, some partic u lar rate wou ld
need to b e b orne in mind with whic h to c ompare those ob serv ed.
That is exac tly what the work stu dy person does in rating; b u t, sinc e the
operations ob serv ed are f ar more c omplex than the simple one of walking
withou t load, training takes v ery mu c h longer. Ju dgement of walking pac e is
only u sed f or training work stu dy persons in the f irst stages; it b ears v ery little
resemb lanc e to most of the job s that hav e to b e rated. It has b een f ou nd b etter
to u se f ilms or liv e demonstrations of indu strial operations. 305
Conf idenc e in the ac c u rac y of one's rating c an b e ac qu ired only throu gh
long experienc e and prac tic e on many types of operation and c onf idenc e is
essential to a work stu dy person. It may b e nec essary to b ac k a partic u lar
ju dgement in argu ments with management, su perv isors or workers'
representativ es; u nless this c an b e done with assu ranc e, the c onf idenc e of all
parties in the work stu dy person's ab ility will qu ic kly disappear. This is one of
the reasons why trainees may attempt method stu dy af ter a c omparativ ely short
training b u t shou ld on no ac c ou nt try to set time standards exc ept u nder
expert gu idanc e withou t long prac tic e, espec ially if the standards are to b e
u sed f or inc entiv e payments.
5. What is rated?
The pu rpose of rating is to determine, f rom the time ac tu ally taken b y the
operativ e b eing ob serv ed, the standard time whic h c an b e maintained b y the
av erage qu alif ied worker and whic h c an b e u sed as a realistic b asis f or
planning, c ontrol and inc entiv e sc hemes. What the stu dy person is c onc erned
with is theref ore the speed with whic h the operativ e c arries ou t the work, in
relation to the stu dy person's c onc ept of a normal speed. In f ac t, speed of
working as rec orded b y the time taken to c arry ou t the elements of the
operation is the only thing whic h c an b e measu red with a stop-watc h. Most
au thorities on time stu dy agree on this point.
S peed of what? Certainly not merely speed of mov ement, b ec au se an
u nskilled operativ e may mov e extremely f ast and yet take longer to perf orm an
operation than a skilled operativ e who appears to b e working qu ite slowly. The
u nskilled operativ e pu ts in a lot of u nnec essary mov ements whic h the
experienc ed operativ e has long sinc e eliminated. The only thing that c ou nts is
the ef f ec tiv e speed of the operation. Ju dgement of ef f ec tiv e speed c an only b e
ac qu ired throu gh experienc e and knowledge of the operations b eing ob serv ed.
It is v ery easy f or an inexperienc ed stu dy person either to b e f ooled b y a large
nu mb er of rapid mov ements into b eliev ing that an operativ e is working at a
high rate or to u nderestimate the rate of working of the skilled operativ e whose
apparently slow mov ements are v ery ec onomic al of motion.
A c onstant sou rc e of disc u ssion in time stu dy is the rating of ef f ort.
S hou ld ef f ort b e rated, and if so, how? The prob lem arises as soon as it
b ec omes nec essary to stu dy job s other than v ery light work where little
mu sc u lar ef f ort is requ ired. Ef f ort is v ery dif f ic u lt to rate. The resu lt of exerting
ef f ort is u su ally only seen in the speed.
The amou nt of ef f ort whic h has to b e exerted and the dif f ic u lty
enc ou ntered b y the operativ e is a matter f or the stu dy person to ju dge in the
light of experienc e with the type of job . For example, if an operativ e has to lif t
a heav y mou ld f rom the f illing tab le, c arry it ac ross the working area and pu t it
on the grou nd near the ladle, only experienc e will tell the ob serv er whether the
speed at whic h it is b eing done is normal, ab ov e normal or su b normal. Those
who had nev er stu died operations inv olv ing the c arrying of heav y weights
wou ld hav e great dif f ic u lty in making an assessment the f irst time they saw
306 su c h an operation.
TIME STUDY: RATING
Operations inv olv ing mental activities (ju dgement of f inish, f or example,
in inspec tion of work) are most dif f ic u lt to assess. Experienc e of the type of
work is requ ired b ef ore satisf ac tory assessments c an b e made. Inexperienc ed
stu dy persons c an b e made to look v ery f oolish in su c h c ases, and moreov er
c an b e u nju st to ab ov e-av erage and c onsc ientiou s workers.
In any job the speed of ac c omplishment mu st b e related to an idea of a
normal speed f or the same type of work. This is an important reason f or doing
a proper method stu dy on a job b ef ore attempting to set a time standard. It
enab les the stu dy person to gain a c lear u nderstanding of the natu re of the work
and of ten enab les the elimination of exc essiv e ef f ort or ju dgement. The rating
proc ess is thu s b rou ght nearer to a simple assessment of speed.
In the next sec tion some of the f ac tors af f ec ting the rate of working of the
operativ e will b e disc u ssed.
6. Factors affecting the rate of working
V ariations in ac tu al times f or a partic u lar element may b e du e to f ac tors ou tside
or within the c ontrol of the worker. Those ou tside this c ontrol may b e:
D v ariations in the qu ality or other c harac teristic s of the material u sed,
althou gh they may b e within the presc rib ed toleranc e limits;
c hanges in the operating ef f ic ienc y of tools or equ ipment within their
u sef u l lif e;
D minor and u nav oidab le c hanges in methods or c onditions of operation;
D v ariations in the mental attention nec essary f or the perf ormanc e of c ertain
of the elements;
D c hanges in c limatic and other su rrou nding c onditions su c h as light,
temperatu re, etc .
These c an generally b e ac c ou nted f or b y taking a su f f ic ient nu mb er of
stu dies to ensu re that a representativ e sample of times is ob tained.
Fac tors within the operativ e's c ontrol may b e:
D ac c eptab le v ariations in the qu ality of the produ c t;
D v ariations du e to the indiv idu al's ab ility;
D v ariations du e to the attitu de of mind, espec ially the attitu de to the
organization f or whic h he or she works.
The f ac tors within the worker's c ontrol c an af f ec t the times of similarly
desc rib ed elements of work b y af f ec ting:
D the pattern of the worker's mov ements;
D the indiv idu al working pac e;
D b oth, in v arying proportions.
The stu dy person mu st theref ore hav e a c lear idea of the pattern of
mov ement whic h a qu alif ied worker shou ld f ollow, and of how this pattern
may b e v aried to meet the range of c onditions whic h that worker may
enc ou nter. Highly repetitiv e work likely to ru n f or long periods shou ld hav e
b een stu died in detail throu gh the u se of ref ined method stu dy tec hniqu es, and 307
the worker shou ld hav e b een su itab ly trained in the patterns of mov ement
appropriate to eac h element.
The optimu m pac e at whic h the worker will work depends on:
D the physic al ef f ort demanded b y the work;
D the c are requ ired on the part of the worker;
D training and experienc e.
G reater physic al ef f ort will tend to slow u p the pac e. The ease with whic h
the ef f ort is made will also inf lu enc e the pac e. For example, an ef f ort made in
c onditions where operativ es c annot exert their strength in the most c onv enient
way will b e made mu c h more slowly than one of the same magnitu de in whic h
they c an exert their strength in a straightf orward manner (f or instanc e, pu shing
a c ar with one hand throu gh the window on the steering-wheel, as opposed to
pu shing it f rom b ehind). Care mu st b e taken to distingu ish b etween slowing u p
du e to ef f ort and slowing u p du e to f atigu e.
When the element is one in whic h the workers are heav ily loaded, so that
they hav e to exert c onsiderab le physic al ef f ort throu ghou t, it is u nlikely that
they will perf orm it at anything other than their natu ral b est pac e. In su c h
c irc u mstanc es rating may b e su perf lu ou s: it may b e su f f ic ient to determine the
av erage of the ac tu al times taken du ring an adequ ate nu mb er of ob serv ations.
This was v ery strikingly shown du ring an IL O stu dy of manu al earth-mov ing
operations c arried ou t in India. The workers men, women and you ths
c arried loads of earth u p to 38 kg (84 lb ) in weight on their heads, in wic ker
b askets. People with 38 kg on their heads do not dawdle. They are anxiou s to
get to the end of the walk and get rid of the load, and so perf orm the task at the
b est rate that they c an natu rally ac hiev e. In doing so they shorten their stride,
taking v ery short pac es v ery qu ic kly so that it looks almost as thou gh they are
going to b reak ou t into a trot at any moment. In point of f ac t, the stop-watc h
showed that the time taken f or the loaded walk was a good deal longer than
that needed f or the apparently more leisu rely retu rn u nloaded, so that the stu dy
person withou t experienc e of the ef f ort inv olv ed in the operation c ou ld v ery
easily b e led into making f alse ratings. In f ac t, f or the loaded walk, ratings
were not nec essary, exc ept when c ontingenc ies oc c u rred. S imilar heav ily
loaded elements oc c u r in f ac tories, as in c arrying sac ks, pic king them u p, or
throwing them down on to stac ks. These operations are most likely to b e
c arried ou t at the b est natu ral pac e whic h the worker c an manage.
An inc reased need f or c are in c arrying ou t an element will redu c e the
pac e. An example is plac ing a peg with parallel sides in a hole, whic h requ ires
more c are than if the peg is tapered.
Fu mb ling and hesitation on the part of the worker are f ac tors whic h the
stu dy person mu st learn to rec ognize and c ope with. A worker's natu ral skill
and dexterity c omb ined with training and experienc e will redu c e the
introdu c tion of minor method v ariations (f u mb ling), and also the f oreign
element "c onsider" (hesitation). V ery slight dev iations f rom the standard
method c an b e taken into ac c ou nt b y assigning a lower rating, b u t f u mb ling and
hesitation u su ally signal a need f or f u rther training.
308 The stu dy person shou ld b e c aref u l not to rate too highly when:
TIME STUDY: RATING
D the worker is worried or looks hu rried;
the worker is ob v iou sly b eing ov er-c aref u l;
D the job looks dif f ic u lt to the stu dy person;
D the stu dy person is working v ery f ast, as when rec ording a short-element
stu dy.
Conv ersely, there is a danger of rating too low when:
D the worker makes the job look easy;
D the worker is u sing smooth, rhythmic mov ements;
D the worker does not pau se to think when the stu dy person expec ts this;
D the worker is perf orming heav y manu al work;
D the stu dy person is tired.
The stu dy person mu st take su c h f ac tors into ac c ou nt. Rating is v ery
mu c h easier if a good method stu dy has b een made f irst, in whic h the ac tiv ities
c alling f or spec ial skill or ef f ort hav e b een redu c ed to a minimu m. The more
the method has b een simplif ied, the less the element of skill to b e assessed and
the more rating b ec omes a matter of simply ju dging pac e.
7. Scales of rating
In order that a c omparison b etween the ob serv ed rate of working and the
standard rate may b e made ef f ec tiv ely, it is nec essary to hav e a nu meric al sc ale
against whic h to make the assessment. The rating c an then b e u sed as a f ac tor
b y whic h the ob serv ed time c an b e mu ltiplied to giv e the b asic time, whic h is
the time it wou ld take the motiv ated, qu alif ied worker to c arry ou t the element
at standard rating.
There are sev eral sc ales of rating in u se, the most c ommon of whic h are
those designated the 60-80, 75-100 and 100-133 sc ales, and the British
S tandard sc ale u sed in this b ook (essentially a restatement of the 75-100 sc ale),
whic h is termed the 0-100 sc ale.
Tab le 17 shows examples of v ariou s rates of working on the sc ales
mentioned.
In the 60-80, 75-100 and 100-133 sc ales, the lower f igu re in eac h instanc e
was def ined as the rate of working of an operativ e on time rates of pay; and the
higher, in eac h c ase one-third higher, c orresponded to the rate of working we
hav e c alled the standard rate, that of qu alif ied workers who are su itab ly
motiv ated to apply themselv es to their work, as f or instanc e b y an inc entiv e
sc heme. The u nderlying assu mption was that workers on inc entiv e perf orm, on
av erage, ab ou t one-third more ef f ec tiv ely than those who are not. This
assu mption has b een well su b stantiated b y prac tic al experienc e ov er many
years, b u t it is largely irrelev ant in the c onstru c tion of a rating sc ale. All the
sc ales are linear. There is theref ore no need to denote an intermediate point
b etween zero and the f igu re c hosen to represent the standard rating as we hav e
def ined it. Whic hev er sc ale is u sed, the f inal time standards deriv ed shou ld b e
equ iv alent, f or the work itself does not c hange ev en thou gh dif f erent sc ales are
u sed to assess the rate at whic h it is b eing c arried ou t. 309
Table 1 7. Examples of various rates of working on the principal rating scales
Description Comparable
walking speed
1
60-80 75 -1 00 1 00-1 33 0-1 00
Standard
0 0 0 0
40 50 67 50
(mi/h) (km/h)
No activity
Very slow; clumsy, fumbling 2 3.2
movements; operative appears
half asleep, with no interest
in the job
60 75 1 00 75 Steady, deliberate, unhurried 3 4.8
performance, as of a worker
not on piece work but under
proper supervision; looks
slow, but time is not being
intentionally wasted while
under observation
80 1 00 1 33 100 Brisk, business-like perform- 4 6.4
anee, as of an average
qualified worker on piece work;
necessary standard of quality
and accuracy achieved with
confidence
1 00 1 25 1 67 125 Very fast; operative 5 8.0
exhibits a high degree of
assurance, dexterity and
coordination of movement, well
above that of an average
trained worker
1 20 1 5 0 200 150 Exceptionally fast; requires 6 9.6
intense effort and concentra-
tion, and is unlikely to be
kept up for long periods; a
"virtuoso" performance
achieved only by a few
outstanding workers
1
Assuming an operative of average height and physique, unladen, walking in a straight line on a smooth level surface without obstructions.
Source: Freely adapted from a table issued by the Engineering and Allied Employers (West of England) Association, Department of Work
Study.
100
(Standard
rating)
31 0
The newer 0-100 sc ale has, howev er, c ertain important adv antages whic h
hav e led to its adoption as the British S tandard. It is c ommended to readers of
this b ook and is u sed in all the examples whic h f ollow. In the 0-100 sc ale, 0
represents zero ac tiv ity and 100 the normal rate of working of the motiv ated
qu alif ied worker that is, the standard rate.
TIME STUDY: RATING
8. How the rating factor is used
Figu re 100 represents standard perf ormanc e. If the stu dy person dec ides that
the ob serv ed operation is b eing perf ormed with less ef f ec tiv e speed than a
partic u lar c onc ept of standard, a f ac tor of less than 100 will b e u sed, say 90 or
75 or whatev er is c onsidered as representing a proper assessment. If , on the
other hand, the stu dy person dec ides that the ef f ec tiv e rate of working is ab ov e
standard, it will b e giv en a f ac tor greater than 100 say, 110, 115 or 120.
It is u su al prac tic e to rou nd of f ratings to the nearest mu ltiple of f iv e on
the sc ale; that is to say, if the rate is ju dged to b e 13 per c ent ab ov e standard, it
wou ld b e pu t down at 115. Du ring the f irst weeks of their training, stu dy
persons are u nlikely to b e ab le to rate more c losely than the nearest ten.
If the stu dy person's ratings were always impec c ab le, then howev er many
times an element were rated and timed the resu lts shou ld b e that:
observed time x rating = a constant
prov ided that the element is of the type desc rib ed as a c onstant element in
sec tion 6 of the prev iou s c hapter, and that it is always perf ormed in the same way.
An example, expressed nu meric ally, might read as f ollows:
Observed time
Cycle (decimal minutes) Rating Constant
1 0.20 x 100 = 0.20
2 0.16 x 125 = 0.20
3 0.25 x 80 = 0.20
and so on.
The reader may b e pu zzled that, in the f igu res ab ov e, 0.20 X 100 is shown
as equ al to 0.20 rather than 20. It mu st b e rememb ered, howev er, that rating
does not stand b y itself : it is always a c omparison with the standard rating
(100) so that, when the amended time is b eing c alc u lated, the assessed rating is
the nu merator of a f rac tion of whic h the denominator is the standard rating. In
the c ase of the 100 standard this makes it a perc entage whic h, when mu ltiplied b y
the ob serv ed time, produ c es the c onstant known as the "b asic time" f or the element.
ob serv ed time x -_ = b asic time
standard rating
For example:
125
0.16 min.
x
T77r = 0.20 min.
This b asic time (0.20 minu tes in the example) represents the time the
elements wou ld take to perf orm (in the ju dgement of the ob serv er) if the
operativ e were working at the standard rate, instead of the f aster one ac tu ally
ob serv ed.
If the operativ e was ju dged to b e working more slowly than the standard,
a b asic time less than the ob serv ed time wou ld b e arriv ed at, f or example:
80
0.25 min. x = 0.20 min.
In ac tu al prac tic e, the mu ltiple ob serv ed time x rating is v ery rarely
exac tly c onstant when taken ov er a large nu mb er of readings, f or v ariou s
reasons su c h as:
D v ariations in the work c ontent of the element;
D inac c u rac ies in noting and rec ording ob serv ed times;
D inac c u rac ies in rating;
[ H v ariations du e to rating to the nearest f iv e points.
9. Recording the rating
We hav e disc u ssed the theory of rating at some length and are now in a position
to u ndertake the c omplete stu dy.
In general, eac h element of ac tiv ity mu st b e rated du ring its perf ormanc e
b ef ore the time is rec orded, withou t regard to prev iou s or su c c eeding elements.
No c onsideration shou ld b e giv en to the aspec t of f atigu e, sinc e the allowanc e
f or rec ov ery f rom f atigu e will b e assessed separately (see Chapter 23).
In the c ase of v ery short elements and c yc les this may b e dif f ic u lt. If the
work is repetitiv e, ev ery c yc le or possib ly the c omplete stu dy may b e rated.
This is done when the short c yc le stu dy f orm (f igu re 101, Chapter 20) is u sed.
It is most important that the rating shou ld b e made while the element is in
progress and that it shou ld b e noted b ef ore the time is taken, as otherwise there
is a v ery great risk that prev iou s times and ratings f or the same element will
inf lu enc e the assessment. For this reason the "Rating" c olu mn on the time
stu dy sheet in f igu res 99 and 100 is plac ed to the lef t of the "Watc h reading"
c olu mn. It is, perhaps, a f u rther adv antage of the c u mu lativ e method of timing
that the element time does not appear as a separate f igu re u ntil the su b trac tions
hav e b een made later in the of f ic e. If it did, it might inf lu enc e the rating or
tempt the stu dy person to "rate b y the watc h".
S inc e the rating of an element represents the assessment of the av erage
rate of perf ormanc e f or that element, the longer the element the more dif f ic u lt
it is f or the stu dy person to adju st this ju dgement to that av erage. This is a
strong argu ment in f av ou r of making elements short, su b jec t to the c onditions
disc u ssed in Chapter 21. L ong elements, thou gh timed as a whole u p to the
b reak points, shou ld b e rated ev ery half -minu te.
Rating to the nearest f iv e is f ou nd to giv e su f f ic ient ac c u rac y in the f inal
resu lt. G reater ac c u rac y than this c an b e attained only af ter v ery long training
and prac tic e.
We may now ref er b ac k to the time stu dy f orm in f igu res 99 and 100. We
hav e disc u ssed the f illing-in of two c olu mns, namely "Watc h reading" (WR)
and "Rating" (R), b oth entries b eing made on the same line.
These readings are c ontinu ed f or a su f f ic ient nu mb er of c yc les, at the end
of whic h the watc h is allowed to ru n on u ntil c ompared with the c loc k with
whic h it was sync hronized when started. The "time af ter" c an then b e noted
and rec orded. The stu dy is then at an end. The next step, af ter thanking the
operativ e f or his or her c ooperation, is to work ou t the b asic time f or eac h
312 element. How to do this is desc rib ed in the next c hapter.
CHAPTER 23
Time study: From study
to standard time
1. Summarizing the study
At the stage we hav e now reac hed, the stu dy person has c ompleted the
ob serv ations at the workplac e and has retu rned to the work stu dy of f ic e with
the stu dy. No dou b t later f u rther stu dies will b e made on the same job or
operation as perf ormed b y dif f erent operativ es, b u t f or the moment we shall
c onsider how the stu dy whic h has ju st b een taken is worked u p and how the
resu lts ob tained on the analysis of stu dies sheet f or the operation are entered.
L ater in the c hapter we shall see how standard times are c ompiled f rom the
entries on the analysis of stu dies sheet.
All the entries made so f ar on the time stu dy top sheet (f igu re 99) and the
c ontinu ation sheets (f igu re 100) hav e b een written in penc il. As well as the
heading details shown in the data b loc k on the top sheet, there will b e the "time
b ef ore", the f irst entry on the stu dy proper; the "time af ter", whic h will b e the
last entry; and two entries f or eac h watc h reading made the rating and the
watc h reading itself . The ratings will all b e in the c olu mn headed "R" and will
c onsist of nu mb ers su c h as 95, 115, 80, 100, 75, 105, and so on, thou gh u ntil
the stu dy person has had c onsiderab le prac tic e the ratings shou ld b e c onf ined to
steps of ten, su c h as 80, 90, 100, and so on. In the next c olu mn, that headed
"WR", will b e the watc h readings in dec imal minu tes. S inc e watc h readings
will hav e b een made at interv als of half a minu te or less (long elements b eing
rated and timed ev ery half -minu te du ring the element as well as at the b reak
point whic h signals its end), most of the entries will c onsist of two f igu res only,
with a three-f igu re entry oc c u rring whenev er a f u ll minu te has b een c rossed. It
is u su al to omit the dec imal points. This sav es the stu dy person a c ertain
amou nt of writing and in prac tic e giv es rise to no amb igu ity.
L et u s assu me that the "time b ef ore" was 2.15 minu tes. The f irst entry on
the stu dy proper will thu s b e 215. The next may b e 27, indic ating that the
watc h was read 2.27 minu tes af ter it was started. If the next three entries are
39, 51 and 307, these will signif y that the watc h was read at 2.39, 2.51 and 3.07
minu tes af ter it was started. Two- and three-f igu re entries will c ontinu e in this
way down the sheet u ntil ten minu tes hav e elapsed, when the next entry will b e
a f ou r-f igu re one. Most stu dy persons then rev ert to three-f igu re and two-f igu re
entries again u ntil another ten minu tes hav e passed, u sing f ou r f igu res only f or
the f irst entries af ter the ten-minu te interv als. The stu dy will c lose with the
"time af ter" entry, at whic h time also the "time of f will b e noted in the data
panel on the stu dy top sheet. Ev ery now and then in the stu dy there may b e 313
watc h readings withou t ac c ompanying ratings, when some delay or stoppage
has oc c u rred. These of c ou rse c annot b e rated, f or they are not work.
It shou ld b e made a working ru le that none of these penc il entries may
ev er b e erased and replac ed. Oc c asionally a stu dy may c ontain a v ery ob v iou s
error, of a sort whic h may b e c orrec ted withou t inv alidating the stu dy. If so, the
c orrec tion shou ld b e made in ink, ov er the original penc il entry, so that it may
always b e seen later as a c hange made in the stu dy of f ic e, not at the plac e
where the stu dy was made. Whenev er there is an error ab ou t whic h there is
dou b t as to how it shou ld b e c orrec ted, that part of the stu dy shou ld b e ignored.
It may b e nec essary to sc rap the stu dy and make another.
It is good prac tic e to c arry ou t all su b sequ ent work on the stu dy sheets
either in ink or in penc il of a dif f erent c olou r f rom that u sed f or the initial
rec ordings. Many stu dy departments make this a standing ru le also. There is
then no dou b t whatev er ab ou t what was ac tu ally rec orded f rom direc t
ob serv ation and what represents su b sequ ent c alc u lation. Q u ite apart f rom its
merits in ob taining orderly proc essing of the data rec orded, the prac tic e helps
also to maintain the c onf idenc e of workers and their representativ es that
nothing improper is permitted in the working u p of stu dies.
2. Preparing the study summary sheet
As will b e seen a little later, mu c h of the work nec essary b ef ore the stu dy
su mmary sheet c an b e c ompleted c onsists of qu ite simple rou tine c alc u lations
whic h may b e done b y a c lerk while the stu dy person gets on with something
else. In the b eginning, howev er, the stu dy person shou ld do ev erything
personally, u ntil so thorou ghly f amiliar with all the proc edu res inv olv ed that he
or she c an not only instru c t the c lerk on what has to b e done b u t c an also c hec k
the c alc u lations easily and qu ic kly.
The f irst step is to c omplete the data at the head of the stu dy su mmary
sheet (f igu re 104), c opying the details neatly, in ink, f rom the stu dy sheets.
From the time of f and the time on, the elapsed time may b e c alc u lated and
entered. When c u mu lativ e timing is b eing prac tised, the elapsed time shou ld of
c ou rse agree with the f inal watc h reading. If it does not, there is an error whic h
mu st at onc e b e inv estigated. It is no u se doing f u rther work on the stu dy u ntil
this is c leared u p, f or a seriou s error may b e c au se f or sc rapping the stu dy and
starting again. Dedu c ting f rom the elapsed time the total "c hec k time" the
su m of the "time b ef ore" and the "time af ter" yields the net time. This
shou ld agree with the su m of all the ob serv ed times when u sing f lyb ac k timing,
or the su m of all the su b trac ted times with c u mu lativ e timing. If f lyb ac k timing
has b een u sed, this c hec k shou ld b e made b ef ore proc eeding f u rther, b y adding
u p all the element times rec orded and seeing how the total c ompares with the
net time. It is u nlikely that there will b e exac t agreement, f or the reasons noted
earlier, b u t the disc repanc y shou ld b e within 2 per c ent. If it is greater than this,
some departments make it their prac tic e to ignore the stu dy and make another.
When c u mu lativ e timing has b een u sed, the c hec k c annot b e made u ntil
the su b trac ted times hav e b een ob tained and totalled. The c omparison then
314 serv es as a c hec k on the ac c u rac y with whic h the su b trac tions hav e b een made.
TIME STUDY: FROM STUDYTOSTANDARDTIME
Any error shou ld b e inv estigated and c orrec ted b ef ore the work of extension is
u ndertaken.
On the b ody of the stu dy su mmary sheet the stu dy person next lists all the
repetitiv e elements ob serv ed, in order of their oc c u rrenc e, noting the b reak
points u sed on the rev erse of the sheet.
S ome of these repetitiv e elements may b e v ariab le elements, whic h will
hav e to b e treated in a dif f erent way f rom the c onstant elements. These v ariab le
elements are theref ore listed again in a f resh tab u lation b elow the f u ll list of
repetitiv e elements. Below the v ariab le elements the stu dy person next lists any
oc c asional elements ob serv ed, inc lu ding with them any c ontingenc y elements
of work whic h ac tu ally oc c u rred du ring the stu dy. Below these again are listed
any f oreign elements and inef f ec tiv e time. When these entries hav e b een made,
the sheet shou ld prov ide f or a su mmarized rec ord of ev erything that has b een
ob serv ed du ring the stu dy.
Enter frequencies
The next step is to enter against eac h element listed on the stu dy su mmary
sheet the f requ enc y with whic h that element oc c u rred. Repetitiv e elements, b y
def inition, oc c u r at least onc e in ev ery c yc le of the operation so the entry to b e
made against a repetitiv e element will read 1/1, or 2/1, etc ., indic ating that the
element c onc erned oc c u rs onc e in ev ery c yc le (1/1), twic e (2/1), or whatev er
may b e the c ase. Oc c asional elements (f or example, the element "sharpen
tools") may oc c u r only onc e ev ery ten or 50 c yc les, when the entry wou ld b e
1/10, 1/50 or as appropriate. The entries are made in the c olu mn headed "F" on
the stu dy su mmary sheet.
Frequ enc ies are normally deriv ed f rom ob serv ations u ndertaken du ring
the stu dy. Howev er, f or oc c asional elements whic h oc c u r at long interv als, the
stu dy may not b e long enou gh to inc lu de a representativ e sample of
oc c u rrenc es that of f ers a tru e pic tu re of the f requ enc y of oc c u rrenc e. Althou gh
this c an b e c onsidered u nimportant, in terms of its ef f ec t on the ov erall
standard time that will b e dev eloped sinc e the time f or su c h an element will
b e a v ery small proportion of the ov erall time it is important in gaining the
c onf idenc e of the workers. If , when examining a stu dy, they see a f requ enc y
whic h they know f rom experienc e to b e inc orrec t, they will lose c onf idenc e in
the stu dy and may u se that small point as the b asis of a c hallenge of the entire
stu dy. For su c h elements, it is nec essary to c onf irm the f requ enc y with the
su perv isor or b y analysis of historic al rec ords. For example, with an element
su c h as "Replac e tool", it shou ld b e possib le to f ind the nu mb er of tools issu ed
f rom the stores in a giv en time period and to relate this to the nu mb er of
c omponents produ c ed in the same period. A f requ enc y of oc c u rrenc e of the
element "Change tool" c an then b e determined.
3. Extension: The calculation of basic time
The stu dy person has now c ompleted the entries in the heading b loc k of the
stu dy su mmary sheet, listed the elements, entered f requ enc ies and (if 315
nec essary) made a c lear sketc h of the workplac e layou t on the rev erse of the
sheet (when appropriate, the u se of a simple instant-print-type c amera c an sav e
a great deal of time and money; it is u su ally nec essary to inc lu de in the
photograph a simple sc ale, su c h as a squ are rod painted in 1 c m b ands). The
stu dy person mu st tu rn next to the c alc u lations whic h hav e to b e made on the
time stu dy sheets themselv es b ef ore proc eeding any f u rther with the stu dy
su mmary. The resu lts of the c alc u lations will b e entered on the time stu dy
sheets in ink or penc il of a dif f erent c olou r f rom that u sed when rec ording
ob serv ations at the workplac e. If an elec tronic stu dy b oard is u sed, the
c alc u lation will b e indic ated as shown in sec tion 6 of this c hapter.
When f lyb ac k timing has b een u sed, the stu dy person may proc eed
direc tly to extension. When u sing c u mu lativ e timing, howev er, it is f irst
nec essary to su b trac t eac h watc h reading f rom the one f ollowing it, in order to
ob tain the ob serv ed time f or eac h element. The entries ob tained in this way
shou ld properly b e styled "su b trac ted times" rather than "ob serv ed times"; they
are entered in the third c olu mn on the time stu dy sheets, that headed "S T". The
su b trac ted times deriv ed when u sing c u mu lativ e timing are of c ou rse exac tly
equ iv alent to the ob serv ed times entered direc tly at the workplac e when u sing
f lyb ac k timing, so f or the sake of simplic ity the single term "ob serv ed time" is
u sed du ring the rest of this c hapter to mean b oth direc tly ob serv ed and
su b trac ted times.
The next step is to c onv ert eac h ob serv ed time to a b asic time, entering
the resu lt in the c olu mn headed "BT" on the time stu dy sheets.
Basic time is the time for carrying out an element of work at stan-
dard rating, i.e.
observed time x observed rating
standard rating
Extension is the calculation of basic time from observed time
The ef f ec t of extending an ob serv ed time f or an element to the b asic time
is shown graphic ally in f igu re 109.
4. The selected time
31 6
The selected time is the time chosen as being representative of a
group of times for an element or group of elements. These times
may be either observed or basic and should be denoted as selected
observed or selected basic times
Figure 1 09. Effect of extension on the time of an element
Observed time
(a) Performance above standard
OTx(R-IOO)
1 00
Basic time
(b) Performance below standard
Observed time
OTx(R-IOO)
1 00
Basic time
Constant elements
In theory the resu lts of all the c alc u lations of the b asic time f or any single
c onstant element shou ld b e the same, b u t f or the reasons giv en in Chapter 21
this is rarely so. It is nec essary to selec t f rom all the b asic times whic h hav e
b een entered on the time stu dy sheets a representativ e time f or eac h element.
This will b e rec orded against the element desc ription on the stu dy su mmary
sheet and will later b e transf erred to the analysis of stu dies sheet as the end
resu lt of the stu dy, at least in so f ar as that partic u lar element is c onc erned.
The c alc u lations nec essary to arriv e at the selec ted b asic time are c arried
ou t on the working sheet. As was noted in Chapter 20, it is qu ite c ommon to
u se simple lined sheets f or making the analysis (or, f or v ariab le elements,
squ ared paper), withou t hav ing any spec ial f orms printed. The working sheets,
when c ompleted, are stapled to the time stu dy sheets and f iled with them.
Mu c h time c an b e sav ed and ac c u rac y c an b e greatly improv ed b y u sing a
small c alc u lator or c ompu ting equ ipment, su c h as a personal c ompu ter.
There are v ariou s methods of examining and selec ting the representativ e
b asic time f or a c onstant element. Perhaps the most c ommon, and in many 31 7
ways of ten the most satisf ac tory, is b y making a straight av erage of the element
times arriv ed at, adding all the c alc u lated b asic times together and div iding the
total b y the nu mb er of oc c asions on whic h the element was rec orded. Bef ore
doing this, howev er, it is u su al to list all the b asic times f or the element and
sc ru tinize the list, ringing ou t any times whic h are exc essiv ely high or low,
well ou tside the normal range. These ringed times are sometimes styled
"rogu es"; they shou ld b e examined c aref u lly.
An exc eptionally high time may b e du e to an error in timing. If
c u mu lativ e timing is b eing u sed, an error of this sort will b e rev ealed b y
examining the stu dy, b ec au se an exc essiv ely long time f or one element will
c au se shortening of the rec orded time f or the next. A high time may also b e du e
to an error hav ing b een made in extension. Bu t perhaps the most c ommon
c au se, apart f rom errors, is that there has b een some v ariation in the material
b eing worked on or in some other aspec t of the working method, whic h has
c au sed a higher work c ontent on the partic u lar oc c asion rec orded. If so, it is
nec essary to estab lish the c au se and to c onsider whether it is likely to rec u r
f requ ently or only v ery rarely. If the latter, it is u su al to exc lu de the element
b asic time f rom the total f rom whic h the av erage is deriv ed and then, hav ing
c alc u lated the av erage time f or the element, to c arry the exc ess-ov er-av erage
time c ontained in any ringed times down to c ontingenc ies, adding it to any
other c ontingenc y time whic h may hav e b een ob serv ed and rec orded du ring the
stu dy. In this way the extra time is f u lly ac c ou nted f or, b u t it is treated as an
exc eptional ev ent or c ontingenc y, whic h it properly is. On the other hand, if
minor v ariations in the work c ontent of an element are at all c ommon, it will b e
mu c h b etter not to exc lu de any c alc u lations at all when c alc u lating the av erage.
Frequ ent minor v ariations shou ld always b e treated as signals to alert the stu dy
person. If they are u nav oidab le they at least indic ate that time stu dy will hav e
to b e c ontinu ed u ntil a large nu mb er of ob serv ations hav e b een taken on the
element c onc erned, so that the resu lting av erage of all the b asic times may b e
su f f ic iently representativ e. V ery of ten, howev er, they indic ate that a f u rther
stu dy shou ld b e made of the operation to f ind ou t the reason f or the v ariations,
and, if possib le, to eliminate it.
Exc eptionally short times shou ld also b e examined with great c are. They
too may b e du e to the stu dy person's error. On the other hand, they may
indic ate that a minor method improv ement was adopted on the oc c asion du ring
whic h the mu c h shorter time than u su al was noted. If so, it will b e well to stu dy
the job again, giv ing spec ial and more detailed attention to the working
methods u sed.
The approac h ou tlined ab ov e is v alid so long as the exc eptional times are
either v ery inf requ ent or, if f requ ent, only minor in c harac ter. Frequ ent large
v ariations indic ate that the element is not c onstant b u t v ariab le, and it mu st b e
treated as su c h.
Du ring a time stu dy made on the operation of inspec ting and jac keting a
b ook, one element was desc rib ed as: "Pic k u p one b ook, inspec t, initial b ac k
end paper (b reak point: b ook c losed)". This element was ob serv ed 31 times,
318 and the b asic minu tes c alc u lated were as shown b elow:
Basic minutes
27 26 28
26 25 25
27 29 27
27 28 27
26 28 26
27 27 25
26 27 26
25 26 26
26 27
@
27 26 26
28
It will b e seen that one f igu re has b een ringed the b asic time of 0.49 minu tes
whic h arose when a f au lty b ook was enc ou ntered, examined and rejec ted.
Exc lu ding this f igu re, the total of the remaining 30 b asic times is 7.97 minu tes,
whic h yields an av erage of 0.266 minu tes per oc c asion. At this stage in the
stu dywork the f igu re 266 wou ld b e entered on the stu dy su mmary sheet and b e
c arried to the analysis of stu dies sheet; b u t at the end of the c alc u lations f or the
element, the b asic time f inally selec ted wou ld b e rou nded of f to the nearest two
f igu res in this c ase 0.27 minu tes. The exc ess work ob serv ed in the ringed
ob serv ation (0.49-0.27 = 0.22) wou ld b e c arried down to the c ontingenc ies rec ord.
S elec tion b y av eraging in this way is simple to teac h and to u nderstand,
and is readily ac c epted b y b oth work stu dy prac titioners and workers. When
the total nu mb er of ob serv ations made on an element is relativ ely small,
av eraging u su ally giv es a more ac c u rate resu lt than is ob tainab le with other
methods of selec tion. It does, howev er, giv e rise to a great deal of c leric al work
when many ob serv ations hav e b een rec orded, partic u larly when short elements
hav e b een ob serv ed v ery many times. Consequ ently, other methods of selec tion
hav e b een dev ised to redu c e the c alc u lation ef f ort requ ired.
One method, whic h ob v iates the nec essity f or extending ob serv ed times to
b asic times, is to tab u late the ob serv ed times f or the element u nder the ratings
rec orded as c orresponding to eac h ob serv ation, so as to f orm a distrib u tion
tab le against ratings. The tab le c an b e c ompiled direc t f rom the entries made on
the time stu dy sheets at the workplac e. For the element in the example ab ov e,
the distrib u tion tab le wou ld appear as f ollows:
Rating 80 85 90 95 100 705
Observed
times
31 32
31
30
30
28
30
28
27
27
30 30 27 27
31 26 28 26
31 27
28
29
29
29
27
26
29
27
28
27
31 1 5 5 25 8 1 95 1 90 27 Total of observed times
Basic times 25 132 232 185 190 28 Total =792
319
In the tab u lation ab ov e, all the 30 ob serv ed times f rom whic h the b asic
times shown in the earlier example were c alc u lated are listed, the one ringed
ob serv ation hav ing b een exc lu ded. The ob serv ed times are then totalled u nder
eac h rating, and these totals are then extended b y mu ltiplying b y the
c orresponding ratings, to yield the b asic times (totals) shown in the line b elow.
The grand total of all these b asic times c omes to 7.92 minu tes, whic h, when
div ided b y 30 (the nu mb er of ob serv ations) giv en the selec ted b asic time f or
the element 0.264 minu tes. This may b e c ompared with the resu lt of 0.266
minu tes ac hiev ed b y av eraging the indiv idu al b asic times.
A third method also av oids the need to extend eac h ob serv ed time, the
selec tion b eing made b y c onstru c ting a plot as shown in f igu re 110. In this
method there are two sec tions to the plot, and two entries are made f or eac h
ob serv ation, b u t the entries are c rosses or dots. The lef t-hand axis c ontains the
time sc ale and shows the range of times ob serv ed f or the element, in this c ase
f rom 26 to 32. The sc ale at the top of the right-hand part of the plot shows the
ratings ob serv ed, f rom 80 to 105. To make the plot, the stu dy person ru ns down
the stu dy, and eac h time the element is rec orded a c ross is made against the
time ob serv ed, f ollowed b y a sec ond c ross, also against the ob serv ed time b u t
u nder the rating ob serv ed, on the right-hand side of the plot.
When all these entries are made, the lef t-hand side of the diagram will
exhib it a f requ enc y distrib u tion of ob serv ed times. On the right-hand side, the
b est straight line is throu gh the points plotted. The selec ted b asic time f or the
element c an then b e read of f b y entering the right-hand plot u nder 100 rating,
going v ertic ally down u ntil the line throu gh the points is reac hed, and then
reading on the sc ale at the lef t the time whic h c orresponds to the intersec tion.
It is essential that the plot on the lef t-hand side b e c ompleted, in order to
c hec k whether the distrib u tion f ollows the normal pattern. If it does not, the
method shou ld not b e u sed. Distrib u tions whic h are irregu lar lopsided,
skewed, or hav ing two hu mps shou ld b e treated as signals that the method
will not b e reliab le, at any rate in the simple f orm here desc rib ed. The dif f erent
distrib u tion patterns whic h c an b e produ c ed eac h hav e signif ic ant meanings,
indic ating dif f erent v ariations in the work itself , in the operativ e's rate of
working, or in the stu dy person's rating ef f ic ienc y; b u t it will b e b etter not to
get inv olv ed in sophistic ated analyses of this sort u ntil c onsiderab le experienc e
has b een gained. The method is illu strated b rief ly here b ec au se it is typic al of
sev eral whic h make u se of graphic al means to selec t representativ e b asic times
withou t extending eac h ob serv ation. Most of them are v alid only when the
distrib u tion is normal or when the prec ise signif ic anc e of any ab normality is
thorou ghly u nderstood. It is rec ommended that the graphic al methods b e
av oided u nless expert gu idanc e is av ailab le. The f irst two methods desc rib ed
will su f f ic e f or all normal needs, and hav e the merit that they are more easily
u nderstood b y workers or their representativ es.
Bef ore leav ing the su b jec t of c onstant elements, the reader may like to
ref er again to the c omments made in Chapter 22 ab ou t c ertain manu al elements
when the worker is heav ily loaded, so that in all prob ab ility he or she normally
perf orms the element at the b est natu ral pac e. S u c h elements are c omparativ ely
320 rare, b u t when they oc c u r it may b e su f f ic ient to c alc u late the selec ted b asic
Figure 1 1 0. A graphical method of selecting basic time
Occasions Observed ratings
0'I 2.3 4-5 61 -8^0 #0 85 Qo 35 CXHoe
t
i .
. X ' /
xxx SelecTed basic fciine = 0.26^mrn. X ^/
X /X X
.28
/X X
X X X X x
> <
/x x
|.29
x/
X X x x
x
^/
x
.30
/ x
X X X X X X / X X
3
X X X x x /x
.3Z X / x
time b y simply av eraging ob serv ed times, withou t rec ou rse to extension. It is
essential, howev er, to hav e a large nu mb er of ob serv ations if this is to b e done.
Variable elements
The analysis of v ariab le elements presents more dif f ic u lty. It is nec essary to
f ind ou t what it is that c au ses the b asic time to v ary, and qu ite of ten there may
b e sev eral v ariab les to take into ac c ou nt at onc e. For example, c onsider the
operation of c ross-c u tting wooden planks with a handsaw. The b asic time
needed to make the c u t will v ary with the width of the plank, whic h estab lishes
the length of c u t that has to b e made, and also with the thic kness of the planks
and the hardness of the wood b eing c u t. If the saw needs sharpening, the c u t
will take longer; howev er, this wou ld b e c onsidered to b e the u se of an
inc orrec t method, and any ob serv ations made while the operativ e is u sing a
b lu nt saw wou ld theref ore b e disregarded.
The f irst step in the treatment of v ariab le elements is almost always to
extend ob serv ed times to b asic times. The b asic times will then b e plotted on
squ ared paper against the known v ariab les. Thu s f or v ariab le elements the
analysis of stu dies sheet takes the f orm of graph paper, and the graph
c onstru c ted at the time of su mmarizing the stu dy will prob ab ly b e attac hed to
the analysis of stu dies sheet, in plac e of the entries made on this sheet f or
c onstant elements.
Whenev er possib le, the b asis c hosen f or the plot shou ld b e some v ariab le
whic h yields a straight line when the b asic times are entered. S ometimes this 321
c an b e done b y u sing logarithmic paper, when analysis of the operation
su ggests that the v ariab ility with time may not b e arithmetic ally linear. Q u ite
of ten, howev er, it is not possib le to disc ov er a straight-line relationship
b etween time and the main v ariab le, or with any c omb ination of v ariab les
whic h is tried. In these c ases the end produ c t will b e a c u rv ed line, drawn as
smoothly as possib le b etween all the plots made f rom all the stu dies on the
element. Basic times f or the element will then b e selec ted b y reading of f the
c u rv e at the appropriate point on eac h oc c asion on whic h a standard time has to
b e c ompiled.
The treatment whic h the stu dy person wou ld ac c ord to the times deriv ed
f rom stu dying the c ross-c u tting of planks wou ld depend on whether the
operation is an inc idental one, perf ormed only rarely, or whether it is an
element perf ormed many times eac h day, f orming a su b stantial proportion of
the total work done. In the latter c ase a series of graphs will prob ab ly need to
b e b u ilt u p, eac h f or a dif f erent hardness of wood, with eac h graph hav ing a
f amily of lines on it, one f or eac h thic kness of plank. Basic times wou ld b e
plotted on these graphs against length of c u t. The relationship shou ld b e linear,
so that onc e it has b een disc ov ered the lines c an b e expressed as f ormu lae, with
f ac tors to take into ac c ou nt the v ariab les, thu s dispensing with the graphs f or
the c alc u lation of b asic times. If the element is not of su f f ic ient importanc e to
warrant so mu c h detail, the stu dy person wou ld prob ab ly try plotting b asic
times against the produ c t (width of plank X thic kness of plank), thu s c omb ining
two of the main v ariab les, and wou ld also try to estab lish a f ac tor b y whic h to
mu ltiply the relationship disc ov ered to take ac c ou nt of dif f erent hardnesses of
wood. The statistic al tec hniqu e of mu ltiple regression analysis is highly
su itab le f or the c alc u lation of v ariab le times. A desc ription of this tec hniqu e
will b e giv en in Chapter 27.
It will b e ev ident that, in general, many more ob serv ations of a v ariab le
element than of a c onstant element will b e nec essary b ef ore reliab le
representativ e b asic times c an b e estab lished. It is well to rec ognize this at the
ou tset, so that the stu dywork c an b e planned to span all the dif f erent c onditions
and v ariab les whic h are likely to b e enc ou ntered in prac tic e. It is as well also to
giv e c lose attention f rom the b eginning to disc ov ering the b est b asis against
whic h to plot the times, essaying trial plots against dif f erent possib ilities u ntil
some satisf ac tory indic ator of the c au se of the v ariab le times is rev ealed. When
the b asis of the relationship has b een disc ov ered, f u rther stu dywork c an b e
direc ted to f illing any gaps in the inf ormation so f ar c ompiled. If the essential
analysis is lef t u ntil a later stage, many of the stu dies taken may tu rn ou t to b e
needless du plic ation.
It is not possib le to presc rib e any one method of approac h whic h will
yield satisf ac tory resu lts in the analysis of all v ariab le elements. Eac h mu st b e
treated on its merits. It is here, perhaps more than anywhere else in time stu dy,
that c lose attention to the detailed methods of working is amply repaid;
otherwise it will rarely b e possib le to disc ov er ju st what it is that c au ses b asic
times to v ary. Ev en when the c au ses are known, there is of ten sc ope f or
c onsiderab le ingenu ity in dev ising a simple b asis whic h will ref lec t the major
322 v ariab les and rev eal a def inite and repeatab le relationship.
5. Completing the study summary sheet
Hav ing c ompleted the c alc u lations, the stu dy person is now ready to enter on
the stu dy su mmary sheet the inf ormation whic h will make it a c lear and
c onc ise rec ord of all the resu lts ob tained f rom the ob serv ations at the
workplac e. Against eac h of the c onstant elements listed on the sheet the
selec ted b asic time f or the element and the nu mb er of oc c asions on whic h the
element was ob serv ed will b e entered. The f requ enc ies of oc c u rrenc e hav e
already b een entered. Against the v ariab le elements will b e noted the
relationship b etween b asic time and the c ontrolling v ariab le, if this has b een
disc ov ered, or a ref erenc e to the graph sheet or other stu dy analysis sheet on
whic h the b asic times deriv ed hav e b een analysed will b e rec orded.
To c omplete the su mmary, he or she mu st enter a rec ord of any oc c asional
elements ob serv ed whic h hav e not already b een inc lu ded, and also any f oreign
elements whic h may hav e appeared du ring the stu dy. Contingenc y elements
and any c ontingenc y time extrac ted du ring the c alc u lations mu st b e shown. It is
u su al to express the c ontingenc y b asic minu tes as a perc entage of the total
b asic minu tes of repetitiv e work ob serv ed du ring the whole of the stu dy, so that
there may b e a b asis f or c omparing the c ontingenc ies oc c u rring du ring one
stu dy with those in another.
All the entries whic h hav e so f ar b een made represent work, in one f orm
or another. All exc ept any f oreign elements will f igu re later in the c alc u lation
of a standard time f or the operation, and sinc e they are all work they will all
attrac t relaxation allowanc es (see sec tion 12). Besides the elements of work,
howev er, there may well hav e b een periods when no work was done du ring the
stu dy, either b ec au se the operativ es were resting or b ec au se they were engaged
on one or other of the ac tiv ities whic h were desc rib ed earlier in this b ook as
"inef f ec tiv e time". The time so spent mu st now b e totalled and entered on the
su mmary. It is u sef u l to b reak down su c h time into a f ew main c ategories, su c h
as "relaxation", "inef f ec tiv e time", and so on. The entries will all b e in terms of
ob serv ed times, of c ou rse periods when no work is done c annot b e rated.
6. Electronic time study
The ab ov e proc edu re applies equ ally to stu dies taken with an elec tronic stop-
watc h.
Where the stu dy has b een taken with an elec tronic stu dy b oard or data
c aptu re dev ic e, the proc edu re will b e dif f erent and will depend on the degree of
sophistic ation of the system b eing u sed.
In the simplest systems (and as the f irst stage in more c omplex systems)
the rec ording dev ic e simply prints ou t (v ia a small in-b u ilt printer or af ter
c onnec tion to an external printer) a listing of all the ob serv ation data in terms
of element identif ic ation, rating and elapsed time, together with b asic su mmary
data su c h as total elapsed time and possib ly av erage rating. These data are then
handled ju st as if the stu dy had b een taken with a c onv entional stop-watc h. It is
important that this b asic rec ord of the stu dy data is maintained as part of the
stu dy f ile so that the sou rc e of su b sequ ent time v alu es c an b e identif ied and 323
v alidated. Equ ally, the system shou ld ensu re that the b asic c ompu terized rec ord
is tamper-proof , espec ially b ef ore this f irst printou t of data is taken.
Most elec tronic systems of f er additional f u nc tions and take the u ser
throu gh su b sequ ent stages of extension, f requ enc y alloc ation, and so on.
Althou gh mu c h of this is au tomatic (su c h as the extension of ob serv ed times to
b asic times), the system mu st of f er the analyst the opportu nity to identif y and
ring ou t "rogu e times" ref erred to earlier in sec tion 4, and omit them f rom
su b sequ ent analysis. The analyst will also need to inpu t element f requ enc ies
and allowanc es if the c alc u lation of a standard time is to b e c arried ou t.
Elec tronic time stu dy systems take the dru dgery ou t of analysis b u t the
responsib ility f or that analysis and the resu lts of it rests with the stu dy person.
Many systems transf er the data f rom the rec ording dev ic e to a personal
c ompu ter f or this analysis stage. This has the adv antage of releasing the stu dy
b oard f or f u rther stu dywork. It also allows the transf er of data ov er telephone
lines so that stu dies taken at a remote site c an b e transmitted to "b ase" f or the
analysis and reporting stages to b e c arried ou t. (A sec ond adv antage is that the
analysis sof tware has to b e prov ided only onc e if it were part of the stu dy
b oard itself , the analysis f ac ility wou ld b e du plic ated in eac h dev ic e.) This
allows the situ ation to b e estab lished where a team of stu dy persons c an take a
large nu mb er of stu dies in a relativ ely short spac e of time and hav e those
stu dies analysed b y a separate analysis team or su pport of f ic er. It is important
thou gh that the person taking the stu dy shou ld examine any su c h analysis
b ef ore f inal resu lts are deriv ed f rom it and issu ed, and "signs of f the analysis
as b eing v alidated.
The f inal resu lt of this proc ess will b e a stu dy su mmary sheet c ontaining
the same data as f or a manu ally taken stu dy. This sheet may b e produ c ed
direc tly b y the system, af ter the inpu t of all relev ant data b y the analyst, or b y
the analyst u sing data ou tpu t f rom the system.
An example of su c h a su mmary sheet, produ c ed b y the Tec time system in
the United Kingdom, is shown in f igu re 111.
When the system in u se is a f u ll-time stu dy system, it will also allow the
c ontinu ation of su pport into other areas su c h as the merging of sev eral stu dies
of the same job and the estab lishment of work c ontent and standard times f or
su c h work. The princ iples to b e f ollowed are exac tly the same as those f or
manu ally deriv ed stu dy data. Fu rther c ompu ter su pport, in the area of standard
data systems, is disc u ssed in Chapter 27.
7. How many studies?
We dealt with this prob lem in Chapter 21, ou tlining a statistic al and a
c onv entional method f or determining the nu mb er of elements and c yc les to b e
stu died. When the working c onditions v ary, stu dies mu st b e made in eac h of
the dif f erent sets of c onditions whic h will b e met with in prac tic e: at dif f erent
times of day if atmospheric c onditions c hange markedly du ring the shif t, f or
instanc e, and on all the types of material whic h hav e to b e proc essed if the
324 material is not rigidly standard.
Figure 1 1 1 . An example of a study summary sheet produced using electronic capture
devices
Tectime Data Systems Ltd.
Demonstration Package
Summary to standard time for study
MANUFACT/SOCK1 by cycles
Singleman V5
System
Study name: Sockl Job Ref: Socks Second Ref: A Analyst: P.S. Operator: K. Hayes
Date: 01 /02/91 Start time: 06.00:00 Finish time: 1 5 .31 :00 Elapsed time: 5 71 .70
Site: Number 3 Section: CRTESE Dept: Area: CRTESE
Remarks: 31 5 dozen produced 1 3/24 damages/grades.
Job on file: FACTORY - STRAIGHTENING - LOADING
OPERATIVE - HOLD UPS - LINKED TO MACHINES.
Unit A: Pair of socks = 2000.00
Element
Code type
Total Total Total Bm's/ Frequency Bm's/ RA Sms.
obs. time bm's obn's obn cycle %
Repetitive 406.220 402.627 3727 0.1 08 2/1
Pick up sock from bench
adjacent to m/c
Open and present to m/c
0.21 6 1 2.00 0.242
2 Repetitive
Pick up first sock and
load onto form
Reject and place aside
0.680 0.664 5 0.1 33 2/1 00 0.003 1 2.00 0.003
3 Repetitive
Load 1 st - Reject and
place aside
Load next
4.45 0 4.31 4 21 0.205 2/1 00 0.004 1 2.00 0.005
5 Repetitive 2.5 1 0
Obtain full bag of work
and empty onto bench
2.340 8 0.293 2/5 00 0.001 1 2.00 0.001
CY1 Contingency
Relevant talking
2.720 2.71 0 4 0.677 4/2000 0.001
CY2 Contingency
Clean machine
0.65 0 0.65 0 1 0.65 0 1 /2000 0.000
CY1 0 Contingency
File nails
2.220 2.220 2 1 .1 1 0 2/2000 0.001
IF1 Ineffective
Operative not working
1 4.71 0 1
IF3 Ineffective
Operative at break
71 .5 20 3
IF4 Ineffective
Operative in restaurant
5 0.81 0 4
F5 Ineffective
Personal needs
3.65 0 1
Totals
Box
Observed time
Min. % Total
Basic time
Min. % Total
Standard time
Min. % Total Average
Repetitive
Contingency
Ineffective
Total time
41 3.86
5 .5 9
1 40.69
5 60.1 4
73.9
1 .0
25 .1
409.94
5 .5 8
41 5 .5 2
98.7
1 .3
0.25
0.25
1 00.0
rating
= 99.06
Total SMs
Contingency
Policy
Total SMV
4.000%
3.000%
0.25 09
0.01 00
0.0075
0.2684
Parts per hour @ 1 00: 223.5 204
Source: Reproduced by courtesy of Tectime Data Systems, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, United Kingdom.
325
The stu dy person mu st b e prepared to stu dy all the work inv olv ed in
starting u p at the b eginning of a shif t and in shu tting down at the end of it.
S tart-u p and shu t-down times are part of the work and may need a separate
work v alu e, or they may b e taken into ac c ou nt (if appropriate) b y making an
allowanc e f or them when c alc u lating the standard times f or indiv idu al job s. In
indu stries su c h as printing, presses are not normally lef t inked u p ov ernight, as
the ink wou ld dry b ef ore morning. Time may hav e to b e allowed f or c leaning
mac hines and the workplac e, and f or c hanging c lothes in indu stries where
spec ial c lothing is requ ired. Ac tiv ities of this sort are not u su ally taken into
ac c ou nt in the c alc u lation of standard times f or indiv idu al job s b u t are more
of ten dealt with b y time allowanc es. Allowanc es are disc u ssed later in this
c hapter: at this point it is su f f ic ient to note that stu dies will hav e to b e made on
all the anc illary and inc idental ac tiv ities whic h are u ndertaken du ring the
working day b ef ore the matter of allowanc es c an b e properly c onsidered.
A simple method of determining when enou gh c yc les of a c onstant
element hav e b een ob serv ed enou gh, that is, to permit a representativ e b asic
time f or the element to b e selec ted is to plot the c u mu lativ e av erage b asic
time f or the element eac h time a stu dy is made on it and su mmarized. The plot
is started with the b asic time deriv ed f rom the f irst stu dy. When the sec ond
stu dy c omes in, the f igu re then plotted is the av erage, c alc u lated b y adding the
b asic time f rom the f irst stu dy mu ltiplied b y the nu mb er of ob serv ations du ring
the f irst stu dy to the produ c t (b asic time x ob serv ations) f rom the sec ond stu dy,
and then div iding b y the total nu mb er of ob serv ations made du ring b oth
stu dies. Fu rther plots are made in the same f ashion as su c c essiv e stu dies are
worked u p. When the line on the graph c eases to "wag" and settles down at a
c onstant lev el, enou gh stu dies hav e b een made on this element. An example is
shown in f igu re 112.
Figure 1 1 2. Cumulative average basic times for a constant element
0)
D)
CD
>
Enough
observations
made
Cumulative number of observations
326
With v ariab le elements it is c onv enient to start b y making sev eral short
stu dies whic h together span the f u ll range of v ariab ility, so that an early attempt
may b e made to estab lish the relationship b etween b asic time and the indic ativ e
v ariab le. S u b sequ ent stu dywork may then b e direc ted to ob taining the
inf ormation needed to c omplete, modif y or v alidate the apparent relationship
su ggested b y the f irst stu dies.
8. The analysis of studies sheet
An example of an "analysis of stu dies sheet" is shown in f igu re 105 (Chapter
20). The resu lts ob tained in eac h stu dy on an operation are entered on this sheet
b y c opying f rom the stu dy su mmary sheet, as soon as the stu dy has b een
worked u p. A f orm of the type illu strated prov ides f or a list of all the elements
whic h make u p a job or operation, and also f or f u ll details in respec t of
repetitiv e and oc c asional elements, together with a rec ord of the c ontingenc y
and inef f ec tiv e times ob serv ed. G raphs are appended to the sheet to rec ord the
resu lts ob tained f rom stu dying v ariab le elements.
When it is c onsidered that enou gh ob serv ations hav e b een made, the next
step is to c alc u late the f inal representativ e b asic times f or eac h element. This is
done on the analysis of stu dies sheet. The proc ess of selec tion is essentially
similar to that desc rib ed in sec tion 4 of this c hapter, the u su al method b eing to
c alc u late the ov erall weighted av erage of all the b asic times rec orded f or eac h
element, disregarding any entries whic h su b sequ ent stu dywork has shown to b e
erroneou s. The weighted av erage is ob tained b y mu ltiplying the b asic time
rec orded f rom a stu dy b y the nu mb er of ob serv ations of the element made in
that stu dy, adding u p the produ c ts so deriv ed f or all the stu dies, and div iding
the total b y the su m of all the ob serv ations made in all the stu dies.
When these f inal representativ e b asic times hav e b een c alc u lated f or eac h
c onstant element, it is a simple matter to c alc u late the b asic time per c yc le, per
job or per operation f or these elements, b y mu ltiplying the time per oc c asion b y
the f requ enc y per c yc le with whic h eac h element rec u rs. V ariab le elements
c annot b e dealt with in this way, of c ou rse. For them, the b asic time may hav e
to b e read of f the appropriate graph, or, if a straight-line relationship has b een
estab lished, c alc u lated f rom the f ormu la whic h expresses the line in algeb raic
terms, or deriv ed b y regression analysis.
If it is c onsidered appropriate to make prov ision in the job time f or
c ontingenc ies, the allowanc e nec essary is also c alc u lated on the analysis of
stu dies sheet. The f irst step in doing this is to c alc u late the perc entage whic h
the total ob serv ed c ontingenc ies represent of the total other work ob serv ed.
Time spent on c ontingenc ies is ju st as mu c h work as that dev oted to repetitiv e
and oc c asional elements, so c ontingenc y time will also b e rec orded in b asic
minu tes. If the perc entage is a v ery small one, it will prob ab ly b e c onv enient to
adopt the f igu re as the perc entage allowanc e to b e made; b u t if it c omes ou t at
more than ab ou t 4 or 5 per c ent, the b etter c ou rse is to inqu ire into the c au ses of
the c ontingenc ies so as to eliminate or redu c e them as f ar as possib le. When
ac tion of this sort has b een taken as a resu lt of the stu dies, the perc entage
ob serv ed du ring the earlier stu dywork will no longer b e v alid and it will b e
nec essary to make f resh ob serv ations.
At the stage now reac hed a b asic time has b een b u ilt u p f or the job or
operation, inc lu ding all repetitiv e and oc c asional elements and also any small 327
amou nt of extra work whic h may b e met with oc c asionally as a c ontingenc y.
The c ompilation has b een done element b y element, so that, if at any time in
the f u tu re the job is c hanged slightly b y deleting or c hanging an element or b y
adding a f resh one, it will not b e nec essary to restu dy the whole job . The
entries on the analysis of stu dies sheet will still hold good f or all the u nc hanged
elements in the new job sequ enc e, and theref ore it will b e possib le to make a
f resh c ompilation af ter stu dying the new elements only.
The b asic time, howev er, f orms only a part of the standard time whic h has
to b e estab lished f or the job or operation. Certain allowanc es mu st b e added
b ef ore the standard time c an b e deriv ed. These allowanc es mu st now b e
disc u ssed; b ef ore doing so, howev er, it is nec essary to state c learly what is
meant b y two terms whic h hav e b een mentioned f requ ently in the prec eding
pages b u t whic h hav e not yet b een prec isely def ined: namely work content
and standard time.
9. Work content
In the c hapters at the b eginning of this b ook, the term "work c ontent" was u sed
f requ ently to desc rib e what the words themselv es su ggest: the amou nt of work
whic h has to b e done to c omplete a job or operation, as distinc t f rom any
inef f ec tiv e time whic h may oc c u r. In time stu dy prac tic e, howev er, the word
"work" is ac c orded a meaning whic h is slightly dif f erent f rom its u su al
meaning in ordinary English u sage. An ob serv er who was f amiliar with the
word only in its u su al sense wou ld say, when watc hing operativ es at their job s,
that when the workers were ac tu ally doing something they were working, and
that when they were resting or doing nothing they were not working. In time
stu dy prac tic e, howev er, we are c onc erned with measu ring work in-nu meric al
terms, and f or this pu rpose the word "work" is extended to inc lu de not only the
physic al lab ou rs perf ormed b u t also the proper amou nt of relaxation or rest
nec essary to rec ov er f rom the f atigu e c au sed b y those lab ou rs. We shall see
later that relaxation allowanc es are made f or other pu rposes b esides rec ov ery
f rom f atigu e; b u t f or the moment the important point is that, when in time
stu dy we speak of "work" and set ou t to measu re it, we def ine work to inc lu de
the appropriate relaxation allowanc e, so that the amou nt of work in a job is
taken to b e not only the time needed at standard perf ormanc e to do whatev er
the job requ ires b u t also the additional time whic h is c onsidered nec essary f or
relaxation.
The work content of a job or operation is defined as: basic time +
relaxation allowance + any allowance for additional work e.g.
that part of contingency allowance which represents work
328
10. Allowances
We hav e seen that, du ring the method stu dy inv estigation whic h shou ld b e
c arried ou t b ef ore any job is timed, the energy expended b y the worker in
perf orming the operation shou ld b e redu c ed to a minimu m throu gh the
dev elopment of improv ed methods and proc edu res, in ac c ordanc e with the
princ iples of motion ec onomy and, wherev er prac tic ab le, b y mec hanization.
Ev en when the most prac tic al, ec onomic and ef f ec tiv e method has b een
dev eloped, howev er, many job s will still requ ire the expenditu re of hu man
ef f ort, and some allowanc e mu st theref ore b e made f or rec ov ery f rom f atigu e
and f or relaxation. Allowanc e mu st also b e made to enab le a worker to attend
to personal needs; and other allowanc es (e.g. c ontingenc y allowanc es) may
also hav e to b e added to the b asic time in order to giv e the work c ontent.
The determination of allowanc es is prob ab ly the most c ontrov ersial part
of work stu dy. For reasons that will b e explained later, it is v ery dif f ic u lt to
determine prec isely the allowanc es needed f or a giv en job . What shou ld
theref ore b e attempted is an ob jec tiv e assessment of the allowanc es that c an b e
c onsistently applied to the v ariou s elements of work or to v ariou s operations.
The f ac t that the c alc u lation of allowanc es c annot b e altogether ac c u rate
u nder all c irc u mstanc es is no exc u se f or u sing them as a du mping grou nd f or
any f ac tors that hav e b een missed or neglec ted in making the time stu dy. We
hav e seen how the stu dy person c an go to great lengths to arriv e at f air and
ac c u rate time standards. These shou ld not b e spoilt b y the hasty or ill-
c onsidered addition of a f ew perc entage points here and there "ju st in c ase".
Ab ov e all, allowanc es shou ld not b e u sed as "loosening" f ac tors.
The dif f ic u lty experienc ed in preparing a u niv ersally ac c epted set of
prec ise allowanc es that c an b e applied to ev ery working situ ation anywhere in
the world is du e to v ariou s reasons. The most important among them are:
(1) Factors related to the individual. If ev ery worker in a partic u lar
working area were to b e c onsidered indiv idu ally, it might well b e f ou nd
that a thin, ac tiv e, alert worker at the peak of physic al c ondition requ ired
a smaller allowanc e to rec ov er f rom f atigu e than an ob ese, inept worker.
S imilarly, ev ery worker has a u niqu e learning c u rv e or a rate of learning
whic h c an af f ec t the manner in whic h the work is c ondu c ted. There is also
some reason to b eliev e that there may b e ethnic v ariations in the response
to the degree of f atigu e experienc ed b y workers, partic u larly when
engaged on heav y manu al work. Undernou rished workers take a longer
time than others to rec ov er f rom f atigu e.
(2) Factors related to the nature of the work itself. Many of the tab les
dev eloped f or the c alc u lation of allowanc es giv e f igu res whic h may b e
ac c eptab le f or light and mediu m work in indu stry b u t whic h are
inadequ ate when applied to operations inv olv ing v ery heav y and
strenu ou s work, su c h as work b eside f u rnac es in steel mills. Moreov er,
ev ery working situ ation has its own partic u lar attrib u tes whic h may af f ec t
the degree of f atigu e experienc ed b y the worker or may lead to
u nav oidab le delay in the exec u tion of a job . Examples of these f ac tors
are: whether a worker has to perf orm the work standing u p or sitting 329
down, and postu re du ring work; whether f orc e has to b e exerted to mov e
or c arry loads f rom one plac e to another; whether the work itself resu lts in
u ndu e eye or mental strain, and so on. Other f ac tors inherent in the job
c an also c ontrib u te to the need f or allowanc es, althou gh in a dif f erent way
f or example, when protec tiv e c lothing or glov es hav e to b e worn, or
when there is c onstant danger, or when there is a risk of spoiling or
damaging the produ c t.
(3) Factors related to the environment. Allowanc es, in partic u lar relaxation
allowanc es, hav e to b e determined with du e regard to v ariou s
env ironmental f ac tors su c h as heat, hu midity, noise, dirt, v ib ration,
lighting intensity, du st, wet c onditions, and so on. Eac h of these will
af f ec t the amou nt of relaxation allowanc es needed. Env ironmental f ac tors
may also b e seasonal in natu re. This is partic u larly so f or those who work
in the open air, su c h as workers in the c onstru c tion indu stry or in
shipyards.
It shou ld now b e more c lear to the reader why it is so dif f ic u lt to dev ise an
internationally ac c epted sc heme of allowanc es to meet ev ery working situ ation
in the world. It shou ld also b e stated here, in v ery c lear terms, that the ILO has
not adopted, nor is it likely to adopt, any standards relating to the
determination of allowances. In f ac t, ov er the years, the IL O has rec eiv ed a
great nu mb er of qu eries ab ou t its stand with respec t to allowanc es. The answer
has always b een that it does not spec if ic ally endorse a partic u lar standard
whic h c an b e u niv ersally applic ab le. The f ollowing disc u ssion qu otes examples
of the c alc u lation of allowanc es u nder dif f erent c onditions. They are qu oted
here as examples f or training pu rposes and not as an IL O stand on the matter.
It shou ld also b e mentioned that this partic u lar aspec t of work stu dy has
b een the su b jec t of extensiv e researc h b y v ariou s organizations whic h hav e pu t
f orward their own rec ommendations f or the c alc u lation of allowanc es. Of the
more important researc h c arried ou t, mention shou ld b e made of the work of
the Max Planc k Institu t f r Arb eitsphysiologie ' and of REFA V erb and f r
Arb eitsstu dien,
2
in G ermany, of G . C. Heyde in Au stralia,
3
and more rec ently of
the British S tandards Institu tion, whic h su mmarizes some past researc h on the
su b jec t and proposes a methodology.
4
11. Calculation of allowances
The b asic model f or the c alc u lation of allowanc es is shown in f igu re 113. It
will b e seen f rom this model that relaxation allowanc es (whic h are intended to
aid rec ov ery f rom f atigu e) are the only essential part of the time added to the
b asic time. Other allowanc es, su c h as c ontingenc y, polic y and spec ial
allowanc es, are applied u nder c ertain c onditions only.
1
G . L ehmann: Praktische Arbeitsphysiologie (S tu ttgart, G eorg Thieme V erlag, 1953).
2
REFA: Methodenlehre des Arbeitsstudiums, V ol. 2; Datenermittlung (Mu nic h, Carl Hanser V erlag,
1971), pp. 299-335.
3
Chris Heyde: The sensible taskmaster (S ydney, Heyde Dynamic s, 1976).
4
British S tandards Institu tion. Draf t text f or dev elopment on work measu rement: Exposu re limits,
330 rec ov ery times and relaxation times (L ondon, Ju ly 1989).
Figure 1 1 3. Allowances
Personal
needs
^
Fixed
allowances
Basic
fatigue
Relaxation
allowances
Total
allowances
Variable
allowances
^
+
Stress
and strain,
environmental
Contingency
allowances
Basic
time
Where
applicable
I
Policy
allowances
Work
content
Special
allowances
12. Relaxation allowances
Relaxation allowance is an addition to the basic time intended to
provide the worker with the opportunity to recover from the
physiological and psychological effects of carrying out specified
work under specified conditions and to allow attention to personal
needs. The amount of allowance will depend on the nature of the job
Relaxation allowanc es are c alc u lated so as to allow the worker to rec ov er
f rom fatigue. Fatigu e may b e def ined as a physic al and/or mental weariness,
real or imagined, existing in a person and adv ersely af f ec ting the ab ility to
perf orm work. The ef f ec ts of f atigu e c an b e lessened b y rest pau ses, du ring
whic h the b ody rec ov ers f rom its exertion, or b y slowing down the rate of
working and thu s redu c ing the expenditu re of energy.
Allowanc es f or f atigu e are normally added element by element to the
b asic times, so that a work v alu e f or eac h element is b u ilt u p separately, the
element standard times b eing c omb ined to yield the standard time f or the whole
job or operation. In this way it is possib le to deal with any extra allowanc e
whic h may b e requ ired to c ompensate f or sev ere c limatic c onditions, sinc e the
element may sometimes b e perf ormed in c ool weather and sometimes when it
is v ery hot. Allowanc es f or c limatic c onditions hav e to b e applied to the 331
working shift or working day rather than to the element or job , in su c h a way
that the amou nt of work whic h the worker is expec ted to produ c e ov er the day
or the shif t is redu c ed. The standard time f or the job remains the same, whether
the job is perf ormed in su mmer or winter, sinc e it is intended to b e a measu re
of the work that the job c ontains.
Relaxation allowanc es hav e two major c omponents: fixed allowances
and variable allowances.
Fixed allowanc es are c omposed of :
(1) Allowanc es f or personal needs. This allowanc e prov ides f or the
nec essity to leav e the workplac e to attend to personal needs su c h as
washing, going to the lav atory or f etc hing a drink. Common f igu res
applied b y many enterprises range f rom 5 to 7 per c ent.
(2) Allowanc es f or basic fatigue. This allowanc e, always a c onstant, is giv en
to take ac c ou nt of the energy expended while c arrying ou t work and to
allev iate monotony. A c ommon f igu re is 4 per c ent of b asic time. This is
c onsidered to b e adequ ate f or a worker who c arries ou t the job while
seated, who is engaged on light work in good working c onditions and
who is c alled u pon to make only normal u se of hands, legs and senses.
V ariable allowances are added to f ixed allowanc es when working
c onditions dif f er markedly f rom those stated ab ov e, f or instanc e b ec au se of
poor env ironmental c onditions that c annot b e improv ed, added stress and strain
in perf orming the job in qu estion, and so on.
As was mentioned ab ov e, a nu mb er of important stu dies hav e b een
c arried ou t b y v ariou s researc h organizations to try to dev elop a more rational
approac h to the c alc u lation of v ariab le allowanc es. There are an enormou s
nu mb er of relaxation allowanc e tab les in existenc e. Most management
c onsu ltants in all c ou ntries hav e their own tab les. In Appendix 3, we giv e an
example of relaxation allowanc es tab les u sing a points system. This is an
example qu oted f or illu stration pu rposes. It shou ld not b e taken as a relaxation
allowanc e set of tab les that are endorsed b y the IL O. Many of these tab les
appear to work satisf ac torily in prac tic e; howev er, rec ent ev idenc e indic ates
that, althou gh many of the f atigu e allowanc e sc ales estab lished empiric ally in a
lab oratory are satisf ac tory on physiologic al grou nds f or work inv olv ing normal
or moderately intensiv e ef f ort, they prov ide inadequ ate allowanc es when
applied to v ery heav y operations su c h as those c onnec ted with f u rnac es.
For the v ariou s reasons mentioned earlier in the c hapter, when u sing one
of the standard sc ales it is always pref erab le to c hec k the amou nt of relaxation
time they yield b y c arrying ou t whole-day stu dies at the workplac e, noting the
amou nt of time whic h the workers ac tu ally spend in relaxation (in one f orm or
another) and c omparing this with the c alc u lated allowanc e. Chec ks of this sort
do at least show whether the sc ale is, in general, too tight or too loose.
Relaxation allowanc es are giv en as perc entages of the b asic time. As
mentioned earlier, they are normally c alc u lated on an element-b y-element
b asis. This is partic u larly the c ase when the ef f ort expended on dif f erent
elements v aries widely (f or example, where a heav y workpiec e has to b e lif ted
332 on or of f a mac hine at the b eginning and end of an operation). If , on the other
hand, it is c onsidered that no one element of a job is any more or any less
f atigu ing than any of the other elements, the simplest c ou rse is to add u p all the
elemental b asic time f irst and then add the allowanc e as a single perc entage to
the total.
Rest pauses
Relaxation allowanc es c an b e taken in the f orm of rest pau ses. While there is
no hard and f ast ru le gov erning rest pau ses, a c ommon prac tic e is to allow a
ten- to 15-minu te b reak at mid-morning and mid-af ternoon, of ten c ou pled with
f ac ilities f or tea, c of f ee or c old drinks and snac ks, and to permit the remainder
of the relaxation allowanc e to b e taken at the disc retion of the worker.
Rest pau ses are important f or the f ollowing reasons:
D They dec rease the v ariation in the worker's perf ormanc e throu ghou t the
day and tend to maintain the lev el nearer the optimu m.
D They b reak u p the monotony of the day.
D They giv e workers the c hanc e to rec ov er f rom f atigu e and to attend to
personal needs.
D They redu c e the amou nt of time of f taken b y workers du ring working
hou rs.
Where workers are working in c onditions of heat, c old, noise or v ib ration
it may b e nec essary to introdu c e mandatory rest pau ses as part of a work-rest
regime to ensu re the health and saf ety of the workers.
13. Other allowances
It is sometimes nec essary to inc orporate allowanc es other than relaxation
allowanc es in the c ompilation of standard time. Three su c h allowanc es are
desc rib ed b elow.
Contingency allowances
A contingency allowance is a small allowance of time which may
be included in a standard time to meet legitimate and expected
items of work or delays, the precise measurement of which is
uneconomical because of their infrequent or irregular occurrence
Contingenc y allowanc es hav e already b een mentioned when we desc rib ed
the c alc u lations whic h hav e to b e made to c omplete the stu dy su mmary sheet
and the analysis of stu dies sheet. The allowanc e prov ides f or small u nav oidab le
delays as well as f or oc c asional and minor extra work, and so it wou ld b e
proper to split the allowanc e into these c omponents, the c ontingenc y allowanc e
f or work b eing allowed to attrac t f atigu e allowanc e, ju st as any other item of
work does, and the delay part of the allowanc e b eing giv en with only a 333
personal needs inc rement. In prac tic e this is a distinc tion whic h is of ten
ignored. Contingenc y allowanc es are always v ery small, and it is u su al to
express them as a perc entage of the total repetitiv e b asic minu tes in the job ,
adding them to the rest of the work in the job and adding a relaxation
perc entage to the whole c ontingenc y allowanc e. Contingenc y allowanc es
shou ld not b e greater than 5 per c ent, and shou ld only b e giv en in c ases where
the stu dy person is ab solu tely satisf ied that the c ontingenc ies c annot b e
eliminated and that they are ju stif ied. On no ac c ou nt shou ld su c h allowanc es b e
u sed as "loosening" f ac tors or to av oid c arrying ou t proper time stu dy prac tic e.
The du ties f or whic h the c ontingenc y allowanc e is giv en shou ld b e spec if ied.
Howev er, in f airness, it may b e nec essary to giv e c ontingenc y allowanc es as a
matter of c ou rse in enterprises where the produ c tion work is not well
organized. This f u rther stresses the need to make the c onditions and
organization of work as good as possib le b ef ore setting time standards and is an
inc entiv e to the management to do so.
Policy allowances
A policy allowance is an increment, other than bonus increment,
applied to standard time (or to some constituent part of it, e.g.
work content) to provide a satisfactory level of earnings for a
specified level of performance under exceptional circumstances
Polic y allowanc es are not a genu ine part of time stu dy, and shou ld b e u sed
with the u tmost c au tion and only in c learly def ined c irc u mstanc es. They shou ld
always b e dealt with qu ite separately f rom b asic times and, if u sed at all,
shou ld pref erab ly b e arranged as an addition to standard times, so as not to
interf ere with the time standards set b y time stu dy.
The u su al reason f or making a polic y allowanc e is to line u p standard
times with the requ irements of wage agreements b etween employers and trade
u nions. In sev eral enterprises in the United Kingdom, f or example, the
inc entiv e perf ormanc e is generally set at su c h a lev el that the av erage qu alif ied
worker, as def ined, c an earn a b onu s of 33
l
l-
i
per c ent of the b asic time rate if
standard perf ormanc e is ac hiev ed. There is no need to apply a polic y allowanc e
to ac hiev e this state of af f airs; it is simply nec essary to arrange f or the rate paid
per standard minu te of work produ c ed to b e 133 V s per c ent of the b asic time
rate per minu te, and in general it is b etter to ac c ommodate any spec ial wage
requ irements in this way, b y adju sting the rate paid per u nit of work rather than
the standard time.
There are, howev er, c ertain employer-u nion agreements u nder whic h
higher b onu ses c an b e earned, and it may not b e opportu ne to seek a rev ision of
the terms of these agreements to permit the ac hiev ement of their terms b y
modif ying the rates paid rather than the times set. In these c irc u mstanc es a
polic y allowanc e is giv en to make u p the dif f erenc e. It may b e applied as a
334 f ac tor to the work c ontent or to the standard time.
This might b e an appropriate c ou rse to take when standard times are
b eing introdu c ed to only a small proportion of the total workf orc e c ov ered b y
the agreement. S imilar polic y allowanc es are sometimes made as temporary
additions to c ov er ab normal c irc u mstanc es, su c h as the imperf ec t f u nc tioning
of a piec e of plant or disru ption of normal working c au sed b y rearrangements
or alterations.
Special allowances
S pec ial allowanc es may b e giv en f or any ac tiv ities whic h are not normally part
of the operation c yc le b u t whic h are essential to the satisf ac tory perf ormanc e of
the work. S u c h allowanc es may b e permanent or temporary; c are shou ld b e
taken to spec if y whic h. Wherev er possib le, these allowanc es shou ld b e
determined b y time stu dy.
When time standards are u sed as the b asis f or a payment-b y-resu lts
sc heme, it may b e nec essary to make a start-up allowance to c ompensate f or
time taken b y any work and any enf orc ed waiting time whic h nec essarily
oc c u rs at the start of a shif t or work period b ef ore produ c tion c an b egin. A
shut-down allowance may similarly b e giv en f or work or waiting time
oc c u rring at the end of the day. A cleaning allowance is of mu c h the same
c harac ter: it is giv en when the worker has to giv e attention f rom time to time to
c leaning his or her mac hine or workplac e. Tool allowance is an allowanc e of
time to c ov er the adju stment and maintenanc e of tools.
It wou ld b e possib le, af ter the time nec essary to perf orm any or all of
these ac tiv ities has b een stu died, to express the resu lt as a perc entage of the total
b asic time f or the operations expec ted to b e perf ormed du ring a day and to giv e
the allowanc e as an inc rement inc lu ded in the c ompilation of standard times.
Indeed, this is sometimes thou ght to b e the b etter c ou rse with tool allowanc e;
b u t, in general, it is pref erab le to giv e all these allowanc es as periods of time
per day rather than emb odying them in the standard times. Usu ally this is f airer
to the operativ es, and it has the signal adv antage of b ringing to the attention of
the management the total amou nt of time whic h has to b e dev oted to these
ac tiv ities, thu s prompting thou ghts ab ou t how it c ou ld b e redu c ed.
S ome allowanc es are normally giv en per oc c asion or per b atc h. One su c h
allowanc e is set-up allowance, giv en to c ov er the time requ ired f or preparing a
mac hine or proc ess f or produ c tion, an operation whic h is nec essary at the start
of produ c tion on a b atc h of f resh produ c ts or c omponents. S et-u p time is
sometimes c alled make-ready time: its opposite is tear-down or dismantling
time, f or whic h a dismantling allowance may b e giv en, to c ov er the time
needed f or making alterations to mac hine or proc ess settings af ter c ompleting a
ru n of produ c tion. V ery similar is change-over allowance, u su ally giv en to
operativ es who are not ac tu ally engaged in setting-u p or dismantling, to
c ompensate them f or time on nec essary ac tiv ities or waiting time at the start
and/or the end of a job or b atc h. These allowanc es shou ld b e denoted as "job
c hange-ov er allowanc e" or "b atc h c hange-ov er allowanc e", as appropriate.
A reject allowance may b e inc lu ded in a standard time when the
produ c tion of a proportion of def ec tiv e produ c ts is inherent in the proc ess, b u t 335
is perhaps more u su ally giv en as a temporary addition to standard times, per
job or per b atc h, if an oc c asional b ad lot of material has to b e worked. An
excess work allowance, if nec essary, wou ld also b e giv en as an addition to the
standard time, to c ompensate f or extra work oc c asioned b y a temporary
departu re f rom standard c onditions.
Learning allowances may b e giv en to trainee operativ es engaged on
work f or whic h standard times hav e b een issu ed, as a temporary b enef it while
they dev elop their ab ility. A training allowance is a similar allowanc e giv en to
an experienc ed worker to c ompensate f or the time he or she is requ ired to
spend instru c ting a trainee, while b oth are working on job s f or whic h standard
times hav e b een set. These allowanc es are of ten giv en as so many minu tes per
hou r, on a dec lining sc ale so that the allowanc es taper of f to zero ov er the
expec ted learning period. V ery similar is an implementation allowance, giv en
to workers asked to adopt a new method or proc ess to enc ou rage them to
attempt an enthu siastic implementation of the new ways and prev ent their
losing earnings b y doing so. In f ac t, it is sometimes arranged that their earnings
will ac tu ally b e inc reased du ring the c hange-ov er period, so as to giv e the new
method ev ery c hanc e of su c c ess. One system of implementation allowanc es
c redits the workers with ten minu tes per hou r on the f irst day, nine on the
sec ond, and so on down to zero.
A small batch allowance is requ ired to enab le a worker working on
small b atc hes to dec ide what to do and how to go ab ou t it (f rom instru c tions,
b y experienc e, or b y trial and error) and then to work u p to a standard
perf ormanc e b y prac tic e and repetition. The c alc u lation of this allowanc e will
depend on whether it is a one-of -a-type b atc h or not, on the length and b atc h
size or ru n length, and on the f requ enc y of similar work and its degree of
c omplexity.
14. The standard time
It is now possib le to ob tain a c omplete pic tu re of the standard time f or a
straightf orward manu al job or operation, one whic h is c onsidered to attrac t
only the two allowanc es whic h hav e so f ar b een disc u ssed in detail:
c ontingenc y allowanc e and relaxation allowanc e. The standard time f or the job
will b e the su tn of the standard times f or all the elements of whic h it is made
u p, du e regard b eing paid to the f requ enc ies with whic h the elements rec u r,
plu s the c ontingenc y allowanc e (with its relaxation allowanc e inc rement). In
other words:
Standard time is the total time in which a job should be completed
at standard performance
336 The standard time may b e represented graphic ally as shown in f igu re 114.
Figure 1 1 4. How the standard time for a simple manual job is made up
Observed time
Rating
factor
Relaxation
allowance
Contingency
allowance
(if performed at a pace
greater than standard pace)
1
n
to m
-a >
0-2
ce T3
c
D
WS^^KIXW ':'-
:
it-:U 1
Basic time
Work content
Standard time
In a c ase where the ob serv ed time is rated at less than standard pac e, the
rating f ac tor will, of c ou rse, b e shown inside the ob serv ed time. The
c ontingenc ies and relaxation allowanc es, howev er, are still perc entages of the
b asic time. The standard time is expressed in standard minu tes or standard hou rs.
In Chapter 24 we shall disc u ss the applic ation of time stu dy to operations
inv olv ing the u se of mac hinery, in whic h part of the operation time is taken u p
b y work done b y the mac hine while the operativ e stands b y. An example of a
f u lly worked time stu dy is shown in Chapter 25.
15. Work measurement in the office
Time stu dy or work measu rement is equ ally important in terms of assisting in
the planning and c ontrol of of f ic e work. Withou t measu rement data it is
dif f ic u lt to ev alu ate c apac ities, assess workloads, monitor perf ormanc e and
plan staf f ing lev els. Howev er, there has b een a relu c tanc e on the part of of f ic e
workers to b e su b jec ted to a work measu rement programme. In many
organizations this is ov erc ome simply b y an ef f ec tiv e c ommu nic ation and
edu c ation programme c aref u lly explaining the ob jec tiv es of work
measu rement and the implic ations f or b oth the organization and the staf f
c onc erned. One of the f ac tors that c ontrib u te to the relu c tanc e f or measu rement
is the enhanc ed statu s that of f ic e workers perc eiv e they hav e as c ompared with
shop-f loor workers. Thu s shop-f loor tec hniqu es are not c onsidered as b eing
appropriate to them. This c an b e ov erc ome b y selec ting the measu rement
tec hniqu e c aref u lly.
When measu ring of f ic e work, it is rare that we are attempting to introdu c e
payment-b y-resu lts sc hemes b ased on measu red ou tpu t. The intention is
337
normally to prov ide inf ormation whic h the management of the organization c an
u se to assist in the planning proc ess. Thu s, we of ten do not need inf ormation to
the same degree of detail as we do when measu ring shop-f loor work and we
c an selec t f rom a range of tec hniqu es that prov ide inf ormation to the
appropriate lev el of detail and yet will b e ac c eptab le to those b eing measu red.
S ome of the "measu rement" desc rib ed b elow does not ac tu ally f it in with ou r
def inition of measu rement in that it does not prov ide times f or qu alif ied
workers at a def ined lev el of perf ormanc e, u nless we def ine that lev el as b eing
"of f ic e av erage" perf ormanc e. Perhaps we shou ld really hav e u sed the word
"assessment" to represent something less stric t than measu rement b u t f or the
sake of simplic ity we hav e u sed the word "measu rement" to c ov er all instanc es
in whic h we make a qu antitativ e ju dgement on the qu antity of work inv olv ed in
a giv en task or series of tasks.
Work measurement techniques
All the tec hniqu es ref erred to in Chapter 18 (and a nu mb er of others) c an b e
u sed in an of f ic e env ironment, b u t the most c ommonly u sed are:
D ac tiv ity sampling;
D grou p sampling tec hniqu es;
D predetermined time standards (PTS );
D standard data systems;
D self -rec ording tec hniqu es;
D historic al rec ords analysis.
Time stu dy has not b een u sed in of f ic e env ironments to any signif ic ant
degree mainly b ec au se it appears to b e the measu rement tec hniqu e most
tarnished with the "f ac tory" image, in partic u lar du e to its assoc iation with the
c onc ept of perf ormanc e rating; there are, howev er, no tec hnic al reasons as to
why it c annot b e u sed.
Ac tiv ity sampling is inc lu ded here sinc e it inv olv es the qu antif ic ation of
work, althou gh it is not of ten u sed f or tru e measu rement pu rposes. It is most
of ten u sed as part of the f ac t-f inding proc ess when inv estigating a partic u lar
area of work. It helps to show c learly the b reakdown of work b etween dif f erent
ac tiv ities and c an thu s help in the prioritization proc ess when selec ting areas
f or method stu dy.
G rou p sampling tec hniqu es hav e already b een disc u ssed in Chapter 19.
Predetermined time standards (PTS ) and standard data systems will b e
disc u ssed in Chapters 26 and 27 respec tiv ely. There are a nu mb er of PTS
systems spec if ic ally designed f or of f ic e work (su c h as Cleric al Work Data) and
these c an b e u sed, with data f rom other sou rc es, to b u ild u p standard data f or
standard of f ic e tasks. There are also proprietary data systems av ailab le f or
measu ring of f ic e work su c h as the Cleric al Work Improv ement Programme
whic h is b ased on measu rement data ob tained f rom f ilm analysis of c leric al
job s (in the same way that many b asic predetermined time standards systems
(PTS ) b u ilt u p their b asic data).
338
Self-recording techniques
As the name su ggests, these are tec hniqu es whic h rely on the workers
themselv es maintaining some f orm of rec ord of their own workloads and the
time they spend on v ariou s ac tiv ities. There are two b asic f orms of rec ord. The
f irst asks eac h worker to rec ord eac h ac tiv ity together with the time he or she
started the ac tiv ity, and then, on c ompletion, to rec ord the time that he or she
f inished (and presu mab ly started the next ac tiv ity). Where the ac tiv ity produ c es
a def inite ou tpu t, su c h as inv oic es passed f or payment, the c ou nt of this ou tpu t
will also b e added to the rec ord. It is then a simple matter of working ou t
elapsed times and div iding this into the c ou nt, to get an av erage time per u nit of
ou tpu t. The sec ond v ersion is to ask the workers to rec ord what they are doing
at f ixed interv als throu ghou t the time of the stu dy say, ev ery 15 minu tes.
This is then a sampling stu dy and c an b e dealt with ac c ordingly.
It is important that the rec ording proc ess extends ov er a "representativ e"
period, espec ially where a job has partic u lar peak periods su c h as at the end of
a week or the end of a month. If su c h periods are not c ov ered in the stu dy, the
workers will f eel aggriev ed that their work is b eing dev alu ed.
One c ommon ob jec tion to self -rec ording is that the rec ording itself
interf eres with the work and adds an additional b u rden to the workers. This is
of ten not a real prob lem and c an normally b e ov erc ome b y the same proc ess of
c aref u l c ommu nic ation and explanation that ac c ompanies the introdu c tion of
the measu rement programme itself .
S elf -rec ording c an now b e c arried ou t u sing c ompu ter assistanc e. There is
now av ailab le a hand-held, b ar-c ode reader whic h inc orporates an elec tronic
timing dev ic e. This reader is ab ou t the size of a large f ou ntain pen and is u sed
b y the workers to rec ord their ac tiv ities. A sheet c ontaining b ar c odes is giv en
to the operator and eac h ac tiv ity is assigned to one of the b ar c odes. At the start
of the day, the reader (whic h is b attery operated) is started and the timer starts
ru nning. Whenev er the worker c hanges ac tiv ity, he or she simply has to ru n the
reader ov er the b ar c ode f or the new ac tiv ity and the reader au tomatic ally
assigns a time to the old ac tiv ity and starts timing the new one. At the end of
the work period, the data f rom the reader are transf erred to a mic roc ompu ter
f or analysis.
Historical records analysis
This is a tec hniqu e whereb y past rec ords of ou tpu t or work c ompleted are
analysed and c ompared with rec ords of staf f time ov er the same period to
ob tain c ru de measu res of perf ormanc e. G enerally, it is not possib le to b reak the
time down b etween dif f erent ac tiv ities b u t in large of f ic es where indiv idu al
workers are primarily responsib le f or one c lass of ac tiv ity, this may not b e a
prob lem. One adv antage of this kind of analysis is that it may enab le work
c ou nts to b e interrelated b y statistic al analysis. This c an simplif y work and
perf ormanc e measu rement in the f u tu re. 339
For example, f rom past rec ords ov er a f ou r-week period:
Invoice section
Nu mb er of staf f in inv oic e sec tion = 8
Nu mb er of staf f hou rs in inv oic e sec tion = 1,152
Nu mb er of inv oic es proc essed = 7,360
Debt recovery section
Nu mb er of staf f in deb t rec ov ery sec tion = 2
Nu mb er of staf f hou rs in deb t rec ov ery sec tion = 288
Nu mb er of b ad deb ts dealt with = 350
Then, simple measu res are:
Nu mb er of inv oic es proc essed per hou r = 6.38
Nu mb er of b ad deb ts proc essed per hou r = 1.22
If at some later date this organization takes ov er another similar
organization operating in the same market and dec ides to merge the two
administrativ e of f ic es, it has inf ormation on whic h to b ase new staf f ing lev els.
L et u s assu me that we c an predic t that the nu mb er of inv oic es proc essed
b y the merged organization will b e 2,750 per week and that b ec au se of the
similar c u stomer b ase, the rate of b ad deb t to inv oic e shou ld remain
approximately the same.
Then f or a typic al week:
Nu mb er of inv oic es to b e proc essed = 2,750
Nu mb er of staf f hou rs requ ired f or proc essing = 2,750/6.38
= 431
Ratio of b ad deb ts to inv oic es f rom prev iou s stu dy = 350/7,360
= .04755
Nu mb er of b ad deb ts expec ted = 2,750 X .04755
= 131
Nu mb er of staf f hou rs requ ired f or handling b ad deb ts = 131/1.22
= 107
Nu mb er of staf f requ ired in the merged of f ic e
(assu ming a working week of 35 hou rs):
Inv oic e sec tion = 12.3
Deb t rec ov ery sec tion = 3
This kind of linking of one c ou nt with another of ten greatly simplif ies the
measu rement of perf ormanc e. In a b ranc h of f ic e of a f inanc ial institu tion, if a
nu mb er of ou tpu ts f rom dif f erent posts c an b e linked to one f u ndamental ou tpu t
espec ially if that ou tpu t is c ou nted anyway as part of the normal b u siness of
the b ranc h the perf ormanc e of the b ranc h c an b e c alc u lated f rom the ratio of
this c omposite ou tpu t to the staf f hou rs pu t in. New staf f ing lev els c an b e
determined b y measu ring trends in the f u ndamental ou tpu t and relating these to
the su b -ou tpu ts.
If su c h a system is in u se, it is important to rev aldate any statistic al linkages
340 at periodic interv als to ensu re that times and perf ormanc e measu res remain v alid.
Computerized work measurement
The same sc ope exists in c leric al work measu rement as in shop-f loor work
measu rement f or the introdu c tion of c ompu terized applic ation methods. All
measu rement needs to b e ab le to respond to c hanges in work organization,
working methods and new tec hnologies. Compu terized measu rement data
systems permit f aster u pdating and re-analysis of time standards, and thu s there
is a greater c hanc e that the u pdating ac tu ally takes plac e and that the time
standards in u se remain v alid.
Compu terized systems may b e b u ilt arou nd a spec if ic predetermined time
standards system f or of f ic e work or may b e the "empty shell" type of system
into whic h the organization inpu ts its own time data. The measu rement and the
applic ation system do not nec essarily hav e to b e f rom the same sou rc e.
341
CHAPTER 24
Setting time standards
for work with machines
In Chapters 20 to 23 the b asic proc edu res of time stu dy as applied to manu al
operations were desc rib ed. Throu gh the u se of the tec hniqu es and methods
whic h were disc u ssed, time standards c an b e c ompiled f or all job s in whic h
operativ es work with hand tools or with power tools whic h they themselv es
manoeu v re, as distinc t f rom mac hines whic h perf orm part of the operation
au tomatic ally. S u c h work is known as u nrestric ted work, b ec au se the ou tpu t of
the worker is limited only b y f ac tors within his or her c ontrol. A person
grinding a c u tting tool on an elec tric ally operated grindstone is engaged on
u nrestric ted work, and so is a person polishing a metal c omponent b y holding it
against a power-driv en polishing mop, f or in neither of these c ases does the
worker c lamp the workpiec e sec u rely in position and leav e the mac hine to get
on with the work.
Howev er, it is b ec oming inc reasingly c ommon f or indu strial job s to b e
made u p partly of elements perf ormed manu ally b y the worker and partly of
elements c arried ou t au tomatic ally b y mac hines or proc ess equ ipment, with the
worker either b eing nec essarily idle meanwhile or attending to something else.
In order to set time standards f or su c h operations, it is nec essary to apply
somewhat dif f erent methods, in extension of the b asic time stu dy proc edu re.
For some highly c omplex operations spec ial tec hniqu es hav e b een dev ised. In
the present c hapter, only the more generally applic ab le methods will b e
desc rib ed.
1. Plant and machine control
Plant and machine control is the name given to the procedures and
means by which efficiency and utilization of units of plant and
machinery are planned and checked
In many enterprises the mac hines, plant and equ ipment together ac c ou nt
f or b y f ar the greatest proportion of the total c apital inv ested in the enterprise.
When this is so, the c osts inc u rred in serv ic ing c apital, in maintaining the
mac hines, and in prov iding against deprec iation and f or the replac ement of the
equ ipment may well amou nt in total to more than any other f ac tory expense 343
(exc lu ding the c ost of raw materials and b ou ght c omponents, whic h is an
external rather than a f ac tory expense). V ery of ten these mac hinery c osts are
mu c h greater than the total wage b ill f or the plant, so that it is of the u tmost
importanc e to make the most intensiv e u se possib le of the mac hinery and
equ ipment installed, ev en thou gh this may b e done at the expense of lab ou r
produ c tiv ity. Indeed, it may b e v ery sou nd polic y to inc rease the manning
c omplement on the mac hines, if b y so doing greater mac hine u tilization c an b e
ac hiev ed.
Bef ore f oc u sing on indiv idu al job s, theref ore, the work stu dy person will
do well to examine f irst the ov erall u tilization of the mac hinery in the b u siness;
in the enterprise as a whole; in the dif f erent departments; and mac hine b y
mac hine in the c ase of partic u larly expensiv e items. It will then b e c learer to
dec ide the proper ob jec tiv es f or the applic ation of work stu dy in the plant, and
it will b e ev ident whether lab ou r produ c tiv ity or mac hine u tilization is of
primary importanc e.
The terms and c onc epts u sed in the stu dy of mac hine u tilization (or plant
or proc ess u tilization) are desc rib ed b elow. They are largely self -explanatory.
The relationship b etween them is shown graphic ally in f igu re 115.
Machine maximum time is the maximu m possib le time du ring
whic h a mac hine or grou p of mac hines c ou ld work within a giv en
period, e.g. 168 hou rs in one week or 24 hou rs in one day.
Machine available time is the time du ring whic h a mac hine c ou ld
work b ased on attendanc e time, i.e. working day or week plu s
ov ertime.
Machine idle time is the time du ring whic h a mac hine is av ailab le
f or produ c tion or anc illary work b u t is not u sed owing to shortage
of work, materials or workers, inc lu ding the time that the plant is
ou t of b alanc e.
Machine ancillary time is the time when a mac hine is temporarily
ou t of produ c tiv e u se owing to c hange-ov ers, setting, c leaning, etc .
Machine down time is the time du ring whic h a mac hine c annot b e
operated on produ c tion or anc illary work owing to b reakdown,
maintenanc e requ irements, or f or other similar reasons.
Machine running time is the time du ring whic h a mac hine is
ac tu ally operating, i.e. the mac hine av ailab le time less any mac hine
down time, mac hine idle time, or mac hine anc illary time.
344
The mac hine ru nning time is a matter of f ac t, ob serv ab le b y direc t stu dy
at the workplac e. It does not f ollow, howev er, that the mac hine, thou gh
ru nning, is ac tu ally operating in the manner in whic h it shou ld, or has b een set
so as to perf orm in the v ery b est manner of whic h it is c apab le. It is u sef u l
theref ore to introdu c e another c onc ept:
SETTING TIME STANDARDS
Figure 1 1 5 . Explanatory diagram of machine time
Machine maximum time
Machine available time
Not
worked
Working day / week
L
1
I Overtime I
J I
Machine running time
Machine
idle
time
Machine
ancillary
time
Machine
down
time
Machine running
time at standard
1 !
, Low .
performance
J I
Source: Based on a diagram contained in British Standards Institution: Glossary of terms used in work study {London, 1 95 9).
Machine running time at standard. This is the ru nning time that
shou ld b e inc u rred in produ c ing the ou tpu t if the mac hine is working
u nder optimu m c onditions.
The most u sef u l work measu rement method f or stu dying mac hine
u tilization is work sampling, as desc rib ed in Chapter 19. This tec hniqu e giv es
the inf ormation requ ired with mu c h less ef f ort than wou ld b e needed with time
stu dy, espec ially when many mac hines are inv olv ed.
It is c onv enient to express the resu lts ob tained f rom stu dies on mac hine
u tilization in the f orm of ratios or indic es. For this pu rpose three indic es are
c ommonly u sed:
(1) Machine utilization index, whic h is the ratio of
mac hine ru nning time to
mac hine av ailab le time
and thu s shows the proportion of the total working hou rs du ring whic h the
mac hine has b een kept ru nning.
(2) Machine efficiency index, the ratio of
mac hine ru nning time at standard to
mac hine ru nning time
A ratio of 1.0 (or 100 per c ent, as it wou ld u su ally b e expressed) wou ld
indic ate the ideal state, with the mac hine always perf orming to the b est of its
c apab ility whenev er it is ru nning.
(3) Machine effective utilization index, the ratio of 345
mac hine ru nning time at standard to
mac hine av ailab le time
This ratio c an b e u sed to prov ide an indic ation of the sc ope f or c ost redu c tion
that wou ld b e av ailab le if the mac hine were operated at f u ll ef f ic ienc y f or the
whole of the working time.
When work measu rement has b een applied throu ghou t an organization, it
is an easy matter to arrange f or these indic es and others like them to b e
reported to top management as rou tine at regu lar interv als, f or they c an b e
c alc u lated qu ite simply f rom the rec ords institu ted to maintain lab ou r, ou tpu t
and mac hine c ontrols. The inc idenc e of idle time, down time and anc illary time
c an b e highlighted b y expressing these f igu res as ratios in a similar way, u sing
either mac hine av ailab le time or mac hine ru nning time as the b ase.
In proc ess indu stries, u tilization stu dies are c arried ou t in mu c h the same
way, the terms and c onc epts applied in the same f ashion b u t su b stitu ting
"proc ess" or some other su itab le word f or "mac hine". The princ iples are
exac tly the same when u tilization in serv ic e enterprises is c onsidered: in a
passenger transport enterprise, f or example, the same u sef u l resu lts c ou ld b e
expec ted to ac c ru e f rom stu dying the u tilization of b u ses or trains and
expressing the resu lts b eing ac hiev ed in the f orm of indic es similar to those
desc rib ed ab ov e.
2. Restricted work
Restricted work is work in which the output of the worker is
limited by factors outside the control of the worker
A c ommon example of restric ted work oc c u rs when an operativ e is
ru nning a single mac hine and the mac hine works au tomatic ally f or part of the
work c yc le. The operativ e may perf orm the manu al elements of the task at
standard pac e, or f aster, or slower; b u t while this will inf lu enc e the rate at
whic h the operation is c ompleted, it will not gov ern it, b ec au se the time du ring
whic h the mac hine is working au tomatic ally will remain the same whatev er the
worker does.
This does not mean, of c ou rse, that nothing c an b e done to shorten the
c yc le time. The example of f inish-milling a c asting on a v ertic al milling
mac hine whic h was disc u ssed in Chapter 8 (f igu res 41 and 42) shows what c an
b e ac hiev ed b y arranging f or some of the manu al elements whic h were
f ormerly c arried ou t while the mac hine was stopped to b e done while the
mac hine is ru nning au tomatic ally, c u tting the next c asting. The redu c tion in
c yc le time ac hiev ed is shown graphic ally in f igu re 116, whic h c ompares the
situ ation b ef ore and af ter the method stu dy. (A time stu dy on this operation is
346 shown f u lly worked ou t in the next c hapter.)
Figure 1 1 6. Result of method study on milling operation
h - Cycle time = 2.00 min.
-1 .20 min.
Before
method study
Operative working Operative idle
Machine Idle Machine working
0.80 min.-
h -1 .1 2 min.
After
method study
Operative working
Opera-
tive
Idle
Machine idle Machine working
h -0.80 min.
h -Cycle time = 1 .36 min.
In this example the mac hine element remains the same in b oth c ases
and takes 0.80 minu tes b u t the c yc le time has b een redu c ed f rom 2 minu tes to
1.36 minu tes, a redu c tion of 32 per c ent. In the improv ed method the operativ e
needs 1.12 minu tes at standard pac e to perf orm the manu al elements of the job ,
b u t some of these are c arried ou t while the mac hine is working. Ev en if the
operativ e were to do all the manu al work at twice the standard pac e, this wou ld
not redu c e the c yc le time b y half , b u t only b y some 20 per c ent. Thu s the
ou tpu t of the worker is limited b y f ac tors ou tside his or her c ontrol: the work is
"restric ted".
Other examples of restric ted work oc c u r when:
D one or more operativ es are ru nning sev eral mac hines u nder c onditions
similar to those desc rib ed ab ov e;
D operativ es are in c ontrol of proc esses, their princ ipal du ties b eing to
ob serv e the b ehav iou r of the proc esses or instru ments rec ording their
b ehav iou r and to take ac tion only in response to c hanges in b ehav iou r,
state or reading;
D two or more operativ es are working as a team, dependent on one another,
and it prov es impossib le to b alanc e the workload of eac h c ompletely, with
the resu lt that some workers are lef t with periods of idleness within the
work c yc le. 347
Team working c an giv e rise to restric ted work ev en when no mac hines are
u sed. This c an also oc c u r in assemb ly work c arried ou t in c onju nc tion with
mov ing c onv eyors or semi-au tomated proc esses. Ev en if the c onv eyor is u sed
simply to transport piec es f rom one workstation to the next, with eac h
operativ e taking a c omponent of f the b elt to work on it and retu rning it when it
is f inished, a restric tion may b e imposed b y hav ing to wait f or the next piec e.
Again, when assemb ly operations are c arried ou t direc tly on the mov ing
c onv eyor, as is done in motor v ehic le manu f ac tu re, the c onv eyor produ c es
c onditions equ iv alent to those imposed b y a static produ c tion mac hine.
It will b e c onv enient to examine f irst the simpler c ase of one worker
operating one mac hine, b ef ore c onsidering mu lti-mac hine operation.
3. One worker and one machine
The u su al way of depic ting graphic ally and on a time sc ale a one-worker-and-
one-mac hine operation is as in f igu re 117, whic h shows the improv ed method
f or the milling mac hine example qu oted ab ov e.
The period du ring whic h the mac hine is working is known as the
"mac hine-c ontrolled time".
Machine-controlled time (or process-controlled time) is the time
taken to complete that part of the work cycle which is determined
only by technical factors peculiar to the machine (or process)
It will b e seen that the operativ e c arries ou t part of the manu al work while
the mac hine is stopped, and part while it is ru nning. These parts are c alled
"ou tside work" and "inside work", respec tiv ely.
Outside work comprises elements which must necessarily be
performed by a worker outside the machine- (or process-)
controlled time
Inside work comprises those elements which can be performed by
a worker within the machine (or process-) controlled time
Finally, there is the time du ring whic h the operativ e is waiting f or the
mac hine to c omplete the c u t, i.e. "u noc c u pied time".
348
Unoccupied time comprises the periods during machine- (or
process-) controlled time when a worker is neither engaged on
inside work nor taking authorized rest
Figure 1 1 7. Milling operation: Improved method
h Cycle time = 1 .36 min. -^
h--
Machine-controlled time: 0.80 min.
Outside work: 0.5 6 min. inside work: 0.5 6 min.
Unoccupied
I - time i
0.24 min.
+ + -f- +
.1 0 .20 .30 .40 .5 0 .60 .70 .80
Time scale in minutes
.90 1 .00 1 .1 0 1 .20 1 .30 1 .36
Symbols
Machine working
Operative working
Operative not working
In diagrams of this sort the periods of time du ring whic h the operativ e is
working (and henc e the periods of ou tside and inside work) are c alc u lated and
drawn at standard perf ormanc e. In f igu re 117 no ac c ou nt has so f ar b een taken
of relaxation or other allowanc es: manu al work has b een c alc u lated at standard
pac e and is thu s shown in b asic minu tes. Mac hine-c ontrolled time is of c ou rse
shown in ac tu al minu tes, and so, u sing the 0-100 rating sc ale adv oc ated in this
b ook, b asic minu tes f or manu al work and ac tu al minu tes of mac hine operation
are c omparab le and c an b e drawn to the same sc ale.
When u noc c u pied time is c alc u lated, the working time mu st f irst hav e
b een c alc u lated at standard perf ormanc e, that is at standard pac e and with
proper allowanc e made f or relaxation (the c alc u lation of relaxation allowanc es
is disc u ssed b elow). In spec ial c irc u mstanc es the work elements assoc iated
with mac hine operation may b e c alc u lated at some def ined rate other than
standard, b u t we shall not b e c onc erned with these in this b ook.
The diagram in f igu re 117 looks rather like a sc hematic representation of
a b ic yc le pu mp, and indeed work stu dy spec ialists of ten ref er c olloqu ially to
su c h drawings as "pu mp diagrams". When seeking to improv e the method the
work stu dy person f ollows two main approac hes. First, he or she tries to "pu sh
the handle down into the pu mp" that is, to arrange f or some of the manu al
elements whic h are b eing perf ormed ou tside the mac hine-c ontrolled time to b e
c arried ou t as inside work, thu s shortening the work c yc le (this has b een done 349
in the present example). S ec ond, c lose attention is giv en to "shrinking the
pu mp" making the mac hine-c ontrolled time as short as possib le b y ensu ring
that the mac hine is b eing u sed to the b est adv antage, to the c orrec t speeds and
f eeds, and u sing c u tting tools whic h are c orrec tly grou nd and made of the b est
type of c u tting steel f or the sort of work in hand, so that the mac hine-ru nning
time is mac hine-ru nning time at standard.
4. Calculation of relaxation allowances
In restric ted work it is essential that the personal needs allowanc e and the
f atigu e allowanc e b e c alc u lated qu ite separately. The reason f or this is that the
personal needs allowanc e has to b e c alc u lated not simply on the elements of
manu al work c ontained in the work c yc le b u t on the whole of the c yc le time,
inc lu ding the mac hine-c ontrolled time. This is b ec au se the perc entage f igu res
f or the allowanc e are b ased on time spent at the workplac e rather than on the
time ac tu ally dev oted to work. Fatigu e allowanc e, on the other hand, is
nec essitated b y work and is c alc u lated on the b asic minu tes of work ac tu ally
perf ormed.
Apart f rom this dif f erenc e, relaxation allowanc e is c alc u lated in exac tly
the same way as was desc rib ed in Chapter 23.
This is not the end of the matter, howev er. When the allowanc e has b een
c alc u lated, it is next nec essary to c onsider whether the operativ e c an b e
expec ted to take any or all of it within the work c yc le or whether it mu st b e
added to the su m of ou tside work plu s mac hine-c ontrolled time to deriv e the
tru e c yc le time.
If the work c yc le is a v ery long one, and there are lengthy periods of
u noc c u pied time within it, it may b e possib le in c ertain c irc u mstanc es f or the
whole of the personal needs allowanc e and the f atigu e allowanc e to b e taken
within the c yc le, du ring the time when the operativ e is not working. S u c h
periods c an only b e c onsidered adequ ate f or personal needs allowanc e if they
are long enou gh (say, ten or 15 minu tes), if they oc c u r in an u nb roken stretc h,
and if it is possib le f or the operativ e to leav e the mac hine u nattended
meanwhile. This may b e done saf ely if the mac hine has an au to-stop
mec hanism and needs no attention whatsoev er while it is ru nning; alternativ ely,
when grou ps of operativ es work together it is sometimes possib le to arrange f or
neighb ou ring workers to u se some of their own u noc c u pied time in giv ing
attention to the ab sent worker's mac hine. In many indu stries in whic h the
proc essing mac hinery is ru n c ontinu ou sly, perhaps 24 hou rs a day, it is
c ommon to prov ide "f loating" workers who c an f ill in at workstations f or odd
moments and c an help to keep the mac hines ru nning du ring short meal b reaks
if these are taken at staggered times.
It is mu c h more u su al, howev er, espec ially with c yc les of short du ration,
f or the whole of the personal needs allowanc e to b e taken ou tside the working
c yc le. In the milling example whic h has b een illu strated ab ov e and whic h has a
c yc le time of 1.36 minu tes, it wou ld ob v iou sly b e impossib le f or the operativ e
350 to take any of his or her personal needs allowanc e within the c yc le.
Fatigu e allowanc e is a rather dif f erent matter. Q u ite short periods of
u noc c u pied time c an b e u sed f or rec ov ery f rom f atigu e, prov ided that the
operativ e c an tru ly relax du ring them and is not requ ired to b e c onstantly on the
alert or to giv e attention to the mac hine du ring them, and that there is a seat
nearb y. It is generally c onsidered that any period of 0.50 minu tes or less is too
short to b e c ou nted as av ailab le f or relaxation, and that any u nb roken period of
1.5 minu tes or longer c an b e rec koned as f u lly av ailab le f or rec ov ery f rom
f atigu e. Periods of 0.50 minu tes or less wou ld thu s b e disregarded. For periods
of b etween 0.50 and 1.50 minu tes, it is c ommon to c alc u late the time whic h
may b e c onsidered as ef f ec tiv ely av ailab le f or relaxation b y dedu c ting 0.50
minu tes f rom the ac tu al length of the period and mu ltiplying the resu lt b y 1.5.
The ef f ec t of applying this c alc u lation to f ou r periods b etween 0.50 and 1.50
minu tes is shown b elow:
Actual unbroken period Time calculated as
of unoccupied time effectively available
(mm.) for recovery from fatigue
(min.)
0.50 nil
1.00 0.75
1.25 1.12
1.50 1.50
In the milling mac hine example, the length of time du ring whic h the
operativ e was not working was only 0.24 minu tes, whic h is too short to b e taken
into ac c ou nt f or relaxation. In this partic u lar example the inside work was
perf ormed in one u nb roken stretc h of 0.56 minu tes, b u t it is qu ite c ommon in
mac hine operations f or the workers to hav e to make adju stments or attend to the
mac hine at interv als, or perhaps c arry ou t manu al elements on other workpiec es
f rom time to time while the mac hine is working, so that within the mac hine-
c ontrolled time there will b e separated periods of inside work and u noc c u pied time.
Ev en where the periods of time av ailab le are long enou gh to b e
c onsidered as su itab le f or taking f atigu e allowanc e, other f ac tors may
c omplic ate the situ ation. For example, in a "hostile" env ironment (heat, c old,
noise, du st, v ib ration) workers may b e u nab le to esc ape f rom the ef f ec t of the
env ironment ev en thou gh they may not b e ac tu ally working. In su c h situ ations
it is nec essary to introdu c e a f ormal work-rest regime in whic h relaxation
allowanc es are c onsolidated into periods long enou gh f or workers to rec ov er
away f rom the plac e of work.
The length of the c yc le and the manner in whic h any inside work oc c u rs
thu s b oth af f ec t the way in whic h relaxation allowanc e mu st b e treated. Fou r
c ases c an b e distingu ished:
(1) All the personal needs allowanc e and all the f atigu e allowanc e mu st b e
taken ou tside the working c yc le.
(2) The personal needs allowanc e mu st b e taken ou tside the c yc le, b u t all the
f atigu e allowanc e c an b e taken within it.
(3) The personal needs allowanc e and some of the f atigu e allowanc e mu st b e
taken ou tside the c yc le, b u t the rest of the f atigu e allowanc e c an b e taken
within it. 351
(4) AU the personal needs allowanc e and all the f atigu e allowanc e c an b e
taken within the working c yc le.
The ef f ec t of these f ou r c ases f or f ou r dif f erent operation sequ enc es is
illu strated in f igu re 118. All the f ou r operations hav e the f ollowing
c harac teristic s in c ommon.
Figure 1 1 8. Four operations with machine elements
I Overall cycle time -
-H
CASE 1

PNAand FA taken
outside working cycle
-B-D-D-i-i-Q-a-
PNA
FA
CASE 2

;;;;;:;;;;;
PNA taken outside,
FA taken Inside working cycle
CASE 3
P'^ ^"~
PNA and part of FA taken
outside, remainder of FA inside
working cycle
FA
Part of
FA
PNA
-l-i-B-B-1 -B-l-l--B-B
PNA
H
Part
of
FA
CASE 4
kjffiOjiiaa
li i^z z
PNA and FA taken inside cycle
h outside work
BHB
PNA
FA
-I- inside work- -!
h machine-controlled time -
N.B. PNA = Personal needs allowance FA = Fatigue allowance
35 2
In c ase 3 there is a period of 1.0 minu te within the mac hine-c ontrolled
time when the operativ e is not working. By u sing the method of c alc u lation
desc rib ed ab ov e, 0.75 minu tes of this is c onsidered to b e av ailab le f or rec ov ery
f rom f atigu e, so that the remaining 0.75 minu tes of the f atigu e allowanc e has to
b e taken ou tside the working c yc le. In c ase 4 the assu mption has b een made
that a neighb ou ring worker c ou ld attend to the operation if it shou ld b e
nec essary f or the operativ e to leav e the workstation f or longer than the ten
minu tes of non-working time av ailab le du ring the mac hine element.
It will b e seen that the overall cycle time dif f ers in eac h of the f ou r c ases,
so that the nu mb er of u nits of ou tpu t whic h c ou ld b e expec ted ov er an eight-
hou r day also dif f ers:
Overall Anticipated
cycle time daily output
(min.) (units)
Casel 27.75 1 7.3 say, 1 7
Case 2 26.25 1 8.3 say, 1 8
Case 3 27.00 1 7.7 with overtime, 1 8
Case 4 25 .00 1 9.2 say, 1 9
The overall cycle time is the total time in whic h the job shou ld b e
c ompleted at standard perf ormanc e, and is made u p (in the c ase of operations
of the types so f ar disc u ssed) of ou tside work at standard pac e, mac hine-
c ontrolled time, and any portion of the relaxation allowanc e whic h has to b e
allowed ou tside the mac hine-c ontrolled time. If there are no other allowanc es
to b e taken into ac c ou nt (e.g. c ontingenc y allowanc e), and an allowanc e is
made f or u noc c u pied time in ac tu al minu tes, the ov erall c yc le time will b e
nu meric ally equ al to the standard time f or the operation.
5. Unoccupied time allowance
In the c onstru c tion of sc ale diagrams representing restric ted work c yc les, su c h
as those illu strated in f igu res 117 and 118, it is u su al to show all the manu al
elements at the times they wou ld take if perf ormed at standard pac e. This is
c onv enient f or method stu dy, and f or the c alc u lations needed to determine
relaxation allowanc es and how they may properly b e alloc ated, af ter whic h
ov erall c yc le times and henc e antic ipated ou tpu ts may b e c alc u lated.
The next step is to c alc u late the total period of any u noc c u pied time, in
ac tu al minu tes. For operations of the types disc u ssed, u noc c u pied time is
c alc u lated b y su b trac ting f rom the mac hine-c ontrolled time the su m of all
periods of inside work, in b asic minu tes, plu s any part of the relaxation
allowanc e whic h may b e taken within the mac hine-c ontrolled time. It shou ld b e
partic u larly noted that f or the c alc u lation of u noc c u pied time all work elements
mu st b e c alc u lated at standard pac e.
S tandard times f or job s or operations are c alc u lated on the b asis of the
work done b y operativ es that is, the manu al work c ontent of the job not
that done b y mac hines. For a job made u p solely of manu al elements
(u nrestric ted work), the standard time is essentially a measu re of the work
whic h the job c ontains. With restric ted work, howev er, the standard time
expresses something more than this. It will b e rec alled that the def inition of
standard time is as f ollows:
Standard time is the total time in which a job should be completed
at standard performance
In order to c ompile the standard time f or a restric ted operation, theref ore,
it is not su f f ic ient simply to c alc u late the work c ontent (inc lu siv e of relaxation 353
allowanc es, and the work portion of any c ontingenc y allowanc e c onsidered
appropriate), adding to this perhaps some small f u rther c ontingenc y allowanc e
f or delays. It is nec essary to add an allowanc e f or any u nav oidab le u noc c u pied
time whic h may b e experienc ed du ring the mac hine- (or proc ess-) c ontrolled
time.
Unoccupied time allowance is an allowance made to a worker
when there is unoccupied time during machine- (or process-)
controlled time
Bef ore the allowanc e is made, the work stu dy person mu st f irst b e
satisf ied that the u noc c u pied time is tru ly u nav oidab le and c annot b e redu c ed
f u rther b y method improv ement or b y a realloc ation of work or mac hines. It
was noted earlier that it may b e sou nd management prac tic e to ac c ept a c ertain
amou nt of u noc c u pied time if , b y so doing, c ostly mac hines c an b e kept more
f u lly employed, b ec au se in restric ted work mac hine u tilization is of ten more
important than lab ou r produ c tiv ity.
Unoc c u pied time allowanc e is made in ac tu al minu tes.
Payment for unoccupied time
When standard times are u sed as a b asis f or payment-b y-resu lts sc hemes, the
inc lu sion of u noc c u pied time allowanc es in standard times f or restric ted work
may giv e rise to payment anomalies, u nless spec ial measu res are taken to deal
with the prob lems whic h arise.
The sort of dif f ic u lty whic h c an oc c u r is most easily seen b y c onsidering
an example. L et u s assu me that in a giv en enterprise there are three job s, f or
eac h of whic h the standard time has b een c alc u lated as 100 minu tes. The f irst
job is made u p wholly of manu al elements. The other two are b oth restric ted
operations, and f or b oth the standard times inc lu de allowanc es f or u noc c u pied
time say, 15 minu tes in one c ase, and 45 minu tes in the other.
If all three workers perf orm the manu al elements of their tasks at standard
pac e and all take exac tly the allotted relaxation periods, all three job s will b e
c ompleted in the same time (100 minu tes). Bu t the operativ e on u nrestric ted
work will hav e b een working all the time (exc ept, of c ou rse, f or the relaxation
period) while the other two will hav e b een idle f or 15 and 45 minu tes
respec tiv ely. If payment is made f or u noc c u pied time at the same rate as that
f or working time, the more heav ily loaded workers will soon b ec ome
disc ontented; job s will b ec ome known as "good" job s or "b ad" job s ac c ording
to the amou nt of u noc c u pied time they c ontain; and there will b e relu c tanc e to
u ndertake tasks with the higher work c ontent.
Usu ally this dif f ic u lty is dealt with not b y modif ying the standard times
b u t b y estab lishing dif f erent rates of payment f or work and f or idle time. To
enab le this to b e done, it is u su al to express standard times not only as totals
354 b u t also as work c redits plu s idle time c redits (or in similar terms).
Thu s, in the example c ited ab ov e, the standard time (100 minu tes in eac h
instanc e) wou ld b e shown as b eing made u p of 100, 85 and 55 work c redits
plu s 0, 15 and 45 idle time c redits respec tiv ely. It may b e noted in passing that
idle time c redits inc lu ded in a standard time may b e alloc ated f or reasons other
than u noc c u pied time as disc u ssed ab ov e. Idle time c redits may sometimes b e
nec essary to c ompensate f or delays c au sed b y waiting f or work or f or
instru c tions, or b y mac hine b reakdowns.
The sc heme to b e adopted to make dif f erential payments f or work and f or
idle time in a partic u lar enterprise is properly a matter of wages administration,
rather than of time stu dy prac tic e, and is thu s ou tside the sc ope of this
introdu c tory b ook. It may b e noted, howev er, that any su c h sc heme shou ld b e
simple to u nderstand, so that the workers may readily c omprehend why job s
taking the same time to c omplete attrac t dif f erent payments. The sc heme
shou ld b e negotiated and agreed with the workers' representativ es b ef ore it is
applied. In a typic al sc heme, idle time c redits amou nting in total to less than
5 per c ent of the work c redits may b e paid f or at the same rate as work
c redits ; idle time amou nting to 40 per c ent or more of the work c redits at three-
qu arters of the rate of working; and idle times b etween 5 and 40 per c ent at
v arying rates in b etween.
The sc heme whic h will b e most appropriate f or a partic u lar organization
will depend on loc al c irc u mstanc es, and espec ially on whether job s with large
amou nts of u noc c u pied time are exc eptional or c ommon. S ometimes v ariab le
rates whic h hav e to b e read of f a c u rv e are adopted, b u t in general a linear
relationship is to b e pref erred, and always one whic h is simple.
The time stu dy person is c onc erned primarily with measu ring the amou nt
of time needed to c omplete a job or operation, rather than with whatev er
arrangements are agreed f or making payment f or that time. It is c ommon in
indu strial wage agreements to take ac c ou nt of dif f erent lev els of skill requ ired
f or dif f erent operations, b y paying dif f ering rates per minu te or per hou r of
work. Other f ac tors may also b e taken into ac c ou nt in setting payment rates.
None of these matters will af f ec t the c alc u lation of any u noc c u pied time
allowanc e whic h may b e nec essary to c ompile the standard time f or a job . The
time allowanc e will b e in minu tes or hou rs: payment f or those minu tes or hou rs
will b e negotiab le qu ite separately.
In the sc heme mentioned ab ov e, relativ ely long periods of u noc c u pied
time are paid f or at lower rates than those paid f or working. In some
c irc u mstanc es, howev er, it may b e appropriate to pay f or b oth working time
and u noc c u pied time at v ery high rates indeed, in whic h c ase the payment
ac tu ally made to a partic u lar operativ e f or a minu te of u noc c u pied time may b e
greater than that paid to another f or a minu te spent working.
An example is the f inal mac hining of a shaf t f or a tu rb ine-driv en
elec tric ity generating set. S u c h a shaf t may b e sev eral metres in length, and b y
the time the last stages of mac hining are u ndertaken the c omponent will
represent a large inv estment, in terms of b oth lab ou r and the c ostly materials of
whic h it is made. A f au lty c u t may resu lt in a diameter b ec oming u ndersize,
with the resu lt that the whole shaf t wou ld hav e to b e sc rapped. The operativ e is
thu s b u rdened with a v ery heav y responsib ility, althou gh the ac tu al operation 355
itself is not partic u larly c omplex. Bec au se of this responsib ility the rates paid
to the operativ e, b oth f or working and f or any nec essarily u noc c u pied time,
may b e higher than those f or the general ru n of tu rning operations. S imilar
"key" operations or tasks oc c u r in many indu stries and working situ ations.
6. Multiple machine work
Multiple machine work is work which requires the worker to attend
two or more machines (of similar or different kinds) running
simultaneously
In sec tion 3 of this c hapter the simple c ase of one worker and one
mac hine was examined. Frequ ently, howev er, workers are c alled u pon to look
af ter more than one mac hine perhaps many mac hines and this poses
spec ial prob lems in time stu dy work. A c ommon example is that of the
weav ing shed in a textile mill, where a worker may attend anything f rom f ou r
to 40 looms (perhaps ev en more), depending on the type of loom installed and
the c harac teristic s of the c loth b eing wov en. S imilar c irc u mstanc es are of ten
enc ou ntered in engineering indu stries, f or example when workers operate
b atteries of sc rew-making or c oil-winding mac hines. It is u su al in work
situ ations of this sort f or the mac hines to b e equ ipped with au tomatic c u t-ou t
dev ic es whic h b ring them to a standstill when their tasks are c ompleted or
when b reaks or malf u nc tioning oc c u r.
Tasks of this sort are all examples of restric ted work, as the ou tpu t of the
worker may b e limited b y f ac tors ou tside his or her c ontrol. S o too are team
operations, whether the team of workers is c onc erned with the operation of a
single mac hine, with sev eral mac hines or indeed with no mac hines at all, sinc e
restric tions c an b e imposed b y lac k of b alanc e in the amou nts of manu al work
whic h hav e to b e perf ormed b y dif f erent memb ers of the team.
Load factor
The load factor is the proportion of the overall cycle time required
by the worker to carry out the necessary work at standard
performance, during a machine- (or process-) controlled cycle
35 6
The load f ac tor is sometimes known b y the alternativ e terms "extent
oc c u pied" or "workload". In the simplest c ase of one person operating one
mac hine, as illu strated in f igu res 117 and 118, if the ov erall c yc le time is ten
minu tes and the amou nt of manu al work c ontained within the c yc le totals only
one standard minu te, the load f ac tor wou ld b e one-tenth, or 10 per c ent.
The rec iproc al of the load f ac tor theref ore indic ates the nu mb er of
mac hines whic h the worker c ou ld theoretic ally tend: in this example, ten
mac hines. In prac tic e, other f ac tors hav e to b e taken into ac c ou nt, so that the
load f ac tor c an b e taken only as a v ery rou gh f irst indic ation of the nu mb er of
mac hines whic h c an u sef u lly b e alloc ated to a worker. It does sometimes oc c u r
that the work elements c onsist solely of u nloading f inished piec es f rom
mac hines whic h hav e stopped au tomatic ally, loading f resh piec es and restarting
the mac hines; and if all the mac hines are alike and are working on exac tly
similar piec es, it may b e possib le to ac hiev e the ideal sequ enc e of operation,
with the worker ab le to operate the nu mb er of mac hines indic ated b y the
rec iproc al of the load f ac tor. Mu c h more c ommonly, howev er, dif f erenc es
oc c u r in the mac hines or in the work, and f requ ently attention has to b e giv en
to the mac hines while they are ru nning, with the resu lt that the worker c annot
always get to a mac hine at the exac t moment when attention is needed. The
delays whic h then oc c u r are known as machine interference.
Machine interference
Machine interference is the queuing of machines (or processes) for
attention e.g. when one worker is responsible for attending to
more than one machine. Similar circumstances arise in team work
where random delays at any point may affect the output of
the team
When stu dying mu ltiple mac hine working or team working (with or
withou t mac hines), the work stu dy person has f irst to examine the methods of
working with the ob jec t of dev ising a sequ enc e of operations whic h will resu lt
in the b est b alanc e and thu s the least interf erenc e, and then to u se time stu dy
tec hniqu es to measu re the amou nt of interf erenc e whic h will oc c u r ev en when
the b est sequ enc e has b een determined. These tasks may sometimes b e
extremely c omplic ated. They of ten c all f or the u se of spec ialized methods
whic h are b eyond the sc ope of this b ook.
If there are only a f ew workers in the team, or if one or two workers are
operating only a f ew mac hines b etween them, simpler methods will su f f ic e.
Operation sequ enc es c an b e plotted and examined on mu ltiple ac tiv ity c harts
(desc rib ed in Chapter 8), su pplemented b y c yc le diagrams similar to those
shown in f igu res 117 and 118. The diagrams f or eac h mac hine are drawn one
b elow the other, to the same time sc ale. A simple example, that of an operativ e
working three mac hines, is shown in f igu re 119.
In this example there is no inside work, so that when a mac hine has b een
started the operativ e's attention c an b e tu rned to another. The sequ enc e in
whic h this is done is indic ated b y the small v ertic al arrows. It will b e seen that,
with this partic u lar rou tine, mac hine C is operated withou t any delays
oc c u rring; b u t the resu lt of doing this is that b oth mac hine A and mac hine B 357
Figure 1 1 9. Machine interference
interference
Machine A = N
J tf= at
switc h themselv es of f at the end of their respec tiv e operations and then hav e to
wait a while b ef ore the operativ e c an get to them. The interf erenc e is indic ated
on the c yc le diagrams f or mac hines A and B b y grey arc s.
Interference allowance
An interference allowance is an allowance of time for production
unavoidably lost through synchronization of stoppages on two or
more machines (or processes) attended by one worker. Similar
circumstances arise in team work
35 8
By extending the methods so f ar desc rib ed, u sing the same c harting
c onv entions and princ iples, it is possib le to estab lish work sequ enc es and to
c alc u late interf erenc e f or a f airly wide range of mu ltiple mac hine operations,
inc lu ding many whic h will b e met with in the engineering and allied indu stries,
and espec ially those in whic h mac hine stoppages oc c u r in regu lar, predic tab le
f ashion rather than at random. In c oil-winding, f or example, the winding
mac hines switc h themselv es of f when the c oil is c ompleted, and c ontingenc ies
(su c h as wire b reaks) are rare.
For these simpler f orms of mu ltiple mac hine operation, when an operativ e
has only a f ew mac hines to look af ter and the work b eing done is of a c yc lic
natu re, with def inite b eginnings and ends of the work c yc les, standard times
may b e c alc u lated and expressed exac tly as f or u nrestric ted work: that is, as so
many standard minu tes (or hou rs) per piec e, per job or per operation. This is
qu ite c ommon in engineering mac hine shop operations, espec ially when
workers operate sev eral mac hines in sequ enc e. For these situ ations standard
times are c ompiled as desc rib ed earlier in this b ook, on the b asis of the work
c ontent f or eac h job or operation. There is no need to consider machine
interference when compiling the standard times, thou gh it may b e nec essary
to take this into ac c ou nt when making ou tpu t predic tions and other produ c tion
c ontrol c alc u lations. It will b e nec essary, howev er, to prov ide allowanc es in the
standard times f or any unavoidable unoccupied time whic h may b e
experienc ed as a resu lt of working with the mac hines, and this too may b e done
as desc rib ed ab ov e.
When ou tpu t is c ontinu ou s rather than c yc lic , and espec ially in proc ess
indu stries, it is more u su al to estab lish standard times f or some c onv enient
volume, weight, or length of output, rather than per piec e or per operation.
Thu s, in weav ing, the standard times may b e c ompiled and expressed as so
many standard minu tes per 100 metres of c loth wov en (this is in f ac t one of
sev eral ways of stating time standards f or weav ing). When this is done, the
f oc u s is shif ted f rom the amou nt of manu al work c ontained in the operation to
the ou tpu t whic h may b e expec ted f rom the mac hines, thou gh ou tpu t
c alc u lations mu st of c ou rse take into ac c ou nt the qu antity of manu al work
inv olv ed in tending the mac hines. Unoc c u pied time is of interest, and almost
always has to b e determined, not f or the pu rpose of making an allowanc e in the
standard time b u t rather as an indic ation of the nu mb er of mac hines whic h a
worker c an attend. For the calculation of standard times the allowance
which has to be taken into account is interference allowance the times
du ring whic h some of the mac hines will b e stopped while waiting f or the
operativ e to get to them.
A c ase in point is that of a weav er looking af ter a set of looms. S toppages
in the weav ing operation depend u pon many c irc u mstanc es. The strength of the
yarn, and henc e the f requ enc y of b reakages, is inf lu enc ed b y the way the
materials f orming the warp and wef t hav e b een prepared, and also b y the
temperatu re and hu midity within the weav ing shed, b oth of whic h may c hange
markedly f rom time to time du ring a shif t. The state of maintenanc e of the
looms also af f ec ts stoppages, while the speed and skill of the weav er hav e a
f u rther inf lu enc e, sinc e a skilled operativ e c an of ten prev ent stoppages b y
antic ipating trou b le and taking prev entiv e ac tion.
In c irc u mstanc es su c h as these, it is nec essary to ev alu ate u noc c u pied
time (f or work loading and team b alanc ing) and interf erenc e (f or c ompiling
standard times) b y extended stu dies on the plant f loor, c ov ering all the dif f erent
working c onditions and all the dif f erent c ou nts of yarn (in weav ing) or
dif f erent materials whic h hav e to b e worked on. S tu dies may hav e to c ontinu e
f or days or weeks, or sometimes extend ov er sev eral months. Work sampling is
an appropriate tec hniqu e to u se f or this pu rpose, and was originally dev eloped
expressly f or textile operations. It is mu c h more ec onomic al than time stu dy,
whic h wou ld b e mu c h too long-winded and detailed f or this type of ob serv ation
in any b u t the smallest plants. Using work sampling, f or example, a stu dy
person in a weav ing department c an rec ord all the inf ormation needed while
ob serv ing the operation of ten or 12 looms, whic h wou ld b e impossib le with
ordinary time stu dy prac tic e.
In a b ook of this natu re it is not possib le to c ov er in detail the spec ialized
methods whic h are adopted in adv anc ed work stu dy prac tic e to ev alu ate
interf erenc e and to c alc u late interf erenc e allowanc es in c omplex mu ltiple
mac hine situ ations. For the most part, these methods are b ased on statistic al
proc edu res and prob ab ility theory, and are intended to permit reliab le
predic tions to b e made withou t rec ou rse to either time stu dy or work sampling.
For this pu rpose a nu mb er of f ormu lae, c u rv es and sets of tab les hav e b een
c ompiled to assist in the determination of interf erenc e, and henc e prob ab le
ou tpu t, f or v ariou s worker/mac hine c omb inations. The systems, if u sed with 359
c are, of f er the prospec t of c onsiderab le ec onomy of stu dy time in c ertain
spec ialized, b u t c omplex, mu ltiple mac hine and teamwork situ ations. It is
essential, howev er, that any predic tions made on the b asis of f ormu lae and
tab les shou ld b e v alidated b y direc t stu dy at the workplac e, so that f u ll ac c ou nt
may b e taken of loc al working c onditions.
The time stu dy methods desc rib ed earlier in this c hapter, together with
work sampling (as desc rib ed in Chapter 19), will u su ally b e f ou nd adequ ate f or
the c alc u lation of reliab le time standards f or the majority of the mac hine
working situ ations likely to b e enc ou ntered in general indu strial prac tic e.
Those readers who are f ac ed with the task of determining standards f or
c omplex mu ltiple mac hine operations may f ind it u sef u l to c onsu lt more
adv anc ed texts. It is rec ommended, howev er, that the more spec ialized methods
shou ld not b e attempted u ntil the work stu dy person has had su f f ic ient
experienc e of b oth time and work sampling to b e su re of b eing ab le to u se
these tec hniqu es to v erif y any statistic al predic tions made.
* * *
In the next c hapter an example of a f u lly worked time stu dy is shown. The
stu dy is one taken on the operation of milling a c asting, whic h was the su b jec t
c harted on a mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart on Chapter 8, and f or whic h a c yc le
diagram appears in sec tion 3 of the present c hapter.
360
CHAPTER 25
Example of a time study
In disc u ssing the making of a time stu dy throu ghou t the prev iou s f ou r c hapters
we ref erred to the example b ased on the milling of a c asting whic h was the
su b jec t of the mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart desc rib ed in Chapter 8. The c omplete time
stu dy is shown in this c hapter. A c aref u l stu dy of the f orms shown in the
illu strations shou ld enab le the reader to f ollow in detail the proc esses b y whic h
a time stu dy is worked u p and a standard time is c ompiled.
This partic u lar example has b een c hosen b ec au se:
D it is simple;
D it has already b een the su b jec t of a method stu dy;
D it inc lu des b oth manu al and mac hine elements;
D it is typic al of the sort of operation met ev erywhere in the engineering
indu stry and in other indu stries u sing mac hines and semi-au tomatic
proc esses.
The f orms u sed are simple general-pu rpose f orms su c h as those illu strated
in Chapter 20. Althou gh all the entries made on the f orms in this partic u lar
example will b e handwritten, it is u su al to spac e the lines f or u se with a
typewriter b ec au se oc c asions may arise on whic h it is requ ired to produ c e f air
c opies of original stu dies f or disc u ssion or c irc u lation.
The stu dy illu strated in this c hapter was not the f irst one on this operation.
The elements and b reak points were def ined at the time the method stu dy was
u ndertaken, and were then set ou t on a c ard prepared and f iled b y the work
stu dy department. This is a u sef u l prac tic e when it is expec ted that an operation
will b e stu died sev eral times, perhaps b y dif f erent stu dy persons. It ensu res that
the rec ordings made on all the stu dies are c omparab le. The elements and b reak
points are shown in f igu re 120. Figu re 121 shows a sketc h of a part and the
workplac e layou t.
Althou gh the example whic h has b een stu died in detail is a simple one f or
a manu f ac tu ring indu stry, exac tly the same proc edu re is c arried ou t f or non-
manu f ac tu ring operations or f or any other work whic h is time-stu died f or the
pu rpose of setting time standards. Entirely manu al operations, su c h as
assemb ly, wou ld b e treated in exac tly the same way.
361
Figure 1 20. Card giving details of elements and break points
Card No. 1264
Part: B.239 Gear case
Material: ISS 2 Cast iron
Operation: Finish-mill second face
Machine: No. 4 Cincinnati vertical miller
Fixture: F.239
Cutter; 25 cm. TLF
Gauge: 239/7. Surface plate
Drawing: 239It
Elements and break points
A. Pick up casting, locate in fixture, lock two nuts, set guard, start machine and auto feed. Depth
of cut 2.5 mm. Speed 80 r.p.m. Feed 40 cm/min.
Break point: Machine commences cut.
B. Hold casting, break milled edge with file, clean with compressed air.
Break point: Air gun dropped on to hook.
C. Move depth gauge to casting, check machined surface, move gauge away.
Break point: Left hand releases gauge.
D. Pick up machined casting, carry to finished parts box and place aside, pick up next part and
position on machine table.
Break point: Casting hits table.
E. Wait for machine to complete cut.
Break point: Machine ceases to cut.
F. Stop machine, return table, open guard, unlock fixture, remove machined casting and place on
surface plate.
Break point: Casting hits surface plate.
G. Clear swarf from machine table with compressed air.
Break point: Air gun dropped on to hook.
Note: Elements B, C and D are inside work, and are performed on a casting which has already been machined while the milling machine is
cutting the next casting. Element Dincludes bringing up into a handy position a fresh casting which will be machined after the one now in the
machine.
362
EXAMPLE OF A TIME STUDY
Figure 1 21 . Sketch of part and of workplace layout
A sketc h of the workplac e layou t is generally more nec essary in assemb ly or material-
handling stu dies than in stu dies of mac hine shop operations where workplac es are likely to b e
the same f or all job s on the mac hines. The part shou ld b e sketc hed showing the su rf ac es
mac hined : in the c ase of c apstan lathes, tool set-u ps shou ld b e inc lu ded. This is b est done on
squ ared paper and may b e on the b ac k of the time stu dy top sheet, if desired, in order to keep all
the inf ormation relev ant to the stu dy on one sheet. To f ac ilitate sketc hing, the rev erse of the top
sheet is of ten printed as squ ared paper.
(a) Sketch of gear-case casting showing surface to be machined and dimension
(b) Layout of workplace
Milling machine
45 cm
min.
Table
Surface
plate
45 cm
min.
-1 .5 m-
Working
2 m
area
Unmachined
castings
Machined
castings
Work
rack
Gangway
363
Figure 1 22. Time study top sheet
All the inf ormation in the heading b loc k at the top of the time stu dy top sheet f igu re
122 (exc ept time of f and elapsed time) was entered b ef ore the stop-watc h was started and
stu dy c ommenc ed.
If the stu dy had b een the f irst one on this operation, the stu dy person wou ld hav e entered
in f u ll the element desc riptions and b reak points in the c olu mn headed "Element desc ription" on
the lef t-hand side of the page. In the present instanc e this was not nec essary, as the c ard shown
in f igu re 120 listed all the details. The stu dy person shou ld watc h a f ew c yc les of the operation
to make su re that the listed method is b eing u sed, and to b ec ome f amiliar with the b reak points,
b ef ore starting to rec ord. The elements were identif ied simply b y the letters A to G .
At exac tly 9.47 a.m. b y the stu dy of f ic e c loc k (or the stu dy person's wrist-watc h) the
stop-watc h was started. It ran f or 1.72 minu tes b ef ore element A of the f irst c yc le started, so this
time is entered at the b eginning of the stu dy as the "Time b ef ore". S inc e this was a stu dy u sing
c u mu lativ e timing, the watc h ran c ontinu ou sly throu ghou t. When the stu dy was b roken of f af ter
ob serv ing 18 c yc les, the stu dy person allowed the stop-watc h to ru n on u ntil the stu dy of f ic e
c loc k reac hed the next f u ll minu te (at 10.25 a.m.), noted the "Time af ter", and stopped the stop-
watc h. These terminal entries will b e f ou nd at the end of the rec ordings in f igu re 124.
The f ou r c olu mns u sed in c u mu lativ e timing are respec tiv ely "Rating" (R), "Watc h
reading" (WR), "S u b trac ted time" (S T) and "Basic time" (BT). The plac ing of the rating c olu mn
f irst is logic al and enc ou rages the ob serv er to rate while the element is in progress and not to
wait f or the watc h reading. If f lyb ac k timing had b een u sed, the WR c olu mn on the f orm wou ld
not b e nec essary.
Only the entries in the two c olu mns headed R and WR were made du ring ob serv ations at
the workplac e. The other two c olu mns were c ompleted in the stu dy of f ic e af ter ob serv ations had
b een disc ontinu ed. In prac tic e, the "Rating" and "Watc h reading" entries wou ld b e made in
penc il while those in the "S u b trac ted time" and "Basic time" c olu mns wou ld b e made in ink or
with a penc il of a dif f erent c olou r f rom that u sed f or the ob serv ations.
The stu dy person nu mb ered the c yc les ob serv ed, f rom 1 to 18, with ringed f igu res at the
lef t of the "Element desc ription" c olu mn.
When entering watc h readings there is no need to u se dec imal points. The f irst entry
(Time b ef ore, 172) indic ates a time of 1.72 minu tes. The next watc h reading was made 1.95
minu tes af ter the watc h was started, b u t it is only nec essary to enter 95. The third entry of 220
indic ates that the reading was made at 2.20 minu tes af ter starting; the entries then rev ert to two
f igu res only u ntil the next minu te is passed. Du ring c yc le nu mb er 15 (rec orded on f igu re 124)
the total stu dy time passed 30 minu tes, whic h is the time taken b y the hand on the small inner
dial on the watc h to c omplete one rev olu tion. As the stu dy c ontinu ed into a f u rther rev olu tion of
the small hand, su b sequ ent watc h readings rev ert to 1 again. It will b e seen that the rec ording
against element F of c yc le 15 was 106, whic h of c ou rse means 31.06 minu tes af ter the watc h
was started.
Element E "Wait f or mac hine to c omplete c u t" is not work, and was theref ore not
rated. It will b e seen that there is no entry against this element in the "Basic time" c olu mn.
364
Time study top sheet
Department: Machine shop - Milling section Study No.: 77
Sheet No. : 7 of 5
Operation: Finish- mill second face MS No.: 9
Plant/Machine: Cincinnati No. 4 vertical miller No.: 26
Tools and gauges: Fixture F 239: Cutter 25 cm TLF
Gauge 239/7: Surface plate
Time off: 70.25 a.m.
Time on: 9.47 a.m.
Elapsed time: 3S.00
Operative:
Clock No.: 7234
Product/Part: B. 239 gear case No.: 239/7
DWG No.: B. 239/1 ISS 2 Material: Cast iron
Quality: As drawing
Studied by:
Date:
Checked:
Note: Sketch the workplace layout/set-up/part on the reverse, or on a separate sheet and attach.
Time before
7 72
A SO 022 32 26
A , 770 95 23 25 B S5 5 0 28 24
B 700 220 25 25 C S5 63 73 77
Elements & BP A 700 32 72 72 D 85 83 20 77
as Card No. 1264 D 95 52 20 19 E 703 20
E 77 25 F 705 26 23 24
F 770 300 23 25 G 85 38 72 70
G 7 70 OS OS 09
A SO 70 32 26
A 770 37 23 25 B 85 97 27 23
B 95 5 S 27 26 C 85 810 73 77
C 95 77 73 12 D 85 30 20 77
D 100 89 7S 18 E 53 23
E 412 23 F 705 76 23 24
F 705 37 25 26 G 85 88 72 70
G 700 47 70 70
A 95 915 27 26
A 705 72 25 26 B 95 42 27 26
B 705 97 25 26 C 705 54 72 73
C 95 510 73 12 D SO 77 23 78
D 110 28 7S 20 E 97 20
E 53 25 F 95 1020 23 22
F 700 78 25 25 G 700 30 70 70
G 95 90 72 77
47S 440
365
Figure 1 23. Time study continuation sheet (page 2)
The rec ordings c ov ered three sheets in all. Figu re 123 shows the f irst of the two
c ontinu ation sheets, and it will b e seen that it is nu mb ered in the top right-hand c omer: S heet
No. 2 of 5. The analysis sheet and stu dy su mmary sheet ev entu ally c ompleted the set of f iv e
sheets, all of whic h were stapled together af ter the stu dy was worked u p.
Besides the element ratings and timings, c ontinu ing as on the top sheet, two interru ptions
were rec orded on this sheet: "Talk to su perv isor", and "Break f or tea". Neither of these was
rated, of c ou rse. The f irst was taken ac c ou nt of when c onsidering c ontingenc ies, while the
sec ond was c ov ered b y the relaxation allowanc e made when the standard time f or the operation
was c ompiled.
366
Study No.: 77 Time study continuation sheet Sheet No. 2 of 5
A 705 5 5 25 26 A 775 86 25 29
B 775 78 23 26 B 95 1713 27 26
C 95 91 13 12 C 75 28 15 11
D 85 1113 22 19 D 85 50 22 19
E 36 23 E 68 18
F 80 68 32 26 F 115 90 22 25
G 95 80 12 11 G 80 1803 13 10
A 75 1218 38 28 A 95 30 27 26
B no 40 22 24 B 95 55 25 24
C 105 52 12 13 C 100 67 12 12
D 100 70 18 18 D 95 87 20 19
E 1300 30 E 1902 15
F 115 25 25 29 F 95 30 28 27
G 105 35 10 10 G 75 42 12 09
Talk to supervisor 75 40 Break for tea 2554 612
A 105 1400 25 26 A 85 86 32 27
B 100 25 25 25 B 80 2618 32 26
C 95 38 13 12 C 85 33 15 13
D 95 56 18 17 D 100 53 20 20
E

81 25 E 68 15
F 100 1509 28 28 F 85 96 28 24
G 85 21 12 10 G 95 2708 12 11
A 95 43 22 21 A 80 40 32 26
B 80 75 32 26 B 100 65 25 25
C 95 88 13 12 C 85 80 15 13
D 95 1608 20 19 D 95 2800 20 19
E 25 17 E 22 22
F 105 48 23 24 F 80 54 32 26
G 85 61 13 11 G 105 64 10 10
631 1203
367
Figure 1 24. Time study continuation sheet (page 3)
The f irst entry on the sec ond c ontinu ation sheet (f igu re 124) rec orded another interru ption
the patrol inspec tor, hav ing c hec ked three workpiec es, drew the operativ e's attention to some
f eatu re of them and disc u ssed them. The time taken to do this, like that rec orded on the prev iou s
sheet against "Talk to su perv isor", was later entered as a c ontingenc y.
Af ter c yc le nu mb er 16, a f resh element of work oc c u rred helping the lab ou rer to mov e
b oxes of work of f and onto the tru c k. This was an oc c asional element, in c ontrast with elements
A to G whic h are repetitiv e. The stu dy person rated and timed the element, and it will b e noted
that, sinc e the element ran on f or rather ov er a minu te in all, the stu dy person made a rating and
a watc h reading at the end of eac h of the f irst two half -minu tes, as well as du ring the last part of
the element. This prac tic e, whic h makes f or greater ac c u rac y, was ref erred to in sec tion 9 of
Chapter 21.
Bac k in the stu dy of f ic e af ter b reaking of f ob serv ations, the stu dy person f irst c ompleted
the "Time of f and "Elapsed time" entries in the heading b loc k on the top sheet, and then set
ab ou t c alc u lating the su b trac ted times, b y dedu c ting eac h watc h reading f rom the one whic h
f ollows it and entering the resu lt in the third c olu mn, headed S T. It will b e seen that these
su b trac ted times were totalled at the f oot of eac h page, and the su b totals were c arried f orward to
the sheet shown opposite, where they were added u p to yield 35.20 minu tes. When the time
b ef ore and the time af ter were added to this f igu re, the resu lt was 38.00 minu tes, whic h agreed
with the elapsed time and thu s af f orded a c hec k that the work of su b trac tion had b een done
c orrec tly.
The next step was "extension": mu ltiplying eac h su b trac ted time b y the perc entage rating
rec orded against it to yield the b asic time, entered in the f ou rth c olu mn. Extension is easily and
qu ic kly done with the aid of a poc ket c alc u lator. The c alc u lation is made to the nearest sec ond
dec imal plac e: that is, to the nearest one-hu ndredth of a minu te. Thu s 0.204 wou ld b e shown as
20, and 0.206 minu tes as 21 whic h leav es the prob lem of what to do with 0.205. Ev idently,
in this stu dy of f ic e the standing ru le was to take half -hu ndredths of a minu te down rather than
u p, as c an b e seen b y the entry against element G of c yc le 15. Here, the rating was 105 and the
su b trac ted time 10, so that the extension yields 0.105 minu tes to three plac es. This has b een
shown as 10, the half -hu ndredth hav ing b een taken down. Other instanc es will b e f ou nd in the
stu dy. Most stu dy of f ic es apply the rev erse ru le: that is, taking middle times u p.
368
EXAMPLE OF A TIME TUDY
Study No.: 77 Time study continuation sheet Sheet No. 3 of 5
Element description
R
WR ST BT Element description R WR ST BT
Patrol inspector checks A 700 77 27 27
3 pieces: discuss 2966 102

B 700 96 25 25
C 95 609 13 12
A 95 93 27 26 D 75 34 25 19
B 80 3023 30 24 E
52 18
C 100 36 13 13 F 700 77 25 25
D 100 56 20 20 G 75 92 15 11
E 74 18
F 80 106 32 26 148
G 105 16 10 10
@ A 80 49 33 26 Watch stopped 800
B 85 77 28 24 10.25 a.m. (elapsed
C 105 89 12 13 time 38.00)
D 100 207 18 18 Time after 108
E 30 23
F 95 57 27 26
G 85 70 13 11
Help labourer unload 85 320 50 43
boxes of new castings 95 70 50 48
and load finished work 95 90 20 19 Check on subtracted 418
on truck (30 new+30 times 440
fin. in boxes of 10) 631
A 100 417 27 27 1203
B 85 49 32 27 680
C 85 64 IB 13 148
D 85 86 22 19 3520
E 509 23

F 100 34 25 25 Time before 172
G 105 44 10 10 Time after 108
Elapsed 3800
680
369
370
Figure 1 25 . Working sheet
The repetitiv e elements A, B, C, D, F and G were all c onstant elements, and selec ted
b asic times f or them were ob tained b y av eraging, as shown on the working sheet (f igu re 125).
As was noted in Chapter 20, stu dy analyses take sev eral f orms and f or this reason it is not u su al
to hav e spec ially printed sheets f or them. Ordinary lined or squ ared paper serv es v ery well, and
when the time stu dy top sheet has b een printed on the rev erse as squ ared paper (to f ac ilitate
sketc hing), it will do well enou gh to u se the b ac k side of a top sheet, entering at the top the
stu dy and sheet nu mb ers. For a simple stu dy the analysis is of ten made straight on to the stu dy
su mmary sheet, a f ew extra c olu mns b eing ru led in the spac e headed "Element desc ription".
Methods of ob taining the selec ted b asic times are disc u ssed in Chapter 23. In this
instanc e, inspec tion of the b asic times tab u lated u nder elements A, B, C, D, F and G showed no
anomalies, and theref ore no need to ring ou t "rogu e" times. For eac h of these elements the b asic
times hav e b een totalled, and the selec ted b asic time was c alc u lated b y div iding the total b y the
nu mb er of ob serv ations (18).
No f igu res were listed u nder element E, "Wait f or mac hine to c omplete c u t". This was
u noc c u pied time, whic h was not rated in the stu dy. The ac tu al length of u noc c u pied time
experienc ed in the v ariou s c yc les ob serv ed depended on the speed with whic h the operativ e
c arried ou t the inside work whic h was perf ormed on another c asting while the mac hine was
c u tting au tomatic ally.
The time the mac hine took to make the c u t, while on au tomatic f eed, did not v ary f rom
c yc le to c yc le b ec au se it was determined b y the rate of f eed at whic h the mac hine was set and
the length of c u t to b e made. It c ou ld thu s b e c alc u lated qu ite easily. In this stu dy the mac hine-
c ontrolled time started at the end of element A and ended with the c onc lu sion of element E. The
mac hine-c ontrolled time c an theref ore b e ob tained f rom the stu dy sheets b y su b trac ting the
watc h reading against element A f rom that against E. This has b een done, the resu lts b eing
tab u lated u nder "MCT" at the right-hand side of the working sheet. These times are of c ou rse
ac tu al minu tes, not b asic times.
It will b e seen that two of the MCT entries hav e b een ringed ou t. The stu dy person did not
enter any explanation of u nu su al ev ents on the rec ord, and inspec tion of the ob serv ations f or the
c yc les in whic h these rogu e times oc c u rred does not prov ide any c onc lu siv e explanation.
Possib ly the explanation f or the shorter time is to b e f ou nd in the f ac t that the operativ e c an start
the c u t on hand-f eed b ef ore loc king on the au to-f eed, and on this oc c asion, u nnotic ed b y the
stu dy person, a longer time was spent on hand-f eed than u su al. The explanation f or the longer
time in c yc le 17 may b e that the operativ e f ailed to switc h the mac hine of f qu ite as qu ic kly as
u su al on this oc c asion, and again this esc aped notic e. The two ringed times were exc lu ded f rom
the total of 13.05 ac tu al minu tes f or the mac hine-c ontrolled times, so that this total was div ided
b y 16 instead of 18 to deriv e the av erage MCT of 0.816.
Element E, the u noc c u pied time, was dealt with b y su b trac ting the total of the selec ted
b asic times f or elements B, C and D, the inside work elements, f rom the av erage MCT. The
resu lting f igu re f or the av erage u noc c u pied time was 0.257 minu tes.
At this stage in the c alc u lations, it is u su al to make u se of three dec imal plac es f or the
selec ted b asic times, and to retain the third plac e on the stu dy su mmary sheet and the analysis of
stu dies sheet.
Study No.: 77 Working sheet Sheet 4 of 6
Element: A B C D E F G MCT
(Basic times) (Actual
minutes)
Cycle No.
1 25 25 12 1 9 25 09 82
2 25 26 12 1 8 26 1 0 81
3 26 26 12 20 25 1 1 81
4 26 24 11 1 7 24 1 0 81
5 26 23 11 1 7 24 1 0 83
6 26 26 13 1 8 22 1 0 82
7 26 26 12 1 9 26 1 1 81
8 28 24 13 1 8 29 1 0 82
9 26 25 12 1 7 28 1 0 81
10 21 26 12 1 9 24 1 1 82
11 29 26 11 1 9 25 1 0 82
12 26 24 12 1 9 27 09 (72)
13 27 26 13 20 24 1 1 82
14 26 25 13 1 9 26 1 0 82
15 26 24 13 20 26 1 0 81
16 26 24 13 1 8 26 1 1 81
17 27 27 13 1 9 25 1 0 (92)
18
Totals
Occasions
Average
27 25 12 1 9 25 1 1 81
4.69 4.62 2.20 3.35 4.57 1.84 13.05
18 18 18 18 18 18 16
0.261 0.251 0.122 0.186 0.254 0.102 0.816
Element E
MCT
B + C+ D
(unoccupied)
= 0.81 6 Actual mir
= 0.5 5 9 Basic mini.
lutes
ites
= 0.25 7
371
Figure 1 26. Study summary sheet
The stu dy su mmary sheet (f igu re 126), when c ompleted, was stapled on top of the other
f ou r stu dy sheets and was ev entu ally f iled with them. The sheets whic h hav e b een u sed f or
rec ording ob serv ations at the workplac e of ten b ec ome somewhat dirty as a resu lt of the
c onditions in whic h they hav e to b e u sed. Moreov er, b ec au se of the speed with whic h the
ob serv ations hav e to b e written down, the stu dy person may hav e u sed many ab b rev iations, and
perhaps the hu rried writing may b e dif f ic u lt f or anyone exc ept the writer to read. The stu dy
su mmary sheet theref ore not only presents c onc isely all the resu lts ob tained f rom the stu dy b u t
also rec ords in the heading b loc k, in ink and neatly written, all the inf ormation ab ou t the
operation whic h was originally entered on the time stu dy top sheet.
The repetitiv e elements A to G , exc lu ding E, were entered f irst, and it has b een noted that
three of these were inside work and the other three ou tside work. The entries in the c olu mn
headed "BT" are the b asic times per oc c asion, and were taken f rom the working sheet shown in
f igu re 125. For eac h of these elements the f requ enc y of oc c u rrenc e is shown as 1/1, indic ating
that eac h oc c u rred onc e in ev ery c yc le of the operation. The time c alc u lated f or the mac hine
element, and henc e the u noc c u pied time (element E), is shown b elow. The c olu mn headed
"Ob s." shows the nu mb er of ob serv ations of the element whic h hav e b een taken into ac c ou nt in
deriv ing selec ted b asic times. This inf ormation will b e c arried to the analysis of stu dies sheet
where it will b e of u se when the f inal selec ted b asic times are deriv ed f or the c ompilation of the
standard time.
Under the heading "Oc c asional elements and c ontingenc ies" is shown the b asic time f or
the element of helping the lab ou rer to load and u nload b oxes of c astings. It is noted that this
element was ob serv ed onc e only, and that its f requ enc y ou ght to b e 1/30 sinc e three b oxes of ten
f resh c astings were b rou ght, and three b oxes of f inished c astings loaded. The other two non-
repetitiv e oc c u rrenc es ob serv ed were "Talk to su perv isor", and "Inspec tor c hec ks three piec es
and disc u sses". Neither of these periods was rated, so the times are shown in ac tu al minu tes
(a.m.).
Finally, the stu dy person rec orded, in ac tu al minu tes, the amou nt of relaxation taken
du ring the period of the stu dy.
Basic times were entered to the third dec imal plac e, and hav e b een c arried f orward in this
f orm to the analysis of stu dies sheet (f igu re 127). It may b e thou ght that this is a degree of
ref inement whic h is not warranted in v iew of the ac c u rac y of the data on whic h the entries are
b ased. There is a good reason f or the prac tic e, howev er. If it is ev entu ally dec ided to make the
f inal selec tion of b asic times, on the analysis of stu dies sheet, b y the proc ess of av eraging, eac h
of the entries f rom this stu dy will b e mu ltiplied b y the c orresponding nu mb er of ob serv ations to
yield the total b asic minu tes ob serv ed f or the element. The totals f rom all the stu dies taken on
this operation will b e added, and an av erage ob tained b y div iding b y the aggregate nu mb er of
ob serv ations. At that stage, when the whole c hain of arithmetic al c alc u lations has b een
c ompleted, the f inal selec tions will b e expressed to the nearest sec ond dec imal plac e only, that
is to the nearest one-hu ndredth of a minu te.
372
Study summary sheet
Department: Machine shop Section: Milling Study No.: 77
Sheet No. : 5 of 5
Operation: Finish mill second face MS No.: 9
Plant/Machine: Cincinnati No. 4 No.: 26 25 cm TLF
vertical miller cutter
Tools and gauges: Fixture F.239 Gauge 239/7 Surface plate
Date:
Time off:
Time on:
10.2S a.m.
9.47
Elapsed time:
Check time:
38.00
2.80
Product/Part: H239 gear case No.:
DWG No.: B.239/1 Material: Cast iron
to ISS2
Quality: as dwg Working conditions:
m/c 9 cutter OK: light good
Net time:
Obs. time:
35.20
35.20
Unacc. time:
UT as %

Studied by:
Checked: Operative: M/F Clock No.: 7234
Sketch and notes on back of sheet 1 .
El. No. Element description BT F Obs.
Repetitive
A Outside work 0.267 7/7 7S
B Inside work 0.251 7/7 78
C As card No. 1264 Inside work 0.122 7/7 78
D Inside work 0.186 7/7 78
F Outside work 0.254 7/7 78
G
-
Outside work 0.104 7/7 78
Machine element 0.816 7/7 16
E Unoccupied time within MCT 0.257 7/7 18
Occasional elements and contingencies
Help unload boxes of new castings
and load boxes of finished castings
to truck 1.100 1 Freq. 1/30 castings
(outside work) (boxes hold 10 castings)
Talk to supervisor (OW) (a.m.) 0.400 7/78 obs.
Inspector checks 3 pieces and
discusses (a.m.) 1.020 7/78 obs.
(OW)
Relaxation time (a.m.) 6.120
373
Figure 1 27. Extract from the analysis of studies sheet
As eac h time stu dy on the operation was worked u p and su mmarized, the entries f rom the
stu dy su mmary sheet were transf erred to an analysis of stu dies sheet as illu strated in f igu re 127.
These sheets are of ten printed on paper of A3 or dou b le f oolsc ap size or larger, and so only a
portion of the whole sheet is reprodu c ed.
It will b e seen that f iv e stu dies were made in all on this operation, a total of 92 c yc les
b eing ob serv ed. The work of three dif f erent operativ es was stu died b y f ou r dif f erent stu dy
persons. S tandard times f or regu lar mac hine shop operations are u su ally c ompiled f rom
predetermined time standards (see Chapter 26), and when a c onsiderab le b ody of data has b een
b u ilt u p it is of ten possib le to deriv e ac c u rate time standards with f ewer stu dies, or b y ob serv ing
a smaller nu mb er of c yc les of the operation.
Inspec tion of the stu dy resu lts f or the elements A, B, C, D, F and G indic ated normal
c onsistenc y, with no reading su ggesting a need f or f u rther inv estigation. The work of
proc eeding to the f inal selec ted b asic times f or the elements was theref ore u ndertaken next. The
selec tion was made b y taking the weighted av erage f or eac h element. All the repetitiv e elements
were c onstant elements, so that there was no need f or graphic al presentation. In the f irst of the
f ou r c olu mns in the b loc k at the right-hand side of the sheet, the total b asic time was entered
against eac h element. Div iding these totals b y 92, the aggregate nu mb er of c yc les, yielded the
f igu res f or b asic minu tes per oc c asion, entered in the next c olu mn. These are now shown to the
sec ond dec imal plac e only; that is, to the nearest one-hu ndredth of a minu te.
The third c olu mn rec ords the f requ enc y of oc c u rrenc e per c yc le f or all the repetitiv e
elements 1/1 and thu s the entries in the last c olu mn, whic h show the b asic minu tes per c yc le,
are f or this operation the same as those in the sec ond c olu mn of the right-hand b loc k. The
u noc c u pied time, element E, has b een arriv ed at in the same manner as on the stu dy su mmary,
b y dedu c ting the su m of the inside work b asic minu tes f rom the mac hine-c ontrolled time.
Usu ally the u noc c u pied time wou ld not b e ev alu ated u ntil af ter relaxation allowanc e had b een
added to the work elements, b u t in this instanc e, as is indic ated when disc u ssing these
allowanc es on page 376 (f igu re 128), there was no need f or su c h a ref inement.
The oc c asional element "Help lab ou rer" was ob serv ed on three oc c asions only, in three
dif f erent stu dies. S inc e it is known that the tru c k c arries three b oxes eac h c ontaining ten
c astings, it is c lear that the f requ enc y with whic h this element will oc c u r is onc e ev ery 30
c astings, or c yc les. The av erage b asic time per oc c asion was theref ore div ided b y 30 to yield the
b asic time per c yc le of 0.04 minu tes.
"Talk to su perv isor" was dealt with b y div iding the total time ob serv ed b y the 92 c yc les
ob serv ed, giv ing a time of 0.01 minu tes per c yc le. The "Inspec tor c hec ks" element was treated
similarly, thou gh in this instanc e as it was learned f rom the su perv isor that the inspec tor's du ty
was to c hec k three c astings in ev ery 100 the f requ enc y has b een taken as 1/100. These two v ery
small periods of time, b oth entered in ac tu al minu tes, were ev entu ally c onsidered to b e b est
dealt with as c ontingenc ies and were c ov ered b y the c ontingenc y allowanc e giv en.
374
Study No.:
Date:
Operative:
Clock No.:
Machine No.:
Study taken by:
No. of cycles studied:
El.
No.
Elements
A
B
C
D
P/U casting, locate, lock,
set on
Hold, break milled edge,
clean
Gauge
Aside finished part,
position new
Wait m/c (actual minutes)
Stop m/c, unlock, aside part
Clear swarf
Machine- controlled time
(actual minutes)
Help labourer U/L and load
boxes of castings
Talk to supervisor
(actual minutes)
Inspector checks, discuss
(a.m.)
27/4
CAA
1234
26
BDM
1/5
TEN
1547
34
CEP
17
4/5
CAA
1234
26
MN
15 26 18 13 20
25
7/5
TBN
1547
127
DPS
28
11/5
CRW
1846
71
BDM
Basic time per occasion
0.276
0.240
0,774
0.797
0.264
0.277
0.096
0.S27
7.740
0.257
0.266
0.727
0.796
0.222
0.270
0.772
0.87 7
7.470
(1 occ.
0.261
0.251
0.122
0.186
0.257
0.254
0.104
0.816
1.100
(1 occ.)
0.400
)(1
7.020
occ.)
0.270
0.252
0.128
0.191
0.253
0.250
0.090
0.824
1.420
(1 occ.
0.870
0.281
0.244
0.111
0.180
0.275
0.245
0.092
0.810
)(1
1.310
occ.)
1.770
(1 occ.)
Cycles
92
24.645
23.305
77.039
77.435
BT
23.820
9.240
75 .000
3.830
2.470
4.260
0)
i f)
BM
0.27
0.25
0.72
0.79
0.26
0.70
0.82
7.23
0.80
7.42
(D
a

<D
o
o
c 0
0 Q.
o
c
7/7
7/7
7/7
7/7
7/7
7/7
7/7
7/7
7/30
7/92
7/700
CD
m
BM
0.27
0.25
0.72
0.79
0.26
0,'26
0.70
0.82
0;04
0.07
0.07
375
Figure 1 28. Calculation of relaxation allowance
A f orm su c h as that shown in the f igu re reprodu c ed b elow is of ten u sed f or the
c ompilation of relaxation allowanc es. It prov ides a c onv enient way of ensu ring that no item of
relaxation allowanc e is omitted. The deriv ation of the allowanc es is b ased on the data giv en in
the tab les reprodu c ed in Appendix 3. In this example the weight in kg has b een c onv erted into
lb . so that the points c an b e deriv ed f rom these tab les. The total f igu re f or relaxation allowanc es
(whic h represents b oth f ixed and v ariab le allowanc es) has also an added 5 per c ent personal
needs allowanc e. By dedu c ting this f igu re f or eac h element f rom the total allowanc es f igu re, one
c an arriv e at f atigu e allowanc es alone.
S inc e this is an example of restric ted work the f atigu e allowanc e has b een c alc u lated
separately.
Relaxation
Product: S. 239 gear case
Weight : 6.8 kg each (15 lb.)
Physical strains
8
1
c
o
'4-
.o
>
t
o
ai
c
S

1
Operation: Finish- mill second face
Working conditions: Good
El. No. Element description
C
1
C/5
c
M

c
' ta
55
a

c
(D
55
c
'
1
2
c
'
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
Occa-
sional
element
Pick up casting, locate in fixture, lock
2 nuts, set guard, start machine
Break edges with file, and clean
Gauge
Pick up casting, place in box, pick up
new casting and place near machine
Wait for machine (unoccupied time)
Stop machine, open guard, unlock
nuts, remove casting, place on surface
plate
Clean fixture with compressed air
Help labourer load and unload boxes
of castings (10 per box = 68 kg/
2 workers, 1/30 cycles)
M
L
L
M
M
H
20
20
20
89
L
L
L
L
L
L
H
i
i
i
i
i
3
1 2

376
The percentages of total allowances, as derived from the points conversion table in Appendix 3, cover both basic and variable allowances
and a built-in personal needs allowance of 5 per cent.
:
Severity of strain: L = low; M = medium; H = high.
The only period of u noc c u pied time du ring the mac hine-c ontrolled time totalled 0.26
ac tu al minu tes. This was c onsidered to b e too short a period f or rec ov ery f rom f atigu e (see
Chapter 23, sec tion 12), so the whole of the relaxation allowanc e, b oth the personal needs part
and the f atigu e allowanc e, was c onsidered as an addition to ou tside work and was added to the
c yc le time.
The personal needs allowanc e of 5 per c ent was c alc u lated on the su m of the ou tside work
plu s the mac hine-c ontrolled time. Fatigu e allowanc e was c alc u lated on the work elements only.
It will b e seen f rom tab le 18 that the total relaxation allowanc e amou nted to 0.21 minu tes.
This is less than the period of u noc c u pied time (0.26 minu tes), b u t is nev ertheless to b e added
ou tside the mac hine-c ontrolled time as periods of 0.50 minu tes or less of u noc c u pied time are
ignored f or f atigu e allowanc e pu rposes.
allowance
Mental strains Working conditions
c
o
Q.
"S
"i
o
c
o
35
c
0
\
CD

co
c
.0
CD
I
| s
0
LL CO
>
X
c
(D
C
O
v
(0
CD
O
c
o
o
> -
1
c
o
2
c
LU
<D
CO
O
-z .
r
'-o
E
-C
o
G)
D.
E
(32
c
o
1
S-
C/)
0)
E

3
b
c
'ro 1
C
5 5 1
c
'CD
c
'co
5 5
1
c
'ro
5 5
i3
c
c
CD
5 5
1

C
'o
5 5
3
c

c
'co
5 5
i

c
'CD
5 5
L
L
L
L
L
i
i
i
i
i
M
M
M
M
M
1
1
1
1
1
L
L
L
L
L
2
2
2
2
2
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
i
i
i
i
i
i
i

-

33
1 3
1 3
33
33
1 1
1 09
1 6
1 1
1 1
1 6
1 6
1 1
74
11
6
6
11
11
6
69
377
Table 1 8. Final calculation of relaxation allowance
Fatigue allowance
B
Basic
time
Fatigue
(%)
Allowance
min.
Inside work elements: 0.25 6 0.01 5
C 0.1 2 6 0.007
D 0.1 9
0.5 6
1 1 0.0209
0.0429
Outside work elements: A 0.27 1 1 0.0297
F 0.26 1 1 0.0286
G 0.1 0 6 0.006
Occasional element help labourer 0.04 69 0.0276
Contingency allowance
2.5 per cent of total basic time,
inclusive of relaxation allowance 0.03
0.70 0.0919
Total fatigue allowance 0.1 348
Personal needs allowance
5 per cent of Outside work plus
machine-controlled time:
5 per cent of (0.70 + 0.82) 0.076
Total relaxation allowance
Fatigue allowance plus personal needs allowance .0.21 08
i.e. 0.21 min
The allowanc e whic h resu lted f rom applying the perc entage f igu res b u ilt u p in f igu re 128
is shown ab ov e. It will b e seen that a c ontingenc y allowanc e of 2.5 per c ent, inc lu siv e of
relaxation, was inc lu ded u nder the heading of ou tside work, to c ov er the periods spent in
disc u ssions with the su perv isor and the inspec tor.
378
Table 1 9. Computation of standard time
Computation of standard time
Alternatively:
Outside work 0.70 basic min.
Inside work 0.5 6 basic mln.
Relaxation allowance 0.21 min.
Unoccupied time allowance 0.26 min.
Standard time 1 .73 standard min.
Outside work 0.70 basic min.
Machine-controlled time 0.82 min.
Relaxation allowance 0.21 min.
1 .73 standard min.
Calculation and issue ofthe standard time
The method of c alc u lation shown in tab le 19 is that appropriate to restric ted work. When
standard times f or job s made u p wholly of manu al elements are c ompiled, it is c ommon to add
the appropriate relaxation allowanc es element b y element, thu s b u ilding u p standard times f or
eac h element, the su m of whic h of c ou rse represents the standard time f or the whole job . In su c h
instanc es it is u su al to show the f inal c alc u lations on a job su mmary sheet whic h lists the
elements in f u ll, with their desc riptions, and all relev ant details of the job f or whic h the standard
time has b een b u ilt u p. This wou ld b e done also f or restric ted work su c h as that in the present
example, thou gh inside and ou tside work wou ld b e shown separately. It is good prac tic e to add
a c yc le diagram to the job su mmary sheet (f igu re 129).
The methods adopted to issu e or pu b lish standard times v ary ac c ording to the
c irc u mstanc es of the work situ ation. In job b ing shops, and f or non-repetitiv e work (su c h as
mu c h maintenanc e work), job s may b e stu died while they are in progress and the time standards
b e issu ed direc tly to the workers c onc erned, b y annotation on the job sheet or other work
instru c tion, af ter approv al b y the shop su perv isor. When the work is mainly repetitiv e, with the
same operations b eing perf ormed many times ov er, f or perhaps weeks or months on end, tab les
of v alu es, deriv ed af ter extensiv e stu dywork, may b e issu ed b y the work stu dy department.
Figure 1 29. Machine time and allowances
Overall cycle time: 1 .69 min.
Machine-controlled time: 0.82 min.
H
D
E
< > ,
.is
c
a
GO
0)
c
5
o
1 5

u .
~
5
o
1 5

a
CD
0)
c
1 5
c
o
CO
CD
J I
379
CHAPTER 26
Predetermined time
standards
1. Definition
Predetermined time standards (PTS ), also ref erred to as predetermined motion
time systems (PMTS ) or synthetic time standards, are adv anc ed tec hniqu es
whic h aim at def ining the time needed f or the perf ormanc e of v ariou s
operations b y deriv ation f rom pre-set standards of time f or v ariou s motions and
not b y direc t ob serv ation and measu rement. These tec hniqu es are not normally
c onsidered su itab le f or trainees to u se u ntil they hav e gained a real
u nderstanding of , and c onsiderab le experienc e in, work stu dy prac tic e. They
will also requ ire spec ialized PTS training. The essential natu re of these
standards will b e explained in this c hapter.
A predetermined time standard is a work measurement technique
whereby times established for basic human motions (classified
according to the nature of the motion and the conditions under
which it is made) are used to build up the time for a job at a
defined level of performance
As the def inition indic ates, PTS systems are tec hniqu es f or synthesizing
operation times f rom standard time data f or b asic motions. S ynthesis and
standard data are disc u ssed more f u lly later in this b ook.
The natu re of PTS systems c an b e easily illu strated b y ref erenc e to a
simple work c yc le, su c h as pu tting a washer on a b olt. The operator will reach
to the washer, grasp the washer, move the washer to the b olt, position it on the
b olt and release it.
Many operations c onsist, b roadly speaking, of some or all of these f iv e
b asic motions. To these are added other b ody motions and a f ew other
elements. Tab le 20 illu strates the c omponents of a b asic PTS .
By examining a giv en operation and identif ying the b asic motions of
whic h it is c omposed, and b y ref erring to PTS tab les whic h indic ate standard
times f or eac h type of motion perf ormed u nder giv en c irc u mstanc es, it is
possib le to deriv e a standard time f or the operation as a whole. 381
Table 20. Components of a basic PTS
Motion Description
REACH Move hand to destination
GRASP Secure control of object with fingers
MOVE Move object
POSITION Line up and engage object
RELEASE Let go of object
BODY MOTIONS Leg, trunk movements
2. Origins
The pioneer of motion c lassif ic ation was Frank B. G ilb reth, whose "therb lig"
su b div isions of hand or hand and eye motions were the key c onc ept in the
dev elopment of motion stu dy. Two main ideas u nderlying G ilb reth's approac h
were that the ac t of making a detailed c ritic al analysis of work methods
stimu lates ideas f or method improv ement; and that the ev alu ation of alternativ e
work methods c an b e ac hiev ed b y a simple c omparison of the nu mb er of
motions, the b etter method b eing the one requ iring f ewer motions.
The c redit f or adding the time dimension to motion stu dy is attrib u ted to
A. B. S egu r, who in 1927 stated that "within prac tic al limits the time requ ired
f or all experts to perf orm tru e f u ndamental motions is a c onstant".
1
S egu r
dev eloped the f irst predetermined time standards, c alling his system Motion
Time Analysis. L ittle is known pu b lic ly ab ou t the system sinc e he exploited it
as a management c onsu ltant and b ou nd his c lients to sec rec y.
The next important dev elopment was the work of J. H. Q u ic k and his
assoc iates, who originated the Work Fac tor system in 1934. L ike S egu r's
system, this was exploited on a management c onsu ltanc y b asis and little
inf ormation was pu b lished ab ou t it. Howev er, it was ev entu ally adopted b y a
large nu mb er of c ompanies and is now in ac tiv e u se.
A c onsiderab le nu mb er and v ariety of PTS systems were produ c ed du ring
and f ollowing the S ec ond World War. Among these was a system whic h has
b ec ome v ery widely u sed throu ghou t the world, Methods-Time Measu rement
(MTM). Bec au se of its importanc e MTM will b e u sed here to illu strate the way
in whic h predetermined time standards are arriv ed at.
MTM was f irst dev eloped b y three men working on the system at the
Westinghou se Elec tric Corporation in the United S tates: H. B. Maynard, G . J.
S tegemerten and J. L . S c hwab . Their f indings were pu b lished, and thu s, f or the
f irst time, f u ll details of a PTS system were made f reely av ailab le to ev eryone.
MTM has also set u p, in v ariou s c ou ntries, independent non-prof it-making
MTM assoc iations to c ontrol the standards of training and prac tic e and to
c ontinu e researc h into and the dev elopment of MTM. These assoc iations hav e
estab lished an international c oordinating b ody, the International MTM
Direc torate. In 1965 a simplif ied f orm of MTM known as MTM-2 was
1
A. B. S egu r: "L ab ou r c osts at the lowest f igu re", in Manufacturing Industries (New Y ork), V ol. 13,
382 1927, p. 273.
PREDETERMINEDTIME STANDARDS
dev eloped, and this led to a rapid inc rease in the u se of the system. In addition,
a nu mb er of other systems were also deriv ed f or partic u lar c ategories of work
su c h as maintenanc e work or of f ic e work whic h were intended to permit a
f aster and easier deriv ation of standard times.
3. Advantages of PTS systems
PTS systems of f er a nu mb er of adv antages ov er stop-watc h time stu dy. With
PTS systems one time is indic ated f or a giv en motion, irrespec tiv e of where
su c h a motion is perf ormed. In stop-watc h time stu dy it is not so mu c h a
motion as a sequ enc e of motions making u p an operation that is timed. Timing
b y direc t ob serv ation and rating c an sometimes lead to inc onsistenc y. A PTS
system, whic h av oids b oth rating and direc t ob serv ation, c an lead to more
c onsistenc y in setting standard times.
S inc e the times f or the v ariou s operations c an b e deriv ed f rom standard-
time tab les, it is possib le to def ine the standard time f or a giv en operation ev en
b ef ore produ c tion b egins, and of ten while the proc ess is still at the design
stage. This is one of the great adv antages of PTS systems, as they allow the
work stu dy person to c hange the layou t and design of the workplac e and of the
nec essary jigs and f ixtu res in su c h a way that the optimu m produ c tion time is
ac hiev ed. They also make it possib le, ev en b ef ore starting the operation, to
draw u p an estimate of the c ost of produ c tion, and this c ou ld ob v iou sly b e
v alu ab le f or estimating and tendering pu rposes or f or b u dgeting. PTS systems
are not too dif f ic u lt to apply and c an b e less time-c onsu ming than other
methods when time standards f or c ertain operations are b eing determined.
They are partic u larly u sef u l f or v ery short repetitiv e time c yc les su c h as
assemb ly work in the elec tronic s indu stry.
4. Criticisms of PTS systems
In v iew of the v alu e of PTS systems, it is su rprising that it took so long f or
them to b ec ome part of general work stu dy prac tic e. The main reason f or this
delay is prob ab ly the c onsiderab le nu mb er and v ariety of systems that hav e
b een produ c ed, together with the f ac t that many of them c ou ld b e ob tained only
b y employing c onsu ltants. At present, ov er 200 su c h systems exist. This
prolif eration has led to c omplaints f rom management, trade u nions and work
stu dy spec ialists.
Fu rthermore, any PTS system is rather c omplic ated. It is not easy to learn,
and a work stu dy person needs a good deal of prac tic e b ef ore b eing ab le to
apply it c orrec tly. The task of learning enou gh ab ou t the v ariou s systems to b e
ab le to ju dge their c laims and their relativ e merits is an almost impossib le one.
For example, some systems do not go into su f f ic ient detail in def ining a c ertain
motion. They might, f or instanc e, giv e the same time f or the mov ement b oth of
an empty c u p and of one f u ll of water, or f or the mov ement of a dry b ru sh and
of one laden with paint, whic h mu st b e mov ed with c are. PTS systems c annot
also c ope readily with mov ements made u nder ab normal c onditions, f or 383
example, mov ements made when the worker is wearing protec tiv e c lothing or
when the mov ements are made in an ab normal position, su c h as a worker
reac hing into a c onf ined spac e b ehind a pipe. The situ ation was made more
c omplic ated b y the lac k of f reely av ailab le inf ormation on many systems,
whose tab les were c onsidered to b e the property of their dev elopers and were
thu s not av ailab le f or pu b lic ation.
S ome work stu dy researc hers also qu estioned the b asic assu mptions of
PTS systems. In part, these c ritic isms were ju stif ied, althou gh some appear to
hav e arisen throu gh misinf ormation or misu nderstanding. PTS systems do not,
as was c laimed, eliminate the need f or the stop-watc h, any more than they
eliminate method stu dy or work sampling. Mac hine time, proc ess time and
waiting time are not measu rab le with PTS systems, and oc c asional or
inc idental elements are of ten more ec onomic ally measu red b y u sing other
tec hniqu es. In f ac t, it is dif f ic u lt to ob tain 100 per c ent c ov erage in a plant
u sing only a PTS system, and f or c ertain operations su c h as b atc h produ c tion or
non-repetitiv e job s the u se of su c h a system c an b e an expensiv e proposition.
One type of c ritic ism stems f rom a too literal interpretation of the b asic
assu mption of S egu r, qu oted ab ov e. In f ac t, ab solu te c onstant times are not
implied. The times indic ated in PTS tab les are averages, and the limits
assoc iated with the av erages are small enou gh to b e neglec ted in all prac tic al
c irc u mstanc es.
Another c ommon c ritic ism is that it is inv alid to add u p times f or
indiv idu al small motions in the way requ ired b y PTS systems b ec au se the time
taken to perf orm a partic u lar motion is inf lu enc ed b y the motions prec eding
and f ollowing it. It is u nf air to c ritic ize the more important PTS systems on
these grou nds, b ec au se not only were these relationships c learly rec ognized b y
their originators b u t also spec ial prov ision was made to ensu re that the essential
c orrelations were maintained. In the c ase of MTM, f or example, this was
ac hiev ed b y estab lishing su b div isions of the main c lasses of motions and b y
c reating spec ial def initions and ru les of applic ation to ensu re their essential
linking. The relationships are also preserv ed in simplif ied systems su c h as
MTM-2.
It has also b een dec lared that the direc tion of the motion inf lu enc es the
time f or example, that it takes longer to c ov er the same distanc e when
mov ing u pwards than when mov ing downwards and that no PTS system
isolates this v ariab le. MTM researc hers wou ld agree that the direc tion of the
motion is an important v ariab le. Howev er, they argu e that in a single work
c yc le the operativ e will not b e reac hing only u pwards, nor always away f rom
the b ody, nor making only anti-c loc kwise tu rns: he or she will reac h
downwards or towards the b ody or make c loc kwise tu rns also, and so ju stif y
the u se of av erage v alu es.
5. Different forms of PTS systems
A work stu dy person is likely to enc ou nter a nu mb er of dif f erent f orms of PTS
384 systems, and will theref ore f ind it u sef u l to u nderstand the main ways in whic h
Figure 1 30. PTS data levels: Basic motions
1 st level
(MTM-1 )
2nd level
{MTM- 2)
3rd level
(MTIVI-S)
RELEASE,
REACH,
GRASP
GET
HANDLE
MOVE,
POSITION
PUT
RELEASE
Higher level
(e.g. MTM-V)
Combinations
give simple
and complex
elements
the systems v ary, as well as dif f erenc es as regards lev els and sc ope of
applic ation of data, motion c lassif ic ation and time u nits.
Data levels
Figu re 130 illu strates data lev els b y means of the of f ic ial international MTM
systems: MTM-1, MTM-2 and MTM-3.
The f irst lev el c omprises the motions RELEASE, REACH, GRASP,
MOVE, POSITION, RELEASE. At the sec ond lev el these motions are
c omb ined: in MTM-2, f or instanc e, the motions are GET and PUT. At the third
lev el, the motions hav e b een f u rther c omb ined as HANDLE, to giv e a
desc ription of the c omplete work c yc le. Beyond the third lev el there are as yet
no c ompletely c lear-c u t ru les, and methods of c lassif ic ation v ary ac c ording to
the work area f or whic h the data are intended.
Scope of application of data
PTS systems v ary as regards the u niv ersality of their applic ation. It is dif f ic u lt
to explain this c onc ept exac tly, b u t tab le 21 attempts some c larif ic ation.
First of all there are systems of u niv ersal applic ation, whic h c ov er all
work anywhere. This is so f or motion data at the MTM-1, 2 or 3 lev els and f or
the Work Fac tor systems. S ec ond, there are data whic h relate to a main
oc c u pation, f or example of f ic e work, maintenanc e work or some kinds of
produ c tion work. Examples of these are Master Cleric al Data f or the of f ic e and
MTM-V , the S wedish MTM Assoc iation data f or mac hine shops. Finally, there
is the least general c ategory: the spec if ic data systems whic h are dev eloped f or
u se in partic u lar f ac tories or departments. These data are not transf erab le
withou t v alidation stu dies.
385
Table 21 . Scope of application of data
Degree PTSsystem Scope of application
1 Universal
- General
3 Specific
MTM-1 , 2, 3;
Work Factor
Master Clerical Data (office);
MTM-V (machine shops)
Standard data for particular
departments in a plant
Transferable throughout the
world and applicable in all
manual work areas
Transferable but within a
work area
Not transferable without
validation studies
386
Motion classification
PTS systems prov ide inf ormation ab ou t manu al work c yc les in terms of b asic
hu man motions. There are dif f erenc es b etween the c riteria adopted f or the
c lassif ic ation of these motions. Broadly speaking, there are two main sets:
D ob jec t-related c lassif ic ation;
D b ehav iou r-related c lassif ic ation.
The ob jec t-related c lassif ic ation is employed in the majority of PTS
systems (inc lu ding Work Fac tor, Dimensional Motion Times and MTM-1) and
v irtu ally all the data systems relating to main oc c u pational grou ps or
spec if ic ally designed f or u se within a plant. In an ob jec t-related system,
ref erenc e may b e made to c harac teristic s of parts (su c h as grasping a 6 x 6 x 6
mm ob jec t), or to the natu re of the su rrou nding c onditions (su c h as reac hing
ou t to an ob jec t whic h is ju mb led with other ob jec ts, or reac hing ou t to an
ob jec t whic h is lying f lat against a su rf ac e). The c lassif ic ation is, howev er, not
entirely ob jec t-related sinc e motions su c h as Release L oad or Disengage hav e
b ehav iou ral def initions.
Unlike most systems, MTM-2 employs exc lu siv ely b ehav iou ral c onc epts.
This is also tru e of MTM-3, Master S tandard Data and a f ew less well-known
systems. The b ehav iou r-related systems c lassif y motions ac c ording to what
they look like to an ob serv er: f or example, a mov ement of the empty hand f or a
distanc e of b etween 5 and 15 c m f ollowed b y a grasping ac tion made b y a
simple c losing of the f ingers def ines the GET motion in the MTM-2 system
(see b elow).
Time units
No two PTS systems hav e the same set of time v alu es. This is partly du e to the
f ac t that dif f erent systems hav e dif f erent motion c lasses and the time data
theref ore ref er to dif f erent things. Again, the c hoic e of the b asic u nit (f rac tions
of a sec ond, minu tes, hou r) may v ary, and some systems f ollow the prac tic e of
adding c ontingenc y allowanc es to motion times, whereas others do not. A f inal
major c au se of v ariations arises f rom the dif f erenc es in the perf ormanc e lev el
implied in the time data. The methods adopted f or standardizing, normalizing
or av eraging the motion times are not u nif orm. Consequ ently, PTS time data
are div ided into one of two sets: Work Fac tor systems, whic h express their data
in minu tes; and MTM systems, expressed in time measu rement u nits (tmu )
whic h represent one hu ndred-thou sandth of an hou r or ab ou t one twenty-eighth
of a sec ond. The MTM time v alu es, whic h were deriv ed mainly f rom f ilm
analysis of a v ariety of indu strial operations (the method was to c ou nt the
nu mb er of "f rames" oc c u pied b y eac h motion), were standardized u sing the
well-known "Westinghou se" or "L ev elling" system. The times are stated to b e
those whic h are ac hiev ed b y an experienc ed operativ e of av erage skill, working
with av erage ef f ort and c onsistenc y u nder av erage c onditions. The perf ormanc e
lev el, MTM 100, is theref ore somewhat less than BS I 100. A pu b lic statement
on this b y the United Kingdom Institu te of Management S erv ic es and the
MTM Assoc iation su ggests that MTM 100 equ als BS I 83.
2
Other considerations
S ome important properties of PTS systems are mu c h less easy to estab lish and
to c ompare than the aspec ts disc u ssed in the prev iou s su b sec tions. Examples of
these are the prec ision and ac c u rac y of the time data, speed of applic ation,
methods desc ription c apab ility, and learning time. The lac k of reliab le, detailed
inf ormation and, to some extent, the lac k of agreed design c riteria hamper
c omparison of these properties.
6. Use of PTS systems
The system most likely to b e u sed b y the work stu dy person is MTM-2. The
f ollowing c ategories c onstitu te the MTM-2 system. Eac h will b e explained in
detail in the f ollowing su b sec tion.
Category Code
GET G A
G B
G C
PUT PA
PB
PC
REGRASP R
APPLY PRESSURE A
EYE ACTION E
FOOT MOTION F
STEP S
BEND AND ARISE B
WEIGHT FACTORS G W
PW
CRANK C
"MTM and BS I rating sc ale", in Work Study and Management Services (L ondon), Feb . 1969, p. 97. 387
Table 22. MTM-2 data card
Code GA GB GC PA PB PC
- 5 3 7 1 4 3 1 0 21
-1 5 6 1 0 1 9 6 1 5 26
-30 9 1 4 23 1 1 1 9 30
- AS 1 3 1 8 27 1 5 24 36
-80 1 7 23 32 20 30 41
GW: 1 per 1 kg PW: 1 per 5 kg
A
1 4
C
1 5
S
1 8
F
9
B
61
Warning: Do not attempt to use these data unless you have been trained and qualified under a scheme approved by the International MTM Directorate.
The MTM-2 system prov ides time standards ranging f rom 3 to 61 tmu .
These are shown on the data c ard reprodu c ed in tab le 22. A.s stated ab ov e, one
tmu equ als one hu ndred-thou sandth of an hou r.
MTM-2 Categories
D GET(G)
GET is an ac tion with the predominant pu rpose of reac hing ou t with the
hand or f ingers to an ob jec t, grasping the ob jec t and su b sequ ently releasing it.
The sc ope of GET starts : with reac hing ou t to the ob jec t ;
inc lu des : reac hing ou t to, gaining c ontrol and su b -
sequ ently releasing c ontrol of the ob jec t;
ends : when the ob jec t is released.
S elec tion of a GET is done b y c onsidering three v ariab les :
(1) c ase of GET distingu ished b y the grasping ac tion employed ;
(2) distanc e reac hed ;
(3) weight of the ob jec t or its resistanc e to motion.
Cases of GET are ju dged b y the f ollowing dec ision model :
Are any
grasping
motions
requ ired?
No
>G A
Y es
Is it enou gh
to c lose hand
or f ingers with
one motion?
No
> GC
388
f
G B
Y es
An example of G A is pu tting the palm of the hand on the side of a b ox in
order to pu sh it ac ross a tab le.
An example of G B is getting an easy-to-handle ob jec t, su c h as a one-inc h
c u b e, whic h is lying b y itself .
An example of G C is getting the c omer of a page of this b ook in order to
tu rn it ov er.
Distanc e is a princ ipal v ariab le in GET, and f iv e distanc e c lasses are
prov ided. Distanc es are ju dged b y the u pper limits of the c lasses, whic h are 5,
15, 30, 45 and ov er 45 c m. The c ode 80 is assigned to the highest c lass.
Distanc es are estimated f rom the path of trav el of the hand, less any b ody
assistanc e.
cm Code
Over Not over
0.0 5 .0 5
5 .0 1 5 .0 1 5
1 5 .0 30.0 30
30.0 45 .0 45
45 .0

80
D GET WEIGHT (GW)
GET WEIGHT is the ac tion requ ired f or the mu sc les of the hand and arm
to take u p the weight of the ob jec t.
The sc ope of GET WEIGHT starts : with the grasp on the ob jec t
c ompleted;
inc lu des : mu sc u lar f orc e nec essary to
gain f u ll c ontrol of the
weight of the ob jec t ;
ends : when the ob jec t is su f f ic iently
u nder c ontrol to permit mov e-
ment of the ob jec t.
GET WEIGHT oc c u rs af ter the f ingers hav e c losed on the ob jec t in the
prec eding GET. It mu st b e ac c omplished b ef ore any ac tu al mov ement c an take
plac e. When the weight or resistanc e is less than 2 kg per hand, no G W is
assigned. When resistanc e exc eeds 2 kg, 1 tmu is assigned f or ev ery kg
inc lu ding the f irst two.
D P7r(P)
PUT is an ac tion with the predominant pu rpose of mov ing an ob jec t to a
destination with the hand or f ingers.
Thesc opeof Pi/r starts: with an ob jec t grasped and u nder
c ontrol at the initial plac e ;
inc lu des : all transporting and c orrec ting motions
nec essary to plac e an ob jec t;
ends: with ob jec t still u nder c ontrol at the
intended plac e. 389
S elec tion of a PUT is done b y c onsidering three v ariab les:
c ase o PUT distingu ished b y the c orrec ting motions employed;
distanc e mov ed;
weight of the ob jec t or its resistanc e to motion.
Cases of Pi/rare ju dged b y the f ollowing dec ision model:
(1)
(2)
(3)
Is it a
c ontinu ou sly No
^
smooth
motion?
W
Y es
Are there
ob v iou s
c orrec ting
motions ?
T
PA
No
-PB
Y es
PC
An example of PA is tossing aside an ob jec t.
An example of PB is the ac tion of pu tting a 12 mm b all in a 15 mm
diameter hole.
An example of PC is inserting a Y ale or similar key in a loc k.
A c orrec tion is not likely to b e c onf u sed with a short PA. A c orrec tion is a
v ery short u nintentional motion at the terminal point; a PA is pu rposiv e, u su ally
of easily disc ernib le length.
The motion distanc e is handled in a similar manner to GET.
When there is an engagement of parts f ollowing a c orrec tion, an
additional PUT will b e allowed when the distanc e exc eeds 2.5 c m.
D PUT WEIGHT (PW)
PUT WEIGHT is an addition to a PUT motion depending on the weight of
the ob jec t mov ed.
The sc ope of PUT WEIGHT starts:
inc lu des:
ends:
when the mov e b egins ;
the additional time, ov er and
ab ov e the mov e time in PUT,
to c ompensate f or the dif f er-
enc es in time requ ired in
mov ing heav y and light
ob jec ts ov er the same distanc e;
when the mov e ends.
PW is assigned when resistanc e to mov ement exc eeds 2 kg per hand.
Weights are c alc u lated as in GET WEIGHT. Between 2 kg and 5 kg,
1 tmu is allowed and c oded PW 5 ; b etween 5 kg and 10 kg 2 tmu are allowed
and c oded PW 10 ; and so on.
390
D REGRASP (R)
REGRASP is a hand ac tion with the pu rpose of c hanging the grasp on an ob jec t.
The sc ope of REGRASP starts : with the ob jec t in the hand ;
inc lu des : digital and hand mu sc u lar re-
adju stment on an ob jec t;
ends: with the ob jec t in a new loc ation in
the hand.
A single REGRASP c onsists of not more than three f rac tional mov ements.
Digital and mu sc u lar readju stments, while perf orming an APPLY
PRESSURE, are inc lu ded in APPLY PRESSURE. A REGRASP shou ld not b e
assigned in c omb ination with APPLY PRESSURE.
If the hand relinqu ishes c ontrol and then sec u res another grasp on the
ob jec t, the ac tion will b e a GET, riot a REGRASP.
An example of R is c hanging the grasp on a penc il in order to get into the
position f or writing.
D APPLY PRESSURE (A)
APPLY PRESSURE is an ac tion with the pu rpose of exerting mu sc u lar
f orc e on an ob jec t.
The sc ope of APPLY PRESSURE starts : with the b ody memb er in
c ontac t with the ob jec t;
inc lu des: the applic ation of c on-
trolled inc reasing mu sc u -
lar f orc e, a minimu m
reac tion time to permit
the rev ersal of f orc e and
the su b sequ ent releasing
of mu sc u lar f orc e ;
ends: with the b ody memb er in
c ontac t with the ob jec t,
b u t with mu sc u lar f orc e
released.
The minimu m dwell time c ov ers mental reac tion time only. L onger
dwells, in holding ac tions, mu st b e separately ev alu ated.
APPLY PRESSURE applies to the ac tion of exerting mu sc u lar f orc e on an
ob jec t to ac hiev e c ontrol, to restrain or to ov erc ome resistanc e to motion. The
ob jec t is not displac ed more than 6 mm du ring the ac tion of APPLY
PRESSURE.
APPLY PRESSURE, whic h c an b e perf ormed b y any b ody memb er, is
rec ognized b y a notic eab le hesitation while f orc e is applied.
An example of A is the f inal tightening ac tion made with a sc rewdriv er or
spanner.
D EYE ACTION (E)
EYE ACTION is an ac tion with the pu rpose of
either: rec ognizing a readily distingu ishab le c harac teristic of an ob jec t;
or: shif ting the aim of the axis of v ision to a new v iewing area. 391
Thesc opeof EY iiACTY CW starts: when other ac tions mu st c ease
b ec au se a c harac teristic of an
ob jec t mu st b e rec ognized;
inc lu des :
either: mu sc u lar readju stment of the
lens of the eyes and the mental
proc esses requ ired to rec ognize
a distingu ishab le c harac teristic
of an ob jec t;
or: the eye motion perf ormed to
shif t the aim of the axis of
v ision to a new v iewing area;
ends: when other ac tions c an start
again.
A single eye f oc u s c ov ers an area 10 c m in diameter at 40 c m f rom the
eyes. Rec ognition time inc lu ded is su f f ic ient only f or simple b inary dec ision.
An example of E is the ac tion of determining whether a c oin is showing
head or tail.
D FOOT MOTION {)
FOOT MOTION is a short f oot or leg motion when the pu rpose is not to
mov e the b ody.
The sc ope of FOOT MOTION starts: with the f oot or leg at rest;
inc lu des: a motion not exc eeding
30 c m that is piv oted at the
hip, knee or instep ;
ends: with the f oot in a new
loc ation.
FOOT MOTION is ju dged b y the dec ision model f or FOOT MOTION and
STEP.
D STEP (S )
STEP is
either : a leg motion with the pu rpose of mov ing the b ody ;
or : a leg motion longer than 30 c m.
The sc ope of STEP starts: with the leg at rest ;
inc lu des :
either: a motion of the leg where the pu rpose is
to ac hiev e displac ement of the tru nk;
or : a leg motion longer than 30 c m ;
392 ends : with the leg at a new loc ation.
STEP or FOOT MOTION is ju dged b y the f ollowing dec ision model :
Is the pu rpose of
the motion to No
^
ac hiev e displac ement
of the tru nk?
W
Y es
Is the leg
motion longer
than 30 c m?
No
>F
Y es
To ev alu ate walking, c ou nt the nu mb er of times the f oot hits the f loor.
An example of F is depressing a f oot pedal in a c ar.
An example of S is making a single step to the side to enab le the arm to
reac h f u rther.
D BEND AND ARISE (B)
BEND AND ARISE is a lowering of the tru nk f ollowed b y a rise.
The sc ope of BEND AND ARISE starts : with motion of the tru nk
f orward f rom an u pright
postu re ;
inc lu des : mov ement of the tru nk
and other b ody memb ers
to ac hiev e a v ertic al
c hange of b ody position
to permit the hands to
reac h down to or b elow
the knees and the su b -
sequ ent arise f rom this
position ;
ends: with the b ody in an
u pright postu re.
The c riterion f or BEND AND ARISE is whether the operativ e is ab le to
reac h to b elow the knees, not whether he or she ac tu ally does so.
Kneeling on b oth knees shou ld b e analysed as 2B.
D CRANK (C)
CRANK is a motion with the pu rpose of mov ing an ob jec t in a c irc u lar
path of more than half a rev olu tion with the hand or f inger.
The sc ope of CRANK starts : with the hand on the ob jec t ;
inc lu des : all transporting motions nec essary
to mov e an ob jec t in a c irc u lar path ;
ends: with the hand on the ob jec t when
one rev olu tion is c ompleted.
There are two v ariab les to c onsider in applying the CRANK motion :
( 1 ) the nu mb er of rev olu tions ;
(2) weight or resistanc e. 393
The time v alu e of 15 tmu per rev olu tion may b e u sed f or any c rank
diameter and applies to b oth c ontinu ou s and intermittent c ranking. CRANK
applies to motions in a c irc u lar path whether or not the axis of c ranking is
perpendic u lar to the plane of rotation.
The nu mb er of rev olu tions shou ld b e rou nded to the nearest whole
nu mb er.
The weight or resistanc e inf lu enc es the time f or mov ing an ob jec t. The
ru les of adding G W and PW to PUT motions also apply to CRANK. PW
applies to eac h rev olu tion, whether c ontinu ou s or intermittent. G W is applied
onc e only to a c ontinu ou s series of rev olu tions, b u t to eac h rev olu tion where
these are intermittent.
No c orrec ting motions as applied to PUT are inc lu ded in CRANK. If
c orrec ting motions oc c u r in pu tting the ob jec t at the intended plac e an extra
PUT mu st b e allowed.
An example of C is tu rning a hand wheel throu gh one rev olu tion.
Training requirements
In the prec eding su b sec tion the essentials of the MTM-2 system were ou tlined.
To ob tain an adequ ate u nderstanding of the system, howev er, a trainee will
requ ire at least two weeks of f ormal training in MTM-2 theory and prac tic e,
f ollowed b y gu ided applic ation on the shop f loor with an MTM instru c tor. A
trainee who is already c ompetent in work stu dy prac tic e shou ld reac h a
reasonab le standard in the u se of MTM-2 af ter ab ou t a month of gu ided
applic ation. MTM-1 will requ ire a longer training period. It is helpf u l if part of
this training c an b e c arried ou t in a plant where MTM standards are already in
u se. When trainees f ind that their own analyses c ompare c losely with
estab lished standards their c onf idenc e is rapidly b u ilt u p. Withou t gu idanc e it is
v ery dif f ic u lt f or a trainee to learn how to u se MTM adequ ately.
Most PTS training c ou rses end u p with an examination in whic h the
trainee c arried ou t a measu rement stu dy of a real or simu lated job , sometimes
on f ilm. Only if a spec if ied pass mark is ob tained in this examination is the
trainee v alidated to apply the PTS in qu estion at the plac e of work as a
c onsu ltant in that partic u lar PTS system.
7. Application of PTS systems
PTS systems c an b e applied in three main ways:
D direc t ob serv ation of the motions u sed b y the operativ e;
D mental v isu alization of the motions needed to ac c omplish a new or
alternativ e work method;
D f rom analysis of a f ilm/v ideo taken of the operativ e at the plac e of work.
The ov erall approac h adopted when one of the PTS systems, su c h as
MTM-2, is u sed f or direc t ob serv ation is not v ery dif f erent f rom that adopted
f or making a time stu dy (see Chapter 21). Indeed, a person experienc ed in the
394 proc edu res desc rib ed in that c hapter selec ting the job , approac h to the
worker, rec ording job inf ormation, b reakdown into elements, allowanc es,
c ompiling total job times is well equ ipped to b ec ome a good PTS
prac titioner. The main dif f erenc e in the approac h is that at the point in the total
time stu dy proc edu re where the ob serv er is ready to time and rate the work
c yc le, he or she will instead make an MTM-2 analysis and then enter the
motion times on the analysis sheet f rom the MTM-2 data c ard. The c alc u lation
of allowanc es, c ompletion of the doc u mentation and issu ing of the job times
are then done in mu c h the same way as in a time stu dy. If the same type of
su mmary sheets c an b e u sed, so mu c h the b etter. The stu dy su mmary sheet
shown as f igu re 104 and the short c yc le stu dy f orm (f igu res 102 and 103) c an
b e adapted to su mmarize the inf ormation f rom the MTM-2 analysis sheets.
Choosing the operative
In the c hoic e of operativ e to b e ob serv ed, it is ju st as desirab le to hav e a
c ooperativ e, good-av erage worker f or PTS analysis as it is f or time stu dy.
Exc eptionally f ast or ab normally slow perf ormanc es are dif f ic u lt f or time stu dy
spec ialists to rate, and they present prob lems f or PTS analysts too. The su per-
skilled operativ e c omb ines and ov erlaps motions in a manner b eyond the
c apab ilities of the av erage worker, while an ab normally slow or relu c tant
operativ e will make separate, one-handed, hesitant motions whic h the av erage
operativ e will perf orm smoothly and simu ltaneou sly. The ru les and motion
c omb ination tab les of the MTM system, like those of other systems su c h as
Work Fac tor, do prov ide inf ormation f or adju sting the ob serv ed motion pattern
to that applic ab le to the good-av erage worker; this additional work c an,
howev er, b e av oided b y an intelligent c hoic e of operativ e in the f irst plac e. Of
c ou rse, the v ery experienc ed PTS analyst may also stu dy extreme
perf ormanc es with adv antage. The perf ormanc e of an exc eptionally f ast
operativ e may giv e c lu es as to how all operativ es might b e trained to reac h a
higher-than-av erage perf ormanc e lev el, and the stu dy of slow operativ es wou ld
show where dif f ic u lties are b eing enc ou ntered and whether f u rther training
might eliminate these.
Recording job information
In rec ording job inf ormation, it is important to rememb er that distanc e is a
signif ic ant v ariab le in PTS systems. The plans f or the workplac e layou t shou ld
theref ore b e ac c u rately drawn to sc ale. This will help in ju dging or c hec king
the length of motions shown in the analyses.
Breakdown into elements
In PTS systems the div ision of the operation into work elements f ollows the
same princ iples as f or time stu dy. The b reakdown c an b e made v ery mu c h
f iner, if requ ired, b ec au se the dif f ic u lty of timing short elements does not arise.
If nec essary, the b reak points c an also b e c hanged easily and withou t hav ing to
retime the c yc le. This f lexib ility is illu strated in tab le 23, whic h shows a v ery
c ommon work c yc le that of f itting a nu t and washer on a stu d. For example,
if a c hange of method eliminates the need f or a washer, the appropriate motions 395
Table 23. Fitting a nut and washer on a stud
Element Code Description
Fit washer
Fit nut and turn down by hand
Tighten nut using spanner
23 GC30 Washer
30 PC30 To stud
3 PA5 On stud
1 0 GB1 5 Nut
26 PCI 5 To stud
6 2PA5 Engage threads
42 6GB5
1 8 6PA5 Turn down nut
23 GB30 Spanner
30 PC30 To nut
6 PA1 5 Turn nut
1 4 A Tighten
231
396
(G C30, PC30, PA5) and time (56 tmu ) c an easily b e remov ed f rom the
analysis. Finger tu rns c an also b e readily separated f rom spanner tu rns and,
indeed, f rom the f itting ac tions and su b sequ ent tu rns.
Allowances and job times
There is no prob lem of rating with a PTS system su c h as MTM-2, sinc e the
times hav e b een rated onc e and f or all. All that needs to b e done is to add u p
the motion times and transf er the totals to the stu dy su mmary sheet. If times are
to b e issu ed at BS I 100 and not MTM 100, the tmu total f rom the stu dy
su mmary sheet shou ld b e mu ltiplied b y 0.83. (This means that, if times are
issu ed in standard minu tes, the total tmu c an b e div ided b y 2,000.) It shou ld b e
u nderstood that the general relationship b etween the sc ales applies only to the
time totals, and most def initely not to the indiv idu al motion times shown on the
MTM data c ards. Conv erting indiv idu al motion times is qu ite improper sinc e
these are not improv ed u nif ormly when a higher perf ormanc e of a c yc le time is
ac hiev ed.
The times f or low c ontrol motions (su c h as G A and PA) are improv ed
only a little c ompared with those f or the highly c omplex motions (su c h as G C
and PC). The issu e is, howev er, more c omplic ated than this b ec au se one wou ld
also need a dif f erent set of motion c omb inations when c onsidering a dif f erent
perf ormanc e lev el. S ome sophistic ated MTM u sers pref er to issu e v alu es at
MTM 100.
Relaxation and other allowanc es are added in exac tly the same way as f or
time stu dy, in order to giv e the total job time.
Visualization
When the work stu dy person does not hav e the opportu nity of ob serv ing the
work c yc le, f or example when designing a new work method or c onstru c ting
Figure 1 31 . Base assembly
Measurements in millimetres
Pin Stud
\,.n
Block
1 0 deep
397
alternativ e methods du ring method stu dy of an existing job , he or she mu st
mentally v isu alize the motions needed. Figu res 131 and 132 giv e an example
of a PTS prob lem whic h c an b e solv ed b y v isu alization of the v ariou s motions
inv olv ed, as c an b e seen f rom f igu re 133.
The ab ility to v isu alize motion patterns depends on the stu dy person's
intelligenc e and on prac tic al experienc e. The more f amiliar he or she is with
work stu dy, the more readily the person c an pic tu re the motions nec essary to
pic k u p and f it parts together, as well as v isu alizing whic h motions c an b e
perf ormed together easily and whic h motians are dif f ic u lt to c arry ou t
simu ltaneou sly (tab le 24).
Figure 1 32. Base assembly workplace layout
398
In designing work methods, it c an b e helpf u l to u se a methods lab oratory.
Howev er, when motion analysis is u ndertaken there is a need f or c au tion, ju st
as there is with time standards. The experiments with new methods will
prob ab ly b e perf ormed b y the work stu dy person or b y c olleagu es, and it is
important that they shou ld b ear in mind that their own perf ormanc es will
generally f all f ar short of those whic h will b e ac hiev ed b y the regu lar shop-
f loor operativ es. Ev en where shop-f loor operativ es are assisting in the methods
lab oratory, their perf ormanc e of a new work c yc le will f all short of the standard
they will ac hiev e when they hav e had su f f ic ient prac tic e in working the c yc le
u nder shop-f loor c onditions.
In b oth these instanc es the ru les f or work design, partic u larly those of the
motion c omb ination possib ilities expec ted of the av erage experienc ed
operativ e, mu st b e u sed to arriv e at a c orrec t shop-f loor method.
It is in the work design proc ess that a work stu dy person who c hooses to
u se an MTM-2 system, f or example, will reap the b enef it of a f u ll training in
the detailed MTM-1 system on whic h MTM-2 was f ou nded. Howev er, at the
v ery minimu m the c lassif ic ation details of MTM-1 together with the b asic
motions whic h make u p the MTM-2 motions and the ru les c ov ering the motion
c omb ination possib ilities of the b asic motions mu st b e u nderstood, partic u larly
in relation to prac tic e opportu nity, area of normal v ision and dif f ic u lty of
Figure 1 33. MTM-2 analysis sheet, base assembly
Job description: Rf.:
Assemble base
(see sketches of parts and layout)
Sheet No. 7 of 7
Analyst:
Date:
Left-hand description LH tmu RH Right-hand description
Get base from box GC30 23 G-
- Get pin from box
14 GC5
Put base on bench PA30 30 PC30 Locate pin to base
Get block from box GC30 23 G
. Get stud from box
14 GC5
Move block stud P 30 PC30 Locate stud through block
Assist location P 26 PC15 Fit assembly to base
23 GC30 Get connector from box
Assist location GB 30 PC30 Locate to stud
Locate to pin PCS 21
Pick up assembly GB15 10
Place on conveyor PA80 20
264
399
handling. With this knowledge it will b ec ome ev ident, f or example, that in
designing the workplac e f or the parts to b e kept in tote pans, a separate G C
with either hand will b e requ ired. It will also b e apparent that ev en expert
operativ es c annot perf orm these motions simu ltaneou sly, sinc e eac h motion
inv olv es a kind of minu te searc hing and selec ting ac tiv ity, b ec au se the ob jec ts
are ju mb led together. S imilarly, the work stu dy spec ialist will know that
pu tting loose-f itting rou nd plu gs into rou nd holes c an b e done with b oth hands
simu ltaneou sly, prov ided that the workplac e is designed so that the targets are
within the area of normal v ision as def ined ab ov e u nder EYE ACTION. The
ru les prov ide many su c h gu idelines.
PTS systems and the broader techniques
The natu re and v alu e of PTS systems shou ld now b e reasonab ly c lear. If a work
stu dy person intends to b ec ome a spec ialist, f or example in MTM, f u ll training
in MTM-1 and MTM-2 and in all the adv anc ed tec hniqu es ou tlined in this
b ook will b e nec essary. In the more general c ase, where b oth work stu dy and
other job s will prob ab ly b e u ndertaken as well (su c h as produ c tion planning
and c ontrol a c ommon c omb ination in small plants, partic u larly in the
dev eloping c ou ntries), an MTM-2 training may b e su f f ic ient.
Howev er, it is most important that the stu dy person shou ld not lose sight
of the f ac t that the PTS tec hniqu e is a f ine prec ision tool. Bef ore getting down
to minu te detail, it shou ld f irst b e seen what c an b e ac c omplished b y u sing the
b roader, simpler approac hes. In c ompanies where work stu dy prac tic e has not
yet b een introdu c ed, intelligent b road thinking will u su ally rev eal ways of
b ringing ab ou t c onsiderab le initial improv ements in produ c tiv ity.
400
Table 24. Methods-Time Measurement application data in tmu (Based metric
weights and measures)
1 . REACH R
Distance
(cm)
Time {tmu) Hand in motion Ca se and description
A B CorD E A B
2 or less 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 1 .6 1 .6 A Reach to object in
4 3.4 3.4 5 .1 3.2 3.0 2.4 fixed location, or to
6 4.5 4.5 6.5 4.4 3.9 3.1 object in other hand or
8 5 .5 5 .5 7.5 5 .5 4.6 3.7 on which other hand
1 0 6.1 6.3 8.4 6.8 4.9 4.3 rests
1 2 6.4 7.4 9.1 7.3 5 .2 4.8 B. Reach to single object
1 4 6.8 8.2 9.7 7.8 5 .5 5 .4 in location which may
1 6 7.1 8.8 1 0.3 8.2 5 .8 5 .9 vary slightly from
1 8 7.5 9.4 1 0.8 8.7 6.1 6.5 cycle to cycle
20 7.8 1 0.0 1 1 .4 9.2 6.5 7.1
22 8.1 1 0.5 1 1 .9 9.7 6.8 7.7 C. Reach to object jumbled
24 8.5 1 1 .1 1 2.5 1 0.2 7.1 8.2 with other objects in a
26 8.8 1 1 .7 1 3.0 1 0.7 7.4 8.8 group so that search
28 9.2 1 2.2 1 3.6 1 1 .2 7.7 9.4 and select occur
30 9.5 1 2.8 1 4.1 1 1 .7 8.0 9.9
35 1 0.4 1 4.2 1 5 .5 1 2.9 8.8 1 1 .4 D Reach to a very small
40 1 1 .3 1 5 .6 1 6.8 1 4.1 9.6 1 2.8 object or where
45 1 2.1 1 7.0 1 8.2 1 5 .3 1 0.4 1 4.2 accurate grasp is
5 0 1 3.0 1 8.4 1 9.6 1 6.5 1 1 .2 1 5 .7 required
5 5 1 3.9 1 9.8 20.9 1 7.8 1 2.0 1 7.1
60 1 4.7 21 .2 22.3 1 9.0 1 2.8 1 8.5 E. Reach to indefinite
65 1 5 .6 22.6 23.6 20.2 1 3.5 1 9.9 location to get hand
70 1 6.5 24.1 25 .0 21 .4 1 4.3 21 .4 in position for body
75 1 7.3 25 .5 26.4 22.6 1 5 .1 22.8 balance or next motion
80 1 8.2 26.9 27.7 23.9 1 5 .9 24.2 or out of way
401
II. MOVE M
Distance
(cm)
Time (tmu) Wt allowance Case and description
A B c Hand in
motion
B
Weight Static
(kg) constant
up to (tmu)
Dynamic
factor
2 or ess 2.0 2.0 2.0 1 .7 1 0 1 .00
4 3.1
4.1
4.0
5 .0
4.5
5 .8
2.8
3.1 6
8 5 .1 5 .9 6.9 3.7 2 1 .6 1 .04
1 0 6.0 6.8 7.9 4.3
4 2.8 1 .07
A. Move object
against stop or to
other hand
1 2 6.9
7.7
7.7
8.5
8.8
9.8
4.9
5 .4 1 4
1 6 8.3 9.2 1 0.5 6.0 6 4.3 1 .1 2
1 8 9.0
9.6
9.8
1 0.5
1 1 .1
1 1 .7
6.5
7.1 20
8 5 .8 1 .1 7
1 0.2 1 1 .2 1 2.4 7.6 22
24 1 0.8 1 1 .8 1 3.0 8.2 1 0 7.3 1 .22
26 1 1 .5 1 2.3 1 3.7 8.7 B. Move object to
28 1 2.1 1 2.8 1 4.4 9.3 approximate or
30 1 2.7 1 3.3 1 5 .1 9.8 1 2 8.8 1 .27 indefinite
location
35 1 4.3 1 4.5 1 6.8 1 1 .2 1 4 1 0.4 1 .32
40 1 5 .8
1 7.4
1 5 .6
1 6.8
1 8.5
20.1
1 2.6
1 4.0 45
5 0 1 9.0 1 8.0 21 .8 1 5 .4 1 6 1 1 .9 1 .36
5 5 20.5 1 9.2 23.5 1 6.8
1 8 1 3.4 1 .41
60 22.1 20.4 25 .2 1 8.2 C. Move object to
65 23.6 21 .6 26.9 1 9.5 exact location
70 25 .2 22.8 28.5 20.9 20 1 4.9 1 .46
75 26.7
28.3
24.0
25 .2
30.3
32.0
22.3
23.7 80
22 1 6.4 1 .5 1
402
NIA. TURN- T
Weight (kg) Time (tmu) for degrees turned
30 45 60 75 90 1 05 1 20 1 35 1 5 0 1 65 1 80
Small (0) to (1 )
Medium (1 ) to (5 )
Large (5 .1 ) to (1 6)
2.8 3.5 4.1 4.8 5.4 6.1 6.8 7.4 8.1 8.7 9.4
4.4 5.5 6.5 7.5 8.5 9.6 10.6 11.6 12.7 13.7 14.8
8.4 10.5 12.3 14.4 16.2 18.3 20.4 22.2 24.3 26.1 28.2
NIB. APPLY PRESSURE AP
Full cycle
Symbol
Components
Description Symbol Description
APA
APB
10.6
16.2
AF + DM + RLF AF 3.4 Apply force
DM 4.2 Dwell, minimum
APA + G2 RLF 3.0 Release force
403
IV. GRASP G
Case Time (tmu) Description
1 A 2.0
IB 3.5
ICI 7.3
Pick up grasp small, medium or large object by itself, easily grasped
Very small object or object lying close against a flat surface
Interference with grasp on bottom and one side of nearly
cylindrical object. Diameter larger than 1 2 mm
1 C2 8.7 Interference with grasp on bottom and one side of nearly
cylindrical object. Diameter 6 to 1 2 mm
1 C3 1 0.8 Interference with grasp on bottom and one side of nearly
cylindrical object. Diameter less than 6 mm
2 5 .6 Regrasp
3 5 .6 Transfer grasp
4A 7.3 Object jumbled with other objects so search and select occur.
Larger than 25 x25 x25 mm
4B 9.1 Object jumbled with other objects so search and select occur.
5 x6x3 mm to 25 x25 x25 mm
4C 1 2.9 Object jumbled with other objects so search and select occur.
Smaller than 6x6x3 mm
5 0 Contact, sliding or hook grasp
V. POSITION* P
404
Class of fit Symmetry Easy to handle Difficult to
handle
S 5 .6 1 1 .2
1 . Loose No pressure required ss 9.1 1 4.7
NS 1 0.4 1 6.0
S 1 6.2 21 .8
2. Close Light pressure required SS 1 9.7 25 .3
NS 21 .0 26.6
S 43.0 48.6
3. Exact Heavy pressure required SS 46.5 5 2.1
NS 47.8 5 3.4
* Distance moved to engage max. 25 mm.
VI. RELEASE- RL
Case Time (tmu) Description
2.0 Normal release performed by opening fingers
as independent motion
Contact release
VII. DISENGAGE D
Class of fit Easy to handle Difficult to handle
1 . Loose Very slight effort, blends
with subsequent move 4.0 5 .7
2. Close Normal effort, slight recoil 7.5 1 1 .8
3. Tight Considerable effort, hand
recoils markedly 22.9 34.7
VIII. EYE TRAVEL and EYE FOCUS ET and EF
Eye travel time = 1 5 .2x^rtmu, with a maximum value of 20 tmu
D
where T = the distance between points from and to which the eye travels,
D = the perpendicular distance from the eye to the line of travel T.
Eye focus time = 7.3 tmu.
405
IX. BODY, LEG AND FOOT MOTIONS
Description Symbol Distance Time (tmu)
Foot motion Hinged at ankle FM Up to 1 0 cm 8.5
With heavy pressure FMP 1 9.1
Leg or foreleg motion LM- Up to 1 5 cm 7.1
Each extra cm 0.5
Sidestep Case 1 Complete when leading SS-C1 Less than 30 cm Use REACH
leg contacts floor orMOVEtme
30 cm 1 7.0
Each extra cm 0.2
Case 2 Lagging leg must contact SS-C2 Up to 30 cm 34.1
floor before next Each extra cm 0.4
motion can be made
Bend, stoop, or kneel on one knee B.S KOK 29.0
Arise AB. AS. AKOK 31 .9
Kneel on floor both knees KBK 69.4
Arise AKBK 76.7
Sit SIT
Stand from sitting position STD
Turn body 45 to 90 degrees:
Case 1 Complete when leading leg TBC1
contacts floor
34.7
43.3
1 8.2
Case 2 Lagging leg must contact floor
before next motion can be made
TBC2 37.2
Walk
Walk
Walk obstructed
'-M Per metre 1 7.4
'-P Per pace 1 5 .0
'-PO Per pace 1 7.0
406
X. SIMULTANEOUS MOTIONS
REACH MOVE GRASP POSITION DISEN-
GAGE
A,E B C,D A,
Bm
B c G1 A
G2
G5
GIB
G1 C
G4 PIS P1 SS
P2S
P1 NS
P2SS
P2NS
DIE
DID
D2
Case Motion
W0 W0 W0 w 0 W0 W0 E D E D E D E D
X X X X X A, E
REACH X X X X X X X X X B
X X X X X C,D
A, Bm
MOVE X X X X X X B
X X

X C
G1 A, G2, G5
GRASP X GIB, G1 C
G4
X PIS
POSITION PISS, P2S
PINS, P2SS, P2NS
X X X DIE, DID
DISENGAGE
X X D2
D = EASYto perform simultaneously.
[X] = Can be performed simultaneously with PRACTICE.
|jp = DIFFICULTto perform simultaneously even after long practice. Allow both times.
Motions not included in above table: TURN Normally f/ASV with all motions except when TURNh
controlled or with DISENGAGE.
APPLY PRESSURE, CRANK May be EASY, require PRACTICE, or DIFFICULT. Each case must be
analysed.
POSITION Oass 3 Always DIFFICULT. DISENGAGE Oass 3 Normally DIFFICULT. RELEASE
Always EASY. DISENGAGE. Any class may be DIFFICULTif care must be exercised to avoid injury or
damage to object.
W = Within the area of normal vision, i.e. r= 1 0 cm, d = 40 cm.
O = Outside the area of normal vision, i.e. r = 1 0 cm, d = 40 cm.
E = EASYto handle.
D = DIFFICULTto handle.
Source: Official International MTM-1 Data, International MTM Directorate and MTM Association for Standards and Research. Tables
reproduced by kind permission of the International MTM Directorate.
407
CHAPTER 27
Standard data
Many operations in a giv en plant hav e sev eral c ommon elements. The element
"walking", f or example, is a c omponent of many dif f erent job s. Div erse
ac tiv ities su c h as painting, handling or working on a site inv ariab ly inv olv e an
element of "walking". When these ac tiv ities are timed, the same c ommon
element is in f ac t timed again and again. The job of a work stu dy person wou ld
theref ore b e made mu c h easier if a set of data were to b e av ailab le f rom whic h
standard times c ou ld readily b e deriv ed f or these c ommon work elements
withou t nec essarily going into the proc ess of timing eac h one. If , f or instanc e, a
standard time c ou ld b e deriv ed f or the partic u lar element "walking" and c ou ld
b e read direc tly f rom a tab le, this wou ld not only redu c e ef f ort and c ost b u t also
lead to greater c onsistenc y in time estimation.
One c an theref ore see that there is an adv antage in b u ilding u p a standard
data b ank f or v ariou s elements whic h oc c u r repeatedly at the workplac e. If
su c h data existed f or a wide range of elements and were reliab le, there wou ld
b e no need to c arry ou t a time stu dy f or a new job . Instead, b y b reaking down
the job into elements and ref erring to the data b ank to deriv e the normal times
f or eac h element, one c ou ld c alc u late the total time needed to perf orm this new
job and determine its standard time b y adding the appropriate allowanc es in the
u su al way.
1. Major considerations
It is, howev er, dif f ic u lt to v isu alize a situ ation where all the possib le elements
making u p any and ev ery job c ou ld b e timed and stored f or f u tu re retriev al. We
may theref ore c onc lu de that in prac tic e it is b etter to restrict the number of
jobs f or whic h standard data are deriv ed normally to one or more depart-
ments in a plant, or to all the proc esses inv olv ed in manu f ac tu ring a c ertain
produ c t. In this way the c ov erage b ec omes more manageab le and less c ostly.
The reliability of the data c an b e inc reased if as many c ommon elements
as possib le that are perf ormed in the same way are grou ped together f or
analysis, and if a su f f ic ient amou nt of ac c u mu lated or c ollec ted data on eac h
element has b een analysed b y a trained stu dy person.
Reliab ility c an b e f u rther inc reased b y making su re that all the f ac tors
af f ec ting a c ertain element hav e b een taken into c onsideration. For example,
the time taken to mov e a sheet of a giv en size will v ary depending on whether
it is a solid sheet (of metal, f or instanc e) or a malleab le one (of ru b b er, f or 409
instanc e). The weight will also b e an important f ac tor. The time taken to mov e
an iron sheet will b e dif f erent f rom the time taken to mov e one of f oam or
c ardb oard. Again, the thic kness will af f ec t the timing in eac h c ase.
Consequ ently, the desc ription of the element mu st b e as prec ise as possib le and
the v ariou s f ac tors af f ec ting the timing (in this c ase, natu re of material,
thic kness and weight) will also hav e to b e indic ated.
Another b asic c onsideration c onc erns the source of the time data.
S hou ld this b e ob serv ed time b ased on stop-watc h readings (what might b e
c alled "mac rosc opic " timing systems) or "mic rosc opic " systems su c h as
predetermined time standards? The f irst alternativ e may b e more ac c eptab le to
the f ac tory personnel in c ertain c ases, and is sometimes c heaper. Howev er, f or
c ertain elements it is not always possib le to hav e on rec ord enou gh readings to
enab le reliab le data to b e deriv ed. S ev eral months or ev en a year or more may
elapse b ef ore su f f ic ient data are ac c u mu lated in this way. The c hoic e of a
mic rosc opic system su c h as MTM may make f or b etter c ov erage, b u t its u se
also depends on whether su f f ic ient experienc e has b een ac qu ired in u sing the
system and on its applic ab ility. Ev en in this c ase, one has to dec ide whether to
u se detailed systems su c h as MTM-1 (whic h c an b e more prec ise b u t are
expensiv e), or MTM-2 or MTM-3 (whic h are less expensiv e b u t less prec ise).
Again, standard data hav e to b e b u ilt u p with du e regard to u sers' needs.
They are indeed inv alu ab le f or a v ariety of pu rposes, among them produ c tion
planning, c ost estimation, inc entiv e payments and b u dgetary c ontrol. Howev er,
the "lev el of c onf idenc e" in the dev eloped datab ase whic h c an b e tolerated b y
those who u se standard data f or these pu rposes v aries c onsiderab ly: f or
example, the requ irements f or produ c tion planning allow f or mu c h greater
potential dev iation in the standards than the requ irements f or indiv idu al b onu s
sc hemes. S inc e one c annot produ c e a dif f erent set of data f or eac h u ser, it is
nec essary to b u ild a data system that produ c es the maximu m b enef it f or eac h
u ser at the same time.
2. Developing the standard data
The f ollowing steps shou ld b e taken to dev elop standard data:
A. Decide on coverage. As indic ated ab ov e, the c ov erage shou ld b e
restric ted to one or more departments or work areas or to a limited range of
proc esses within a plant (f or example, those inv olv ed in manu f ac tu ring a
spec if ic produ c t) in whic h sev eral similar elements, perf ormed b y the same
method, are inv olv ed in c arrying ou t the job s.
B. Break the jobs into elements, throu gh job analysis. In this c ase try to
identif y as many elements as possib le that are c ommon to the v ariou s job s. L et
u s assu me, f or example, that we hav e a worker in a f ru it-pac king plant who
works at the end of the operation and whose job is to remov e a c arton of f ru it
f rom a c onv eyor b elt, stenc il the name of the c u stomer on the c arton and c arry
it to a nearb y skid. S u c h an operation may b e b roken down into elements in
v ariou s ways, b u t if the stu dy person proc eeds as indic ated b elow it c ou ld b e
410 f ou nd that sev eral of the c omponent elements also oc c u r elsewhere in the plant.
STANDARDDATA
The su ggested b reakdown is:
D lif ting the c arton f rom the c onv eyor and positioning it on the tab le;
D positioning a stenc il on the c arton;
D applying a 10 c m b ru sh and tar to stenc il the name and address of the
c lient;
D lif ting the c arton;
walking with the c arton; and
D plac ing it on the skid.
The elements "lif ting and positioning of c arton" and "walking with
c arton" may oc c u r in v ariou s other job s in the plant, althou gh not nec essarily in
the same manner. Depending on the size and type of f ru it, the c arton may v ary
in size and weight. These are important c onsiderations that will inf lu enc e the
time f or these elements. Fu rthermore, in other parts of the operation the
element "walking with c arton" may rec u r b u t the distanc e c ov ered du ring the
walk may not b e the same. These v ariations shou ld not deter the work stu dy
person f rom c ollec ting the nec essary inf ormation f or b u ilding u p the standard
data. This will b ec ome c lear as we proc eed with ou r step-b y-step approac h.
It is also u sef u l to dev ise a c oding system f or elements so that they c an b e
identif ied, c ategorized and retriev ed easily (espec ially f rom c ompu terized
datab anks). This c oding shou ld pref erab ly b e mnemonic or one that permits
easy rec ognition and may u se su f f ixes to indic ate the v alu e of the v ariab les,
e.g. PNT10 c ou ld indic ate an element Paint an area u p to 10 squ are metres.
For large standard data systems this c oding system may need to b e
hierarc hic al. A system may c onsist of layers or lev els of work with b asic
elements (or ev en b asic motions) at the lowest lev el. A nu mb er of elements
may b e c omb ined into an operation and a nu mb er of operations may b e
c omb ined into a task. The data system maintains a spec if ic ation of eac h
element (lev el 1 data) together with its assoc iated time v alu e. The system also
maintains a spec if ic ation of eac h operation c onsisting of the elements that
make u p the operation and the f requ enc y of eac h element within the operation.
S imilarly, the system maintains a list of all def ined tasks c onsisting of the
operations, and the c orresponding f requ enc ies, that make u p eac h task. When a
job is analysed, the work stu dy person b reaks it down into tasks. If eac h of
these tasks is already within the data system, the time c an b e immediately
deriv ed b y su mming the time f or eac h task. (This time is in f ac t the su m of all
the operation times that make u p the task, and eac h operation time is the su m of
all the element times that make u p the operation.) Where an element or a
f requ enc y c hanges, this is rec orded in the system the element desc ription or
time is c hanged at the elemental lev el and the f requ enc y is c hanged at the
operation lev el. On a c ompu terized system, the one elemental c hange will b e
ref lec ted in the times f or all operations whic h make u se of that element, and in
all tasks whic h u se those operations. The f requ enc y c hange, howev er, is
partic u lar to the indiv idu al operation and thu s is only ref lec ted in those tasks
whic h u se that spec if ic operation. 41 ^
C. Decide on type of reading, i.e. whether you will u se readings b ased
on stop-watc h time stu dy (mac rosc opic systems) or deriv ed f rom PTS systems
su c h as MTM (mic rosc opic systems). As explained earlier, the natu re of the job
and the c ost of applying eac h system will b e the major determining f ac tors. If
stop-watc h time stu dy is c hosen, su f f ic ient time mu st b e allowed to c ollec t the
readings nec essary to produ c e statistic ally reliab le data.
D. Determine the factors that are likely to af f ec t the time f or eac h
element, and c lassif y them into major and minor f ac tors. L et u s take a simple
example: the c ase of a worker walking. If the time f or this ac tiv ity is
c alc u lated, it will b e f ou nd that there is always a v ariation in the readings. This
is du e to sev eral f ac tors, some major and others whic h may b e c onsidered
minor. In this partic u lar c ase the f ac tors may b e indic ated as f ollows:
Activity
Restric ted walking starting at dead point and ending at a dead stop
Factors influencing the time
Major Minor
Distanc e c ov ered Physic al make-u p of worker
Temperatu re
Hu midity
L ighting
External attrac tion
V ariation du e to time stu dy person
It is c lear here that the time f or walking will b e af f ec ted mainly b y the
distanc e c ov ered; nev ertheless, other minor f ac tors will exert a small inf lu enc e
as well, and these may c au se slight v ariations f rom reading to reading.
E. When u sing mac rosc opic systems, measure the time taken to
perform the activity from actual observations. Here the stu dy person c an
c hoose arb itrary distanc es and time the worker f or eac h distanc e. If it is f ou nd
that in most c ases a worker walks either 10, 20, 30 or 40 metres, readings f or
these distanc es c an b e timed and entered in standard tab les. Howev er, this is
rarely the c ase. A worker may walk any distanc e b etween 10 and 40 metres.
The stu dy person will then f ind it more appropriate to draw a c u rv e to indic ate
the relationship b etween time and distanc e c ov ered. L et u s proc eed with ou r
example of walking and assu me that the readings reprodu c ed in tab le 25 were
rec orded.
It is now possib le to plot b ase time against distanc e. The c u rv e u sing the
line of b est f it will appear as shown in f igu re 134. For greater ac c u rac y one
may also u se the method of least squ ares to determine the slope and the line of
b est f it f or the c u rv e. From the c u rv e it will now b e possib le to deriv e standard
times f or v alu es lying anywhere b etween 10 and 40 metres. Oc c asionally the
relationship b etween the two v ariab les may b e c u rv ilinear rather than linear; in
su c h c ases logarithmic graph paper shou ld b e u sed.
41 2
STANDARDDATA
Table 25 . Restricted walking
Distance
(m)
X
Actual time
(min.)
a
Rating
(a x r = )
r
Base time
(min.)

Average
(min.)
y
1 0 0.1 3 85 0.1 1 05
0.1 3 90 0.1 1 70
0.1 3 85 0.1 1 05
0.1 1 95 0.1 045
0.1 2 90 0.1 080
0.1 5 80 0.1 200 0.1 1 1 8
20 0.21 1 05 0.2205
0.21 1 05 0.2205
0.22 95 0.2090
0.22 1 00 0.2200
0.26 80 0.2080
0.22 90 0.1 980 0.21 27
30 0.29 1 1 0 0.31 90
0.30 1 00 0.3000
0.32 90 0.2880
0.30 1 00 0.3000
0.30 1 00 0.3000
0.33 95 0.31 35 0.3034
40 0.38 1 1 0 0.41 80
0.37 1 1 0 0.4070
0.38 1 1 0 0.41 80
0.43 90 0.3870
0.42 90 0.3780
0.37 1 1 0 0.4070 0.4025
In sev eral c ases, howev er, the work stu dy person may b e f ac ed with a
prob lem where more than one major f ac tor af f ec ts the time of operation. L et u s
theref ore assu me that we hav e a c ase where a motor-driv en c irc u lar saw is u sed
f or c ross-c u tting wood (of the same type). When we analyse the major and
minor f ac tors as we did in the prev iou s example, we may reac h the f ollowing
c onc lu sions :
Factors influencing the time
Major Minor
V ariation in the Physic al make-u p of worker
thic kness of the wood Temperatu re
V ariation in the width Hu midity
of the wood L ighting
Method of holding wood
Degree of physic al f orc e applied
Mac hine in good working order
Experienc e of worker 41 3
Figure 1 34. Restricted walking
Time (mln.)
0.4000
0.3000
0.2000
0.1 000
30 40
Distance (metres)
41 4
We are assu ming here that we are dealing with skilled workers. Af ter a
period of time, it prov es possib le to c alc u late the b ase time f or some, b u t not
all, thic knesses and widths of wood. The resu lts are shown in tab le 26.
The f irst step c onsists in plotting the time against the width of wood f or
eac h thic kness (2, 4, 6, 8 c m) (f igu re 134). From the resu lting c u rv es the
missing v alu es in the tab le (say, f or a thic kness of 4 c m and a width of 12 c m)
may b e deriv ed.
A prob lem arises, howev er, if we want to deriv e standard times f or other
thic knesses and widths, say 3 c m thic k and 8 c m wide. Neither of these
dimensions is represented in the tab le. There are two ways to solv e this
prob lem.
(1) By calculation. We draw a perpendic u lar ordinate f rom the point
representing the requ ired width (in this c ase, 8 c m) and let it interc ept the
appropriate lines of thic kness at points i and ai respec tiv ely (f igu re 135). By
"appropriate" we mean the thic kness c u rv es representing the lower and u pper
v alu es on either side of the desired thic kness. In ou r example, the requ ired
thic kness is 3 c m ; theref ore the two appropriate c u rv es are those representing a
thic kness of 2 and 4 c m.
STANDARDDATA
Table 26. Base times for cross-cutting wood of varying width and thickness
Thickness (cm)
2 4 6 8
Width
(cm)
Time
(min.)
Width
(cm)
Time
(min.)
Width
(cm)
Time
(min.)
Width
(cm)
Time
(min.)
6 0.064 6 0.074 6 0.081 6 0.093
12 0.088 12 1 2 0.126 12 0.146
16 0.104 16 0.130 16 16 0.181
20 0.120 20 0.160 20 0.180 20
Figure 1 35 . Base times for cross-cutting wood of varying width and thickness
Time (min.)
0.1 8
8 cm thickness, 6 cm thickness
/
0.1 6
-
//
/
/K cm thickness
0.1 4
-
///
/
0.1 2
-
/\
x
* //
y/l cm thickness
0.1 0
-
/
/
X
V X
A*
2
/
0.08
-
/A
a
2 \/
a, !
0.06
-
f/
0.04
J
V
k
1 1 I i i
6 8 10 12 16 20
Width (cm)
415
We c an then apply the f ollowing equ ation:
T=ai + (2 i)/
where
T = time we wish to c alc u late ;
ai = time at the thic kness of 2 c m (lower limit c u rv e)
(in this c ase it is 0.072) ;
% = time at the thic kness of 4 c m (u pper limit c u rv e)
(in this c ase it is 0.086) ;
/ = a dec imal f rac tion representing the requ ired thic kness in relation to 2 and
a! (in this c ase it is half way b etween the two, or /= 0.5);
By applying the equ ation we ob tain the f ollowing resu lt:
7= 0.072 + 0.5 (0.086 0.072) = 0.079 min.
(2) By graphical factor comparison. The f irst step in this method is to
plot the f ou r c u rv es representing the v ariou s thic knesses of wood with width as
the independent v ariab le and time as the dependent v ariab le (the c u rv es shown
in f igu re 135).
L ooking again at tab le 26, we see that the data f or width and time f or the
2 c m thic kness are c omplete, and that the points f it well on the c u rv e drawn in
f igu re 135 f or that thic kness. This c u rv e is then reprodu c ed separately and
c alled a b ase c u rv e (f igu re 136).
For the sec ond step, we go b ac k to f igu re 135 and c hoose an arb itrary
point representing the width anywhere b etween the v alu es of 6 and 20 c m on
the horizontal axis. L et u s assu me that we hav e selec ted a point representing
10 c m. From this point we draw a perpendic u lar ordinate whic h will interc ept
the f ou r c u rv es at points x,X2,x
3
and X4 respec tiv ely.
The third step c onsists in drawing a factor curve f rom points that may b e
c alc u lated as f ollows:
Thickness: 2 4 6 8
Factor:
= 1
*2
or
96
80
= 1 .2
*3
or
1 1 2
80
= 1 .4
X4
or
1 28
80
= 1 .6
From these f igu res it is now possib le to plot the f ac tor c u rv e (f igu re 137).
The time c an b e readily c alc u lated f rom b oth the b ase c u rv e and the f ac tor
c u rv e, u sing the f ollowing equ ation:
total time = b ase time x f ac tor
to c alc u late the time needed f or c u tting a piec e of wood 8 c m wide b y 3 c m
thic k:
r= 0.072X1.1 =0.079 min.
In this c ase, the time needed f or a width of 8 c m (read f rom the b ase
c u rv e) is mu ltiplied b y the f ac tor f or a thic kness of 3 c m (read f rom the f ac tor
416 c u rv e).
STANDARDDATA
Figure 1 36. Base curve for cross-cutting wood of 2 cm thickness and of varying width
Time (min.
0.16 _
0.1 4 _
0.1 2 _
0.1 0 _
0.08 _
0.06 _
0.04
Width (cm)
It c an b e seen, theref ore, that the data requ ired to deriv e standard times
c an b e ob tained f rom either tab les or graphs. To these data the work stu dy
person c an then add any allowanc es in the u su al way. If a f irm dec ides that the
same allowanc e f ac tor is applic ab le to ev ery job in a giv en c lass of work, it c an
then express its standard data in terms of the standard time f or eac h element,
instead of u sing the normal times as we did.
A word of c au tion is nec essary here. The data c ollec ted u su ally c ov er a
c ertain range of readings. It is not adv isab le to extrapolate these data f or v alu es
that f all ou tside this range. For example, in ou r prev iou s example the readings
c ov ered piec es of wood ranging f rom 6 to 20 c m wide and f rom 2 to 8 c m
thic k. We know what happens within this range; b u t there is no way of
knowing whether the same type of linear relationship will c ontinu e if we go
b eyond this range b y exc eeding the widths and thic knesses ac tu ally stu died and
b y projec ting ou r c u rv es b eyond the points f or whic h we hav e time stu dy data.
3. Use of PTS systems to develop standard data
The method u sed f or dev eloping standard data ou tlined ab ov e assu med that the
work stu dy person b ased the c alc u lations on data deriv ed f rom stop-watc h time
stu dy. As was mentioned earlier, standard data may also b e dev eloped f rom 417
Figure 1 37. Factor curve for cross-cutting wood of varying width and thickness
Factor
Thickness (cm)
PTS systems su c h as MTM, Work Fac tor, G eneral S ewing Data (G S D) or
Cleric al Work Data (CWD).
In c ase PTS is u sed, the data deriv ed f or eac h element take into ac c ou nt
the normal v ariations that are likely to arise in the exec u tion of the job when
other produ c ts, proc esses, equ ipment or materials are u sed. These v ariations
resu lt f rom size, c apac ity, method of operation, type of tool (whic h may b e
simple or elab orate, f ew or many) and natu re of the work (whic h c an range
f rom job b ing or small b atc h work to v irtu ally c ontinu ou s produ c tion).
The u se of PTS in deriv ing standard data is illu strated in tab le 27, whic h
giv es a list of the most c ommon elements in light engineering and assemb ly
work, with details of their possib le v ariations. The def inition of eac h element is
also giv en.
41 8
STANDARDDATA
Table 27. Standard data elements in light engineering and assembly work
General elements
(can be used in several departments)
Possible variations Code
GET Stillage to bench
Bench to tool
Stillage to tool
Tangled allowance
Small parts to container
GSB
GBT
GST
GTA
GSP
POSITION IN TOOL Easy
Medium
Difficult
Complex
PE
PM
PD
PC
CLAMP AND UNCLAMP Fingers
Toggle
Slide
Air-operated
CF
CT
CS
CA
OPERATE Close and open guard
Foot pedal
Lever
Safety buttons
Flypress
Machine type
OCG
OP
OL
OSB
OFP
OMT
REMOVE FROM TOOL Automatic
Easy
Medium
Difficult
Complex
Lever out component
RA
RE
RM
RD
RC
RLC
TURN (IN) TOOL Turn in tool
Turn tool
TIT
ASIDE Automatic
Tool to bench
Bench to stillage
Tool to stillage
AA
ATB
ABS
ATS
MISCELLANEOUS Count parts
Mark or score parts
Work area to tool
MCP
MSP
WAT
INSPECT OR CHECK Component in fixture or gauge CCF
41 9
Element definitions
GET Cov ers pic king u p and mov ing an ob jec t, or handf u l of ob jec ts, to a
destination.
POSITION IN TOOL Cov ers positioning an ob jec t, or handf u l of ob jec ts, in a tool f ixtu re,
etc .; or b etween elec trodes.
CLAMP AND UNCLAMP Cov ers all the motions nec essary to c lose and later open a c lamp of
the type that operates b y pressu re on the ob jec t held; or to hold an
ob jec t in a tool or f ixtu re, b y a c lamping ac tion of the f ingers.
OPERATE Cov ers all the time and all the manu al motions nec essary to:
c lose and later open a gu ard (OCG );
grasp or c ontac t an operating c ontrol, and later retu rn the hand to
the working area, or the f oot to the grou nd;
operate the c ontrols and initiate the mac hine c yc le (OMT).
REMOVE FROM TOOL Cov ers remov ing an ob jec t f rom a tool, f ixtu re, etc .; or a part,
c omponent or f ixtu re f rom u nder a drill; or f rom b etween elec trodes.
TURN (IN) TOOL Oc c u rs when two "Operate" elements f ollow eac h other, and the
ob jec t mu st b e remov ed f rom the tool, tu rned, and repositioned in the
tool; or the f ixtu re or jig mu st b e tu rned or mov ed, in or u nder the
tool.
ASIDE Cov ers mov ing and pu tting down an ob jec t or handf u l of ob jec ts,
already held.
Word definitions
Ob jec t
Handf u l
Benc h
S tillage
Tool
Any ob jec t handled; su c h as parts, hand-tools, su b assemb lies or
c ompleted artic les. Also, any jig, f ixtu re or other holding dev ic e.
The optimu m nu mb er of ob jec ts whic h c an b e c onv eniently pic ked
u p, mov ed and plac ed as requ ired.
The term "b enc h" inc lu des any tab le, tote pan or other storage area,
c onv enient to the tool or workplac e,
A storage b ox or c ontainer on legs, f or mov ing b y a hand-lif ting or
f ork-lif t tru c k. The term "stillage" inc lu des a pallet, the f loor or any
other storage dev ic e at f loor lev el.
A general term to c ov er any f ixtu re, jig, elec trode press or other tool
u sed to hold or operate on an ob jec t or ob jec ts. One tool c an b e
positioned in another f or example, a parts-holding f ixtu re u nder a
drill or a welding elec trode.
Figu re 138 illu strates a typic al operation in a light engineering plant.
Many operations, inc lu ding the one shown here, c ontain one or other of the
f ollowing sequ enc es of elements (note that other sequ enc es are also possib le):
(a) get material; position in tool; operate mac hine; remov e part; aside; or
(b ) get material; position in tool; position f ixtu re in mac hine; operate
mac hine; remov e f ixtu re; remov e part; aside.
In f igu re 139, sequ enc e (a) is shown as applied in power press work, and
in f igu re 140 the element TRANSPORT has b een f u rther analysed and the
420 distanc es indic ated.
STANDARDDATA
Figure 1 38. Sequence of elements in a power press operation
/
(a)
Drill,
press,
welder,
etc.
Position
in tool P
Stillage,
pallet,
box on floor
421
Figure 1 39.
Basic elements of
power press work
Close guard
422
Figure 1 40.
Power press work:
Example of TRANSPORT
elements and distances
STANDARDDATA
Figure 1 41 . Power press work: Example of standard data determined by MTM-2
(tabular presentation)
Element Code tmu Element Code tmu Element Code tmu
GET part POSITION in tool REMOVE from tool
Flat GF1 21
Flat part
Auto eject RA- 0
GF2 31 Stops PFS1 27 Easy RE1 1 7
Use tool GTS 1 5 PFS2 30 RE2 1 7
Shaped GS1 1 9 Pins PFP1 31 Medium RM1 36
GS2 28 PFP2 33 RM2 5 2
Tangle, add GTA 20 Difficult RDI 5 0
Weight GW -
Shaped part RD2 5 0
TRANSPORT
To or from guard and
Moulded PSM1
PSM2
Stops PSS1
31
39
38
Weight GW
TRANSPORT (as above
Bench TBG1 4 PSS2 41
TBG2 4 Pins PSP1 31
ASIDE part
Pallet, TPG1 1 8 PSP2 35 Auto aside AA- 0
etc. TPG2 1 8 Weight PW

Throw AT1 7
Tool TGT1 1 8 AT2 7
TGT2 1 8 OPERATE PRESS Lay aside AL1 1 0
Bend, add TB- 61 Close guard AL2 1 0
Step, add TS-
To or from tool and
1 8
Auto OCGA
One hand OCG1
Two hands OCG2
0
21
30
Stack aside
Weight
ASI
AS2
1 1
1 9
Guard TGT1
TGT2
1 8
1 8 Operate press
Store
Hand
2nd tool
TST1
TST2
THT1
1 1 1 1
TTT2
1 1
1 1
4
1 4
1 4
Auto OPA
Foot OPF
Buttons OPB
IVIachine cycleOMC
*
*
*
*
To or from pallet and
*For each press use
machine data or time study
Bench TPB1
TPB2
32
32 Open guard
Store
Guard
TPS1
TPS2
TPG1
TPG2
42
42
1 8
1 8
Auto OOGA
One hand OOG1
Two hands OOG2
0
22
31
Weight PW
Note: Last character in code indicates; 1 = one-handed; 2 = two-handed.
423
Pi
Figure 1 42. Power press work: Example of standard data determined by MTM-2 (algorithmic presentation)
GET (pick up) part
\
(OWor IW)
Flat
"I
Shaped
I 1 I 1
Get Tool to Get Tangle
separate allowance
20
Oneh.GFI
tmu 21
Twoh.GF2
tmu 31
GTS
1 5
20
GS1
1 9
GS2
28
GTA
20
GTA
20
I
Preparatory
(OWor IW)
TRANSPORT to or from tool, etc.
1
(Some OWRest OWor IW)
I
I
Outside guard Guard to tool
(OWor IW) (OW)
Pallet Pallet Bench Pallet I I Guard
|| H H |j Bend Step ||
Bench In guard Guard Guard
store I
61 91 1 0 61
TPB1 TPS1
32 42
TPB2 TPS2
32 42
Tool
46
I
Inside guard
or guard no
restriction
(OW)
I I I
Store Hand Tooll
il 11 I
Tool Tool Tool2
20 1 0 30
TBG1 TPG1 TB- TS-
4 1 8 61 1 8
TBG2 TPG2 TB- TS-
4 1 8 61 1 8
TGT1
1 8
TGT2
1 8
TST1 THT1 TTT1
1 1 4 1 4
TST2
1 1
Tm
1 4
POSITION in tool
(and withdraw hand 30 cm)
(OW)
Flat
(OW)
\
Shaped
(OW)
Stops 2Pins Moulded Stops 2Pins
(Sides)
(Back)
(Sides)
(Back)
PFS1 PFP1 PSM1
27 31 31
PSS1 PSP1
38 31
PFS2 PFP2 PSM2 PSS2 PSP2
30 33 39 41 35
o
OPERATE press
Close guard
r
_L
Operate press
_1_
Open guard
1 I
:
1 I I I I
Auto By hand Auto Foot Safety Machine Auto By hand
I buttons cycle
OPA OPF OPB OMC One hand OCGA OCG1
tmu 0 21
Two hands
tmu
OCG2
30
Determine on site by time
study, machine data, etc.
OOGA OOG1
0 22
OOG2
31
REMOVE from tool
1
(Reach in 30 cm)
(OW)
Auto- Easy Medium Difficult
eject I I
RA- RE RM1 RDI
0 1 7 36 5 0
RE2 RM2 RD2
1 7 5 2 5 0
TRANSPORT
(as above)
ASIDE part
(OWor IW)
Auto Throw
aside aside
I I
AA- ATI
0 7
AT2
7
Lay Stack
aside aside
I I
ALI ASI
1 0 1 1
AL2
1 0
AS2
1 9
STANDARDDATA
Figure 1 43. Power press work: Standard data application form
Press type: Prepared by:
Part: Date:
Operation: Standard minutes:
Seq.
No.
Motion description
(simultaneous motions on same line)
Machine Left hand Right hand Change
Code tmu Code tmu Code tmu tmu
Remarks Total tmu Machine LH RH
Basic minutes (-^2,000)
Total basic minutes
Relaxation and contingency
allowance (%)
Standard minutes
425
To dev elop standard data f rom a PTS system, eac h sequ enc e of elements
is now analysed, u sing MTM-2, f or example. It is also possib le to b u ild u p
f rom MTM-2 and other PTS systems a data bank f or c ertain standard
operations, with their possib le v ariations. S tandard data dev eloped in this way
may b e presented either as a tab le (as in f igu re 141) or algorithmic ally (as in
f igu re 142). Figu re 143 reprodu c es a f orm whic h c an then b e u sed to rec ord
the time f or a partic u lar ac tiv ity u sing data deriv ed f rom either f igu re 141 or
f igu re 142.
4. Externally sourced standard data
There are a nu mb er of standard data systems c onsisting of data whic h hav e
b een dev eloped to represent a partic u lar c ategory of work of ten in a
partic u lar indu stry. S u c h data are of ten b ased on PTS data, as ab ov e, b u t
c onstru c ted to of f er the higher-lev el data b loc ks f or spec if ic types of work that
make the data f aster and easier to apply. Examples of su c h systems are G eneral
S ewing Data (G S D) and Cleric al Work Data (CWD).
S u c h data systems are u su ally proprietary and, as a minimu m, will requ ire
the prac titioner to attend an au thorized training c ou rse. S ome systems also
requ ire the payment of a lic enc e f ee b ef ore the data c an b e u sed, either on a
one-of f b asis or as an annu al lic enc e. Althou gh this may b e expensiv e it does
ensu re that the system dev elopers hav e f u nding to maintain, extend and
dev elop the system.
It is important to identif y the sou rc e of the data and the way in whic h they
hav e b een assemb led and v alidated. The International MTM Direc torate (IMD)
c arries ou t v alidation of MTM-b ased systems b u t there is no independent
v alidating b ody f or the f u ll range of general-pu rpose systems.
It is also important to v alidate the data in the loc ations and u nder the
c onditions in whic h they are to b e applied. Data deriv ed in one env ironment
may not b e direc tly transf erab le to another they may requ ire some
amendment. V alidation c an b e c arried ou t b y u sing the data to arriv e at times
f or a range of job s and c omparing those times to times deriv ed f rom another
measu rement proc ess (su c h as PTS or time stu dy). The range of job s measu red
shou ld represent the f u ll spec tru m of work to b e c ov ered in the f inal
measu rement programme, and this pilot or v alidation programme shou ld
inc lu de a range of operating c onditions, times of day, operators, and so on.
Where the resu lts ob tained f rom the standard data are signif ic antly dif f erent
f rom those ob tained f rom the "c ontrol tec hniqu e" it may b e possib le, b y c aref u l
analysis, to identif y a f ac tor or f ac tors that c an b e applied to all or some of the
data to prov ide ac c eptab le resu lts. If this is the c ase, f u rther stu dies shou ld b e
taken to ensu re that the c onv ersion proc ess remains v alid ov er a more
c omprehensiv e range of job s. The data c an then b e adju sted b y the f ac tors
b ef ore b eing implemented as the b asis of the f u ll measu rement programme.
This v alidation proc ess shou ld b e c arried ou t periodic ally f or any standard
data system (inc lu ding those u sing data dev eloped in-hou se) sinc e the natu re of
426 job s and the c onditions u nder whic h they are perf ormed will c hange ov er time.
STANDARDDATA
Figure 1 44. Compilation of computerized standard data: A schematic representation
JOB A JOB B
Operation 1 Operation 2
r
Ell E1 2
E = work element.
E1 3 E1 4 E1 5 E1 6
Operation 3
I
El 7
1
E1 8
Periodic re-ev alu ation ensu res ac c u rac y and integrity of the data and maintains
c onf idenc e in the measu rement proc ess.
5. Computerized measurement systems
The u se of standard data f or work measu rement inv olv es a signif ic ant amou nt
of c leric al and administrativ e work in maintaining the data in a f orm whic h
allows partic u lar data to b e readily identif ied and retriev ed, and in maintaining
rec ords of job s whic h hav e b een measu red b y the applic ation of partic u lar data.
This is nec essary so that if b ase data c hange (du e to a c hange in method or in
working c onditions), job s whic h hav e inc orporated those data c an b e identif ied.
This proc ess is made easier if the data are stored in a c ompu terized system.
We hav e already made ref erenc e in Chapter 23 to the u se of c ompu ters in
the analysis of time stu dy data. This is of ten related to the u se of elec tronic
stu dy b oards or data c aptu re dev ic es whic h together with the analysis sof tware
make u p a c omplete elec tronic time stu dy pac kage. This is in f ac t a
measu rement system that lends itself readily to the dev elopment of
c ompu terized standard data.
Most c ompu terized standard data make u se of mic roc ompu ters b u t the
u niqu e part of the system is ac tu ally a sof tware pac kage that allows the storage
and manipu lation of time-b ased data. This data may b e downloaded f rom
elec tronic stu dy dev ic es or may b e manu ally inpu t. There are a nu mb er of su c h
systems av ailab le, some b eing linked to partic u lar sets of data and others b eing
"empty shells" into whic h the organization c an inpu t its data f rom whatev er
sou rc e.
Many of these systems allow the applic ation of data in a hierarc hic al
f ashion. The original standard data are stored in the system as "b ase data" or
"elemental data". Higher-lev el b loc ks (su c h as operations) are then b u ilt u p b y
c omb ining a nu mb er of elements. The details of su c h operations, in terms of
the elements inv olv ed and the f requ enc y of those elements, are stored in the
system. These operations c an then b e b u ilt into job s in the same way. The data
c an thu s b e represented as shown in f igu re 144.
At any time the make-u p of a partic u lar job or operation and its standard
time c an b e printed ou t, the time b eing c alc u lated du ring the printing stage 427
Figure 1 45 . Deriving a computerized standard time for an operation
Element
database
Search/retrieve
element data
On-screen build-up
of operation or
job times
Operation/job
specifications
Save
1
1
1
Add allowances
Recall existing
operation/job
Standard time
f rom the indiv idu al element times and f requ enc ies, f rom the stored inf ormation
on the v ariou s elements and c yc le or operation times.
The u se of su c h a system to dev elop a standard time f or an operation or a
job is illu strated in f igu re 145.
S ev eral sof tware pac kages exist f or dev eloping standard data, and f or their
u se in deriv ing standard times f or v ariou s operations. Examples are CPD90
f rom S weden, Timeb u ilder f rom Ireland, Mic romatic Methods and
Measu rement dev eloped in the United S tates, Tec time dev eloped in the United
Kingdom, and Meza and Plazet pac kages f rom G ermany. An example of the
type of inf ormation that c an b e ob tained u sing Meza and Plazet is shown in
f igu res 146 and 147.
A list of c ompu terized work measu rement applic ation systems is also
av ailab le f rom the Eu ropean Federation of Produ c tiv ity S erv ic es as part of their
management gu ide to work measu rement.
428
STANDARDDATA
Figure 1 46. MEZA scheme for developing standard data
Bl Sauli
BZ Drill
B3 Prill
EH DMK
nEZft - Selection of Hanufacturing Process
pith upright drilling uchine
Hark of Cycle Textlines
Processing / Checkpoint
Process: 81 Sawing
Influenee Quant.
01 tr 61
ei trg 62
81 trg 83
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 trg
81 tnk
81 tnb
Get working documents
Get drawing fron delivery
Read drautng
I BC* 0.7 m EV B= 4.BX
|Cur HA HoRa Split! DEf Up T. PsT Explanation/Cauve
Time sorts are
correlated to cycle
sections
Data records are
output in
chronological order
Individual remarks
can be input and
changed
Influence quantities
can be input for
clock-time planning
Inf I. qunatitlBS Rotarhs
The manufacturing
process is selected
from the standard
file
The standard texts
are marked in the
standard-text file
The texts for cycle
sections steps
are output and
processed
The time-
registration form
is printed
9.7 m Eps= 1 fr/.
FoMlbls Tinosorts
Cur CS-co TS
twii i xi EHU} cm]
clature notlc*
2M.5 1 trc Bl Set working docwMont -
|Cur N HoRe Splitt DEf Up T. Prmt Explanntlon'CauBti
Cur: 5 OS 7. 8 Cycls.: 14 Page 1 Pile :DKT10ei.MZ
NOM: el tnb 81 Take workpiece hy hand
Re*: (8) G- d- 1
TS.: tnh Influen. wc. tl-e <AGt.DE>
0E=125.A LI Z3.36Hn PT^ 29.19W RS= 1.08888 FK- 1.2 HH Ep = 3.6X
|Cur HA NoRe SptltT DET Up T. PresT Explano*loiV Caue
Code nunber 81 tnb 81
IQ 1 15 8.888 Weight (kg)
ig 2 fiianeter CNMI
IQ 3 5 B.B88 Length (MI)
ig b 8.888
m & B.888
Fount standardtext t
riNoCS HoMel.CS Endlast ( PgUpupper OS PgDnnext (
Source: Reproduced by courtesy of DRIGUSGmbH, Dortmund, Germany,
429
Figure 1 47. PLAZETscheme for deriving standard times of operations
PLAZEI - Take over tine studies Into baaa-fUe
Basofile : C:SPUlZET\dfMo.BDF
DiuUlon by paferenca set HEZA-file : C:\MuMIDt0e2.z
Data of I.S
FLAZET - Listing of cycle i
File : eiTNWl.RK
TMinsforiMtionen of Influence quftntlty XI
Trnsforwit Ion Correlation Detemiln.Mei
1 /X power 4 6.996 99.6 i
ure Choice
- ForauU mmagiiMnt
ul lo*m i <Sws t)
> Choose Riinufacturtng procesa F2 " Cofitmta of for*
- Chooaa win)fcturli^ fi m
Bl Sawing
B2 Drilling
83 rh.illl~,^
The cycle texts for
the operation
are marked
Values are input
for the influence
quantities
Machining cycle
times are calculated
on the basis of the
up-to-date formula
file
Overall time is
output and the
results are saved
tm iim
MEZA time records
are transferred
to a base file
The base file is
systematically
evaluated after
given cycle sections
_^The clock-time
formulae are
calculated by linear
or non-linear
regression
The formulae are
stored in the
formulae file
. The manufacturing
process is selected
from the standard file
61 trs fll ! HOI* docwMnia
81 trg 82 6at drAwliw fron Am .
8i ;j " " -^ " -'-
Seleotlnt cycle
61 ti
01 ti
61 ti
81 ti
fll ti
81 ti
fll ti
81 ti
81 ti
81 ti
InfliMw
: PonuU dUwan't exist
: PorouU not relea *'
: usntltlea - Infwt of values
ltate of valid Input: I
81 trg 81 U.
81 trj 84 U-
81 tnb 81 C-
81 * * if? o.
-16.88 d-
Influence quantities - Calculation
= : Poraula doesn't exist - : Fmula not
Code UptlM Error LT-IUnu No. Alio-. Result
[Ml] (Ml) [160-286-^)
Outp ut o f ef f ecti ve il-es
Z95.84 Ml 2 7 . 9 4
gp '
tr: 8.88 Mt 0.86 *
tnb: 266.96 Ml 2 4. 7 1
thb: 6.88 Ml 8.88
Vsv: 8.88 Mt 8.66 *
Vsk: 8.88 Ml
U p : 8.86 Ml 8.68
tnu:
thu:
N:
8.86
586.86
8.88
Ml
Ml
Ml
8.88
47 . 3 5
8.88
H i: 8.86 Ml 8.68
H 2: 8.88 Ml 8.86
T: 8.88 Ml 8.68
Ti: 8.68 Ml 8.66
8.66 Ml
T3: 8.66 Ml 8.86
IT: 8.86 Ml
tw : 8.86 Ml
: 8.66 Ml 8.68 ,
: 1866.86 HH 168.66 58 m l ee
Source: Reproduced by courtesy of DRIGUSGmbH, Dortmund, Germany.
430
CHAPTER 28
The use of time
standards
1. Definition of the work covered by time standards
When the stu dywork has b een c ompleted, it is important that a detailed rec ord
b e made of the methods, tools and equ ipment u sed and of ev ery f eatu re of the
operations whic h c ou ld possib ly hav e a b earing on the time. This is nec essary
b ec au se c hanges in the work c ontent of an operation af f ec ting the time will also
af f ec t planning and c osting; it is dou b ly important where the time standard is to
b e u sed in setting rates of pay u nder an inc entiv e sc heme. It is a c ardinal
princ iple of all sou nd inc entiv e sc hemes b ased on time stu dy that the time
standards set shou ld not b e c hanged exc ept when the work c ontent of the job is
c hanged, when there is a c hange in the organization of the work, or to c orrec t a
c leric al error.
When time standards are to b e u sed as the b asis f or an inc entiv e sc heme,
it is u su al to prepare two doc u ments to desc rib e and def ine c ompletely the way
in whic h time standards are c ompiled and the working c onditions to whic h the
standards ref er. These two doc u ments are known respec tiv ely as the technical
set-up and the work specification.
The tec hnic al set-u p is essentially a work stu dy doc u ment, hav ing no
ref erenc e to rates of pay, c ontrol of workers or other matters of c ontrac t
b etween employers and employees. It shows in su mmary f orm, in su itab ly
presented tab les and graphs, the main resu lts of the stu dywork u ndertaken in
the sec tion and how all the time standards whic h hav e b een set hav e b een
deriv ed. It c ontains all the inf ormation nec essary to c alc u late f resh time
standards, shou ld the job s or the working c onditions c hange, in so f ar as these
f resh standards c an b e c ompiled f rom the stu dywork already u ndertaken. It is
thu s in ef f ec t a manu al f rom whic h time standards c an b e b u ilt u p. As
explained in the prev iou s c hapter, this inf ormation may b e also more
c onv eniently stored in an inf ormation system data b ank.
It will b e nec essary to c ompile a separate set-u p f or eac h tec hnic ally
dif f erent sec tion of an enterprise, sinc e the methods b y whic h time standards
are c ompiled will dif f er f rom sec tion to sec tion. Thu s in a v itreou s enamelling
shop there wou ld prob ab ly b e one set-u p f or the sprayers, another f or the
operators of the shot-b last mac hines, a third f or the f u rnac e operators, and
soon.
S u mmaries of all the data on whic h the tec hnic al set-u p is b ased shou ld b e
attac hed to it, inc lu ding:
D f low proc ess c harts showing the improv ed methods dev eloped; 431
D analysis of stu dies sheets;
D relaxation allowanc e c alc u lation sheets;
D data f rom predetermined time standards (PTS );
D c u rv es and graphs relating to standard data.
The greatest c are shou ld b e taken of the tec hnic al set-u p and of all the
original doc u ments attac hed to it, sinc e they are essential ev idenc e in any
dispu tes whic h may arise. They are also of great v alu e in c ompiling time
standards f or similar work in the f u tu re. Tec hnic al set-u ps are normally f iled in
the work stu dy department, where they are av ailab le to the management or to
the workers' representativ es whenev er they may b e needed.
2. The work specification
A work specification is a document setting out the details of an
operation or job, how it is to be performed, the layout of the
workplace, particulars of machines, tools and appliances to be
used, and the duties and responsibilities of the worker. The
standard time or allowed time assigned to the job is normally
included
The work spec if ic ation thu s represents the b asic data on whic h the
c ontrac t b etween employer and employee f or the operation of an inc entiv e
sc heme rests.
The amou nt of detail nec essary in a work spec if ic ation v aries greatly
ac c ording to the natu re of the operation c onc erned. In mac hine shop work in
the engineering indu stry, where a large nu mb er of dif f erent job s are done on
mac hines whose methods of operation are b roadly similar, general c onditions
gov erning all job s c an b e estab lished f or the whole shop and only v ariations in
detail need b e spec if ic ally rec orded.
On the other hand, where an operation inv olv es a whole plant or
department and will ru n f or an indef inite period su b stantially u nc hanged, as is
the c ase in c ontinu ou s produ c tion, the work spec if ic ation may b e lengthy and
detailed. For instanc e, it may inc lu de spec if ic ations f or the alternativ es of types
of materials u sed.
G enerally speaking, the f ollowing points shou ld b e c ov ered b y a work
spec if ic ation, whic h shou ld, of c ou rse, emb rac e the standard method laid down
as a resu lt of the method stu dy:
A. Details of the workpieces or products, including:
D drawing, spec if ic ation or produ c t nu mb er and title;
D material spec if ic ation;
432 sketc hes, where nec essary, of parts or su rf ac es to b e treated.
THE USE OF TIME STANDARDS
B. Details of the machine or plant on which the operation is performed,
including:
D make, size or type, plant register nu mb er;
D speeds and f eeds, pu lley sizes or other equ iv alent data;
D jigs, tools and f ixtu res;
other equ ipment;
D sketc h of workplac e layou t (where not av ailab le on the method
stu dy).
C. Operation number and general description of the work covered
D. Quality standards, including:
D qu ality grade;
D f inish and/or toleranc es, where applic ab le;
D c hec king and gau ging requ irements, gau ges and other inspec tion
apparatu s;
D f requ enc y of inspec tion;
D ac tion to b e taken f or items that f ail the qu ality standard.
. Grade and sex of labour, including:
D direc t and indirec t lab ou r;
D part-time assistanc e b y inspec tors or su perv isors.
F. Detailed description of all work involved, including:
D repetitiv e elements, c onstant and v ariab le;
D oc c asional elements;
D indirec t work: S etting u p and b reaking down;
D c leaning, greasing, etc ., and f requ enc y with whic h su c h operations
are c arried ou t.
G. Details of time standards, including:
D standard time f or eac h element, job or operation, as appropriate;
D allowed time f or all indirec t work, with a note on how it has b een
assessed;
D perc entage relaxation allowanc e inc lu ded in eac h element time;
D other allowanc es.
H. Clerical procedure to be carried out by operatives in recording
output and booking waiting time
I. Conditions under which the time standard is issued, and any special
provisos
It may b e nec essary to su pply c opies of the work spec if ic ation to the
management and to the departmental and shop su perv isors and, in the c ase of
spec if ic ations af f ec ting a large nu mb er of workers, to the workers'
representativ es. 433
The manner in whic h the time standards are made known to the
operativ es depends largely on the natu re of the work. If the job is one that is
done only b y a single worker (the one who was timed), it is u su ally enou gh f or
the worker to b e inf ormed b y work stu dy person, in the f irst instanc e. When
work stu dy has b een ac c epted, workers do not u su ally want lengthy
explanations: what they are interested in are the targets at whic h they mu st aim
in order to earn a reasonab le b onu s. Time standards are likely to b e b etter
u nderstood if they are pu t in the f orm "Y ou will need to do 12 piec es an hou r
f or time-and-a-third", or "17 hanks a shif t f or time-and-a-third", than in the
f orm "13 standard minu tes per piec e". If anything appears to b e wrong with the
time standard, f u rther details will v ery soon b e sou ght. If a whole shop is on
the same type of work, as is of ten the c ase in c ertain proc ess indu stries,
inc lu ding textile spinning, su mmaries of time standards shou ld b e posted on the
notic e b oards in the department. It may also b e desirab le to read relev ant parts
of the work spec if ic ation at a departmental meeting. This will hav e to b e done
where most of the people af f ec ted b y the time standards are illiterate. In b atc h
produ c tion the standard time is generally written or printed on the work tic ket,
job c ard or proc ess layou t.
3. The standard unit of work
S tandard times are generally set down in the f ollowing f orms:
x minu tes per piec e;
y minu tes per 100 (or per 1,000) piec es; or
z minu tes per ton, metre, squ are metre, etc .
They are sometimes c alc u lated or translated into hou rs. These time v alu es
represent the ou tpu t at standard perf ormanc e, that is, at 100 rating.
The minu tes or hou rs allowed f or any giv en job are not minu tes or hou rs
of c ontinu ou s work. Eac h u nit of time c ontains within it an element of
relaxation.
The proportions of relaxation and work will v ary ac c ording to the
heav iness of the work. In extremely heav y, hot work su c h as f u rnac e tending,
the proportion of relaxation may b e 50 per c ent or more.
S inc e the standard minu te is a measu re of ou tpu t it c an b e u sed in
measu ring and c omparing produ c tiv ity, whic h may b e represented b y the ratio:
, outputof work in standard minutes _
Performance = : j- r- , : : :;: X 1 00
input of labour time or machine time in clock minutes
A partic u lar adv antage of the standard minu te is that it c an b e u sed to
measu re and c ompare ou tpu ts in dissimilar types of work, the ac c u rac y of the
c omparison b eing limited b y the c onsistenc y of the time standards.
434
4. Production planning and the utilization of plant and
human resources
One of the c au ses of inef f ec tiv e time is f ailing to plan the f low of work and of
orders, with the resu lt that one order does not immediately f ollow on another
and plant and lab ou r are not c ontinu ou sly employed.
In order to plan a programme of work ef f ec tiv ely, it is nec essary to know
prec isely:
1. What is to b e made or done.
2. The qu antity inv olv ed.
3. What operations are nec essary to c arry ou t the work.
4. What plant, equ ipment and tools are needed.
5. What types of lab ou r are needed.
6. How long eac h operation may b e expec ted to take.
7. How mu c h plant and equ ipment of the types nec essary are av ailab le.
8. How mu c h lab ou r of the types nec essary is av ailab le.
The inf ormation on items 1 and 2 is generally su pplied b y the sales of f ic e
or c ommerc ial department.
The inf ormation f or determining items 3, 4 and 5 is su pplied b y proc ess
planning and method study.
The inf ormation on item 6 is su pplied b y work measurement.
The inf ormation on item 7 is su pplied f rom plant department rec ords or
those of the department c onc erned.
The inf ormation on item 8 is su pplied f rom personnel of f ic e rec ords or
those of the department c onc erned.
Onc e this inf ormation is av ailab le, it is a matter of simple arithmetic to
matc h the requ irements with the av ailab le c apac ity. Both the requ irements and
the c apac ity av ailab le to f u lf il them mu st b e stated in terms of time.
Requ irements will b e stated as:
number of operations of each type to be performed x expected time for each operation.
This mu st b e matc hed against the total time av ailab le on eac h type of
plant and with eac h type of lab ou r nec essary to perf orm the operations.
When a programme is b eing planned, only the ac tu al times whic h the
operations may b e expec ted to take are of interest. These will depend, among
other things, on whether the general c onditions in the plant inc lu ding the
state of lab ou r-management relations and the system of remu neration in u se
are su c h that the workers are working at their b est rate. Where this is the c ase
and the work stu dy applic ation has had time to settle down, these times shou ld
b e those of the av erage perf ormanc e of the shop or department as giv en b y the
produ c tion rec ords ov er a period. This may ev en apply to an indiv idu al
mac hine or proc ess. It is the only realistic b asis f or su c h c alc u lations. The
times are arriv ed at b y mu ltiplying the standard times b y
100
Average performance 435
The plant and lab ou r c apac ity av ailab le is expressed in "work-minu tes" or
"mac hine-minu tes", du e regard b eing paid to any time it is nec essary to allot
f or c leaning, setting u p, dismantling, c hange-ov ers, repairs, and so on.
The matc hing of produ c tion or operational requ irements to c apac ity in
this way makes it possib le to:
D show whether there is an insu f f ic ienc y of any type of plant or lab ou r
likely to hold u p the programme or c au se b ottlenec ks in the c ou rse of
produ c tion and, if so, its extent;
D show whether there is an exc ess of c apac ity in any type of plant or lab ou r
and its extent;
D giv e ac c u rate estimates of deliv ery dates.
If the management c an hav e su c h inf ormation, c ompiled f rom realistic
standards of perf ormanc e, av ailab le well b ef ore produ c tion is du e to start, it
c an take steps to prev ent hold-u ps f rom oc c u rring. Alternativ ely, it c an start
looking f or work to f ill u p spare c apac ity. Withou t su c h standards it has no su re
b asis f or doing either of those things.
5. Estimating production costs
The su c c ess or f ailu re of a f irm in a c ompetitiv e market may depend on the
ac c u rac y with whic h it is ab le to pric e its produ c ts. Unless the manu f ac tu ring
time of the produ c t is ac c u rately known, the lab ou r c ost c annot b e estimated,
and many indirec t c osts dependent on time su c h as plant deprec iation, f u el
and power c onsu mption, rent, and the salaries of staf f and su perv ision
c annot b e ac c u rately determined.
If the management c an rely on the ac c u rac y of the c osting, appropriate
pric es c an b e f ixed. If these are b elow those of the f irm's c ompetitors, the
management c an b e happy in the knowledge that it is u nderselling them in
saf ety; if they are ab ov e, the c u tting of c osts c an b e u ndertaken with more
assu ranc e than wou ld otherwise b e the c ase and with a knowledge of the
margins av ailab le to b e c u t.
S tandard and ac tu al lab ou r c osts per 100 or per 1,000 standard minu tes of
produ c tion are f requ ently c alc u lated eac h week f rom the weekly c ontrol
statements. S inc e the ac tu al lab ou r c ost per 100 standard minu tes takes into
ac c ou nt b oth direc t and indirec t lab ou r c osts, it is the more u sef u l f igu re to u se
f or estimating produ c tion c osts.
As indic ated in Chapter 15, the estimation of c osts of spec ial projec ts c an
b e adju sted in terms of a range that v aries b etween normal time and c rash time.
In this proc ess, knowing the time it takes to perf orm ev ery ac tiv ity is of
primordial importanc e in the dec ision-making proc ess. S pec ial projec ts are
u su ally c ostly v entu res and many are su b jec t to a tendering proc ess. Henc e a
proper proc ess of estimation b ased on asc ertained times c an make the
dif f erenc e in ob taining an order and in making a prof it.
436
6. Standard costing and budgetary control
Work measu rement prov ides the b asic inf ormation f or setting standards of
lab ou r c osts and the means of c ontrolling them. These standards c an also b e
u sed as the b asis of the lab ou r b u dgets f or budgetary control; they prov ide
c ertain elements of the inf ormation nec essary f or the produ c tion and indirec t
expense b u dgets and, related to the sales b u dget, indic ate the plant and lab ou r
c apac ity likely to b e av ailab le ov er the period of the b u dget.
Besides prov iding the standards, work measu rement also prov ides,
ac c u rately, the ac tu al perf ormanc e f igu res. The need f or su c h ac c u rate
standards c annot b e ov erstressed. The ab senc e of c omplete c ost inf ormation is
at the root of many poor dec isions and of many f ailu res of indu strial
enterprises. L ab ou r c osts will, as u su al, b e b ased on standard times, with
appropriate prov ision b eing made f or dev iations f rom standard perf ormanc e.
7. Incentive schemes
Direc t inc entiv e sc hemes b ased on ou tpu t do not nec essarily f ollow on an
applic ation of work measu rement. There are many enterprises where time
stu dies are made b u t direc t inc entiv es are not employed. One of the reasons
why a good deal of attention has b een paid in prev iou s c hapters to f eatu res of
time stu dy partic u larly related to its u se in c onnec tion with inc entiv es is that no
disc u ssion of time stu dy wou ld b e c omplete withou t them.
The merits of work measu rement as a b asis f or inc entiv e sc hemes lie in
sev eral f eatu res inherent in the tec hniqu es, namely:
(1) The times are generally b ased on direc t ob serv ation and on rec ording b y
the most ac c u rate prac tic ab le means.
(2) Enou gh ob serv ations are taken of all elements of work, b oth repetitiv e
and oc c asional, to ensu re that the times f inally selec ted to make u p the
standard time are tru ly representativ e and that random oc c u rrenc es are
taken into ac c ou nt.
(3) Fu ll rec ords are made and retained so as to b e av ailab le f or examination
b y either management or workers, shou ld the oc c asion arise.
(4) The rec orded times and assoc iated data giv e a f ac tu al b asis to any
management-lab ou r negotiations on perf ormanc e standards, as opposed to
the b argaining b ased on opinion whic h mu st take plac e when times are
estimated.
(5) Properly applied method stu dy f ollowed b y work measu rement enab les
management to gu arantee the time standards with reasonab le assu ranc e
that it is not exposing itself to the risks of perpetu ating u nec onomic rates.
It is important f or the su c c ess of any inc entiv e sc heme that the workers
shou ld know as qu ic kly as possib le the b onu s they hav e earned. Wherev er
possib le, this inf ormation shou ld b e made av ailab le the day af ter the one to
whic h it ref ers. It may b e shown in money u nits, as a perc entage of the
standard perf ormanc e, or as the av erage nu mb er of standard minu tes produ c ed
per hou r. In these latter ways the f igu res c an b e posted on the notic e b oard 437
withou t workers ac tu ally seeing eac h other's earnings. In many f irms it is a
prac tic e f or operators to b e ac qu ainted with their perf ormanc e. This enab les
them to raise any qu eries on the spot. When workers get u sed to thinking in
standard minu tes, they generally know at the end of eac h day what they hav e
earned and tend to regard the daily f igu res as c onf irmation.
The v alu e of this prac tic e to an inc entiv e sc heme is as f ollows:
(1) The ef f ec t of the operativ es' own ac tions on their earnings is b rou ght
home to them while the ev ents c onc erned are still f resh in their mind.
(2) Any qu eries on the amou nt of b onu s du e c an b e taken u p and c orrec tions
made, if nec essary, before the wages are made u p.
(3) The posting of the f igu res daily on the notic e b oard, where this has b een
agreed to b y the workers and their representativ es, adds interest and may
stimu late a c ompetitiv e spirit.
(4) Repeated c onf irmation of their own c alc u lations b y management's
f igu res, or c lear explanations where they dif f er, tend to inc rease the
c onf idenc e of the workers in the f airness of the system. Conv ersely,
repeated mistakes b y the wages staf f c an rapidly u ndermine their
c onf idenc e.
8. Organization of an information system associated
with work measurement
A f u ll applic ation of work measu rement, when assoc iated with an inc entiv e
sc heme, has to b e b ac ked b y a system of rec ording operativ es' times and ou tpu t
of work. These times and ou tpu t f igu res mu st then b e proc essed at a c entral
point, u su ally the ac c ou nts department, where they c an b e u sed to c ompile the
b onu s earned b y eac h worker and prov ide management with c ompac t and
easily u nderstandab le statistic s f or the c ontrol of f ac tory perf ormanc e and
c osts.
Dev ising a system su itab le f or u se in the organization is generally one of
the f u nc tions of work stu dy. Any su c h system mu st hav e c ertain c harac teristic s.
It shou ld:
D prov ide ac c u rate and f u ll inf ormation;
D ensu re that all the nec essary inf ormation is entered as a matter of rou tine
and transmitted with the minimu m delay f or proc essing;
D b e simple to understand and to operate and as nearly as possib le
f oolproof , so that all the rou tine work c an b e c arried on b y c omparativ ely
u nskilled c leric al staf f ;
D b e ec onomic al of staf f ;
D b e ec onomic al as to c ompu ter u se or paperwork.
Working ou t a system to f u lf il all these requ irements is not easy, and a
c hapter c ou ld well b e dev oted to the su b jec t. S pac e does not permit this,
howev er, and the v ariety of systems f or dif f erent applic ations is su c h that any
set of examples giv en here wou ld ru n the risk of b eing too c omplic ated f or
438 some enterprises and insu f f ic ient f or others. Comment will theref ore b e
Table 28. Minimum data required for work measurement and labour control
records
Information Source
1 . Hours of attendance of each operative
2. Standard time for each operation
3. Times of starting and finishing each
operation
4. Quantities produced
5 . Scrap or rectification: quantities
and times
6. Waiting time and non-productive time
sheet of actual performance
Clock card or time sheet
Job card or work study compiled
standard data
Job card or work sheet
Job card or work sheet
Scrap note or rectification slip
Waiting time slips or daily work
c onf ined to some general notes and to the b asic data requ ired together with
their prob ab le sou rc e.
The sheets or printou ts on whic h ou tpu t and perf ormanc e inf ormation is
su mmarized and reported to the management are known as control statements.
In a f u lly dev eloped c ontrol system there will prob ab ly b e three dif f erent
c ontrol statements, prepared at dif f erent interv als and f or dif f erent pu rposes. A
daily statement may b e prepared, separately f or eac h sec tion of the
organization, to indic ate to the su perv isor in c harge of the sec tion the resu lts of
the prev iou s day's working. Onc e a week the weekly c ontrol statement will b e
c ompiled, u su ally on a departmental rather than a sec tion-b y-sec tion b asis. The
weekly statement will go to b oth the su perv isor and departmental heads. A
single sheet f requ ently has spac e f or the rec ord of 13 weeks of work, a f resh
line b eing u sed eac h week, so that the c u rrent week's resu lts c an b e c ompared
with those of earlier weeks du ring the same qu arter. The c ontrol statement
whic h goes to the top management is u su ally made u p monthly, on either a
departmental or a whole-plant b asis.
In any system of rec ording assoc iated with work measu rement and an
inc entiv e system, the minimu m data giv en in tab le 28 mu st b e rec orded and
ev entu ally transmitted f or inc entiv es and wages c alc u lations.
It shou ld b e noted that the rapid prolif eration of mini-c ompu ters and the
av ailab ility of su itab le sof tware pac kages hav e rendered the estab lishment of a
c ontrol system qu ic k, less c u mb ersome and less c ostly. In addition, it has also
enab led management to gain an insight into inef f ec tiv e times and their c au ses,
and the produ c tiv ity of v ariou s departments or of the plant as a whole.
This c onc lu des the part of the b ook dev oted to work measu rement.
439
PART FIVE
From analysis to
synthesis
CHAPTER 29
Combining methods
and tasks: New forms
of work organization
1. Method study and work measurement: Basic tools for
job design
In the prec eding c hapters we hav e thorou ghly disc u ssed modem work stu dy
tec hniqu es. S inc e the introdu c tion of these tec hniqu es at the b eginning of this
c entu ry, work stu dy has b ec ome an ef f ec tiv e tool in improv ing the perf ormanc e
of enterprises. Few dev elopments hav e c ontrib u ted so mu c h towards attaining
that goal. Moreov er, the u nderlying princ iples of these methods will, f or the
f oreseeab le f u tu re, c ontinu e to b e of immense importanc e in the great majority
of enterprises, regardless of their size or area of ec onomic ac tiv ity.
L et u s b rief ly su mmarize the b asic signif ic anc e of systematic work stu dy
f or the dev elopment of b etter methods of work.
Methods: Systematic v. haphazard
The f irst ru le of work stu dy is that eac h task mu st b e systematic ally analysed in
adv anc e and the ways of c arrying it ou t mu st b e thou ght throu gh. If the task in
qu estion is to b e c arried ou t only onc e, perhaps this preliminary analysis is of
no great importanc e indeed, there might b e no point in paying too mu c h
attention to it. Bu t if the task is to b e c arried ou t repeatedly, we c an easily see
that mu c h is to b e gained b y c aref u lly sc ru tinizing the manner in whic h the task
is exec u ted. Ev ery mov ement that c an b e eliminated or improv ed, ev ery time
span that c an b e shortened will produ c e ec onomies and if eac h task is
repeated many times, as happens with mass produ c tion or long ru ns, the sav ing
of ev en tiny mov ements or of a f ew sec onds here and there c an b e of c ru c ial
ec onomic importanc e.
It c an thu s readily b e seen that if systematic analyses of this kind are not
c arried ou t, pref erab ly b ef ore produ c tion is b egu n, inef f ic ienc y will in ef f ec t b e
b u ilt into the job .
S ystematic analyses of the work organization whic h are c arried ou t b ef ore
an ac tiv ity is started may thu s mean c onsiderab le c ost sav ings throu gh the
dev elopment of sou nd methods and working prac tic es. Howev er, it is important
that su c h dev elopments are b rou ght ou t in the day-to-day ac tiv ities b y the
people who ac tu ally perf orm the work u sing their knowledge and experienc e to
improv e working methods c ontinu ou sly. To b ring ab ou t this situ ation, it is
important to stimu late interest in produ c tiv ity improv ements among all
employees, and to promote su c h improv ements b y a v ariety of means. 443
Work analysis: Step-by-step examination
An important f eatu re of work stu dy is theref ore the systematic analysis of the
job , that is the div ision of a task into its v ariou s c omponent parts f ollowed b y a
c aref u l examination and disc u ssion of eac h part. By thu s b reaking down a
c omplex prob lem into its u nderlying elements, a c learer and more readily
u nderstandab le pic tu re of the task c an b e ob tained, and a good method of
c arrying it ou t c an b e dedu c ed.
In Chapter 7 we examined v ariou s methods of b reaking down work
proc esses into small parts. In the same c hapter we went ov er the qu estioning
tec hniqu e a method of qu estioning ev erything that is done and taking
nothing f or granted, with the aim of f inding new alternativ es, new
c omb inations and new ideas.
Pre-set times for various movements
One of the most important f eatu res of modem work stu dy is that it is possib le
to f ix in adv anc e, with moderate margins of error, the times nec essary to c arry
ou t dif f erent mov ements. There are many dif f erent methods of doing this,
ranging f rom su mmary estimates to highly ref ined PTS systems. One point that
these methods hav e in c ommon, howev er, is that they all c ontain a more or less
estab lished method of determining, on the b asis of the c harac teristic s of the
work in qu estion, the "normal" time that a task shou ld requ ire.
This proc ess of pre-setting times f or v ariou s tasks is of ov erwhelming
importanc e in produ c tion management. Most importantly, it makes it possib le
to test alternativ e methods and c omb inations of methods of perf orming a
c ertain job and to determine whic h alternativ e is the most time-sav ing.
Fu rthermore, with the help of these systematic time gu idelines, it b ec omes
f easib le to distrib u te work assignments among dif f erent indiv idu als and grou ps
in order to plan produ c tion more ef f ic iently and to c onstru c t a f ou ndation f or
disc u ssing produ c tion-linked wages and similar inc entiv es.
Again, this is an element of modern work stu dy that is v irtu ally
indispensab le in normal indu strial ac tiv ities. Withou t the help of work stu dy
methods and systematic time f ormu lae, the determination of gu idelines wou ld
b e pu re gu esswork.
The latest role of work study: From analysis to synthesis
S o f ar we hav e disc u ssed the b asic role of work stu dy in the design of
indiv idu al job s and of work organization. Bef ore we go into more detail, it
shou ld b e emphasized that the dev elopment of method stu dy and work
measu rement has b een c ontinu ou s, so that it is now possib le to apply work
stu dy to any kind of ac tiv ity. Fu rthermore, the workers' u nderstanding of and
ac tiv e inv olv ement in work stu dy has inc reased rapidly. Ov er the past f ew
years we hav e seen many examples of c ompanies prov iding extensiv e training
in work analysis, job simplif ic ation and work stu dy methods, so that in their
work all employees will b e ab le to employ systematic methods to improv e
444 produ c tiv ity.
COMBINING METHODSANDTASKS
With this point c lear in ou r minds, let u s now tu rn to the qu estion of how
the b asic "b u ilding b loc ks" of method stu dy and work measu rement c an b e pu t
together in designing job s, and how work organization c an b est b e shaped in
other respec ts. We shall div ide this disc u ssion into f ou r parts, c orresponding to
f ou r organizational lev els:
D Design of indiv idu al work roles.
D Design of grou p work in produ c tion.
Design of produ c t-oriented organizations.
D Design of enterprise-oriented organizations.
A detailed examination of these topic s f alls ou tside the sc ope of this
introdu c tory b ook, and we shall limit ou rselv es here to a disc u ssion of some of
their b asic f eatu res.
2. Design of individual work roles
Guidelines in the design of jobs: Some examples
In pu tting together an indiv idu al work role with the help of the f u ndamental
b u ilding b loc ks we hav e b een disc u ssing (that is, the c omponent parts of eac h
task and the desc ription of methods), we may adopt a nu mb er of c riteria as
gu idelines f or satisf ac tory job design.
Most important are the ec onomic aspec ts. With the help of systematic
work stu dy the c omponent parts of a task are pu t together in su c h a way that as
little time as possib le is requ ired to c arry it ou t. In this b ook we hav e so f ar
c onf ined ou r disc u ssion to this point.
Howev er, the design of indiv idu al work roles is too c omplex to b e
ef f ec ted with the aid of a single c riterion that is, what appears on paper to b e
the shortest time needed to c arry ou t a task. In prac tic e, nu merou s dif f erent
f ac tors mu st b e c onsidered.
S ome of these are pu rely prac tic al c onsiderations, su c h as the need f or
dif f erent types of mac hinery, the natu re of the dif f erent c omponents of eac h
job , and so on. For example, if it takes ten minu tes to c arry ou t a partic u lar
c omponent part of the task and if this c omponent part is repeated 1,000 times
within a 50-person work grou p, it is easy to see that the resu lts of this stu dy
mu st b e c omb ined with other inf ormation ab ou t the work situ ation in order to
arriv e at a reasonab le div ision of the task among the v ariou s memb ers of the
grou p. This example is giv en merely to indic ate the prob lem, whic h we shall
not examine here. There is, howev er, one spec ial grou p of f ac tors that we mu st
look at more c losely: namely, the worker's needs, pref erenc es, experienc e of
the work, and reac tion to dif f erent kinds of work organization. This is a new
and important dimension, sinc e it implies the need to adapt work design to the
indiv idu al's wishes and c apac ities, to c reate job s in indu stry that of f er a
reasonab le c hallenge, and to prov ide the worker with the c hanc e of a working
c limate that of f ers some degree of satisf ac tion. The reader will no dou b t rec all
that this point was made earlier, in Chapter 4. Here we c an identif y three
important f ac tors that c an lead to inc reased job satisf ac tion: 445
D A moderate amou nt of v ariety in the work done.
D Dec ou pling of worker/mac hine systems, that is, f reedom f rom b eing tied
to a mac hine du ring the entire working day.
D The opportu nity to integrate v ariou s serv ic e and au xiliary tasks into a
produ c tion job .
These three topic s will b e treated separately b elow.
Variety at work
If work is to b e done well, there mu st b e a reasonab le c orrelation b etween the
job and the person doing that job . A job that c onsists of only a f ew simple
mov ements and takes only a f ew sec onds to do c an c ertainly b e easy to learn.
At f irst sight, it may seem that this is an ef f ic ient way of organizing the work.
Bu t this type of job is hardly ef f ic ient f rom a more prac tic al v iewpoint. It will
rapidly b ec ome monotonou s and tiring, and su c h extreme spec ialization
requ ires long ru ns, plu s a degree of stru c tu ral stab ility and produ c tion v olu me
that is not of ten f ou nd in reality. It is mu c h b etter to c reate work roles that
display a reasonab le amou nt of v ariety, that requ ire something f rom the worker
in terms of learning and that are adapted to reality in terms of the tru e length of
ru ns, a stab le produ c t mix and inf requ ent produ c tion distu rb anc es.
There is no c omplete, c lear answer to the qu estion of how a task c yc le
that giv es ju st the right amou nt of v ariety shou ld b e designed. Howev er, a
stu dy of the f ollowing f ac tors of f ers some gu idanc e in b ringing ab ou t
improv ements:
D the b asic stru c tu re of the tec hnic al system;
D the pattern of the physic al load;
D the inf ormation c ontent of the task;
D the b alanc e b etween physic al and intellec tu al task c omponents;
D the demand f or learning and the need f or indiv idu al dev elopment
opportu nities.
In many produ c tion tec hnologies the b asic stru c tu re of the tec hnic al
system is an important determining f ac tor. By way of example, we c an c onsider
f inal assemb ly in a c ar f ac tory. In su c h systems, the c ontent of an indiv idu al
operativ e's work c yc le is of ten determined b y the tec hnic al system. If 500 c ars
are to b e assemb led in 500 minu tes, the work c yc le at eac h indiv idu al
workstation mu st b e one minu te long. The most u su al arrangement in Eu ropean
and Americ an c ar f ac tories has b een to alloc ate a work v olu me of
approximately one minu te to eac h workstation, and to hav e one assemb ly
worker at eac h station. With su c h an arrangement, eac h indiv idu al at the
allotted workstation will perf orm assemb ly work equ iv alent to approximately
one minu te, and this will b e repeated ov er and ov er again a f ew hu ndred times
a day. To ensu re that ev eryone will hav e time f or a c omplete work c yc le eac h
time, it is impossib le to allot a v olu me of work to eac h station equ iv alent to a
f u ll minu te, and a saf ety margin of 10-15 per c ent is of ten allowed. S inc e the
assemb ly line ru ns at a f ixed speed, any operation whic h is not c ompleted at a
446 partic u lar workstation will resu lt in qu ality def ec ts in the f inished c ar.
In Japanese c ar f ac tories (as well as in transplants in Eu rope and the
United S tates) a rather dif f erent work organization has b een pu t into prac tic e at
these mac hine-c ontrolled assemb ly lines. In these plants, a type of grou p
organization is employed in su c h a way that a grou p of assemb ly workers is
jointly responsib le f or one part of the assemb ly work, and that within su c h a
grou p one partic u lar assemb ly worker ac c ompanies the c ar along a nu mb er of
f ollowing workstations. This lengthens the job c yc le despite the f ac t that the
tec hnic al system keeps the material mov ing at a c ertain rate. In these Japanese
assemb ly plants, it is also normal f or eac h worker to b e ab le to stop the whole
of the assemb ly system b y pressing a "red b u tton" if something goes wrong.
Assemb ly lines in c ar f ac tories and other similar produ c tion systems f or
assemb ly in long series are an area where the c hoic e of work organization has
of ten b een disc u ssed, and where a v ariety of dif f erent solu tions has b een tested.
Howev er, as always, the b est solu tion in eac h indiv idu al c ase will depend on
the spec if ic c irc u mstanc es at that partic u lar plant.
Howev er, the f ixed-speed assemb ly line is not the only tec hnologic al
system that af f ec ts the time c yc le. S hort-c yc le worker/mac hine operations, su c h
as those c arried ou t with ec c entric shaf t presses, of f er another example of the
need to reshape the entire tec hnic al system in order to apply time c yc les that
are of a c omf ortab le length f or the operativ e. This also will b e disc u ssed later.
It shou ld b e emphasized that v ariety in the time c yc le is primarily a
su b jec tiv e c onc ept and theref ore c annot b e prec isely def ined, either tec hnic ally
or mathematic ally. Howev er, it is more or less c losely related to other f ac tors
su c h as:
length of the time c yc le;
D size of the ru n;
D f requ enc y of rec u rrenc e of a produ c t (that is, the time that passes b ef ore
the same produ c t is worked on again);
D amou nt and distrib u tion, in repetitiv e job s, of non-repetitiv e tasks;
D dif f erenc es in work stru c tu re and job c ontent b etween dif f erent series.
Example. In an enterprise manu f ac tu ring elec tric al c irc u it b reakers, two
alternativ es f or the organization of the work were identif ied. The f irst wou ld
requ ire that assemb ly b e done in f ou r separate job s, eac h c arried ou t at a
spec ially b u ilt and spec ially equ ipped workstation. At the last of these
workstations the assemb ly work is c ompleted and a c ontrol c hec k is made. In
this type of arrangement the c yc les are ab ou t 10 sec onds in length. V ariations
within c yc les are v irtu ally non-existent.
The sec ond alternativ e wou ld requ ire that the entire c irc u it b reaker
assemb ly b e done at eac h of the workstations (i.e. one job at eac h workstation).
In order to arriv e at this solu tion, the materials su pply system wou ld hav e to b e
c ompletely reorganized. By planning the work in this way the c yc le is
lengthened to 40 sec onds. In addition, opportu nities f or v arying the c yc les
inc rease markedly.
Af ter an analysis of the prac tic al c onsequ enc es of the two c hoic es at the
workplac e, the sec ond alternativ e was c hosen. The dec ision is signif ic ant, sinc e 447
it exemplif ies the ef f orts that hav e b een made in rec ent years to limit monotony
in job s and to ac hiev e a prac tic al b alanc e of working c onditions.
One important point in an analysis of this kind is the f ac t that people are
dif f erent. At any one time the people at the same workplac e will present qu ite
dif f erent c harac teristic s. And if we stu dy the same person at dif f erent times
du ring his or her working lif e, we shall f ind signif ic ant dif f erenc es in
perf ormanc e. This is an important, indeed f u ndamental element in the design of
indiv idu al work roles. Job s shou ld b e v aried, and shou ld present dif f erent
degrees of c omplexity to those who exec u te them. Thu s people c an f ind a work
role and a lev el of dif f ic u lty that matc h their own aptitu des and pref erenc es. In
addition, an indiv idu al c an b egin working in a c ertain job that has a c ertain
lev el of dif f ic u lty, and c an then mov e steadily to more c hallenging job s as he or
she dev elops f u rther.
Decoupling worker/machine systems
The rigidity of the links on a worker in a worker/mac hine system may b e du e
to sev eral f ac tors. The person c an b e tied to the workplac e in a geographic al
sense it may b e impossib le to b e ab sent f rom the station f or ev en a short
time. The worker c an also b e tied b y the method it may b e impossib le to
v ary the order in whic h operations are c arried ou t. And there c an also b e a
restric tion in terms of time it may b e nec essary to c arry ou t c ertain
operations at f ixed times.
The degree of rigidity with whic h the worker is tied c an b e "planned"
that is, the operativ e and the mac hine are c onsc iou sly and delib erately tied
together in a worker/mac hine system b u t in many c ases the rigidity is qu ite
"u nplanned". In some c ases this u nplanned rigidity arises f rom a f au lt in the
tec hnic al system; the operational stab ility of the mac hines may b e so poor that
the mac hines mu st b e c ontinu ou sly tended, u su ally with only simple
mov ements. Unplanned rigidity c an, howev er, b e redu c ed throu gh the u se of
more operationally reliab le tec hnology.
Three dif f erent types of solu tion may b e of f ered f or this prob lem of rigid
worker/mac hine links:
D c omplete dec ou pling throu gh inc reased mec hanization;
D u se of tec hnic al au xiliary equ ipment to f ree the operativ e f rom the
mac hine;
D dec ou pling throu gh c ontac t and c ooperation among operativ es.
L et u s examine more c losely eac h of these three c hoic es.
Complete decoupling through mechanization
Dec ou pling of this kind requ ires heav y c apital inv estment. Theref ore,
produ c tion proc esses that are to b e handled in this way mu st b e c harac terized
b y mass produ c tion, extremely short c yc les and sev ere rigidity and monotony.
In su c h c ases mec hanization means the c omplete elimination of all hu man
interv ention.
Howev er, new tec hnology has markedly inc reased the sc ope f or what may
b e au tomated. It is, in partic u lar, the mu c h improv ed resetting f eatu res of
448 mac hines and handling equ ipment whic h hav e made it possib le to employ
au tomated solu tions, ev en f or short series produ c tion. In many c ases, it might
b e said that it has b ec ome possib le to employ mass produ c tion methods on a
small sc ale.
One example of this is the indu strial rob ot. Au tomated handling of
workpiec es in produ c tion equ ipment at earlier stages of indu strial dev elopment
took the f orm of adv anc ed mec hanic al systems whic h had b een designed
spec if ic ally f or the produ c tion equ ipment and the produ c ts that were to b e
handled. These installations were u nab le to c ope with v ariations in produ c ts,
and the high c ost of su c h installations made v ery long series nec essary. The
indu strial rob ot, on the other hand, is a f lexib le piec e of equ ipment f or handling
tasks, and it c an b e reprogrammed relativ ely easily and qu ic kly f or new
mov ements, new ob jec ts or new grips. Thu s, produ c tion equ ipment serv ed b y
an indu strial rob ot c an deal with c onsiderab le v ariations within a produ c t
range, and the series length f or eac h v ariation within the range need not b e
espec ially great.
The indu strial rob ot has theref ore opened u p promising new au tomation
potential, b oth within produ c tion (su c h as grinding, polishing and spot-
welding) and f or materials handling. In the same way, modern inf ormation
tec hnology has inf lu enc ed the dev elopment of produ c tion and handling
equ ipment within many areas, and the potential f or au tomation of working
tasks in mixed produ c tion has greatly inc reased. In general, this dev elopment
has meant that the role of the worker is b ec oming more and more su perv isory
in c harac ter.
Ev en the ac tu al assemb ly work, whic h is perhaps the most dif f ic u lt area,
has to a c ertain extent b een mec hanized. To date, this is mostly a matter of
c ertain simple assemb ly tasks, su c h as positioning and tightening of sc rews.
Howev er, dev elopments are progressing relativ ely rapidly, and new
opportu nities are c onstantly b eing opened u p as a resu lt of tec hnologic al
adv anc es. "S eeing" rob ots, whic h are now b eing b rou ght into u se in indu strial
applic ations, are expanding greatly the potential ares of u se sinc e the ob jec ts
whic h are to b e handled no longer need to b e positioned in exac tly the same
loc ation eac h time; the rob ot c an "see" where the ob jec t is.
Technical auxiliary equipment for the operator
This princ iple c an b e pu t into ef f ec t b y estab lishing buffers and magazines
in an integrated worker/mac hine system in order to redu c e dependenc e
relationships b etween workers and mac hines. (A b u f f er is a waiting point
loc ated b etween two c onsec u tiv e operations in the produ c tion f low; a magazine
is a point of ac c u mu lation loc ated within an operation and prov iding au tomatic
f eeding of material to the mac hine.) The key is to c reate proc esses that c an
ac c ept v ariations in the speed at whic h dif f erent sec tions of the line mov e.
Both b u f f ers and magazines are c harac terized b y an "ac c u mu lation of
produ c ts f or c ontinu ed proc essing" whic h c an b e c ompletely identic al in their
tec hnic al design.
S inc e b u f f ers and magazines are plac ed at dif f erent points in the
worker/mac hine system, their c harac teristic s as ac c u mu lators of time are
inf lu enc ed b y dif f erent types of time gaps in the proc ess (f igu re 148). 449
Figure 1 48. Some examples of the building of buffer stock in manufacturing
operations
Sketch of a typical magazine Sketch of a workstation with a
simple sliding rack or storage space
3 800
Sketch of a high-stacking
machine used as a buffer
Sketch of a buffering track
45 0
A b u f f er makes it possib le to ac c u mu late:
D the waiting times c reated when two operativ es on opposite sides of the
b u f f er work at dif f erent speeds; and
D the waiting times c reated b ec au se the qu antities of work done at two
stations are not ab solu tely identic al,
A magazine makes it possib le to ac c u mu late:
waiting times c reated b ec au se an operativ e works at a dif f erent speed
f rom the ov erall speed of the tec hnic al proc ess; and
D waiting times c reated b ec au se an operativ e is f orc ed to wait while a
mac hine does its part of the work.
Decoupling through contact and cooperation
Finally, dec ou pling c an b e ac hiev ed if , throu gh job rotation and mu tu al
c ooperation and in agreement with management, workers are ab le to
interc hange tasks and assignments.
Integrati on of produ cti on and au xi li ary tasks
In the design of indiv idu al work roles it c an of ten b e adv antageou s to inc lu de
v ariou s serv ic e and au xiliary tasks in produ c tion job s. This leads to greater
v ariety f or the indiv idu al in his or her job .
Au xiliary tasks that are most of ten c omb ined in this way are:
D maintenanc e of mac hines and tools;
D setting-u p of mac hines;
D handling of materials near the workstation;
D inv entory work;
qu ality c ontrol.
L et u s disc u ss some of these au xiliary tasks f u rther.
When we speak of maintenanc e in produ c tion positions, we are ref erring
to measu res that c an b e taken to redu c e the nu mb er and extent of produ c tion
errors. Maintenanc e c an inc lu de a regu lar inspec tion of the system in order to
f ind errors and take remedial measu res. Maintenanc e c an also inc lu de repairs
of parts so as to make it possib le to ac hiev e the estab lished prec ision norms
requ ired in produ c tion. In addition, it c an inc lu de a statistic al f ollow-u p in
order to improv e the c apac ity u tilization of equ ipment.
The possib ility of inc lu ding mac hine setting-u p and similar preparatory
f u nc tions in the ordinary operativ e's role depends on a nu mb er of f ac tors,
among whic h are the f ollowing:
D degree of dif f ic u lty and time av ailab le f or the setting-u p operation;
D f requ enc y of setting-u p operations;
D degree of rigidity in other produ c tion tasks;
D need f or spec ial au xiliary equ ipment to u ndertake this work.
Example. A metalworking enterprise c ondu c ts its operations with the help
of adv anc ed c ompu ter-c ontrolled equ ipment. In one department operativ es
were trained to programme the c ompu ter equ ipment themselv es. They were 451
thu s ab le to handle the traditional job as well as the programming of the
mac hine tool's c ompu ter equ ipment. They theref ore work b oth as programmers
and as mac hine operators. This example shows that ev en moderately dif f ic u lt
and spec ialized tasks c an sometimes b e integrated into a normal produ c tion
job .
Regarding the possib le integration of material-handling work near the
workstation, the f ollowing f ac tors are some of the more dec isiv e:
D c harac ter of the produ c t;
G v olu me of materials to b e handled;
D design of the transport system;
D degree of rigidity in the produ c tion operation.
Q u ality ac tiv ities c an also b e integrated to a v arying extent in the
produ c tion proc ess. This applies to b oth inspec tion and measu rement tasks, as
well as ac tion to c orrec t any f au lty produ c ts that might b e produ c ed. Rec ently
in indu stry, and as mentioned in Chapter 13, we hav e seen a dramatic u pswing
in interest in dev eloping qu ality-c onsc iou sness on the part of all employees in
the produ c tion organization and in inv olv ing all employees in ef f orts to
produ c e f au lt-f ree produ c ts direc tly in the produ c tion organization. Known as
zero-def ec t strategies, these are an important aspec t of c u rrent management
strategies. This dev elopment af f ec ts the work organization in that the separate
qu ality organization whic h u sed to b e responsib le f or qu ality inspec tion af ter
produ c tion and c orrec tion of f au lts is now tending to b ec ome smaller and
qu ality work is instead b eing integrated into produ c tion.
These are some examples showing how direc t produ c tion job s c an b e
su pplemented with v ariou s au xiliary and serv ic e tasks. There are no simple,
standard solu tions in this area; eac h c ase mu st b e examined in the light of its
spec ial c harac teristic s. Howev er, the gu iding princ iple in making these
dec isions is that a prac tic al and smoothly f u nc tioning arrangement mu st b e
f easib le, that job s c an b e b roadened su f f ic iently to inc lu de ev eryday v ariations
and that they mu st not b e exc essiv ely monotonou s.
3. Design of group work in production
Advantages of group work
Onc e indiv idu al job s hav e b een designed, the next logic al step is to c oordinate
these roles. One method of c oordination that has attrac ted inc reasing interest in
rec ent years is the tying together of indiv idu al job s into work grou ps.
Organizational desc riptions of a c omplete work grou p spec if y whic h roles are
inc lu ded in the grou p and the princ iples ac c ording to whic h these roles shou ld
b e c oordinated. G rou p work in produ c tion c an hav e many adv antages. Here we
shall tou c h only on some of the more important of them.
The most important adv antage is the way in whic h ob jec tiv es are
estab lished and the resu lts measu red. In this c onnec tion it mu st b e b orne in
mind that it is mu c h easier to f ormu late appropriate ob jec tiv es f or a grou p than
452 f or an indiv idu al job .
Another adv antage is that the leeway f or v ariations in the indiv idu al's
ac tiv ities inc reases and that a stronger sense of partic ipation in the larger
proc ess c an b e experienc ed than when eac h person is tied to a limited
indiv idu al task. People working in a grou p hav e a b etter c hanc e to c ooperate
c ontinu ou sly in improv ing methods and eliminating u nnec essary work.
Attitu des c an c hange as team spirit dev elops.
A f u rther merit of grou p organization is that the organization's c apac ity to
adapt itself to c hange inc reases. An enterprise is in a state of c ontinu ou s
c hange. The management alone c annot c ompletely c ontrol, manage and f ollow
u p this proc ess of adaptation to c hange; the organization itself mu st possess a
strong b u ilt-in c apac ity f or self -adaptation.
These are some of the most important reasons why ideas of grou p work in
produ c tion hav e b een gaining grou nd in the design of work organization. Bu t
grou p work is not su itab le ev erywhere. In c ertain types of produ c tion system it
is an exc ellent c onc ept, while in others it is c ompletely u nworkab le. L et u s
look at some models of produ c tion systems and see how grou p work might f it
with spec if ic working c onditions.
1
Seven production system models: Where does group work fit?
We shall div ide these produ c tion systems sc hematic ally into sev en main types,
and then u se this c lassif ic ation to disc u ss where grou p produ c tion is most
su itab le as an organizational c onc ept. We may ref er to these sev en models as
f ollows:
D The mac hine-pac ed line.
D The worker-pac ed line.
D The au tomated proc ess.
D The c onc entrated operation.
D The div ersif ied line grou p.
D The serv ic e grou p.
D The c onstru c tion grou p.
L et u s stu dy b rief ly the requ isite c harac teristic s f or grou p work in eac h of
these c ategories.
The machine- paced line
This type of arrangement is most of ten f ou nd in situ ations where material
handling is an important f ac tor and where the material-handling f u nc tion
oc c u pies a dominant role. The c lassic al example of this type is the motor c ar
f ac tory's f inal assemb ly on a f ixed-speed assemb ly line.
In this type of produ c tion system a high degree of mec hanized handling is
c hosen (f igu re 149). The f low of materials and the organization of work are
theref ore c ompletely u nder the c ontrol of the tec hnic al system. Until only a f ew
' These models are taken f rom Hans L indestad and Jan-Peder Norstedt: Autonomous groups and
payment by result (S toc kholm, S wedish Employers' Conf ederation, 1973). For f u rther details see also
G eorge Kanawaty (d.): Managing and developing new forms of work organisation (G enev a, IL O, 2nd d.,
1981). 453
Figure 1 49. Machine-paced line
\
/
Operatives
\Operational
^limits
Mechanically
controlled material-handling
systems
45 4
years ago this was the only assemb ly arrangement u sed in situ ations where a
high v olu me of materials was the ru le.
The disadv antage of this system is that the indiv idu al's work role tends to
b e stric tly limited and the pac e of the work is in all essentials c ontrolled b y the
tec hnic al system. The most important disadv antage of su c h produ c tion systems
is the way in whic h the operativ es experienc e their work. Other disadv antages
inc lu de the extreme sensitiv ity of su c h produ c tion lines to distu rb anc es. A
promising approac h to ov erc oming this sensitiv ity c an b e seen in those
methods, of ten applied in Japan, whic h permit any operativ e to stop the
assemb ly line. Experienc e shows that the nu mb er of times these systems are
stopped is still low. S inc e ev eryone is aware of the drastic ef f ec ts of stopping
the entire system, they do ev erything within their power to av oid hav ing to u se
their "red b u tton".
Bu t produ c tion systems of this type nev ertheless always remain sensitiv e
to distu rb anc es. These produ c tion c hains are only as strong as their weakest
link, and it requ ires only a small inf lu enza epidemic in the region where the
f ac tory is loc ated to u pset the whole system. Moreov er, it is dif f ic u lt to make
c hanges in su c h produ c tion lines.
The adv antages are short throu gh-pu t times, the ef f ic ient u tilization of
spac e, mac hines and au xiliary equ ipment and, c onsequ ently, the ef f ic ient
operation that is ac hiev ed throu gh the extreme div ision of work. This f ar-
reac hing spec ialization also makes it worthwhile to pu sh the dev elopment of
methods and hand tools as f ar as possib le. S pec ialization also c reates the b est
possib le c onditions f or au tomation of tasks, whereas a work organization in
whic h the work is more v aried, on the other hand, makes au tomation more
dif f ic u lt.
Du ring rec ent years a c onsiderab le nu mb er of attempts to "loosen u p" the
assemb ly line hav e b een made with the help of dif f erent innov ativ e
arrangements a point to whic h we shall retu rn later.
Figure 1 5 0. Worker-paced line
Material stockpiles^
Manually controlled
material-handling
system .^^.
The worker- paced line
If we imagine an assemb ly line f rom whic h we hav e remov ed the mec hanized
c ontrol and f low speed and introdu c ed some inv entories b etween workstations,
we hav e a type of f u nc tional arrangement that is c ommon in many c ompanies
(in the c lothing and metalworking indu stries, f or example) and whic h is
illu strated in f igu re 150.
In this sort of produ c tion system the c ontrol is less rigorou s and the
existenc e of b u f f ers makes it possib le to adapt the indiv idu al work pac e in a
c ompletely dif f erent way f rom work on an assemb ly line. In su c h a system
work organization b ased on produ c tion grou ps is an exc ellent arrangement.
Within a grou p made u p of indiv idu al work roles, operativ es c an help eac h
other, take c are of work distu rb anc es, ev en ou t peaks and v alleys of work f lows
and striv e f or a good c ommon work resu lt. Howev er, it is nec essary to b e
aware of the risk of the v olu me of work-in-progress inc reasing so that the
ov erall f inanc ial equ ation is less f av ou rab le.
The automated process
If it were possib le to mec hanize all the manu ally exec u ted tasks on a
c onv entional assemb ly line, the resu lt wou ld b e a kind of proc ess line where
the indiv idu al's work wou ld b e c onc erned primarily with su perv ision and
c ontrol. Proc ess lines of this type are extensiv ely u sed, partic u larly in the steel,
c hemic als, and paper and pu lp indu stries (f igu re 151).
On a proc ess line the possib ilities of c reating meaningf u l grou p work are
of ten exc ellent. Operativ es rely greatly on one another and possess a c ommon
goal. Working together to attain this goal is a c lear-c u t nec essity. One f ac tor
that may sometimes make grou p c ooperation dif f ic u lt is an exc essiv e distanc e
b etween grou p memb ers. A key qu estion in this type of produ c tion system is
the relationship of direc t produ c tion tasks and maintenanc e tasks exec u ted in
the work organization. The higher the degree of mec hanization, the f ewer 455
Figure 1 5 1 . Automated process
Characteristics
Process
45 6
produ c tion workers there are; b u t the nu mb er of maintenanc e workers normally
inc reases at almost the same rate as the nu mb er of produ c tion workers
dec reases.
Functional layout
A c onstant element in the three types of system that we hav e disc u ssed u p to
now is the grou ping together of produ c tion equ ipment along the produ c tion
f low so that dif f erent types of mac hines are plac ed in the c orrec t order along
the direc tion of f low. Howev er, if we grou p the mac hines in su c h a way that all
mac hines of a c ertain type are c onc entrated in one department, all mac hines of
another type in another department, and so on, we ob tain a c onc entration of
eac h type of operation in one plac e (this is the "f u nc tional layou t" ref erred to
earlier in the b ook), as illu strated b y f igu re 152. In this layou t the produ c t to b e
worked is sent throu gh the v ariou s departments in tu rn the drilling
department, the tu rning department, the milling department, and so f orth.
This type of c onc entrated operation of ten oc c u rs in b atc h produ c tion,
where series are short and the produ c ts v aried.
In this type of produ c tion system it is extremely dif f ic u lt to organize
meaningf u l grou p work. In ev eryday reality eac h indiv idu al is b ou nd to his or
her own indiv idu al job and workstation. G enu ine grou p work with spontaneou s
interac tion b etween dif f erent roles and role oc c u pants is v irtu ally impossib le to
b ring ab ou t. For sev eral dec ades, this work organization represented the
dominating approac h to mixed produ c tion with moderately long series. More
rec ently, howev er, it has b ec ome less c ommon, of ten b eing replac ed b y
produ c t- and f low-oriented organizational systems.
The diversified line group
In many c ases the c onditions af f ec ting produ c tion are su c h that neither highly
dev eloped line grou ping nor an adv anc ed degree of operation grou ping is
Figure 1 5 2. Concentrated operation
(8)
minis'

su itab le. Instead, an intermediate type is c hosen what we may c all the
"div ersif ied line grou p". Produ c tion is c onc entrated in an arrangement that is
primarily f low oriented, b u t in order that it may c arry ou t many c omb inations
of tasks, some c ritic al operational stages are repeated two or more times. In this
way a system is ob tained that c an, with a high degree of ef f ic ienc y, c omb ine
the c apac ity of the f low grou p to ac c ept and c hannel a large v olu me of
materials with the c apac ity of the f u nc tional layou t to exec u te all c onc eiv ab le
produ c tion assignments.
In this type of produ c tion system, grou p work is of ten an exc ellent
organizational c onc ept. With this arrangement the div ision of work b etween
v ariou s indiv idu als mu st b e adapted c ontinu ou sly to v arying c onditions. Bu t
this c annot b e done entirely b y management, and a su b stantial proportion mu st
oc c u r spontaneou sly at the initiativ e of the memb ers of the grou p. In a grou p
organization the c apac ity f or su c h spontaneou s self -adaptation c an gradu ally b e
generated.
The service group
Conditions within serv ic e-produ c ing organizations dif f er in sev eral respec ts
f rom the types of ac tiv ity disc u ssed earlier. V ariou s f orms of serv ic es are pro-
du c ed in large sec tors, su c h as c ommerc e, transport, hotels and restau rants, and
motor v ehic le repair shops. Bu t serv ic e f u nc tions also oc c u r in manu f ac tu ring
indu stry, a good example b eing repair and maintenanc e ac tiv ities.
The serv ic e f u nc tions of a produ c tion u nit mu st b e highly adaptab le to
v arying demands. G enerally, the tasks to b e done v ary in natu re. The workload
is u nev en and it is dif f ic u lt to plan the work in detail.
G rou p organization is a good c onc ept in this type of situ ation also. The
work grou p c an itself handle mu c h of the v ariation that shows u p in the inf low
of tasks, in rou tine work planning and in other c irc u mstanc es that tend to v ary. 45 7
The construction group
For the f inal type in ou r c lassif ic ation, let u s see how c onstru c tion operations
are c arried ou t. In this c ase the produ c t itself is the c entre f or the whole
organization, whic h is b u ilt u p arou nd the c onstru c tion ob jec t itself . Work
organizations of this type are also f ou nd in indu stry, f or example in
manu f ac tu ring v ery large produ c ts (e.g. tu rb ines, ships, proc ess mac hinery).
In produ c tion work of this type, grou p work is not only a good idea: it is
the only c onc eiv ab le type of work organization. Moreov er, the work is v aried,
and the spontaneou s adaptation of the div ision of work and planning is su c h an
essential f eatu re that f lexib le grou p organization is the only possib le solu tion.
We hav e now b rief ly examined the possib ilities of grou p work in dif f erent
types of produ c tion systems. We hav e seen that grou p work is more su itab le in
some c ases than in others.
One of the lines of dev elopment that has b een partic u larly adv oc ated in
disc u ssions ab ou t grou p work in produ c tion is the degree to whic h grou ps c an
b e organized along the direc tion of produ c tion f low. G rou ping of this type
makes it possib le to direc t the grou p's interests and striv ings toward a good
c ommon produ c tion resu lt. We might look rather more c losely at the
possib ilities of organizing su c h grou ps, either in assemb ly work or in mac hine
shops. Ou r pu rpose in taking u p these examples f or spec ial disc u ssion is not to
prov ide ready-made solu tions b u t to point ou t a line of dev elopment that
nowadays is assu ming partic u lar importanc e.
Flow groups in assembly work: Some trends and examples
In assemb ly work, f low grou ps hav e always b een the most natu ral
arrangement. L et u s take f inal assemb ly of a motor c ar, f or example. When this
arrangement was f irst c onc eiv ed it was qu ite natu ral to introdu c e an assemb ly
system that mov ed b eside a materials inv entory, with the dif f erent c omponents
b eing assemb led on the c ar as it mov ed past. This is an extreme example of
f low orientation in assemb ly work. The f low of materials was c ompletely
dec isiv e in arranging the work.
Bu t an arrangement of this type c an also hav e its disadv antages. The work
is stric tly c ontrolled and the c yc le time is normally v ery short. Howev er,
espec ially in Japanese c ompanies, there are c ou ntless examples of grou p
organizations where the grou p memb ers mov e with their work along the
produ c tion line to ov erc ome this disadv antage.
At su b sequ ent stages of dev elopment, ef f orts were made to introdu c e
b u f f ers in the produ c tion line in order to c reate greater f reedom in dif f erent
parts of the produ c tion system. This plac ed new demands on the system, and
v ariou s tec hnic al solu tions were adv oc ated to separate the dif f erent links in the
c hain f rom eac h other.
With ref erenc e to ou r prev iou s disc u ssion of dif f erent produ c tion system
models, we may say that the introdu c tion of b u f f er arrangements in motor c ar
assemb ly c hanges the produ c tion system f rom a "mac hine-pac ed line" to a
"worker-pac ed line". The f ollowing is an example f rom a newly c onstru c ted
458 motor c ar engine f ac tory.
Figure 1 5 3. Assembly of motor car engines
"Lighter" components
are distributed
direct to assembly
groups
Assembly groups
Engine blocks,
crankshafts and
similar
components are
placed on the
transport
trolleys which
move along the
track
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L llillt
\ /^ /\ / \ / \ i Output of finished
engines
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Assembly trolleys
Assembly of motor car engines
The assemb ly proc ess c an b e su mmarized as f ollows. S ev en assemb ly grou ps
are organized b eside an au tomatic transport trac k loop. Exc ept f or c ertain steps
whic h are handled b ef ore the loop stage, c omplete engines are assemb led in
eac h grou p (f igu re 153).
Up to six engines c an b e assemb led at the same time within eac h
produ c tion grou p. Du ring the assemb ly itself there is no mec hanized c ontrol of
the f low as in a mov ing assemb ly line. Engines are mov ed manu ally while
b eing assemb led. When an engine has b een c ompletely assemb led in a grou p, it
is transported au tomatic ally to a testing station whic h is c ommon to all grou ps.
At the same time it is au tomatic ally registered that an engine has lef t the grou p
and a new assemb ly trolley is mov ed f orward to that grou p on the transport
trac k.
The adv antages and disadv antages of this type of assemb ly proc ess, as
c ompared with the traditional assemb ly line, are as f ollows:
(1) This arrangement is more f lexib le and less su sc eptib le to interru ptions
and f lu c tu ations in the produ c tion f low.
(2) It of f ers good possib ilities f or job expansion and a more stimu lating kind
of grou p work. Eac h of the small loops c ontains a produ c tion grou p, a
"gang" whose memb ers c ooperate c losely in ev eryday tasks and
themselv es take c are of su c h c hores as the adaptation of work to c hanging
c onditions. One of the sev en grou ps is a training grou p. In this grou p
there is a f airly stric t and extensiv e div ision of tasks b ased on detailed
instru c tions. In the other grou ps the div ision of work is made on the b asis
of the ab ilities of indiv idu al memb ers. There is theref ore an opportu nity
to adapt the design of job s within the grou p to the workers' knowledge
and experienc e.
(3) It is not nec essary to c arry ou t an extensiv e and c ostly rec onstru c tion of
the line ev ery time the produ c tion v olu me has to b e inc reased or 459
Figure 1 5 4. Line grouping and parallel grouping
Line grouping
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Parallel grouping
dec reased. Capac ity c an b e expanded to a c ertain extent b y v arying the
nu mb ers of memb ers in the grou ps, u p to six. Fu rther inc reases in
c apac ity c an b e ac hiev ed b y inc reasing the nu mb er of grou ps.
(4) Job design is b etter adapted to the indiv idu al and shou ld theref ore lead to
b etter rec ru iting possib ilities, redu c ed personnel tu rnov er and less
ab senteeism.
(5) The new arrangement requ ires greater f loor spac e and higher goods-in-
proc ess inv entories than a mov ing assemb ly line.
(6) Capital inv estment is somewhat higher f or the new arrangement.
(7) Work ef f ic ienc y is lower than on a c onv entional assemb ly line b ec au se of
the lower degree of spec ialization and the f ragmentation of work
segments.
This example illu strates not only how b u f f er arrangements c an b e
introdu c ed b etween dif f erent job s and dif f erent c apac ities f or work of dif f erent
indiv idu als b u t also how dif f erent parts of an assemb ly line or an entire line
c an b e rearranged in a parallel pattern. The assemb ly of the engines is
c arried ou t at a nu mb er of stations, with an entire engine b eing assemb led at
eac h station.
The natu re of parallel produ c tion operations is made c lear in f igu re 154.
The most important adv antages of f ered b y the parallel arrangement of an
assemb ly operation (or parts of an assemb ly operation) are as f ollows:
(1) Production reliability it is natu rally less likely that sev eral
su b systems will all b e simu ltaneou sly af f ec ted b y distu rb anc es than that
460 one large system will b e so af f ec ted.
(2) Flexibility it is easier to handle dif f erent produ c t models, as well as
c hanges in produ c tion v olu me, in a parallel system.
(3) Work content and work organization the possib ility of c reating
tasks with a ric her c ontent, and of f inding natu ral div iding lines b etween
grou ps, is c onsiderab ly greater. Opportu nities f or produ c tion grou ps to
ac c ept responsib ility f or qu ality and the div ision of work, f or example, are
also greater. Bu t parallelization of assemb ly work is always ac c ompanied
b y a need f or larger f ac tory premises, b y more work-in-progress and a
lower systems lev el sinc e the same work has to b e div ided among sev eral
workstations.
Flow- oriented machine groups in batch production
In a traditional layou t in b atc h produ c tion, mac hines and personnel are grou ped
in departments, with eac h department c arrying ou t its own separate f u nc tion.
For example, one department may handle tu rning, another drilling, a third
milling, and so on. The adv antage of this arrangement is that it resu lts in great
f lexib ility and a high degree of u tilization of mac hine c apac ity. A major
disadv antage is that the v olu me of goods-in-proc ess, and theref ore the amou nt
of working c apital tied u p in these goods, is always su b stantial. Moreov er, the
work in a plant of this kind is highly f ragmented. It is dif f ic u lt f or an indiv idu al
or a grou p of indiv idu als to see the c onnec tion b etween their own work roles
and the ov erall ac tiv ity of the c ompany. It is theref ore dif f ic u lt f or indiv idu als
and grou ps to partic ipate ac tiv ely in work planning and in attaining the
estab lished goals of the c ompany.
Du ring rec ent years, interest has grown in f inding ways of grou ping
mac hinery and equ ipment arou nd f low-oriented grou ps in b atc h produ c tion,
that is, grou ps f ormed arou nd the manu f ac tu re of entire produ c ts or c omplex
produ c t c omponents. We shall disc u ss these trends b rief ly here.
What is a flow-oriented group? Figu re 155 illu strates the b asic princ iple.
With the help of a standard c lassif ic ation method, we hav e selec ted an
assortment of dif f erent c omponents, su c h as axles and f langes. In eac h of these
grou ps there are su b grou ps that resemb le eac h other as regards the types of
work requ ired. Mac hines, personnel and other resou rc es needed f or the
c omponents f rom metal su pplies to f inished parts are c ollec ted in one
u nit. Throu gh the c hoic e of su itab le c omponents, methods and equ ipment we
c an c reate a simple f low pattern.
With this manu f ac tu ring arrangement throu gh-pu t times, and theref ore
also the working c apital tied u p in the system, c an b oth b e redu c ed. Produ c tion
c an b e c arried ou t with a minimu m of su pplies of materials on hand this
applies partic u larly to the workstations themselv es. The lower the su pply of
materials on hand, the shorter and su rer the throu gh-pu t times b ec ome.
In a f u nc tional organization, eac h operativ e's task at an indiv idu al
mac hine and the job planned f or the mac hine are f ixed in adv anc e. A f low-
oriented grou p is a mac hine grou p f or the f inished manu f ac tu re of a mix of
c omponents. It c ontains more mac hines or workstations than there are
operativ es, and eac h operativ e shou ld pref erab ly master sev eral types of job .
This means that all the memb ers of the grou p mu st b e ab le to work relativ ely 461
Figure 1 5 5 . Schematic diagram of a flow-oriented group
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462
independently. The grou p memb ers themselv es hav e the responsib ility f or
div iding the work b etween them and seeing that material f lows throu gh the
grou p as it shou ld. Thu s the work of a now grou p relies heav ily on teamwork
and c ooperation.
Unlike a f u nc tional grou ping of mac hines, a f low grou p makes heav y
demands on indiv idu als. Bu t a f low grou p also makes possib le the c reation of
more attrac tiv e work roles f or grou p memb ers, b ec au se:
D they hav e a b etter ov erall v iew of their c ontrib u tion to the larger
produ c tion proc ess;
D they hav e more v ariety in their work b ec au se they c an mov e b etween
v ariou s tasks;
D they hav e the c hanc e of b eing trained f or new job s;
D they hav e inc reased c ontac t with their c olleagu es at work as well as with
the management.
Example. In f igu re 156 a f low grou p has b een c reated f or the manu f ac tu re
of pu mp axles in a metalworking c ompany. In this grou p approximately
Figure 1 5 6. Flow group for the manufacture of pump axles
Numerically
controlled lathe
Station for
outgoing
materials
Station for
incoming
materials
463
150 types of axle are produ c ed; howev er, these are b ased on ab ou t ten general
methods, of whic h the most widely u sed ac c ou nt f or ab ou t 65 artic les.
The simplest c omponents are manu f ac tu red f rom pre-c u t metal piec es
du ring a single trip throu gh the grou p. The most c omplic ated c omponents mu st
go throu gh the grou p three times. Operativ es c an easily retu rn parts to the
inc oming station with the help of roller c onv eyor trac ks. Two people work in
this grou p; their work is delineated b y the shape of the c onv eyor.
Howev er, f low-oriented manu f ac tu ring in short series requ ires c ertain
def inite c onditions and c annot b e u sed in all situ ations. For example, a
systematic stru c tu ring of the produ c t mix mu st b e made, to make it possib le to
c hannel c ertain main types of produ c t in a homogeneou s f low. Moreov er,
produ c tion mu st b e of su c h a natu re that an "u nb roken f low princ iple" c an b e
applied. If it is nec essary to b reak the material f low within the f low grou p at a
c ertain operational step and to send c omponents ou tside the grou p f or working,
the planning will natu rally b ec ome su b stantially more c omplic ated.
A key issu e in the f ormation of f low-oriented grou ps is the degree of
u tilization of equ ipment that c an b e attained, espec ially in the c ase of more
expensiv e produ c tion mac hinery. Here it is nec essary to weigh mac hine c osts
against the c osts of tying u p c apital in ev eryday work. Rec ently, the c lear trend
is towards a rec ognition of the f ac t that tying u p c apital in goods-in-proc ess
inv entories has reac hed su c h proportions that the order of priorities has had to
b e modif ied in f av ou r of the u se of f low grou ps.
A f u rther f ac tor of dec isiv e importanc e is of c ou rse the stab ility of the
produ c t mix. Flow grou ping of mac hinery has to b e b ased on the assu mption
that it is possib le to f oresee that a c ertain produ c t or produ c t c omponent will b e
manu f ac tu red in a c ertain f orm and ac c ording to c ertain methods. In c ases
where there is some u nc ertainty ab ou t these f ac tors, f low grou ping is not
possib le.
In c onc lu sion, we may again emphasize the f ac t that, in b atc h produ c tion,
there are of ten exc ellent reasons f or c hoosing f low grou ping of mac hinery and
operativ es rather than f u nc tional grou ping. The main reasons are that, in
prac tic e, f u nc tional grou ping is dif f ic u lt to c ope with f rom an administrativ e
point of v iew, that su b stantial amou nts of goods-in-proc ess tie u p c onsiderab le
working c apital and that job s in a f u nc tional shop tend to b e b oring and
monotonou s f or workers.
4. Design of product-oriented organizations
The company within the company
The c onc ept of produ c t-oriented organizations as a method of stru c tu ring
produ c tion in b atc h manu f ac tu ring is b ec oming inc reasingly c ommon. The
c onv entional method of organizing produ c tion of this type has b een in
f u nc tional shops or departments, that is, where mac hines with similar f u nc tions
464 are grou ped together.
In this arrangement, prec isely the opposite direc tion is taken. A produ c t-
oriented organization may b e def ined as a produ c tion u nit whic h is organized
and equ ipped in su c h a way that it c an independently manu f ac tu re a c ertain
f inished produ c t or f amily of produ c ts. To pu t it another way, the aim is to
grou p together, physic ally as well as administrativ ely, the entire produ c tion
c hain f or a spec if ic produ c t or grou p of produ c ts.
With ref erenc e to the prev iou s disc u ssion of f low grou ps in b atc h
produ c tion, we c an say that this is an organizational solu tion whic h f ollows the
same princ iple not only as regards produ c tion b u t also at the organizational
lev el. A produ c t-oriented organization is a larger u nit than a f low grou p,
manu f ac tu res more c omplex produ c ts or produ c t c omponents and c an c onsist
of sev eral f low grou ps.
A produ c t-oriented organization shou ld b e ab le to f u nc tion rather as a
c ompany within a c ompany. This means that it mu st oc c u py an independent
position v is--v is its env ironment. Complete manu f ac tu ring resou rc es shou ld
b e f ou nd so that the c omplete manu f ac tu ring c hain c an b e handled f rom
b eginning to end f or a c ertain produ c t or produ c t c omponent. It shou ld also
hav e its own administrativ e resou rc es and its own operating serv ic es, su c h as
maintenanc e, material handling, and so on.
By loc ating c omplete manu f ac tu ring resou rc es within the plant so that the
entire produ c tion c hain c an b e held together in one plac e, there is v ery little
dependenc e on other u nits and the c oordination of produ c ts c an b e taken c are
of within the organization. In this way a simple planning proc ess and short
throu ghpu t times c an b e attained. The u nit c an also b e tru ly independent with
regard to other working areas in the immediate v ic inity.
If this method is to work properly, howev er, all the mac hinery nec essary
to c arry ou t the c omplete produ c tion operation mu st b e av ailab le. In general,
the c apac ity of u tilization of most mac hines will b e lower than in a f u nc tional
shop. The possib le mac hine u tilization will thu s b e a key f ac tor in examining
the f easib ility of this organizational c onc ept, and shou ld b e weighed against its
other adv antages, espec ially as regards lower working c apital tied u p in
inv entories and simpler administration.
Flow patterns in a product-oriented organization: An example
By def inition, the produ c t-oriented organization ref ers to a c ertain f low of
produ c tion. Within the u nit itself , howev er, this f low c an b e more or less
div ided, and mac hine grou ping c an v ary f rom v ery pronou nc ed line grou ping
to a more operationally grou ped f u nc tional arrangement. L et u s look at two
examples of the organization of a produ c t shop.
In the f irst example, a heat exc hanger u nit, a systematic attempt has b een
made to b u ild the produ c tion stru c tu re on the b asis of f low grou ps. It prov ed
possib le to do so f or the main part of the manu f ac tu ring proc ess despite the f ac t
that it is heav ily inf lu enc ed b y c u stomer orders and that b atc hes are small.
Figu re 157 shows how an attempt was made to c ome as near as possib le to a
"straight-line" arrangement. This simplif ies material handling and giv es all
operativ es a good ov erall v iew of the manu f ac tu ring proc ess. 465
Figure 1 5 7. Layout for a heat exchanger unit
Inventory Buffer
In ou r sec ond example, relating to the manu f ac tu re of elec tric motors,
f igu re 158 shows a produ c t-oriented organization c onsisting of a nu mb er of
f low grou ps in whic h dif f erent c omponents are manu f ac tu red. Among the
princ iples on whic h the arrangement was b ased are the f ollowing:
D manu f ac tu re of c omponents in u nits f rom raw materials, eac h in its own
c omponent f low or f low grou p;
D c oordination of c omponent f low direc tly with the main f low withou t
material b u f f ers or interim inv entories;
D c ompletion of main f low with deliv ery of f inished motors.
This arrangement of the f low means that the qu antity of goods-in-proc ess
is v ery small, and the throu ghpu t times f rom the f irst operation to the f inished
motor is only two or three days. Fu rthermore, no interim inv entories are needed
f or assemb ly.
466
5. Design of enterprise-oriented organizations
We hav e now examined how on the b asis of the methods analyses and work
measu rement of work stu dy we c an design job s f or indiv idu als and teamwork
in produ c tion, and how an entire produ c tion system c onsisting of sev eral
produ c tion grou ps c an b e organized.
The produ c tion system is in its tu rn part of a larger system, an enterprise
system.
Figure 1 5 8. Manufacture of electric motors
Raw materials
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Finished goods
Here we will disc u ss three su b systems within the enterprise system whic h
are all of importanc e to the work organization of the produ c tion system:
D system f or produ c t design;
D system f or su b c ontrac tors and su ppliers;
D system f or marketing, sales and c u stomer c ontac t.
These three c omponents in the enterprise system are c losely c onnec ted to
the produ c tion system, f irst b ec au se they af f ec t the c onditions of the work
organization in the produ c tion system, and sec ond b ec au se dif f erent work
organization alters the c onditions af f ec ting these su b systems. In the f ollowing
sec tion we intend to examine these su b systems and their relationship to the
work organization.
Product design and its relationship with the
work organization in the production system
Work organization in the produ c tion system is determined to a great extent b y
the design of the produ c t to b e manu f ac tu red in the system. If the v iews and
experienc es of produ c tion are taken into ac c ou nt when the produ c t design is 467
estab lished, this will inf lu enc e the c onditions af f ec ting the way the work c an b e
organized. And, c onv ersely, experienc e and v iews f rom produ c t u se c an af f ec t
the methods of working and ju dgements in the produ c tion system. It is
theref ore important to ensu re that produ c t design and the work organization in
produ c tion interac t ef f ec tiv ely and work c losely together.
Here we examine two aspec ts of produ c t design whic h hav e attrac ted
c onsiderab le attention in rec ent years:
D design f or manu f ac tu ring;
D modu larization of c omplex produ c ts.
Design for manufacturing
As explained earlier, produ c t design is always an important c onsideration in
produ c tion planning. It has always b een part of the preparation and work
planning f or indu strial produ c tion to try to take ac c ou nt of produ c tion. For
example, attempts hav e always b een made to selec t those qu alities whic h not
only satisf y the produ c t requ irement, b u t are also su itab le f rom the point of
v iew of mac hining and proc essing. S elec tion of materials c an af f ec t the work
organization in su c h areas as whic h mac hine in a proc essing grou p shou ld b e
u sed, f or example.
Rec ently, more and more attention has b een dev oted to how c omplex
produ c ts shou ld b e designed to make produ c tion and assemb ly easier. An
example of this may b e taken f rom the c ar indu stry where in rec ent years
attempts hav e b een made to adapt the design of the c ar so that the assemb ly
work c an b e organized in a more ef f ic ient manner. By adopting this approac h,
some Japanese c ar manu f ac tu rers hav e b een ab le to improv e the organizational
ef f ic ienc y of their assemb ly plants b y c hanging the sequ enc e of the operations
inv olv ed and b y modif ying the assemb ly work, f or example, to inc lu de more
pre-assemb ly of c omponents. In many of these c ases, a more produ c tion-
f riendly c ar design has tu rned ou t to b e an important f ac tor inf lu enc ing the
design of the work organization in the c ar f ac tory.
Modularization of complex products
In princ iple, modu larization means that a large nu mb er of dif f erent produ c ts
c an b e of f ered to the c u stomer b y c omb ining a limited nu mb er of standardized
modu les in dif f erent ways. Modu larization was ref erred to b rief ly in Chapter
12. As explained earlier, modu larization is a means of meeting widely v arying
c u stomer demands in a way that enab les the manu f ac tu rer to improv e
produ c tion ef f ic ienc y at low c ost. An example may b e drawn f rom the indu stry
that manu f ac tu res pref ab ric ated hou ses; modu larization has b een pu shed a long
way in the c ompanies' ef f orts to of f er a wide range of c hoic es to the c u stomer
within the f ramework of relativ ely standardized produ c tion. Wall u nits, roof
designs, kitc hen modu les, b athroom modu les, garage modu les these are all
examples of stru c tu ral u nits whic h help indiv idu al c u stomers to design their
own dream hou se. Bu t f or the manu f ac tu rer, modu larization means that
ef f ec tiv e produ c tion grou ps c an b e b u ilt u p whic h c an spec ialize in the
produ c tion of a c ertain type of modu le at low c ost b y u sing ef f ic ient methods.
468 Eac h team c an also b e giv en responsib ility f or c hec king the qu ality of its own
ou tpu t and, where nec essary, c arrying ou t tests of the v ariou s systems. A
f u rther c onsequ enc e of spec ialization is that highly adv anc ed tools and
mec hanic al aids c an b e u sed.
If produ c t design were not modu larized in this way, produ c tion of a hou se
wou ld largely b ec ome a matter of handc raf t. In the past, these hou ses were of
c ou rse of ten b u ilt on site b y a team of b u ilding workers who demarc ated their
tasks in ac c ordanc e with the stric t c raf t traditions of earlier times (and it c ou ld
take months b ef ore the hou se was b u ilt).
With today's produ c tion methods, the hou se c an largely b e produ c ed
indoors in f ac tories where the work env ironment is satisf ac tory. The hou ses are
then transported in b u ilding b loc ks to the site and erec ted so qu ic kly that they
c an b e roof ed ov er in a day or two, or ev en within hou rs.
A sec ond example c omes f rom the elec tric al engineering indu stry. One
produ c t is an elec tric c ontrol b ox where c irc u it b reakers, relays, measu ring
dev ic es and c omponents f or adju sting, measu ring and c ontrolling elec tric al
installations, f or example in an indu strial enterprise, are all kept together. These
c ontrol b oxes u sed to b e manu f ac tu red ac c ording to the spec if ic ations laid
down b y an indiv idu al c u stomer in a spec if ic situ ation. The manu f ac tu rer
produ c ed what the c u stomer wanted and the resu lt was a wide v ariety of
dif f erent produ c ts whic h were manu f ac tu red in the relativ ely old-f ashioned
c raf t tradition. With modu larization, howev er, it b ec ame possib le to of f er
c u stomers almost the same f reedom of c hoic e as in the past, b u t at c onsiderab ly
lower c ost sinc e produ c tion c ou ld now b e organized u sing ef f ic ient produ c tion
grou ps, eac h produ c ing its own type of modu le. Another adv antage of this
arrangement was that deliv ery dates were redu c ed f rom sev eral months to a
f ew days.
Both these f ac tors, design f or manu f ac tu ring and modu larization, are
examples of situ ations where c lose interac tion b etween produ c tion and produ c t
design is important as a means of c reating c onditions that will improv e the
ef f ic ienc y of the work organization.
Suppliers and their relationship with organization
of the production system
By su ppliers here is meant all the external c ompanies whic h are responsib le f or
the su pply of raw materials, inpu t items and other externally produ c ed
c omponents f or the enterprise's ac tiv ities. This su b system is of great
importanc e to the ef f ic ienc y of the enterprise system. In rec ent years, indu strial
enterprises hav e b egu n to inc rease their u se of su b c ontrac tors in order to
c onc entrate on their own c ore operations. Consequ ently, the interac tion with
su b c ontrac tors is assu ming growing importanc e.
In this c ontext we will limit ou rselv es to disc u ssing the relationship of
su b c ontrac tors to produ c tion.
Subcontractors and just- in- time strategies
As explained in Chapter 16, one of the most dramatic c hanges in indu strial
produ c tion organization in rec ent years is the remarkab le redu c tion in the
v olu me of goods-in-proc ess. This redu c tion is of great f inanc ial signif ic anc e to 469
the ov erall f inanc ial resu lt of produ c tion. The ef f orts to hav e as narrow a
su pply of materials as possib le b egin du ring the f irst operation in a produ c tion
c hain and then spread throu ghou t the entire produ c tion system.
The b asic idea is that the materials to b e u sed in a produ c tion system
shou ld arriv e ju st in time and the qu antities su pplied shou ld b e limited in size.
The applic ation of ju st-in-time methods of inv entory c ontrol was
extended to b u ild a c ompletely new type of relation with su ppliers as indic ated
in Chapter 16. As a resu lt the system of work organization and produ c tion
planning of the c ore c ompany b ec ame more c losely linked to the produ c tion
system of the su pplier. By ef f ec tiv e c oordination of these systems and b y
jointly u tilizing the skills, knowledge and experienc e av ailab le on b oth sides,
b oth produ c ts and produ c tion systems c an b e f u rther dev eloped.
Marketing/sales systems and their links
with the work organization
Two partic u lar aspec ts of this part of the c ommerc ial system will b e c onsidered
here:
D c u stomization of produ c ts;
D integration of the c u stomer into the produ c tion system.
Customer- specific products
In many areas of indu strial produ c tion earlier methods of mass produ c ing
standardized produ c ts hav e b een replac ed b y produ c tion of v ersions
spec if ic ally designed f or the c u stomer. Ev en in the c ar indu stry mu c h of the
manu f ac tu ring is of spec if ic c ars f or giv en c u stomers in ac c ordanc e with
spec if ic ations drawn u p b y this c u stomer. Of c ou rse, these spec if ic ations are
c omposed of a nu mb er of standardized model and equ ipment options, b u t the
c omb ination as su c h is spec if ic to the c u stomer. This was also made possib le
b y the adoption of the ju st-in-time methods mentioned ab ov e. Consequ ently,
deliv ery dates f or a c u stomer-spec if ic c ar c ou ld in f ac t b e redu c ed to a f ew weeks.
The c u stomer-spec if ic produ c tion natu rally b rings new and dif f ic u lt
demands within b oth the organization of produ c tion systems and the sales
organization.
The organization of produ c tion has to b e ab le to make reliab le f orec asts of
the mix of dif f erent models and equ ipment options, and it shou ld b e ab le to
rev ise these plans at f requ ent interv als. Within the f ramework of these plans it
mu st also b e c apab le of produ c ing a mixtu re of models on the same produ c tion
line.
Corresponding demands are made on the ab ility of the sales organization,
when a model or equ ipment mix whic h has b een expec ted in produ c tion
dev iates notic eab ly f rom the ac tu al sales mix, to respond ac tiv ely and attempt
to inf lu enc e sales so that they do not dev iate too f ar f rom the model mix that
the produ c tion organization is c apab le of produ c ing.
Cu stomization of produ c ts has theref ore b rou ght notic eab ly more rigorou s
demands on the interac tion b etween the produ c tion organization and sales
470 organizations. This is the c ase in many dif f erent indu strial produ c tion c ontexts.
not only those produ c ing c apital goods and c onsu mer goods b u t also in the
produ c tion of serv ic es.
Integration of the customer into the production system
As a resu lt of the introdu c tion of c u stomer-spec if ic produ c tion disc u ssed
ab ov e, it may b e said that the sale to the c u stomer is the f irst stage in a ju st-in-
time system. When the spec ial produ c t requ ired b y the c u stomer is b eing
deliv ered, the sale of ten inc lu des an of f er of serv ic e, and sometimes also
gu arantee c ommitments, b y whic h is meant that the su pplier u ndertakes to pu t
right any f au lts whic h may arise du ring a partic u lar period af ter deliv ery. As a
resu lt of su c h serv ic e and gu arantee c ommitments, c onditions are also c reated
f or more long-term and systematic c ontac t with the c u stomer. It immediately
b ec omes possib le to f ollow u p the extent to whic h the produ c t deliv ered
f u nc tions and whether or not the c u stomer is satisf ied. The impu lses ob tained
in this way c an b e f ed b ac k to produ c t design f or f u tu re produ c t generations
and to the produ c tion system in order to improv e its resu lts.
At present manu f ac tu ring enterprises and serv ic e c ompanies are engaged
in systematic programmes to c reate long-term, stab le c u stomer relationships.
The c u stomer shou ld b ec ome an integrated part of the su ppliers' own
enterprise system, and b y responding to the c u stomer's wishes within a long-
term, c lose relationship, the su pplier hopes to b e ab le to ensu re that the
c u stomer stays within the "f amily" and does not look f or other su ppliers.
Both these f ac tors whic h af f ec t the marketing and sale of c ompanies'
produ c ts are c onsequ ently highly dependent on the work organization of the
produ c tion system. They theref ore represent a f u rther expression of the
growing need to integrate the v ariou s c omponents and su b systems within the
enterprise system.
The work organization in the produ c tion system, whic h in this c ontext in
the main f oc u s of ou r interest, is, as we hav e seen, af f ec ted in many ways b y
c onsiderations relating to other parts of the enterprise system.
6. Criteria of good work organization: Some concluding
remarks
Effectiveness
The f irst and most f u ndamental c riterion of good work organization is, of
c ou rse, that it shou ld b e ef f ec tiv e that the u se of resou rc es shou ld b e
maximized and that the largest possib le ou tpu t shou ld b e ob tained f rom the
smallest possib le inpu t. The v ariou s c hapters of this b ook hav e dealt
extensiv ely with this c riterion, b ec au se this f ac tor will always b e of
f u ndamental signif ic anc e in all types of tec hnology, in all stages of
dev elopment and at ev ery workplac e.
Natu rally, there are situ ations in whic h c onsiderations other than those of
a pu rely ec onomic natu re are of paramou nt importanc e. If , f or example, there
are ev ident saf ety or health risks at a workplac e, and if additional inv estment is
requ ired to eliminate them, the appropriate steps to do so mu st b e taken ev en if 471
it is not possib le to point to any demonstrab le ec onomic prof itab ility resu lting
direc tly f rom su c h measu res. This is an example of how ec onomic
c onsiderations (at least in the short term) hav e to giv e way to other f ac tors.
In this f inanc ial analysis it is also important to take into ac c ou nt not only
su c h yardstic ks as those that measu re produ c tion per hou r worked. As we hav e
mentioned in ou r earlier analysis, there are many other f ac tors whic h may b e of
great importanc e, indeed, ev en greater than lab ou r produ c tiv ity. One example
of this is the gains that c an b e ac hiev ed b y adopting ju st-in-time strategies and
redu c ing the v olu me of goods-in-proc ess b etween workstations in a produ c tion
c hain. S u c h an arrangement leads, f irst, to signif ic antly lower c apital c osts as
one resu lt of the redu c tion in goods-in-proc ess and, sec ond, to shorter deliv ery
times. This f ac tor is hard to measu re in f inanc ial terms, b u t is none the less
important to the c ompetitiv e ab ility of the c ompany.
To su m u p, ec onomic c onsiderations mu st inev itab ly b e of f u ndamental
importanc e in the c hoic e of a su itab le f orm of work organization. The
organizational princ iples and solu tions that resu lt b oth in inc reased
ef f ec tiv eness and in b etter job s f or the workers are natu rally to b e pref erred.
Autonomy of small systems
Ev en if ec onomic c onsiderations are of f u ndamental signif ic anc e and mu st b e
c aref u lly analysed in eac h indiv idu al c ase, there are sev eral ru les of thu mb , or
general lines of thinking, f or the c onstru c tion of a good produ c tion system
gu idelines that hav e b ec ome inc reasingly important du ring rec ent years in the
dev elopment of new f orms of work organization b u t in whic h prec ise
c alc u lations of short-term prof itab ility are dif f ic u lt, if not impossib le.
Nev ertheless, there has b een so mu c h emphasis on these gu idelines that we
take spec ial note of them here; b u t we mu st also stress that they stand
somewhat apart f rom the b asic ec onomic f ac tors.
The f irst of these c riteria f or c onstru c ting good produ c tion systems is the
search for greater independence for small systems in c ompany organization.
By this we mean produ c tion systems that c onsist of moderately large
produ c tion u nits and c an f u nc tion with a relativ ely high degree of
independenc e within the larger c ompany. The u nderlying intention is to c reate
a produ c tion arrangement that emphasizes loc al independenc e within smaller
u nits. Breaking down the c ompany into these smaller u nits redu c es the need f or
c oordination, and theref ore management prob lems too b ec ome simpler to deal
with.
The dec entralization that resu lts f rom this type of produ c tion arrangement
is also of great v alu e in stimu lating loc al initiativ e and in inc reasing the ab ility
to adapt to the c hanging c onditions and needs that arise in dif f erent parts of the
c ompany. It has also b een shown that workers are of ten more satisf ied and
more inv olv ed in their work if they are memb ers of smaller and more
independent produ c tion u nits.
If we wish to c reate produ c tion systems b ased on this princ iple, f ou r
points are partic u larly signif ic ant:
472 the possib ility of div iding u p larger systems into smaller systems;
D the possib ility of arranging f inished manu f ac tu ring u nits into smaller u nits
so that the need f or c ontac ts with adjac ent u nits is redu c ed;
D the possib ility of arranging f or self -su f f ic ienc y as regards produ c tion
resou rc es, operational serv ic e, and so on;
D the possib ility of arranging f or less direc t management c ontrol f rom high
lev els, so that the independenc e of the smaller u nits is not eroded too
mu c h b y c ontrol f rom the u pper lev els of the hierarc hy.
Stability of the production system
One f u rther ru le of thu mb or c riterion of a good produ c tion system whic h has
rec eiv ed inc reasing interest in rec ent years is the desire to arrange f or stab le
produ c tion ac tiv ity with a minimu m of distu rb anc e. The f ollowing
requ irements in partic u lar arise in this c onnec tion:
D a simple f low pattern, so that as f ar as possib le the workers hav e an
ov erall v iew and it b ec omes easier to plan the work;
D an operationally reliab le tec hnology with an optimu m lev el of
mec hanization, so that tec hnic al distu rb anc es are held within reasonab le
limits;
D a distu rb anc e-resistant work arrangement, so that all produ c tion stages
that are c ritic al f or produ c tion are organized in parallel and those that are
partic u larly sensitiv e to distu rb anc e are su rrou nded with b u f f ers of
dif f erent kinds.
Attractive jobs
It is important to b e ab le to of f er people job s that they f ind attrac tiv e and in
whic h they c an f eel personally inv olv ed. Personal aspirations v ary f rom
indiv idu al to indiv idu al and f rom situ ation to situ ation, and depend not only on
a person's amb itions and desires b u t also on his or her ab ilities, knowledge and
c apac ity to dev elop. A produ c tion organization mu st theref ore of f er a v ariety of
job s, so that the desires of as many people as possib le c an b e satisf ied and so
that a partic u lar indiv idu al c an progress f rom simple job s to more c omplex
work roles.
Among the f ac tors that shou ld b e c onsidered in any endeav ou r to c reate
su f f ic iently attrac tiv e job s are the f ollowing:
(1) The c reation of job s with dif f erent degrees of dif f ic u lty throu gh f low
orientation, dif f erent degrees of su b div ision of work and dif f erent degrees
of integration of au xiliary tasks. V ariations of this kind make it possib le to
of f er to dif f erent indiv idu als at dif f erent times job s that c orrespond to
their ab ilities and wishes.
(2) The c reation of indiv idu al job s and grou p arrangements that b ring ab ou t a
degree of independenc e in work, throu gh f inished manu f ac tu ring of entire
produ c ts, self -su f f ic ienc y of produ c tion serv ic e f u nc tions and b u f f ering
v is--v is adjac ent systems. This independenc e is of v alu e b oth in terms of
the produ c tion resu lts ob tained and f or the way the work is experienc ed
b y indiv idu als in the grou p. 473
(3) The design of a work organization that is su itab le f or teamwork, as a
resu lt of f low grou ping and similar arrangements that are c ompatib le not
only with more attrac tiv e job s and work situ ations b u t also with greater
ef f ic ienc y.
(4) Prov ision of ov erall v iews f rom inside the organization. In order f or
people to f ind their work attrac tiv e, they mu st also b e ab le to v iew the
larger c ontext of whic h their work is a part. It is also important that they
shou ld b e inv olv ed, if possib le, in the design of the work and b e ab le to
f eel some sense of "b elonging" with their grou p of f ellow workers and
with the ov erall produ c tion proc ess in whic h they perf orm their f u nc tion.
Good working environments
An important c riterion of a good job is the qu ality of the working env ironment.
In Chapter 5 we indic ated the b asic f ac tors that hav e to b e c onsidered with
respec t to saf ety at the workplac e.
In addition, howev er, a working env ironment shou ld also b e pleasant to
work in in other words, it shou ld b e so designed that it b ec omes easier to
adopt ergonomic ally c orrec t working positions.
Conclusion
We hav e b rief ly tou c hed on some of the trends leading towards new f orms of
work organization. We hav e giv en some princ iples and general gu idelines. We
hav e prov ided some examples and emphasized c ertain c u rrent lines of
dev elopment. Finally, we hav e giv en some c riteria to b e b orne in mind when
designing good working env ironments.
It is important, howev er, to stress the f ac t that there are no standard
solu tions to these prob lems. Ou r aim has b een merely to pu t f orward a f ew
ideas, tendenc ies and general indic ations of solu tions to prob lems. It mu st b e
rememb ered that the b est solu tion to a prob lem c an b e f ou nd only in the
spec if ic c irc u mstanc es of the partic u lar c ase when the ac tu al c onditions are
known, when loc al v alu es are c onsidered and when the persons inv olv ed are
ab le to f ind their own solu tions.
474
PART SIX
Appendices
APPENDIX 1
Glossary of terms used
Activity sampling S ee Work sampling.
Basic time The time f or c arrying ou t an element of work at standard rating, i.e.:
ob serv ed time X ob serv ed rating
standard rating
Break point The instant at whic h one element in a work c yc le ends and another b egins.
Check time The time interv als b etween the start of a time stu dy and the start of the f irst
element ob serv ed, and b etween the f inish of the last element ob serv ed and the f inish of
the stu dy.
Contingency allowance A small allowanc e of time whic h may b e inc lu ded in a standard time
to meet legitimate and expec ted items of work or delays, the prec ise measu rement of
whic h is u nec onomic al b ec au se of their inf requ ent or irregu lar oc c u rrenc e.
Cumulative timing S ee Timing.
Cycle time The total time taken to c omplete the elements c onstitu ting the work c yc le.
Elapsed time The total time f rom the start to the f inish of a time stu dy.
Element A distinc t part of a spec if ied job selec ted f or c onv enienc e of ob serv ation,
measu rement and analysis.
Constant element An element f or whic h the b asic time remains c onstant whenev er it is
perf ormed.
Foreign element An element ob serv ed du ring a stu dy whic h, af ter analysis, is not
f ou nd to b e a nec essary part of the job .
Governing element An element oc c u pying a longer time than that of any other element
whic h is b eing perf ormed c onc u rrently.
Machine element An element au tomatic ally perf ormed b y a power-driv en mac hine (or
proc ess).
Manual element An element perf ormed b y a worker.
Occasional element An element whic h does not oc c u r in ev ery work c yc le of the job ,
b u t whic h may oc c u r at regu lar or irregu lar interv als.
Repetitive element An element whic h oc c u rs in ev ery work c yc le of the job .
V ariable element An element f or whic h the b asic time v aries in relation to some
c harac teristic s of the produ c t, equ ipment or proc ess, e.g. dimensions, weight, qu ality, etc .
Extension The c alc u lation of b asic time f rom ob serv ed time.
Fatigue allowance A su b div ision of the relaxation allowanc e intended to c ater f or the
physiologic al and psyc hologic al ef f ec ts of c arrying ou t spec if ied work u nder spec if ied
c onditions.
Fixture A less ac c u rate dev ic e than a jig f or holding parts whic h wou ld otherwise hav e to b e
held in one hand while the other worked on them.
Flow diagram A diagram or model, su b stantially to sc ale, whic h shows the loc ation of
spec if ic ac tiv ities c arried ou t and the rou tes f ollowed b y workers, materials or equ ipment
in their exec u tion.
477
Flow process chart A proc ess c hart setting ou t the sequ enc e of the f low of a produ c t or a
proc edu re b y rec ording all ev ents u nder rev iew u sing the appropriate proc ess c hart
symb ols.
Equipment type A f low proc ess c hart whic h rec ords how the equ ipment is u sed.
Worker type A f low proc ess c hart whic h rec ords what the worker does.
Material type A f low proc ess c hart whic h rec ords how material is handled or treated.
Flyback timing S ee Timing.
Idle time That part of attendanc e time when the worker has work av ailab le b u t f or v ariou s
reasons does not do it.
Ineffective time That portion of the elapsed time, exc lu ding the c hec k time, spent on any
ac tiv ity whic h is not a spec if ied part of a job .
Inside work Elements whic h c an b e perf ormed b y a worker within the mac hine- (or proc ess-)
c ontrolled time.
Inspection Indic ates an inspec tion f or qu ality and/or c hec k f or qu antity.
Interference allowance An allowanc e of time f or produ c tion u nav oidab ly lost throu gh
sync hronization of stoppages on two or more mac hines (or proc esses) attended b y one
worker. S imilar c irc u mstanc es arise in teamwork.
Interference time The time when the mac hine (or proc ess) is idle awaiting attention, while
the worker attends to another mac hine (or proc ess). S imilar c irc u mstanc es arise in
teamwork.
Jig Holds parts in an exac t position and gu ides the tool that works on them.
Job breakdown A listing of the c ontent of a job b y elements.
Load factor The proportion of the ov erall c yc le time requ ired b y the worker to c arry ou t the
nec essary work at standard perf ormanc e, du ring a mac hine- (or proc ess-) c ontrolled
c yc le.
Machine ancillary time The time when a mac hine is temporarily ou t of produ c tiv e u se owing
to c hange-ov ers, setting, c leaning, etc .
Machine available time The time du ring whic h a mac hine c ou ld work b ased on attendanc e
time i.e. working day or week plu s ov ertime.
Machine capacity The potential v olu me of a mac hine, u su ally expressed in physic al u nits
c apab le of b eing produ c ed in any c onv enient u nit of time, e.g. tons per week, piec es per
hou r, etc .
Machine-controlled time The time taken to c omplete that part of the work c yc le whic h is
determined only b y tec hnic al f ac tors pec u liar to the mac hine.
Machine down time The time du ring whic h a mac hine c annot b e operated on produ c tion or
anc illary work owing to b reakdown, maintenanc e requ irements, or f or other similar
reasons.
Machine effective utilization index
The ratio of : Mac hine ru nning time at standard
to: Mac hine av ailab le time.
Machine efficiency index
The ratio of : Mac hine ru nning time at standard
to: Mac hine ru nning time.
Machine-hour The ru nning of a mac hine or piec e of plant f or one hou r.
Machine idle time The time du ring whic h a mac hine is av ailab le f or produ c tion or anc illary
work b u t is not u sed owing to shortage of work, materials or workers inc lu ding the time
that the plant is ou t of b alanc e.
Machine interference The qu eu ing of mac hines (or proc esses) f or attention e.g. when one
worker is responsib le f or attending to more than one mac hine. S imilar c irc u mstanc es arise
478 in teamwork where random delays at any point may af f ec t the ou tpu t of the team.
APPENDIX 1
Machine maximum time The maximu m possib le time du ring whic h a mac hine or grou p of
mac hines c ou ld work within a giv en period, e.g. 168 hou rs in one week or 24 hou rs in
one day.
Machine running time The time du ring whic h a mac hine is ac tu ally operating, i.e. the
mac hine av ailab le time less any mac hine down time, mac hine idle time or mac hine
anc illary time.
Machine running time at standard The ru nning time that shou ld b e inc u rred in produ c ing
the ou tpu t if the mac hine is working u nder optimu m c onditions.
Machine utilization index
The ratio of : Mac hine ru nning time
to: Mac hine av ailab le time.
Method study The systematic rec ording and c ritic al examination of ways of doing things in
order to make improv ements.
Methods-time measurement (MTM) A system of predetermined time standards (q.v .).
Multiple activity chart A c hart on whic h the ac tiv ities of more than one su b jec t (worker,
mac hine or item of equ ipment) are eac h rec orded on a c ommon time sc ale to show their
interrelationship.
Multiple machine work Work whic h requ ires the worker to attend two or more mac hines (of
similar or dif f erent kinds) ru nning simu ltaneou sly.
Observed time The time taken to perf orm an element or c omb ination of elements ob tained b y
means of direc t measu rement.
Operation Indic ates the main steps in a proc ess, method or proc edu re. Usu ally the part,
material or produ c t c onc erned is modif ied or c hanged du ring the operation.
Outline process chart A proc ess c hart giv ing an ov erall pic tu re b y rec ording in sequ enc e
only the main operations and inspec tions.
Outside work Elements whic h mu st nec essarily b e perf ormed b y a worker ou tside the
mac hine- (or proc ess-) c ontrolled time.
Permanent storage Controlled storage in whic h material is rec eiv ed into or issu ed f rom a
store u nder some f orm of au thorization, or an item is retained f or ref erenc e pu rposes.
Personal needs allowance A su b div ision of the relaxation allowanc e intended to c ater f or
attention to personal needs.
Plant and machine control The proc edu res and means b y whic h ef f ic ienc y and u tilization of
u nits of plant and mac hinery are planned and c hec ked.
Policy allowance An inc rement, other than b onu s inc rement, applied to standard time (or to
some c onstitu ent part of it, e.g. work c ontent) to prov ide a satisf ac tory lev el of earnings
f or a spec if ied lev el of perf ormanc e u nder exc eptional c irc u mstanc es.
Predetermined time standards (PTS) A work measu rement tec hniqu e whereb y times
estab lished f or b asic hu man motions (c lassif ied ac c ording to the natu re of the motion and
the c onditions u nder whic h it is made) are u sed to b u ild u p the time f or a job at a def ined
lev el of perf ormanc e.
Primary questions The f irst stage of the qu estioning tec hniqu e, whic h qu eries the
f u ndamental pu rpose, plac e, sequ enc e, person and means of ev ery ac tiv ity rec orded, and
seeks a reason f or eac h reply.
Principles of motion economy Charac teristic s whic h, when inc orporated in the methods
adopted, make f or easier working.
Process charts Charts in whic h a sequ enc e of ev ents is portrayed diagrammatic ally b y means
of a set of proc ess c hart symb ols to help a person to v isu alize a proc ess as a means of
examining and improv ing it.
Process-controlled time The time taken to c omplete that part of the work c yc le whic h is
determined only b y tec hnic al f ac tors pec u liar to the proc ess.
Qualified worker One who is ac c epted as hav ing the nec essary physic al attrib u tes, who
possesses the requ ired intelligenc e and edu c ation, and who has ac qu ired the nec essary 479
skill and knowledge to c arry ou t the work in hand to satisf ac tory standards of saf ety,
qu antity and qu ality.
Questioning technique The means b y whic h the c ritic al examination is c ondu c ted, eac h
ac tiv ity b eing su b jec ted in tu rn to a systematic and progressiv e series of qu estions.
Random observation method S ee Work sampling.
Rating
(1) The assessment of the worker's rate of working relativ e to the ob serv er's c onc ept of the
rate c orresponding to standard pac e.
(2) The nu meric al v alu e or symb ol u sed to denote the rate of working:
(a) loose rating: an inac c u rate rating whic h is too high;
(b ) tight rating: an inac c u rate rating whic h is too low;
(c ) inc onsistent ratings: a mixtu re of loose, tight and ac c u rate ratings;
(d) f lat ratings: A set of ratings in whic h the ob serv er has u nderestimated the v ariations
in the worker's rate of working;
(e) steep ratings: A set of ratings in whic h the ob serv er has ov erestimated the
v ariations in the worker's rate of working.
Rating scale The series of nu meric al indic es giv en to v ariou s rates of working. The sc ale is
linear.
Ratio-delay study S ee Work sampling.
Relaxation allowance An addition to the b asic time intended to prov ide the worker with the
opportu nity to rec ov er f rom the physiologic al and psyc hologic al ef f ec ts of c arrying ou t
spec if ied work u nder spec if ied c onditions and to allow attention to personal needs. The
amou nt of the allowanc e will depend on the natu re of the job .
Representative worker A worker whose skill and perf ormanc e is the av erage of a grou p
u nder c onsideration. He or she is not nec essarily a qu alif ied worker.
Restricted work Work in whic h the ou tpu t of the worker is limited b y f ac tors ou tside his or
her c ontrol.
Secondary questions The sec ond stage of the qu estioning tec hniqu e, du ring whic h the
answers to the primary qu estions are su b jec ted to f u rther qu ery to determine whether
possib le alternativ es of plac e, sequ enc e, persons and/or means are prac tic ab le and
pref erab le as a means of improv ement u pon the existing method.
Selected time The time c hosen as b eing representativ e of a grou p of times f or an element or
grou p of elements. These times may b e either ob serv ed or b asic and shou ld b e denoted as
selec ted ob serv ed or selec ted b asic times.
Setting-up time The time requ ired to prepare a mac hine f or work. It inc lu des the remov al of
tools u sed f or the prev iou s tasks, any nec essary c leaning of the mac hine, and the f ixing of
tools and f ixtu res f or the new job .
Standard data Tab les and f ormu lae deriv ed f rom the analysis of ac c u mu lated work
measu rement data, arranged in a f orm su itab le f or b u ilding u p standard times, mac hine
proc ess times, etc ., b y synthesis.
Standard performance The rate of ou tpu t whic h qu alif ied workers will natu rally ac hiev e
withou t ov er-exertion as an av erage ov er the working day or shif t, prov ided that they
know and adhere to the spec if ied method and prov ided that they are motiv ated to apply
themselv es to their work. This perf ormanc e is denoted as 100 on the standard rating and
perf ormanc e sc ales.
Standard time The total time in whic h a job shou ld b e c ompleted at standard perf ormanc e,
i.e. work c ontent, c ontingenc y allowanc e f or delay, u noc c u pied time and interf erenc e
allowanc e, where applic ab le.
String diagram A sc ale plan or model on whic h a thread is u sed to trac e and measu re the path
of workers, material or equ ipment du ring a spec if ied sequ enc e of ev ents.
Temporary storage or delay A delay in the sequ enc e of ev ents, f or example, work waiting
b etween c onsec u tiv e operations, or any ob jec t laid aside temporarily withou t rec ord u ntil
480 requ ired.
APPENDIX 1
Time study A work measu rement tec hniqu e f or rec ording the times and rates of working f or
the elements of a spec if ied job c arried ou t u nder spec if ied c onditions, and f or analysing
the data so as to ob tain the time nec essary f or c arrying ou t the job at a def ined lev el of
perf ormanc e.
Timing The prac tic e of ob serv ing and rec ording, b y the u se of a watc h or other dev ic e, the
time taken to c omplete eac h element. Three alternativ e methods of timing with a stop-
watc h are:
Cumulative timing A method in whic h the hands of the stop-watc h are allowed to
c ontinu e to mov e withou t retu rning them to zero at the end of eac h element, the time f or
eac h element b eing ob tained su b sequ ently b y su b trac tion.
Differential timing A method f or ob taining the time of one or more small elements.
Elements are timed in grou ps, f irst inc lu ding and then exc lu ding eac h small element, the
time f or eac h element b eing ob tained su b sequ ently b y su b trac tion.
Flyback timing A method in whic h the hands of the stop-watc h are retu rned to zero at
the end of eac h element and are allowed to restart immediately, the time f or the element
b eing ob tained direc tly.
Tool allowance An allowanc e of time, whic h may b e inc lu ded in a standard time, to c ov er
adju stment and maintenanc e of tools.
Transport The mov ement of workers, materials or equ ipment f rom plac e to plac e.
Travel chart A tab u lar rec ord f or presenting qu antitativ e data ab ou t the mov ements of
workers, materials or equ ipment b etween any nu mb er of plac es ov er any giv en period of
time.
Two-handed process chart A proc ess c hart in whic h the ac tiv ities of a worker's hands (or
limb s) are rec orded in their relationship to one another.
Unoccupied time The periods du ring mac hine- (or proc ess-) c ontrolled time when a worker is
engaged neither on inside work nor in taking au thorized rest, the time f or c arrying ou t the
work b eing c alc u lated at a def ined perf ormanc e.
Unoccupied time allowance An allowanc e made to a worker when there is u noc c u pied time
du ring mac hine- (or proc ess-) c ontrolled time.
Unrestricted work Work in whic h the ou tpu t of the worker is limited only b y f ac tors within
the c ontrol of the worker.
Work content Basic time + relaxation allowanc e + any allowanc e f or additional work e.g.
that part of c ontingenc y allowanc e whic h represents work.
Work cycle The sequ enc e of elements whic h are requ ired to perf orm a job or yield a u nit of
produ c tion. The sequ enc e may sometimes inc lu de oc c asional elements.
Work factor A system of predetermined time standards (q.v .).
Work-hour The lab ou r of one person f or one hou r.
Work measurement The applic ation of tec hniqu es designed to estab lish the time f or a
qu alif ied worker to c arry ou t a task at a def ined rate of working.
Work sampling A method of f inding the perc entage oc c u rrenc e of a c ertain ac tiv ity b y
statistic al sampling and random ob serv ations. (Work sampling is also known as ratio-
delay stu dy; ob serv ation ratio stu dy; snap-reading method; random ob serv ation method;
and ac tiv ity sampling.)
Work specification A doc u ment setting ou t the details of an operation or job , how it is to b e
perf ormed, the layou t of the workplac e, partic u lars of mac hines, tools and applianc es to
b e u sed, and the du ties and responsib ilities of the worker. The standard time or allowed
time assigned to the job is normally inc lu ded.
Work study The systematic examination of the methods of c arrying on ac tiv ities so as to
improv e the ef f ec tiv e u se of resou rc es and to set u p standards of perf ormanc e f or the
ac tiv ities b eing c arried ou t.
Workplace layout A c onv enient term u sed to desc rib e the spac e and the arrangement of
f ac ilities and c onditions prov ided f or a worker in the perf ormanc e of a spec if ied job . 481
APPENDIX 2
Check-list of useful questions
in developing a new method
of work
Most of the qu estions listed b elow apply generally to method stu dy inv estigations. They
amplif y the qu estioning proc edu re desc rib ed in Chapter 7 and may b e of serv ic e in su ggesting to
stu dy persons aspec ts of the method whic h might otherwise b e ov erlooked. The qu estions are
listed u nder the f ollowing headings:
A. Operations F. Materials handling
B. Produ c ts and parts design G . Work organization
C. Q u ality requ irements H. Working c onditions
D. Materials u tilization I. Job enric hment
E. Workplac e layou t
A. Operations
1. What is the pu rpose of the operation?
2. Is the resu lt ob tained b y the operation nec essary? If so, what makes it nec essary?
3. Is the operation nec essary b ec au se the prev iou s operation was not perf ormed
c orrec tly?
4. Is the operation institu ted to c orrec t a c ondition that has now b een c orrec ted
otherwise?
5. If the operation is b eing c arried ou t to improv e appearanc e, does the additional c ost
giv e extra saleab ility?
6. Can the pu rpose of the operation b e ob tained in another way?
7. Is the operation b eing perf ormed to satisf y the requ irements of all u sers of the
produ c t, or is it made nec essary b y the requ irements of one or two c u stomers only?
8. Does a su b sequ ent operation eliminate the nec essity f or this operation?
9. Was the operation estab lished to redu c e the c ost of a prev iou s operation, or a
su b sequ ent operation?
10. Wou ld adding a f u rther operation make other operations easier to perf orm?
11. Is there another way to perf orm the operation and maintain the same or ev en b etter
resu lts?
12. Hav e c onditions c hanged sinc e the operation was added to the proc ess?
13. Cou ld the operation b e c omb ined with a prev iou s or a su b sequ ent operation?
14. Can the operation analysed b e c omb ined with another operation? Can it b e
eliminated?
15. Can it b e b roken u p and the v ariou s parts of the operation added to other
operations?
16. Can a part of the operation b eing perf ormed b e c ompleted more ef f ec tiv ely as a
separate operation?
17. Is the sequ enc e of operations the b est possib le or wou ld c hanging the sequ enc e
improv e the operation?
18. Cou ld the operation b e done in another department to sav e the c ost of handling?
19. If the operation is c hanged, what ef f ec t will it hav e on the other operations? On the
f inished produ c t? 483
20. If a dif f erent method of produ c ing the part c an b e u sed, will it ju stif y all the work
and ac tiv ity inv olv ed?
21. Can the operation and inspec tion b e c omb ined?
B. Products and parts design
1. Can the design b e c hanged to simplif y or eliminate the operation?
2. Can the nu mb er of c omponent parts b e redu c ed?
3. Can c ertain c omponent parts b e standardized?
4. Can a standard part b e su b stitu ted b y another c heaper or b etter material?
5. Has Pareto analysis b een u sed to detec t the produ c ts or parts that are most
v alu ab le?
C. Quality requirements
1. Has an agreement b een reac hed b y all c onc erned as to what c onstitu tes ac c eptab le
qu ality?
2. What are the inspec tion requ irements f or this operation?
3. Can the operativ e inspec t his or her own work?
4. Are toleranc e and other standards appropriate?
5. Can standards b e raised to improv e qu ality withou t u nnec essary c ost?
6. Will lowering standards redu c e c ost c onsiderab ly?
7. Can the f inished qu ality of the produ c t b e improv ed in any way ab ov e the present
standard?
8. Can the qu ality b e improv ed b y u sing new proc esses?
9. Are the same standards nec essary f or all c u stomers?
10. Will c hange in standards and inspec tion requ irements inc rease or dec rease the
def ec tiv e work and expense in the operation, shop or f ield?
11. What are the main c au ses of rejec tions f or the part?
12. Wou ld a c hange in the c omposition of a produ c t render it less su sc eptib le to qu ality
v arianc es?
D. Materials utilization
1. Is the material b eing u sed really su itab le f or the job ?
2. Cou ld a less expensiv e material b e su b stitu ted and still do the job ?
3. Cou ld a lighter-gau ge material b e u sed?
4. Is the material pu rc hased in a c ondition su itab le f or u se?
5. Cou ld the su pplier perf orm additional work on the material that wou ld improv e
u sage and dec rease waste?
6. Is the material su f f ic iently c lean?
7. Is the material b ou ght in amou nts and sizes that giv e the greatest u tilization and
limit sc rap, of f c u ts and short ends?
8. Is the material u sed to the b est possib le adv antage du ring c u tting, proc essing?
9. Are indirec t materials u sed in c onnec tion with the proc ess oils, water, ac ids,
paint, gas, c ompressed air, elec tric ity su itab le, and is their u se c ontrolled and
ec onomized?
10. How does the c ost of material c ompare with the c ost of lab ou r?
11. Can the design b e c hanged to eliminate exc essiv e loss and sc rap material?
12. Can the nu mb er of materials u sed b e redu c ed b y standardization?
13. Can the part b e made f rom sc rap material or of f c u ts?
14. Can the sc rap b e salv aged f or f u rther proc essing?
15. Can the sc rap b e sorted ou t f or sales at higher pric e?
16. Is the su pplier of the material perf orming operations on it whic h are not nec essary
f or the proc ess?
484 17. Is the material su pplied of c onsistent qu ality?
APPENDIX 2
18. Cou ld a more c aref u l inspec tion of inc oming materials dec rease dif f ic u lties now
b eing enc ou ntered in proc essing?
19. Is the material f ree f rom sharp edges and b u rrs?
20. What ef f ec t does storage hav e on material?
21. Cou ld sampling inspec tion c omb ined with su pplier rating redu c e inspec tion c osts
and delays?
22. Cou ld the part b e made more ec onomic ally f rom of f c u ts in some other gau ge of
material?
E. Workplace layout
1. Does the plant layou t aid ef f ic ient material handling?
2. Does the plant layou t allow ef f ic ient maintenanc e?
3. Does the plant layou t prov ide adequ ate saf ety?
4. Is the plant layou t su itab le f or appropriate sequ enc ing of operation? Can parts of an
intermittent operation b e c hanged to a line operation layou t f or major produ c ts or
parts?
5. Does the plant layou t help soc ial interac tion b etween the operativ es?
6. Are materials c onv eniently plac ed at the workplac e?
7. Are tools pre-positioned to sav e mental delay?
8. Are su itab le jigs and f ixtu res av ailab le at the workplac e to f ac ilitate work,
partic u larly in assemb ly operations?
9. Are adequ ate working su rf ac es prov ided f or su b sidiary operations, e.g. inspec tion
and deb u rring?
10. Are f ac ilities prov ided f or the remov al and storage of sc rap and waste?
11. Is adequ ate prov ision made f or the c omf ort of the operativ e, e.g. f an, du c kb oard or
c hairs?
12. Is the lighting adequ ate f or the job ?
13. Has prov ision b een made f or the storage of tools and gau ges?
14. Has prov ision b een made f or the storage of the operativ es' personal b elongings?
F. Materials handling
1. Is the time spent in b ringing material to the workstation and in remov ing it large in
proportion to the time u sed to handle it at the workstation?
2. If not, c ou ld material handling b e done b y the operativ es to prov ide a rest throu gh
c hange of oc c u pation?
3. S hou ld hand, elec tric or f ork-lif t tru c ks, or c onv eyors or c hu tes b e u sed?
4. S hou ld spec ial rac ks, c ontainers or pallets b e designed to permit the handling of
material with ease and withou t damage?
5. Where shou ld inc oming and ou tgoing materials b e loc ated in the work area?
6. Can material b e dispatc hed f rom a c entral point b y means of a c onv eyor?
7. Is the size of the c ontainer su itab le f or the amou nt of material transported?
8. Can a c ontainer b e designed to make material more ac c essib le?
9. Cou ld a c ontainer b e plac ed at the workstation withou t remov ing the material?
10. If an ov erhead trav elling c rane is u sed, is the serv ic e prompt and ac c u rate?
11. Can grav ity b e u tilized b y starting the f irst operation at a higher lev el, and u sing
su itab le c hu tes or c onv eyors?
12. Are tru c k loading and u nloading stations loc ated appropriately?
13. Wou ld a tu rntab le eliminate walking?
14. Can inc oming raw material b e deliv ered at the f irst workstation to sav e dou b le
handling?
15. Cou ld operations b e c omb ined at one workstation to sav e dou b le handling?
16. Wou ld a c ontainer of standard size eliminate weighing? 485
17. Are c ontainers u nif orm to permit stac king and eliminate exc essiv e u se of f loor
spac e?
18. Cou ld material b e b ou ght in a more c onv enient size f or handling?
19. Wou ld signals, i.e. lights, b ells, etc ., notif ying workers that more material is
requ ired, sav e delay?
20. Can the loc ation of stores and stoc kpiles b e altered to redu c e handling and
transport?
G. Work organization
1. How is the job assigned to the operativ e?
2. Are things so well c ontrolled that the operativ e is nev er withou t a job to do?
3. How is the operativ e giv en instru c tions?
4. How is material ob tained?
5. How are drawings and tools issu ed?
6. Is there a c ontrol on time? If so, how are the starting and f inishing times of the job
c hec ked?
7. Are there many possib ilities f or delays at the drawing-room, tool-room and store-
room?
8. Is the material properly positioned?
9. If the operation is b eing perf ormed c ontinu ally, how mu c h time is wasted at the
start and end of the shif t b y preliminary operations and c leaning u p?
10. What c leric al work is requ ired f rom operativ es f or f illing in time c ards, material
requ isitions and the like? Can some of these operations b e c ompu terized?
11. How is def ec tiv e work handled?
12. How is the issu e and serv ic ing of tools organized?
13. Are adequ ate rec ords kept on the perf ormanc e of operativ es?
14. Are new employees properly introdu c ed to their su rrou ndings and do they rec eiv e
su f f ic ient instru c tion?
15. When workers do not reac h a standard of perf ormanc e, are the details inv estigated?
16. Are su ggestions f rom workers enc ou raged?
17. Do the workers really u nderstand the inc entiv e plan u nder whic h they work?
H. Working conditions
1. Is the lighting ev en and su f f ic ient at all times?
2. Has glare b een eliminated f rom the workplac e?
3. Is the proper temperatu re f or c omf ort prov ided at all times? If not, c an f ans or
heaters b e u sed?
4. Wou ld installation of air-c onditioning equ ipment b e ju stif ied?
5. Can noise lev els b e redu c ed?
6. Can f u mes, smoke and dirt b e remov ed b y exhau st systems?
7. If c onc rete f loors are u sed, are du c kb oards or matting prov ided to make standing
more c omf ortab le?
8. Can a c hair b e prov ided?
9. Are drinking f ou ntains with c ool water prov ided and are they loc ated nearb y?
10. Has du e c onsideration b een giv en to saf ety f ac tors?
11. Is the f loor saf e, smooth b u t not slippery?
12. Has the operativ e b een tau ght to work saf ely?
13. Is the c lothing su itab le f rom a saf ety standpoint?
14. Does the plant present a neat and orderly appearanc e at all times?
15. How thorou ghly is the workplac e c leaned?
16. Is the plant u ndu ly c old in winter, or stu f f y in su mmer, espec ially on the f irst
morning of the week?
486 17. Are dangerou s proc esses adequ ately gu arded?
APPENDIX 2
I. Job enrichment
1. Is the job b oring or monotonou s?
2. Can the operation b e made more interesting?
3. Can the operation b e c omb ined with prev iou s or su b sequ ent operations to enlarge
it?
4. What is the c yc le time?
5. Can the operativ e do his or her own setting?
6. Can the operativ e do his or her own inspec tion?
7. Can the operativ e deb u rr his or her own work?
8. Can the operativ e serv ic e his or her own tools?
9. Can the operativ e b e giv en a b atc h of tasks and do his or her own sc hedu ling?
10. Can the operativ e make the c omplete part?
11. Is job rotation possib le and desirab le?
12. Can grou p work b e enc ou raged?
13. Are f lexib le working hou rs possib le and desirab le?
14. Can b u f f er stoc k b e prov ided to allow v ariations in work pac e?
15. Does the operativ e rec eiv e regu lar inf ormation ab ou t his or her perf ormanc e?
487
APPENDIX 3
Example of tables used
to calculate relaxation
allowances
This appendix is b ased on inf ormation su pplied b y Peter S teele and Partners (United
Kingdom). S imilar tab les hav e b een dev eloped b y v ariou s institu tions su c h as REFA (G ermany)
and b y other c onsu lting f irms.
Relaxation allowanc es may b e determined b y means of the tab les of c omparativ e strains
and the points c onv ersion tab le reprodu c ed in this appendix. The analysis shou ld proc eed as f ollows :
(1) For the element of work u nder c onsideration, determine the sev erity of the strain imposed
u nder eac h su b heading of the tab le of strains b elow, b y ref erenc e to the tab les of
c omparativ e strains.
(2) Alloc ate points as indic ated and determine the total points f or the strains imposed b y the
perf ormanc e of the element of work.
(3) Read of f f rom the points, c onv ersion tab le the appropriate relaxation allowanc e.
Table I. Points allocated for various strains: Summary
Type of strain Severity
Low Medium High
A. Physical strains resulting from nature of work
1 . Average force exerted 0-85 0-1 1 3 0-1 49
2. Posture 0-5 6-1 1 1 2-1 6
3. Vibration 0-4 5 -1 0 1 1 -1 5
4. Short cycle 0-3 4-6 7-1 0
5 . Restrictive clothing 0-4 5 -1 2 1 3-20
B. Me/ita/sira/ns
1 . Concentration/anxiety 0-4 5 -1 0 1 1 -1 6
2. Monotony 0-2 3-7 8-1 0
3. Eye strain 0-5 6-1 1 1 2-20
4. Noise 0-2 3-7 8-1 0
c. Physical or mental strains resulting
from nature of working conditions
1 . Temperature
Low humidity 0-5 6-1 1 1 2-1 6
Medium humidity 0-5 6-1 4 1 5 -25
High humidity 0-6 7-1 7 1 8-36
489
Type of strain Severity
2. Ventilation
3. Fumes
4. Dust
5 . Dirt
6. Wet
Low Medium High
0-3 4-9 1 0-1 5
0-3 4-8 9-1 2
0-3 4-8 9-1 2
0-2 3-6 7-1 0
0-2 3-6 7-1 0
Note: Allocate points for each strain independently, irrespective of what has been allowed for other strains. If any strain occurs for only a
proportion of the time, allocate a similar proportion of the points:
e.g. High c onc entration: 16 points, 25 per c ent of the time;
L ow c onc entration: 4 points, 75 per c ent of the time.
Alloc ate 16 x 0.25 = 4 points plu s 4 x 0.75 = 3 points, whic h giv es a total of 4 + 3 = 7 points.
Tables of comparative strains
A. Physical strains resulting from the nature of the work
1 . AVERAGE FORCE EXERTED(FACTORA.I)
Consider the whole of the element or period f or whic h the relaxation allowanc e is
requ ired and determine the average f orc e exerted.
Example:
L if t and c arry a weight of 40 lb . (time 12 sec onds) and retu rn empty-handed (time 8
sec onds). In this example, if the relaxation allowanc e is to apply to the f u ll 20 sec onds,
the "av erage f orc e exerted" shou ld b e c alc u lated as f ollows:
The nu mb er of points alloc ated f or the av erage f orc e exerted will depend u pon the type of
stress inv olv ed. S tresses are c lassif ied as f ollows:
(a) Mediu m stress
(i) where the work is primarily c onc erned with c arrying or su pporting loads;
(ii) shov elling, swinging hammers and other rhythmic al mov ements.
This c ategory c ov ers most operations.
(b ) L ow stress
(i) where the weight of the b ody is transf erred in order to exert f orc e, e.g. f oot-pedal
operation, pressing an artic le, with the b ody, against a b u f f ;
(ii) su pporting or c arrying well-b alanc ed loads strapped to the b ody or hu ng f rom the
shou lders; arms and hands f ree.
(c ) High stress
(i) where the work is primarily c onc erned with lif ting;
(ii) exerting the f orc e b y c ontinu ed u se of c ertain mu sc les of f ingers and arms;
(iii) lif ting or su pporting loads in awkward attitu des, manipu lation of heav y weights
into awkward positions;
(iv ) operations in hot c onditions, hot metalworking, etc .
Relaxation allowanc es shou ld b e awarded in this c ategory only af ter ev ery endeav ou r has
490 b een made to improv e f ac ilities whic h will make the physic al task lighter.
APPENDIX 3
Table 11. Med ur n str ess Po i nts f o r aver age f o r ce exer ted
lb. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
0 0 0 0 0 3 6 8 1 0 1 2 1 4
10 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 2 4
20 2 5 2 6 2 7 2 8 2 9 3 0 3 1 3 2 3 2 3 3
30 3 4 3 5 3 6 3 7 3 8 3 9 3 9 40 41 41
40 42 43 44 45 46 46 47 48 49 5 0
50 5 0 5 1 5 1 5 2 5 3 5 4 5 4 5 5 5 6 5 6
60 5 7 5 8 5 9 5 9 6 0 . 6 1 6 1 6 2 6 3 6 4
70 6 4 6 5 6 5 6 6 6 7 6 8 6 9 7 0 7 0 7 1
80 7 2 7 2 7 2 7 3 7 3 7 4 7 4 7 5 7 6 7 6
90 7 7 7 8 7 9 7 9 80 80 81 82 82 83
100 84 85 86 86 87 88 88 88 89 9 0
110 9 1 9 2 9 3 9 4 9 5 9 5 9 6 9 6 9 7 9 7
120 9 7 9 8 9 8 9 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 1 00 1 00 1 00
130 1 01 1 01 1 02 1 02 1 03 1 04 1 05 1 06 1 07 1 08
140 1 09 1 09 1 09 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 3
Table III. Low stress: Points for average force exerted
lb. 0 i 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
0 0 0 0 0 3 6 7 8 9 1 0
10 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 6 1 7 1 8
20 1 9 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 3 2 4 2 5
30 2 6 2 6 2 7 2 7 2 8 2 8 2 9 3 0 3 1 3 1
40 3 2 3 2 3 3 3 4 3 4 3 5 3 5 3 6 3 6 3 7
50 3 8 3 8 3 9 3 9 40 41 41 42 42 43
60 43 43 44 44 45 46 46 47 47 48
70 48 49 5 0 5 0 5 0 5 1 5 1 5 2 5 2 5 3
80 5 4 5 4 5 4 5 5 5 5 5 6 5 6 5 7 5 8 5 8
90 5 8 5 9 5 9 6 0 6 0 6 0 6 1 6 2 6 2 6 3
100 6 3 6 3 6 4 6 5 6 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 7 6 7
110 6 8 6 8 6 8 6 9 6 9 7 0 7 1 7 1 7 1 7 2
120 7 2 7 3 7 3 7 3 7 4 7 4 7 5 7 5 7 6 7 6
130 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 9 80 80 81
140 81 82 82 82 83 83 84 84 84 85
491
Table IV. H ig h stress: P o ints f o r averag e f o rc e exe rted
l b. 0 1 2 3 3 - 4 4 5 6 7 8 9
0 0 0 0 3 6 8 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 1 8
1 0 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 4 2 5 2 7 2 8 2 9 3 0 3 2
2 0 3 3 3 4 3 5 3 7 3 8 3 9 40 41 43 44
3 0 45 46 47 48 49 5 0 5 1 5 2 5 4 5 5
40 5 6 5 7 5 8 5 9 6 0 6 1 6 2 6 3 6 4 6 5
5 0 6 6 6 7 6 8 6 9 7 0 7 1 7 2 7 3 7 4 7 5
6 0 7 6 7 6 7 7 7 8 7 9 80 81 82 83 84
7 0 85 86 87 88 88 89 9 0 9 1 9 2 9 3
80 9 4 9 4 9 5 9 6 9 7 9 8 9 9 1 00 1 01 1 01
9 0 1 02 1 03 1 04 1 05 1 05 1 06 1 07 1 08 1 09 1 1 0
1 00 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 3 1 1 4 1 1 5 1 1 5 1 1 6 1 1 7 1 1 8
1 1 0 1 1 9 1 1 9 1 2 0 1 2 1 1 2 2 1 2 3 1 2 4 1 2 4 1 2 5 1 2 6
1 2 0 1 2 7 1 2 8 1 2 8 1 2 9 1 3 0 1 3 0 1 3 1 1 3 2 1 3 3 1 3 4
1 3 0 1 3 5 1 3 6 1 3 6 1 3 7 1 3 7 1 3 8 1 3 9 1 40 1 41 1 42
1 40 1 42 1 43 1 43 1 44 1 45 1 46 1 47 1 48 1 48 1 49
A stu dy shou ld b e made of the elements in relation to low, mediu m and high stress
c onditions. The points to b e alloc ated, ac c ording to the type of stress and the av erage f orc e
applied, are set ou t in tab les II to IV .
Example: If the weight c arried is 25 lb .:
(i) determine the type of the stress inv olv ed (mediu m, low or high);
in the lef t-hand c olu mn of the tab le f or the type of stress (tab les II, III or IV ), f ind
the line f or 20 lb .;
on this line, mov e ac ross the tab le to the right, to c olu mn 5;
read of f the points alloc ation f or 25 lb . c arried, whic h is:
tab le II, mediu m stress: 30 points;
tab le III, low stress: 22 points;
tab le IV , high stress: 39 points.
2, POSTURE (FACTORA.2)
Consider whether the worker is sitting, standing, stooping or in a c ramped position and
whether a load is handled easily or awkwardly.
Points
(ii)
(iii)
(iv )
492
Sitting easily
Sitting awkwardly, or mixture of sitting and standing
Standing or walking freely
Ascending or descending stairs unladen
Standing or walking with a load
Climbing up or down ladders, or some bending, lifting,
stretching or throwing
Awkward lifting, shovelling ballast to container
Constant bending, lifting, stretching or throwing
Coalmining with pickaxes, lying in a low seam
0
2
4
5
6
8
1 0
1 2
16
APPENDIX 3
3. VIBRATION(FACTORA.3)
Coinsider the impac t of the v ib ration on the b ody, limb s or hands and the addition to
mental ef f ort du e to it, or to a series of jars or shoc ks.
Shovelling light materials
Power sewing-machine
Power press or guillotine if operative is holding the material
Cross-cut sawing
Shovelling ballast
Portable power drill operated by one hand
Pickaxing
Power drill (two hands)
Road drill on concrete
Points
1
6
8
15
4. SHORTCYCLE (HIGHLYREPETITIVE) (FACTORA.4)
In highly repetitiv e work, if a series of v ery short elements f orm a c yc le whic h is
c ontinu ou sly repeated f or a long period, award points as indic ated b elow, to c ompensate f or the
lac k of opportu nity to v ary the mu sc les u sed du ring the work.
Average cycle time
(centiminutes)
1 6-1 7
1 5
13-14
1 2
1 0-1 1
8-9
7
6
5
Less than 5
Points
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
1 0
5 . RESTRICTIVE CLOTHING (FACTORA.5 )
Consider the weight of the protec tiv e c lothing in relation to ef f ort and mov ement.
Consider also whether v entilation and b reathing are af f ec ted.
Thin rubber (surgeon's) gloves
Household rubber gloves
Rubber boots
Grinder's goggles
Industrial rubber or leather gloves
Face mask (e.g. for paint-spraying)
Asbestos suit or tarpaulin coat
Restrictive protective clothing and respirator
Points
1
3
5
8
1 5
20
493
B. Mental strains
1 . CONCENTRATION/ANXIETY(FACTORB.I)
Consider what wou ld happen if the operativ e relaxed attention, the responsib ility c arried,
the need f or exac t timing of mov ements, and the ac c u rac y or prec ision requ ired.
Routine simple assembly
Shovelling ballast
Routine packing, labourer washing vehicles
Wheeling trolley down clear gangway
Feed press tool; hand clear of press
Topping up battery
Painting walls
Assembling small and simple batches, performed without much thinking
Sewing-machine work, automatically guided
Assembling warehouse orders by trolley
Simple inspection
Load/unload press tool, hand feed into machine
Spray-painting metalwork
Adding up figures
Inspecting detailed components
Buffing and polishing
Guiding work by hand on sewing-machine
Packing assorted chocolates, memorizing pattern
and selecting accordingly
Assembly work too complex to become automatic
Welding parts held in jig
Driving a motor bus in heavy traffic or fog
Marking out in detail with high accuracy
Points
0
1
2
3
4
7
8
10
15
2. MONOTONY(FACTORB.2)
Consider the degree of mental stimu lation and if there is c ompanionship, c ompetitiv e
spirit, mu sic , etc .
494
Two workers on jobbing work
Cleaning own shoes for half an hour on one's own
Operative on repetitive work
Operative working alone on non-repetitive work
Routine inspection
Adding similar columns of figures
One operative working alone on highly repetitive work
Points
0
3
6
8
1 1
APPENDIX 3
3. EYE STRAIN(FACTORB.3)
Consider the lighting c onditions, glare, f lic ker, illu mination, c olou r and c loseness of work
and f or how long the strain is endu red.
Points
Normal factory work 0
Inspection of easily visible faults i
Sorting distinctively coloured articles by colour I 2
Factory work in poor lighting
Intermittent inspection for detailed faults
Grading apples
Reading a newspaper in a motor bus 8
Arc-welding using mask
Continuous visual inspection, e.g. cloth from a loom
Engraving using an eyeglass 1 4
4
10
4. NOISE (FACTORB,4)
Consider whether the noise af f ec ts c onc entration, is a steady hu m or a b ac kgrou nd noise,
is regu lar or oc c u rs u nexpec tedly, is irritating or soothing. (Noise has b een desc rib ed as "a lou d
sou nd made b y someb ody else".)
Points
0
Work in a quiet office, no distracting noise
Light assembly factory
Work in a city office with continual traffic noise outside 1
Light machine shop
Office or assembly shop where noise is a distraction
Woodworking machine shop 4
Operating steam hammer in forge 5
Rivetting in a shipyard 9
Road drilling 1 0
C. Physical or mental strains resulting from
the nature of the working conditions
1 . TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY(FACTORC.I)
Consider the general c onditions of atmospheric temperatu re and hu midity and c lassif y as
indic ated b elow. S elec t points ac c ording to av erage temperatu re within the ranges shown.
Humidity Temperature
(per cent)
Up to 75
0
F 76to 90
o
F Over 90
o
F
6-9 12-16
8-12 15-26
12-17 20-36
Up to 75 0
76-85 1 -3
Over 85 4.6
495
2. VENTILATION(FACTORC.2)
Consider the qu ality and f reshness of the air and its c irc u lation b y air-c onditioning or
natu ral drau ght.
Points
Offices
Factories with "office-type" conditions
Workshop with reasonable ventilation but some draught 1
Draughty workshops 3
Working in sewer 1 4
3. FUMES (FACTORC.3)
Consider the natu re and c onc entration of the f u mes; whether toxic or inju riou s to health;
irritating to eyes, noise, throat or skin; disagreeab le odou r.
Points
Lathe turning with coolants 0
Emulsion paint
Gas cutting
Soldering with resin
Motor vehicle exhaust in small commercial garage 5
Cellulose painting 6
Moulder procuring metal and filling mould 1 0
4. DUST(FACTORC.4)
Consider the v olu me and natu re of the du st.
Points
0
Office
Normal light assembly operations
Press shop
Grinding or buffing operations with good extraction 1
Sawing wood 2
Emptying ashes 4
Linishing weld 6
Running coke from hoppers into skips or trucks 1 0
Unloading cement 1 1
Demolishing building 1 2
5 . DIRT(FACTORC.5 )
Consider the natu re of the work and the general disc omf ort c au sed b y its dirty natu re.
This allowanc e c ov ers "washing time" where this is paid f or (i.e. where operativ es are allowed
496 three minu tes or f iv e minu tes f or washing, etc .). Do not allow b oth points and time.
APPENDIX 3
Office work
Normal assembly operations
Office duplicators
Refuse collection
Stripping internal combustion engine
Work under old motor vehicle
Unloading bags of cement
Coalminer
Chimney-sweep with brushes
6. WET(FACTORC.6)
Consider the c u mu lativ e ef f ec t of exposu re to this c ondition ov er a long period.
Normal factory operations
Outdoor workers, e.g. letter carrier
Working continuously in the damp
Rubbing down walls with wet pumice block
Continuous handling of wet articles
Laundry wash-house, wet work, steamy, floor running with
water, hands wet
Points
0
1
2
4
5
7
10
Points
0
1
2
4
5
10
Points conversion table
Table V. Percentage relaxation allowance for total points allocated
Po i nts 0 i 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
2 0 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 4 1 4 1 4 1 4 1 5 1 5
3 0 1 5 1 6 1 6 1 6 1 7 1 7 1 7 1 8 1 8 1 8
40 1 9 1 9 2 0 2 0 2 1 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 3
5 0 2 4 2 4 2 5 2 6 2 6 2 7 2 7 2 8 2 8 2 9
6 0 3 0 3 0 3 1 3 2 3 2 3 3 3 4 3 4 3 5 3 6
7 0 3 7 3 7 3 8 3 9 40 40 41 42 43 44
80 45
46
47 48 48 49 5 0 5 1 5 2 5 3
9 0 5 4 5 5 5 6 5 7 5 8 5 9 6 0 6 1 6 2 6 3
1 00 6 4 6 5 6 6 6 8 6 9 7 0 7 1 7 2 7 3 7 4
1 1 0 7 5 7 7 7 8 7 9 80 82 83 84 85 87
497
Points 0 i 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
120 88 89 91 92 93 95 96 97 99 100
130 101 103 105 106 107 109 110 112 113 115
140 116 118 119 121 122 123 125 126 128 130
Example: If the total number of points allocated for the various strains is 37:
(i) in the left-hand column of table V, find the line for 30;
(ii) on this line, move across the table to the right, to column 7;
(ill) read off the relaxation allowance for 37 points, which is 1 8 per cent.
Examples of calculation of relaxation allowances
1. Power press operation. As press gu ard opens au tomatic ally, reac h in with lef t hand,
grasp piec e-part, and disengage it. With lef t hand mov e piec e-part to tote b in, while right hand
plac es new b lank in press tool. Withdraw right hand, while lef t hand c loses gu ard. Operate press
with f oot. S imu ltaneou sly, with right hand reac h to tote b in, grasp b lank and orient it in hand,
mov e b lank near gu ard and wait f or gu ard to open.
On 20-ton press. Maximu m reac h 50 c m (20 in.). Postu re somewhat u nnatu ral; seated at
mac hine. Noisy department, adequ ate lighting.
2. Carry 50 lb. sack up stairs. L if t sac k on to b enc h 90 c m (3 f t.) high; transf er to
shou lder, c arry u p stairs, drop sac k on f loor. Du sty c onditions.
3. Pack chocolates in three layers of 4 lb . b ox, ac c ording to pattern f or eac h layer,
av erage 160 c hoc olates. Operativ e sits in f ront of straight shelv es b earing 11 kinds of c hoc olates
in trays or tins; mu st pac k the c hoc olates ac c ording to a memorized pattern f or eac h layer. Air-
c onditioned, good light.
Table VI. Calculation of relaxation allowances: Examples
498
Type of strain Job
Power press
operation
Stress Points
Carrying
5 0 lb.sack
Packing
chocolates
Stress Points Stress Points
A. Physical strains
1 . Average force (lb.) M 5 0
2. Posture L 4 M 5 L 2
3. Vibration L 2 L
4. Short cycle H 1 0 L
5 . Restrictive clothing
B. Mental strains
1 . Concentration/anxiety M 6 L 1 H 1 0
2. Monotony M 6 L 1 L 2
3. Eye strain L 3 L 2
4. Noise M 4 L L 1
C. Working conditions
1 . Temperature/humidity LA 1 LVL 3
2. Ventilation
3. Fumes
4. Dust H 9
5 . Dirt M 3 L
6. Wet L
Total points 38 68 20
Relaxation allowance, including tea
breaks (per cent) 1 8 35 1 3
APPENDIX 4
Conversion factors
(i) (2) To convert column (1 )
into column (2),
multiply by
Length
Inches
Inches
Feet
Feet
Yards
Yards
Poles
Poles
Furlongs
Furlongs
Miles
Miles
Fathoms
Fathoms
Centimetres
Metres
Metres
Metres
Metres
Kilometres
Kilometres
Feet
Centimetres
Yards
Metres
Feet
Metres
Yards
Metres
Miles
Kilometres
Yards
Kilometres
Feet
Metres
Inches
Feet
Yards
Poles
Fathoms
Furlongs
Miles
0.083
2.5 4
0.333
0.305
3
0.914
5.502
5.029
0.1 25
0.201
1760
1.609
6
1.829
0.394
3.281
1.094
0.199
0.547
4.975
0.621
Area
Square inches
Square inches
Square feet
Square feet
Square yards
Square yards
Square feet
Square centimetres
Square yards
Square metres
Square feet
Square metres
0.0069
6.452
0.111
0.093
9
0.836 499
O) (2) To convert column (1 )
into column (2),
multiply by
Square feet 435 60
Square miles 0.001 6
Square metres 4047
Hectares 0.405
Square feet 27878400
Square kilometres 2.5 9
Hectares 25 9.2
Acres 640
Square inches 0.1 5 5
Square feet 1 075 4
Square yards 1 .1 96
Acres 0.0025
Hectares 1 00
Acres 247.1 05
Square miles 0.386
Acres 2.471
Square kilometres 1 0
2
Square miles 0.0039
Cubic feet 5 .787 xlO"
1
Cubic centimetres 1 6.387
Cubic yards 0.037
Cubic metres 0.028
Cubic feet 27
Cubic metres 0.765
Cubic feet 3.5 3 xlO"
5
Cubic inches 0.061
Cubic yards 1 .308
Cubic feet 35 .31 5
Acres
Acres
Acres
Acres
Square miles
Square miles
Square miles
Square miles
Square centimetres
Square metres
Square metres
Square metres
Square kilometres
Square kilometres
Square kilometres
Hectares
Hectares
Hectares
Volume
Cubic inches
Cubic inches
Cubic feet
Cubic feet
Cubic yards
Cubic yards
Cubic centimetres
Cubic centimetres
Cubic metres
Cubic metres
5 00
Liquid measure
Fluid ounces (Imperial)
Fluid ounces (Imperial)
Fluid ounces (US)
Fluid ounces (US)
Pints (Imperial)
Pints (Imperial)
Pints (Imperial)
Pints (Imperial)
Fluid ounces (US) 0.961
Mililitres 28.41 3
Fluid ounces (Imperial) 1 .041
Mililitres 29.5 74
Pints (US) 1 .201
Quarts 0.5
Gallons (Imperial) 0.1 25
Litres 0.5 68
APPENDIX 4
(1 ) (2) To convert column (1 )
into column (2),
multiply by
Pints (US)
Pints (US)
Gills
Gills
Gallons (Imperial)
Gallons (Imperial)
Gallons (US)
Gallons (US)
Cubic centimetres
Litres
Litres
Pints (Imperial)
Litres
Pints
Litres
Gallons (US)
Litres
Gallons (Imperial)
Litres
Litres
Pints (Imperial)
Pints (US)
0.833
0.473
0.25
0.142
1 .201
4.5 46
0.833
3.785
io-
3
1 .760
2.1 1 3
Weight
Grains (avdp.)
Grains (troy)
Pennyweight (troy)
Ounces (avdp.)
Ounces (troy)
Pounds (avdp.)
Pounds (troy)
Stones
Tons (short)
Tons (long)
Grams
Kilograms
Grains (troy)
Grams
Grains (avdp.)
Grams
Grains (troy)
Grams
Ounces (troy)
Pounds
Grams
Ounces (avdp.)
Grams
Pounds (troy)
Ounces (avdp.)
Kilograms
Pounds (avdp.)
Ounces (troy)
Kilograms
Pounds (avdp.)
Grams
Pounds (avdp.)
Kilograms
Pounds (avdp.)
Kilograms
Ounces (avdp.)
Ounces (troy)
Pounds (avdp.)
Tons (short)
Tons (long)
1 .003
0.0648
0.996
0.0648
24
1 .5 5 5
0.91 1 5
0.0625
28.35
1 .097
31 .1 04
1 .21 5
1 6
0.45 4
0.823
1 2
0.373
14
6350.297
2000
907.185
2240
1 01 6.047
0.035
0.032
2.205
0.001 1
0.00098
5 01
APPENDIX 5
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APPENDIX 5
Moore, L ewis, S . How to design interventions for improved maintenance management.
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1983).
Mu ndel, M.E. Motion and time study: Principles and practice (Englewood Clif f s, New Jersey,
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5 05
Index
Note : Illu strations and tab les are indic ated b y italic page numbers; major text sec tions b y bold
numbers.
ABC ru le f or writing of reports 161
ABC v alu e analysis 76-77
ab senteeism
f ac tors af f ec ting 12,14,15
ac c idents at work 37-38
c au ses of 37, 66
indirec t c ost of 35
prev ention of 38, 39-42
work c ontent af f ec ted b y 13,14
ac tiv ity sampling 249
of f ic e work 338
see also work sampling
af f iliation needs 30
air c hanges 59
air c irc u lation
c ompared with v entilation 59
airc raf t-parts-inspec tion example
f low diagram u sed with f low proc ess
c hart 101-105
allowanc es 329-330,331-336
c alc u lation of 330, 331
c ontingenc y allowanc es 327, 333-334
f ac tors af f ec ting 329-330
IL O polic y on 330
misu se of 329
polic y allowanc es 334-335
in PTS systems 396
relaxation allowanc es 331-333
spec ial allowanc es 335 -336
types of 331
see also c hange-ov er; c leaning; c limatic -
c onditions; dismantling; env ironmental;
exc ess-work; f atigu e; f ixed; implement-
ation; interf erenc e; learning; personal-
needs; polic y; rejec t; relaxation; set-u p;
shu t-down; small- b atc h; spec ial; start-
u p; tool; training; u noc c u pied-time;
v ariab le allowanc es
analysis-of -stu dies sheet 279, 280, 327-328
u se in example 374-375
v ariab le elements 321
analytic al estimating 262
annu al hou rs system 70
anxiety lev els
relaxation allowanc e af f ec ted b y 494
APPLY PRESSURE ac tion (MTM-1)
time standards f or 403
APPLY PRESSURE ac tion (MTM-2) 391
time standard f or 388
artif ic ial lighting 45-50
natu ral light su pplemented with 46
artif ic ial v entilation 59-60
natu ral v entilation su pplemented with
60
ASIDE standard data elements 419, 420,
423,424
assemb ly line 211
layou t of 202,203
assemb ly work
f low grou ps in 458-461
au tomated proc ess 455-456
au tomation 212,213
au xiliary tasks
integration with produ c tion tasks 451-
452
av erage worker
meaning of term 299-301
b ar-c ode reader
of f ic e work stu died u sing 339
b ar diagram 224
see also G antt c hart
b asic needs 3, 30
b asic proc edu re of work stu dy 21, 22, 75,
247
of f ic e work 170-176
b asic time
c alc u lation of 311, 315 -316, 364-371
def inition of 311,316,477
selec tion of 316-322
av eraging method u sed 320
c onstant elements 317-321
graphic al method u sed 320, 321
tab u lation method u sed 319
v ariab le elements 321-322 5 07
5 08
b asic work c ontent
def inition of 11
b atc h produ c tion
f low-oriented mac hine grou ps in 461-
464
planning and c ontrol f or 222-224
b elonging to grou p 164,474
BEND AND ARISE motion (MTM-2) 393
b ib liography 503-505
b ins
design of 147
types of 746
b loc k diagram
line manu f ac tu ring 218
b ody motions
predetermined time standards f or 388,
403, 406
b one-sorting example
mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart u sed 127-132
b reak point
examples 362
meaning of term 291, 477
b reakdown maintenanc e 237-238
b reaks see rest b reaks/pau ses
British S tandard
rating sc ale 309,310
b u dgetary c ontrol
standard c osting u sed 437
b u f f er stoc k 231,252
b u f f ers 449,450
ef f ec t of 451,458
b u s-engine-stripping example
f low proc ess c hart u sed 97-101
c apital 6
c ar engines
assemb ly of 459-461
c ar f ac tories
work organization in 446-447
c arrying c osts 229,250,231
c atalyst-inspec tion example 727, 122-123
c eiling height 42
c hain-reac tion (du e to work stu dy) 26, 245
c hange-ov er allowanc e 335
c hange-ov er (f rom one method to another)
c ontrol of 167
preparation f or 164-166
c harts and diagrams
listed 82
see also c hronoc yc legraph; c yc legraph;
f low diagram; f low proc ess; mu ltiple
ac tiv ity; ou tline proc ess; proc edu re
f low; simo c hart; string diagram; trav el;
two-handed proc ess c hart
c hec k time
meaning of term 294-295, 477
c hild-c are f ac ilities 71
c hronoc yc legraph 82, 156
CLAMP AND UNCLAMP standard data
elements 479,420
c leaning allowanc e 326, 335
c leaning (of equ ipment, etc .) 44
c leric al proc edu res manu als 176
c leric al work
measu rement of 337-341
method stu dy of 169-184
standard data f or 338
Cleric al Work Data 418, 426
Cleric al Work Improv ement Programme
338
c limatic c onditions
allowanc es f or 331-332
ef f ec t of 55-59
c lothing (protec tion) 44-45, 57
c oin-tossing example 250, 250,257
c old env ironments
working in 56-57
c olou r of workplac e 141
working c onditions af f ec ted b y 48-49
c omb ined ac tiv ities
symb ol f or 84
c ompany-within-a-c ompany 464-465
c omparativ e estimating 262-263
c omponent parts
redu c tion in nu mb er 188,797
c ompressed work-week system 69
c ompu ter-aided design 188,790
c ompu ter-aided manu f ac tu ring 212
c ompu ter-integrated manu f ac tu ring 274,
215
c ompu terization 175
c ompu terized measu rement systems
of f ic e work stu died u sing 341
standard data c ompiled u sing 427-428
c ompu terized nu meric al c ontrol 212
c onc entration lev els
c onf idenc e lev els (statistic s) 25 0-25 2
c onstant element 290, 477
c onstant elements
nu mb er requ ired in time stu dy 326
selec tion of b asic time f or 317-321
c onstru c tion operations
grou p work in 458
c ontainers f or materials-handling 208,270
INDEX
c ontingenc y allowanc es 327, 333-334
def inition of 333,477
maximu m perc entage 327, 334
misu se of 334
c ontinu ation sheet (f or time stu dy) 273,
274
example of u se 366-369
c ontinu ou s produ c tion
examples 222,225
produ c tion planning and c ontrol in
222, 223
see also line produ c tion
c ontrol c harts 197
c ontrol statements 439
c ontrols
ergonomie design of 66, 149
c onv ersion f ac tors
area u nits 499-500
length u nits 499
liqu id measu res 500-501
MTM rating 387
rating sc ales 310
v olu me u nits 500
weight u nits 501
c onv eyors 207,210
c ost c onsiderations
inv entory c ontrol 229,230, 231
material-handling equ ipment 209
networking planning 227
selec tion of work to b e stu died 76-77
c ost sav ings
su mmary on f low proc ess c hart 707,
108
c ou rses on work stu dy 27, 28, 31
c raf t skill
timing af f ec ted b y 285
c ranes and hoists 208,210
CRANK moon 393-394
c ritic al examination of data 94-105
see also examination of data
Critic al Path Method (CPM) 225-227
c rash times u sed 227, 227
f loating ac tiv ities in 226
network diagrams 225, 226,228
c ross c hart 204, 205
c u mu lativ e timing
ac c u rac y of 296
adv antages of 295, 312
c alc u lation of b asic time 316
meaning of term 294,481
c u stomer
integration into produ c tion system 471
c u stomer serv ic e programmes 184
c u stomer-spec if ic produ c tion 470-471
c yc le diagrams (f or restric ted work) 349,
349-350, 352, 379
c yc legraph 82, 156
daily rest periods 67
data c aptu re dev ic es 268
see also elec tronic stu dy b oards
daylight
su pplementation with artif ic ial lighting
46
dec entralization of produ c tion 472-473
dec imal-minu te stop-watc h 266, 267
dec ou pling of worker-mac hine systems
448-45 1
au xilary equ ipment u sed 449-451
c ooperation f or 451
mec hanization u sed 448-449
def inition of new method 21, 22,161-162
delay ac tiv ities
def inition of 83, 480
examples S 5
symb ol f or 83, 85,150
design c hanges/f au lts
exc ess work c ontent c au sed b y \\, 14
see also produ c t design
designers
disc u ssion with 156
desktop pu b lishing
misu se of 180
dev elopment of new/improv ed layou t/
method 21, 22,75,105 -108,15 6-15 8
airc raf t-parts-inspec tion example 105,
106,107
c atalyst-inspec tion example 122-123
f inish-milling example 125, 126
glass-tu b e-c u tting example 153,154
glu e-b one-c ru sher example 130,131
hospital-dinner example 120
tile-storage example 113,115, 116
diagrams showing mov ement 82,109-137
see also c hronoc yc legraph; c yc legraph;
f low; string diagram; trav el c hart
dial displays 149
ergonomic s of 64
dif f erential timing 296, 481
dirty c onditions
relaxation allowanc e af f ec ted b y 496-
497
diseases
work-related 38-39
DISENGAGE ac tion (MTM-1)
dismantling allowanc e 335
displays 5 09
5 1 0
dial patterns u sed 64
ergonomic s of 63, 64, 65
expec ted/u nexpec ted stereotypes 64
sc ales u sed 64
types of 63, 64
div ersif ied line grou p 456-457
grou p work in 457
div ision of work
maintenanc e operations 239
do operations 95
see also operations
doc u ment transport systems 183-184
drinking-water f ac ilities 70
du st
ear protec tion 54
ec onomic c onsiderations see c ost c onsider-
ations
ec onomic order qu antity 231
ef f ort
rating of 306
492
elapsed time
elec tronic stop-watc hes 268, 270
adv antages of 268, 296
elec tronic stu dy b oards 268, 270, 277
inf ormation rec orded 288, 296
time stu dy proc edu re u sing 323-324
elements
b reaking job into 289-291
dec iding on 291-292
examples 362
identif iab ility of 291
smallest prac tic al u nit 291
timing of 294-296
types of 290-291,477
emergenc y plan 40
emergenc y planning 41-42
engine-stripping example
f low diagram u sed with f low proc ess
c hart 97-101
enterprise-oriented organizations 466-471
ef f ec t of marketing/sales systems 470-
471
produ c t design within 467-469
relationship with su ppliers 469-470
env ironmental allowanc es 332
env ironmental c ontrol
f ac tories 57-59
of f ic es 183
env ironmental f ac tors
time stu dy allowanc es af f ec ted b y
330, 332, 495-497
ergonomic s 62-65 ,149
aims of 62
design of c ontrol u sing 66
estimating
adv antages of 262
analytic al 262
c omparativ e 262-263
ev ac u ation alarm system 40
ev alu ation of alternativ e layou ts/methods
21, 22,15 9-161
of f ic e work 175
examination of data 21, 22, 75, 94-105
airc raf t-parts-inspec tion example 102
c atalyst-inspec tion example 122
f inish-milling example 126
glass-tu b e-c u tting example 153
glu e-b one-c ru sher example 127,130
hospital-dinner example 117, 120
materials-handling example 137
of f ic e-messenger example 135
of f ic e work 174
tile-storage example 113,774
exc ess-work allowanc e 336
exc ess work c ontent
f ac tors c au sing 11-13,14
tec hniqu es to redu c e 75
existing produ c tion f ac ilities
u se f or new produ c ts 188
experienc ed worker
meaning of term 298
exposu re limits 61
extension
meaning of term 316,577, 368, All
EYE ACTION (MTM-2) 391 -392
eye motions
405
eye strain
ef f ec t of lighting lev els 45,46
f ac tor c u rv e 416,418
f ac tors of produ c tion 6
f amilarization c ou rses 27,28,31
f atigu e
ef f ec t of noise 51
rest b reaks to dissipate 67, 331, 333
v isu al 46
f atigu e allowanc es 331, 332,477
restric ted work 351, 352,375
f eeding f ac ilities (c anteen, etc .) 71
f iling and retriev al systems 183
INDEX
f ilms
u se in mic romotion stu dy 155
u se in training/retraining 165
f inish-milling example
method stu dy 346, 347
mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart u sed 124-125,
126
pu mp diagram f or 349
time stu dy 361-379
workplac e layou t f or 363
f inished work mov ement 145
f ire exits 40
re extingu ishers 40
f ire prev ention
princ iples of 39-41
f ire protec tion systems 40
f irst-aid f ac ilities 71
f ixed (relaxation) allowanc es 331, 332
f ixed-speed assemb ly line 453
work organization in 446
f ixtu res 148-149,477
f lexib le manu f ac tu ring systems (FMS ) 212
f lexib le working-time arrangements 68
f lexitime systems 68-69
f loating workers 350
f loor su rf ac es
properties of 43
f loors
marking of gangways and storage areas
44 " ' " "
f low diagram
106
b u s-engine-stripping example 98
layou t dev eloped u sing 206
line manu f ac tu ring 279
meaning of term 477
u se in c onju nc tion with proc ess c harts
97,101-105,117-120
see also string diagram
f low grou ps 458-464
adv antages of 459-460
in assemb ly work 458-461
in b atc h produ c tion 461-464
disadv antages of 458,460
example 459-461
f low-oriented grou ps 461-464
adv antages of 464
c ompared with f u nc tional layou t 461,
462,464
example 462-464
f low proc ess c hart 82,89, 91-94
ac tiv ities rec orded on 95
107
b u s-engine-stripping example
improv ed method 700
original method 92, 93
c harac teristic s of 91, 94
c ompared with ou tline proc ess c hart
91
c onv entions u sed 116-117
c ost-sav ings su mmarized on 707,108
equ ipment type 89,478
inf ormation requ ired in heading 94
material type 89, 91, 478
examples 92, 93,100,104,107
meaning of term 478
preprinted f orm u sed 91
time rec ording introdu c ed 101, 104,
107
types of 82, 89
u se with f low diagram 97, 101-105,
117-120
u se with string diagram 110
worker type 89,116-120, 478
c onv entions u sed 116-117
example 117-120,779
f lu oresc ent lighting
c ompared with inc andesc ent lighting
48, 49
f lyb ac k dec imal-minu te stop-watc h 266,
267
f lyb ac k timing 294-295, 296
c alc u lation of b asic time 316
FOOT MOTION (MTM-2) 392
f oot motions
406
f orc e exterted
492
f oreign element 290, 477
f ormal management stru c tu re 30
f orms 176-180
c ontrol of 180
design of 177-180
details af f ec ting 179-180
mu ltiple c opies of 179-180
produ c tion of 180
time stu dy 270-280
analysis-of -stu dies sheet 279, 280,
321,327-328,374-575
c ontinu ation sheet 273, 274, 366-
369
pen/penc il u sed 313, 314
relaxation allowanc e c alc u lation
sheet 280,576-577
short-c yc le stu dy f orm 273, 275-
277 " 5 1 1
stu dy su mmary sheet 273, 278,
280,314-315,323,572-375
top sheet 272, 273, 364-365
working sheet 273, 370-371
f ree-f loor area 42
f requ enc ies
rec orded in time stu dy 315
f u lf ilment needs 30
f u mb ling
rating af f ec ted b y 308
f u mes
f u nc tional manu f ac tu ring 456
layou t f or 202,203,457
c hange to line layou t 216,277
proc ess planning f or 216
G antt c hart 222-224, 224
G eneral S ewing Data 418, 426
G ET ac tions (MTM-2) 388-389
see also GRASP; REACH; RELEASE
GET standard data elements 419, 420, 423,
424
GET WEIGHT ac tion (MTM-2) 389
time standard f or 388, 389
glare
f ac tors inf lu enc ing degree of 48
glass-tu b e-c u tting example
standard prac tic e f or 163
two-handed proc ess c hart u sed 151-
154
glossary of terms u sed 477-481
glu e-b one-c ru sher example
mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart u sed 127-132
good hou sekeeping 42,44-45
goods-in-progress 229
redu c tion in amou nt 232
gov erning element 290, 477
graphic al methods
b asic -time selec tion u sing 320, 321
standard data determined u sing 416-
417,417, 418
GRASP ac tion (MTM-1)
grou p layou t 202, 203
grou p memb ers
allegianc e of 164
grou p sampling tec hniqu es 260
of f ic e work 338
rec ording sheet f or 261
grou p work 45 2-464
hazard c ontrol systems 41-42
hearing loss
c au ses of 51
hearing protec tors 54
heat exposu re
work rates af f ec ted b y 56
heav y weights
c arrying of 306, 308
relaxation allowanc e af f ec ted b y
490-492
hesitation
rating af f ec ted b y 308
hierarc hy of needs 30
historic al-rec ords analysis
hoists 208,270
hold ac tiv ity
symb ol f or 150
hospital-dinner example
f low proc ess c hart u sed 117-120
hot env ironments
v entilation u sed 60
working in 55-56
hou rs-av eraging systems 70
hou rs of work 65-66
c ompressed-work-week system 69
shif t work 69
hou se b u ilding
modu larization u sed 468-469
traditional method 469
hu man b ody
motion ec onomy inv olv ing 140-141
see also b ody; eye; f oot; leg motions
hu man c onsiderations
selec tion of work to b e stu died 79
hu man ear
f requ enc y response of 51
hu man f ac tor 25-26
in applic ation of work stu dy 26-34
hu midity
ef f ec t on working c onditions 55-56,
57
idle time
meaning of term 478
payment f or 354-356
illu mination
rec ommended minimu m v alu es of
46
45,
IL O
5 12
on allowanc es 330
Night Work Conv ention (No. 171) and
Rec ommendation (No. 178) 67-68
INDEX
Redu c tion of Hou rs of Work
Rec ommendation (No. 116) 66, 67
implementation allowanc e 336
inc andesc ent lighting
c ompared with f lu oresc ent lighting 48,
49
inc entiv e sc hemes
ef f ec t on time taken 303-304,305, 309
time standards in 437-438
independenc e in work 473
indu c tion c ou rses
maintenanc e 239-240
work stu dy 27,28,31
indu strial ac c idents
prev ention of 39-42
indu strial engineering 23
indu strial hygiene 39
indu strial tru c ks 207-208, 210
inef f ec tiv e time
ef f ec t of inc entiv e on 303, 304, 304,
309
meaning of term 478
perf ormanc e af f ec ted b y 304
inexperienc ed workers
timing of 298
inf ormal organization 30-31
inf ormation v alu e analysis 191
inpu t resou rc es 6, 7
inside work 348, 478
INSPECT OR CHECK standard data
element 419
inspec tion ac tiv ities
examples S 5
nu mb ering in proc ess c hart 87
symb ol f or 83, S 5
installation of new/improv ed layou t/method
21,22,162,164
of f ic e work 176
interf erenc e allowanc e 35 8-360
intermittent produ c tion
examples 222
meaning of term 222
produ c tion planning and c ontrol in
222-224
see also b atc h produ c tion
International L ab ou r Conf erenc e
Night Work Conv ention (No. 171) and
Rec ommendation (No. 178) 67-68
Redu c tion of Hou rs of Work
Rec ommendation (No. 116) 66, 67
inv entory c ontrol 229-235
c ost c onsiderations 229,230, 231
ef f ec t of 12,75
ju st-in-time approac h 232-235
spare parts 239
traditional approac hes
and work stu dy 235
229-232
jigs 148-149,478
JIT see ju st-in-time inv entory method
job attrac tiv eness 473-474
job b reakdown 289-291, 478
job design 445 -45 2
job enric hment 446-452
qu estions to b e asked 487
job satisf ac tion 32
ju st-in-time inv entory method 232-235
and su ppliers 233, 469-470
Kanban (job order) c ard
u se in inv entory c ontrol 233, 234
key operations/tasks
lateness
f ac tors af f ec ting 12,14,15
layou t 201-206
c hoic e of material-handling equ ipment
af f ec ted b y 208
dev elopment of 203-206
b y f ixed position 201, 202
grou p produ c tion 202, 203
modif ic ation of existing layou t 206
planning of 42
b y proc ess or f u nc tion 202, 203
b y produ c t 202, 203
work c ontent af f ec ted b y 12,14,15
layou t design
106
b u s-engine-stripping example 98
glu e-b one-c ru sher example 729
of f ic e layou t 181-184
tile-storage example 113, 775
and work stu dy 217
workplac e layou t 143-148
learning
timing af f ec ted b y 298
learning allowanc es 336
learning c u rv e 166
leg motions
406
light-engineering/assemb ly work
job elements u sed 419-420
lighting 45 -5 0
c omparison of types 48, 48 5 13
5 1 4
c ontrol of 49-50
f ac tors inf lu enc ing degree of glare 48
maximu m rec ommended spac ing f or
indu strial-type u nits 47
mou nting of general lighting u nits 47
natu ral light u sed 46
need f or general lighting 47
rec ommended maximu m intensity ratios
46
ref lec tion f ac tors f or 50
relativ e c osts of 48
u se of c olou rs 48-49
line grou ping 460
line manu f ac tu ring
b loc k diagram 218
f low diagram 219
layou t f or 202, 203
planning and c ontrol f or 222, 225
proc ess planning f or 216-217
load f ac tor 35 6-35 7
loc al exhau st v entilation 60
loc al su pplementary lighting 47
loose times 284
mac hine anc illary time 344,345,478
mac hine av ailab le time 344, 345, 478
mac hine-c ontrolled time 348,579, 478
u noc c u pied time du ring 354
mac hine c ontrols
design of 149
mac hine down time 344, 345, 478
mac hine ef f ec tiv e u tilization index 345-
346, 478
mac hine ef f ic ienc y index 345, 478
mac hine element 290,477
mac hine-hou r
meaning of term 478
mac hine idle time 344, 345,478
mac hine interf erenc e 35 7-35 8, 358
mac hine maximu m time 344,345, 479
mac hine-pac ed line 453-454
disadv antages of 454
grou p work in 454
mac hine ru nning time 344, 345, 479
mac hine ru nning time at standard 345,
345, 479
mac hine u tilization
measu rement of 345
terms u sed 344,478
mac hine u tilization index 345,479
mac hines
setting time standards f or work with
343-360
mac rosc opic timing systems
standard data b ased on 410,412
see also stop-watc h time stu dy
magazines 449,450
ef f ec t of 451
maintaining of new/improv ed layou t/method
21,22,167-168
of f ic e work 176
maintenanc e 237-240
ef f ec tiv eness of 239
as enterprise-wide responsib ility 239-
240
organization of 238-240
sc ope of 237-238
as spec ialized f u nc tion 238-239
types of 237-238
and work stu dy 240
make ready ac tiv ities 95
see also transport
managers
produ c tiv ity af f ec ted b y 6-8
and work stu dy 26-27
and work stu dy prac titioners 164
manu al element 290,477
manu al handling
ac c idents du ring 38
manu f ac tu ring tec hnology
dev elopments in 211-215 ,211
Maslow's hierarc hy of needs 30
mass produ c tion 203,211
Master Cleric al Data
sc ope of applic ation of data 386
materials
mov ement of 109
positioning of 129,130, 141
u tilization of 192-193
qu estions to b e asked 484-485
waste of
exc ess work c ontent c au sed b y 11,
14
materials handling 206-211
design to f ac ilitate 190
elimination/redu c tion of 206-207
improv ing ef f ic ienc y of 207
weighted trav el c hart u sed in example
135-137
work c ontent af f ec ted b y 12,14,15
and work stu dy 217
materials-handling equ ipment 207-208,
209, 270
f ac tors af f ec ting c hoic e 208-209
mec hanization 212,213
dec ou pling throu gh 448-449
medic al f ac ilities 71
memomotion photography 155
mental ac tiv ities
INDEX
rating of operations inv olv ing 307
mental strain
relaxation allowanc es af f ec ted b y 494-
498
method
c hec king of in time stu dy 288-289
method rev iew proc edu re 168
method stu dy 73-184
b asic proc edu re of 75-76
u se in of f ic e work 170-176
c harts and diagrams u sed 81-82,82
def inition of 19, 20, 75, 479
prior to time stu dy 281-282, 288
qu estions to b e asked 97, 105, 483-
487
work c ontent af f ec ted b y 12, 75
methods lab oratory 398
Methods-Time Measu rement see MTM
systems
methods of work
simplif ic ation b y redesign 190
MEZA sof tware
standard data dev eloped u sing 429
mic romotion stu dy 155-156
f ilms u sed 155
v ideo u sed 156
mic rosc opic time-measu rement systems
standard data b ased on 410,412
see also predetermined time standards
(PTS ) systems
milling jigs 148
milling operations see f inish-milling
MISCELLANEOUS standard data elements
419
modu larization of c omplex produ c ts 188,
468-469
examples 468,469
monotony (of work)
motion c lassif ic ation
b asic motions listed 382, 388-394
c riteria u sed in v ariou s PTS systems
386
f irst dev eloped 382
see also predetermined time standards
motion ec onomy
arrangement of workplac e in 141
b ins and dev ic es f or 146
design of tools and equ ipment in 141-
143
princ iples of 140-143, 479
u se of hu man b ody in 140-141
Motion Time Analysis 382
motiv ation
f ac tors af f ec ting 25, 30
MOV E ac tion (MTM-1)
mov ement of workers 109-137
f low proc ess c hart f or 82, 116-120
mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart f or 82, 120-132
string diagram f or S 2, 109-116
trav el c hart f or 82,132-137
mov ements
c lassif ic ation of 143
lowest c lassif ic ation c alled f or
141,143
simplif ic ation of 141, 143, 144, 145,
146
MTM-1 system
data lev el f or 385, 385
motion-c lassif ic ation c riteria u sed 386
sc ope of applic ation of data 385, 386
time standards
APPLY PRESSURE action 403
b ody motions 406
DISENGAGE ac tion 405
eye motions 405
f oot motions 406
GRASP action 404
leg motions 406
MOVE action 402
POSITION action 404
REACH action 401
RELEASE ac tion 405
simu ltaneou s motions 407
TURN action 403
training requ irements f or 394
MTM-2 system 382-383
applic ation of 394-395, 399
APPLY PRESSURE ac tion 391
BEND AND ARISE motion 393
c ategories of motion 388-394
OMA*motion 393-394
data lev el f or 5S 5, 385
EYE ACTION 391-392
FOOT MOTION 392,393
GET actions 388-389
GET WEIGHT ac tion 389
motion c lassif ic ation c riteria u sed 386
Pi/r ac tions 389-390
PUT WEIGHT action 390
REGRASP ac tion 390-391
sc ope of applic ation of data 385, 386
standard data determined u sing (power
press example) 42i, 424
5 1 5
5 16
S TEP motion 392-393
time standards 388
time u nits u sed 388
MTM (Methods-Time Measu rement) sys-
tems
c ategories of motion (MTM-2) 388-
394
data lev els f or S 5, 385
time standards f or v ariou s motions
388,401-407
time u nits u sed 387, 388
mu lti-part f orm sets 179-180
mu lti-skilling of maintenanc e operators
238
mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart 82,120-132
examples
c atalyst-inspec tion example 122-
123
f inish-milling example 124-125,
126
glu e-b one-c ru sher example 127-
132
preprinted f orms u sed 124-125,128
mu ltiple mac hine work 35 6-360
examples 356,359
narrativ e method (of rec ording data) 172
natu ral light 46
su pplementation with artif ic ial lighting
46
natu ral v entilation 60
su pplementation with artif ic ial
v entilation 60
nerv ou s workers
time stu dy of 285
networking planning tec hniqu es 224-227
night work 67-68
noise 5 0-5 4
c ommu nic ations impeded b y 51, 52
disorders c au sed b y 51
f atigu e c au sed b y 51
maximu m du ration to av oid hearing
damage 54
maximu m lev el f or normal c onv ersation
51
maximu m lev el to av oid hearing
damage 53,54
noise-c ontrol methods 53-54
of f ic es 183
noise-protec tion tec hniqu es 54
nomograms
sample size determination 254, 255
non-produ c tiv e ac tiv ities 95
in engine-stripping example 97
see also delay; inspec tion; storage;
transport ac tiv ities
normal distrib u tion c u rv e 251, 252, 299,
300, 301
nu meric al c ontrol (NC) tec hnology 212
nu rsing of new methods 166
ob serv ation position (f or time stu dy) 284-
285
ob serv ation ratio stu dy see work sampling
ob serv ed time
meaning of term 479
oc c asional element 290,477
oc c u pational ac c idents 37-38
c au ses of 37, 66
indirec t c ost of 35
prev ention of 38, 39-42
oc c u pational diseases 38-39
oc c u pational hazards
c au ses of 37-39
prev ention of 36-37, 38
work c ontent af f ec ted b y 13,14
of f ic e
hierarc hy of ac tiv ities/methods/pro-
c edu res/systems 171-172
method stu dy in 169-184
importanc e of 169-170
proc edu re 170-176
qu ality c ontrol in 184
v alu e analysis applied 191
work measu rement in 337-341
c ompu terized systems u sed 341
historic al-rec ords analysis u sed
339-340
self -rec ording tec hniqu es u sed
339
tec hniqu es u sed 338
of f ic e equ ipment 175
of f ic e layou t 181-184
open-plan 181-182
of f ic e-messenger example
trav el c hart u sed 133, 134-136
one-worker-and-one-mac hine operation
348-350
open-plan of f ic e layou t 181-182
adv antages of 181
OPERATE standard data elements 419,
420,423, 424
operations
INDEX
examples 85
nu mb ering in proc ess c hart 87
symb ol f or 82,85,150
operator-mac hine interf ac e 62, 63
ordering c osts 230,230, 231
organization and methods (O & M) 169-
170
ou tline proc ess c hart 82, 84
c ompared with f low proc ess c hart 91
c onv entions u sed when drawing 89,
90
example 86-89
nu mb ering of ac tiv ities in 87
ou tpu t
expression of 5-6
ou tpu t qu otas
imposition of 31
inf ormal qu otas 31
ou tside work 348, 479
ov erall c yc le time 352, 353
ov ertime 66-67
pac king operations
relaxation allowanc e c alc u lation 498
workplac e arrangement f or 146
parallel grou ping 460
Pareto analysis 76-77
listing of operations/produ c ts in v alu e
order 77, 78
u se in inv entory c ontrol 230
u se in proc ess planning 216
u se in qu ality c ontrol 196
payment-b y-resu lts sc hemes
ef f ec t on time taken 303-304, 305, 309
idle-time c redits in 355
permanent storage
symb ol f or 84, 85
see also storage
personal-needs allowanc e 332,479
restric ted work 350, 351, 352, 576,
377, 378
personnel rec ord f orm 779
PERT (Programme Ev alu ation and Rev iew
Tec hniqu e) 224-225
physiologic al needs 30
plant and mac hine c ontrol 343-346, 479
PL AZET sof tware
standard times determined u sing 430
polic y allowanc e 334-335
poor workmanship
POSITION ac tion (MTM-1)
POSITION IN TOOL standard data elements
419,420,423, 424
postu re
see also sitting position
power press example
MTM-2 u sed to determine standard data
423,424
sequ enc e of elements 421
standard data elements u sed 419-420,
422
pre-set times 444
predetermined motion time systems (PMTS )
381
predetermined time standards (PTS ) 381-
407
c omponents of 382, 388-394
data lev els f or 385
of f ic e work 338
predetermined time standards (PTS ) systems
adv antages of 383
allowanc es applied 396
applic ations of 394-400
b reakdown into work elements 395-
396
c hoic e of operativ e to b e ob serv ed 395
c ritic isms of 383-384
dif f erent f orms of 384-387
example of u se 397, 398, 398, 399
analysis sheet f or 399
origins of 382-383
and other tec hniqu es 383, 400
rec ording job inf ormation f or 395
sc ope of applic ation of data 385,586
standard data determined b y 417-426
time u nits u sed 386-387
u se of 387-394
v isu alization of new work method
396-400
see also Methods-Time Measu rement
(MTM) systems; Work Fac tor system
premises 42
prev entiv e maintenanc e 238
ef f ec t of 12, 75
ef f ec t on work stu dy 240
primary qu estions 95-96, 479
prob ab ility
def inition of 250
example 250, 250, 257
proc edu ral narrativ e 172 5 17
5 1 8
proc edu re f lowc hart 173,174
proc edu res of work stu dy 21, 22, 75
proc ess c harts 82, 479
of f ic e work 173
symb ols u sed 82-84, 85, 150
see also f low; two-handed proc ess c hart
proc ess-c ontrolled time 348, 479
u noc c u pied time du ring 354
proc ess planning 215-217
in f u nc tional manu f ac tu ring 216
in line manu f ac tu ring 216-217
proc ess sequ enc e c harts 81, S 2
see also now; ou tline proc ess;
proc edu re f low; two-handed proc ess
c hart
proc ess u tilization
terms u sed 346
produ c t design 187-191
modu larization u sed 468-469
produ c tion c onsiderations 468
relationship to work stu dy 156, 187
produ c t dev elopment
stages in 189
produ c t-oriented organizations 464-466
examples 465-466,467
f low patterns in 466, 467
produ c tion
c ompared with produ c tiv ity 4
f ac tors of 6
produ c tion c osts
estimating of 436
produ c tion f low c harac teristic s
c hoic e of material-handling equ ipment
af f ec ted b y 209
produ c tion management
dif f ic u lty of doing work stu dy as well
17 " '
tec hniqu es u sed 23,185 -240
and work stu dy 21, 23
produ c tion planning and c ontrol 221-228
c ontinu ou s produ c tion 222
intermittent produ c tion 222-224
sc ope of 221-222
time standards u sed 435-436
produ c tion system
models f or 453-458
stab ility of 473
produ c tiv ity
c ompared with produ c tion 4
def inition of 4
f ac tors af f ec ting 5-6,31,35-36
importanc e of stu dying all f ac tors 31
in indiv idu al enterprise 5-6
resistanc e to inc reasing of 25
task of management 6-7
produ c tiv ity c irc les 32, 158, 199
projec t report 160-161
protec tiv e c lothing 44-45 , 57
protec tiv e equ ipment 61-62
prototypes 188
PTS see predetermined time standards
pu mp diagrams 349, 349-350, 352
Pt/r ac tions (MTM-2) 389-390
see also MOVE; POSlTION(MTM-l)
pu t away ac tiv ities 95
see also delay; inspec t; storage
PUT WEIGHT ac tion (MTM-2) 390
qu alif ied worker 297-299
def inition of 283, 298, 479
qu ality c irc les 158,171, 199-200
qu ality c ontrol 195 -200
c ontrol c harts f or 197,198
integration into produ c tion proc ess
452
meaning of term 195
of f ic e work 184
statistic al qu ality c ontrol 196-197, 198
Tagu c hi approac h 198-199
and work stu dy 200
qu ality of lif e 3
qu ality requ irements
qu ality standards
exc ess work c ontent c au sed b y inc orrec t
standards 11,74
qu estioning tec hniqu e 94-105 , 139-140,
480
examples 97-105
f orms/doc u ments 177
list of qu estions 97, 105, 483-487
primary qu estions 95-96
sec ondary qu estions 96-97
u se in airc raf t-part example 102
u se in engine-stripping example 99,
101
random nu mb ers tab le 256
random ob serv ation method see work
sampling
random ob serv ations 254
time sequ enc e determined f or 256
INDEX
rate of working
c omparison with standard rate 305-
306
ef f ec t of inc entiv e on 303, 304, 304,
309
standard rate 302, 303
rated work sampling 260
rec ording sheet f or 261
rating 297-312
British S tandard sc ale 309, 310
c alc u lations u sing 311-312, 315-316,
364-369
c onf idenc e in ac c u rac y of 306
f ac tors af f ec ting 306,307,309,312
PTS systems 387, 396
pu rpose of 306
rec ording of 312
rou nding-of f of 311
sc ales of 309-310,480
speed of working measu red b y 306-
307
ratio-delay see work sampling
7iACH ac tion (MTM-1)
rec ognition needs 30
rec orded time
meaning of term 295
rec ording of data 21, 22, 75, 81-94
airc raf t-parts-inspec tion example 101-
102
c atalyst-inspec tion example 727, 122
f inish-milling example 124, 126
glass-tu b e-c u tting example 752, 153
glu e-b one-c ru sher example 127, 72S -
729
hospital-dinner example 117, 778, 779
materials-handling example 135, 136,
137
of f ic e-messenger example 133,134
PTS systems 395
tec hniqu es u sed 82, 156
see also f low diagram; f low proc ess
c hart; string diagram; trav el c hart
tile-storage example 113,114
time stu dy 286-288,312
rec reational f ac ilities 71
ref lec tion f ac tor
rec ommended ranges of 50
ref rigerated premises
working in 57
REGRASP ac tion (MTM-2) 390-391
rejec t allowanc e 335-336
relaxation allowanc es 331-333
c alc u lation of 332
examples 376-378,498
points c onv ersion tab le u sed 497-
498
f or restric ted work 350-353, 576-
378
tab les u sed 332, 489-498
c omponents of 331, 332
heav y manu al work 127,130
mental strain af f ec ting 494-497
physic al strain af f ec ting 489-493
PTS system 396
RELEASE ac tion (MTM-1)
REMOVE FROM TOOL standard data
elements 419,420,423, 424
reorder point 231, 252
repetitiv e element 290, 477
repetitiv e work
relaxation allowanc e f or 493
see also short-c yc le work
representativ e worker
meaning of term 283, 298, 480
rest b reaks/pau ses 67, 333
ef f ec t of heat exposu re 56
rest f ac ilities 71
rest periods
daily and weekly 67
restric ted walking
restric ted work 346-348
c alc u lation of relaxation allowanc e f or
350-353
examples 346, 347-348, 356
restric tiv e c lothing
retraining of operativ es 165-166
f ilms u sed 155, 165
rob ots 208,270
dec ou pling u sing 449
manoeu v rab ility of 209
rogu e times 318,319,324
sac k-c arrying example
saf ety c riteria 37-39
saf ety and health
organization of 36-37
training in 36-37
salv age of waste 192-193
sample size determination 252-254, 292-
293
nomogram u sed 254, 255
statistic al method 253-254, 292-293 5 19
5 20
time stu dy 324, 326-327
sampling theory 250
sanitary f ac ilities 45, 70
sc ale model
layou t dev eloped u sing 206
sc hedu ling of maintenanc e operations 238-
239
sc oring of f ac tors 160
sc oring-and-weighting-c omb ined method
159-160
sec ondary qu estions 96-97, 480
sec u rity needs 30
selec ted time 316-322
c onstant elements 317-321
v ariab le elements 321-322
selec ting of work to b e stu died 21, 22, 75,
76-79
ec onomic c onsiderations 76-77, 78
hu man c onsiderations 79
limiting of sc ope 79
tec hnic al/tec hnologic al c onsiderations
78-79
time stu dy 281-282
self -rec ording tec hniqu es
of f ic e work 339
serv ic e grou p 457
grou p work in 457
set-u p allowanc e 335,480
shif t work 69-70
short-c yc le work
c hec king method u sed 288
f orms u sed 273, 275-277
relaxation allowanc e f or 493
timing of 296
work organization f or 447
showers 45,70
shu t-down time allowanc e 326, 335
simo c hart 155
sitting position
rec ommended dimensions 145
small-b atc h allowanc e 336
small systems
au tonomy of 472-473
snap-reading method see work sampling
sou nd-proof ing 54
spac e u tilization
f ac tors af f ec ting 201
spare parts inv entory c ontrol 239
spec ial allowanc es 335 -336
spec ial projec ts
planning and c ontrol of 224-227
spec imen c hart 775,173
speed of working
measu rement of 306-307
split-hand type watc h 266
spring-loaded tab le 157
staggered hou rs 68
standard c osting 437
standard data 409-430
c leric al work 338
c ompu terized measu rement systems
u sed to c ompile 427-428
dev eloping of 410-417
u se of PTS systems 417-426
externally sou rc ed data 426-427
f ac tors af f ec ting time 412,413
job -element b reakdown f or 410-411,
419-420
maintenanc e operations 240
meaning of term 480
PTS systems u sed to dev elop 417-426
reliab ility of data 409-410
standard dev iation 251
standard minu te
adv antage of 434
standard perf ormanc e 303
c omparison of ob serv ed rate of working
with 305-306
standard prac tic e sheet 162,163
standard rating 302,310
examples 303,310
MTM equ iv alent 387, 396
walking-speed equ iv alent 302, 310
standard time 336-337
c alc u lation of 379
def inition of 336, 353,480
f orms of 434
make-u p of 337
standard u nit of work 434
standardization of parts 1,88
start-u p time allowanc e 326, 335
statistic al methods
sample size determination u sing 253-
254, 292-293
v ariab le times c alc u lated u sing 322
statistic al qu ality c ontrol 196-198
STEP motion (MTM-2) 392-393
stoc kou t c osts 229
stop-watc h 266-267
elec tronic type 266, 268, 270
mec hanic al type 266-267
types of 266
stop-watc h proc edu re 294-296
stop-watc h time stu dy
INDEX
c ompared with predetermined time
standards (PTS ) 383
see also time stu dy
storage ac tiv ities
def inition of 84
examples 85
symb ol f or 84, 85
string diagram 82,109-116,480
as aid to explain c hanges 112,164
example 113-116
method of c onstru c tion 110-112
qu antitativ e measu rement u sed 112
stu dy sheet f or 111
stru c tu red estimating 262-263
stu dy b oards 267-268,269
elec tronic 268, 270, 271
stu dy su mmary sheet 273, 278, 280
c ompleting of 323
elec tronic systems 324, 325
preparing of 314-315
u se in example 372-373
su b stitu te materials
c ost sav ing b y u se of 190
su ggestion sc hemes 164,171
su perv isors
inv olv ement in work stu dy 27-29,
283, 284
reasons f or resistanc e to work stu dy
28
sou rc es of rec ru itment 28
and work stu dy prac titioners 164, 165
su ppliers
relationship with 233, 469-470
symb ols
proc ess c hart 82-84, 85
two-handed proc ess c hart 150
synthesis 441-474
systematic natu re of work stu dy 18, 443,
444
tac t
need f or 26, 33
Tagu c hi approac h (to qu ality c ontrol) 198-
199
teamwork
restric ted work arising f rom 348
work organization su itab le f or 474
tec hnic al set-u p 431
data on whic h b ased 431 -432
tec hnologic al c onsiderations
selec tion of work to b e stu died 78-79
Tec time data c aptu re system 324, 325
temperatu re
limits f or working c limates 57, 58
temporary storage
examples 83
symb ol f or 85
see also delay
therb ligs 155,382
thermal env ironment c ontrol
f ac tories 57-59
of f ic es 183
tight times 284
tile-storage example
string diagram u sed 113-116
time of job
make-u p of 9-13
time lapse photography
u se in mic romotion stu dy 155
time and motion stu dy 23
time standards
def inition of work c ov ered b y 431-432
mac hine work 343-360
u nits of work u sed 434
u se of 431-439
time stu dy
approac h to worker 282-285
equ ipment u sed 265 -270, 280
example 361-379
f orms u sed 270-280
analysis-of -stu dies sheet 279, 280,
321,327-328,574-575
c ontinu ation sheet 273, 274, 366-
369
pen/penc il u sed 313,314
relaxation allowanc e c alc u lation
sheet 280,376-377
short-c yc le stu dy f orm 273, 275-
277
stu dy su mmary sheet 273, 278,
280,314-315,323,572-375
top sheet 272, 273, 364-365
working sheet 273, 370-371
method c hec ked 288-289
method stu dy prior to 281 -282, 288
nu mb er of stu dies requ ired 324, 326-
327
ob taining and rec ording inf ormation
286-288
position f or ob serv ation 284-285
rating 297-312
selec tion of job 281-282
steps in making 286
stop-watc h proc edu re 294-296
su mmarizing of stu dy 313-314
wide v ariations in su c c essiv e c yc le
times 285
worked example 361-379
timing
methods of 294-296,481
5 21
5 22
see also c u mu lativ e; dif f erential;
f lyb ac k timing
toilet f ac ilities 45, 70
toleranc e lev el 196
tool allowanc e 335,481
tools
positioning of 141,145,147
storage of 44
top management
su pport of 27
top sheet (f or time stu dy) 272, 273
total qu ality c ontrol 199-200
total qu ality management (TQ M) 184
toxic su b stanc es
c lothing f or protec tion 44-45
exposu re to 60-61
training
f ilms u sed 165
f iref ighting 40
of new/improv ed methods 165-166
of f ic e work 184
saf ety and health matters 36-37
work stu dy 27,28,31
training allowanc e 336
transport ac tiv ities
examples 85
symb ol f or 83, 85, 150
TRANSPORT standard data elements
examples of 422,423,424
trav el c hart 82,132-137
examples 133, 134-137
tec hniqu e of u se 132-133
weighted trav el c hart 135 -136
example 136-137
tru c ks 207-208,210
TURN action (MTM-l)
TURN (IN) TOOL standard data elements
419, 420
two-handed proc ess c hart 82,149-15 4
example 151-154
notes on c ompiling 151
symb ols f or 150
u nemployment
f ear of 25
Univ ersal Maintenanc e S tandards (UMS )
system 240
u noc c u pied time 348,481
u noc c u pied-time allowanc e 35 3-35 6
u nrestric ted work 343, 481
v alu e analysis 190
ABC analysis 76-77
v alu e engineering 190-191
v ariab le elements 290, 477
nu mb er requ ired in time stu dy 326-
327
selec tion of b asic time f or 321 -322
v ariab le (relaxation) allowanc es 331, 332
v ariety of work 446-448, 473
v entilation 5 9-60
air speed u sed 59
loc al exhau st systems 60
natu ral v entilation 60
pu rposes of 59
v ib ration
ef f ec t of 5 5
v ideo
u se in method stu dy 156
v isu al display u nits (V DUs)
lighting aspec ts 49-50
v oic e c ommu nic ation
ef f ec t of noise 51,52
walking
f ac tors af f ec ting 412
speed related to rating 302, 305, 310
standard times (MTM-1 ) 406
timing o 413
washing f ac ilities 45, 70
washing time allowanc e 332, 496
see also personal-needs allowanc e
waste
redu c tion of 192
salv age of 192-193
watc h see stop-watc h
weav ing operations
standard times c alc u lated f or 359
weekly rest periods 67
weighted av erage
c alc u lation f or b asic time 327
weighted trav el c hart 135 -136
example 136-137
weighting of f ac tors 159-160
welf are f ac ilities 70-71
wet env ironments
working in 57
wide v ariation in times 285,318
INDEX
see also rogu e times; tac t, need f or;
v ariab le elements
windows
size of 42, 46
wood-sawing example 322,413-417
f ac tors af f ec ting time 413
c alc u lation method u sed 414,416
graphic al f ac tor c omparison u sed
416-417
work c ontent
meaning of term 9, 328,481
work c yc le
Work Fac tor systems
time u nits u sed 387
work-hou r
meaning of term 481
work measu rement 241-439
def inition of 19, 20, 75, 243, 481
minimu m data requ ired 439
organization of inf ormation system
assoc iated with 438-439
proc edu re f or 247
pu rpose of 243-246
tec hniqu es u sed 247-248
u ses of 246-247
work organization
c riteria of good work organization
471-474
ef f ec tiv eness of 471-472
new f orms of 443-474
work premises 42
work rate see rate of working
work-related diseases 38-39
work-related welf are f ac ilities 70
work sampling 249-261
c ondu c t of stu dy 257-260
ob serv ations 258-260
sc ope of stu dy 257-258
c onf idenc e lev els in 250-252
grou p sampling tec hniqu es 259, 260,
261
random ob serv ations made 254, 256,
257, 258-260
rating c omb ined with 260,26i
rec ord sheets f or 259
sample size determined 252-254, 255
textile operations stu died u sing 359
u se of 261
work spec if ic ation 432-434
points c ov ered b y 432-433
work stu dy
approac hes u sed 17-23
attitu de of mind requ ired 19
b asic proc edu re of 21, 22, 75
c harac teristic s of 17-18
c ontinu ou s applic ation requ ired 19
hu man f ac tor in applic ation of 26-34
and inv entory c ontrol 235
and layou t design 217
and maintenanc e 240
and management 26-27
and materials handling 217
proc edu re f or 21,22,75
and proc ess planning 218-219
and produ c tion management 21,23
produ c tion management tec hniqu es u sed
23
and produ c tion planning and c ontrol
227-228
and produ c tiv ity 9-15
and qu ality c ontrol 200
and su perv isors 27-29
systematic natu re of 18
tec hniqu es of 19-21
v alu e of 17-19
and workers 29-32
work stu dy prac titioners
approac h to workers 31-32
edu c ational requ irements 33
and managers 164
personal qu alities requ ired 33-34
prac tic al experienc e requ ired 33
ru les when dealing with workers 29
staf f -position of 17
and su perv isors 164,165
and workers 164,165
worker-and-mac hine mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart
f inish-milling example 124-125, 126
glu e-b one-c ru sher example 127, 128,
131
see also mu ltiple ac tiv ity c hart
worker-pac ed line 455
grou p work in 455
worker-type f low proc ess c hart 82, 116-
120
example 117-120
workers
inv olv ement in work stu dy 29-32,
282-285
motiv ation of 30
mov ement of 109-137
ru les when dealing with 29
and work stu dy prac titioners 29, 31-
32,164, 165
see also av erage; qu alif ied; represent-
ativ e worker
workers' representativ e 5 23
inv olv ement in work stu dy 25-26, 31,
282, 284
working areas
maximu m area 142
normal area 142
working c onditions
ef f ec t of 12,13,74,75,35-36
produ c tiv ity af f ec ted b y 35-36
497
see also c limatic c onditions; ergo-
nomic s; lighting; noise
working env ironments
c old 56-57
c ontrol of 57-59
hot 55-56
qu ality of 474
wet 57
working sheet (f or time stu dy) 273
working time 65 -70
arrangements in prac tic e 68-70
workplac e layou t
106
b one-sorting example 729
engine-stripping example 98
f inish-milling example 363
hospital-dinners example 118
meaning of term 481
princ iples of design 141, 143, 144,
145,146
qu estions to b e asked
workstation layou t
example 147-148
written standard prac tic e 161-162
example 163
inf ormation requ ired
of f ic e work 176
pu rpose of 161
485
162
X-c hart 178, 178
u se in qu ality c ontrol 197,198
yield improv ement 192
zero-def ec t strategies 452
5 24
Other ILO publications
Expert systems: A manager's guide, by Karl Wiig
Management Development Series, No. 28
In the midst of a continuing debate on the effectiveness of machine intelligence, expert and knowledge-based
systems, in which the knowledge and reasoning methods of "experts" on particular problems are converted
into computer programs, are evolving rapidly. How can a manager who wishes to introduce an expert system
acquire an understanding of the technology and its potential? The aim of this volume is to give practical
guidance on how to establish and use expert systems technology within an organisation, and how to do so with
confidence and decisiveness, avoiding various pitfalls on the way. The resulting benefits in terms of productivity
are also outlined.
ISBN92-2-1 06446-8 27.5 0 Swiss francs
Management consulting: A guide to the profession, second (revised) edition, edited by Milan Kubr
Managers in both private businesses and public organisations turn to consultants if they have problems, and
rightly expect that a solution will be found to these problems. The consultant's job is therefore a highly respon-
sible one and requires a professional approach. The aim of this book is to help management consultants, and all
others who provide advice on management and business issues and practices or who make use of consulting
services, to learn about the profession, the current methodology of consulting work, the management of
consulting assignments and firms, and the training and development of consultants.
This second edition provides new material on consulting and change, consulting and culture, the structure and
organisation of the consulting process, the strategy of consulting firms, the marketing of consulting, costs and
fees, assignment management, consulting in developing countries, and the selection and use of consultants.
ISBN92-2-1 05 479-9 60 Swiss francs
Managing and deveioplng new forms of work organisation, second edition, edited by George Kanawaty
Management Development Series, No. 1 6
In recent years great interest has been shown in new forms of work organisation, whereby jobs are designed to
satisfy both the technical demands for efficiency and the social needs of the people performing the job. This
book provides practical guidelines for developing and introducing new forms of work organisation in enter-
prises. It analyses the implications of such a change for the various areas of enterprise activity and shows how
a change in work design in one area - for example, shop-floor activity - can trigger off and be reinforced by
corresponding changes in other areas of management, such as accounting or personnel management.
ISBN92-2-1 02707-4 25 Swiss francs
Management self-development: A guide for managers, organisations and institutions, by Tom Boydell
Management Development Series, No. 21
This book is, above all, for individual managers who are keen to develop their own potential and to try out new
self-development techniques. It describes 26 proven methods and shows how to use them. It suggests ways in
which all levels of management can encourage and support the self-development efforts of colleagues and
other staff. Finally, it provides management centres and schools with guidelines on how to integrate self-
development with formal training courses, and how to encourage the practice of self-development by producing
and distributing learning materials.
ISBN92-2-1 0395 8-7 35 Swiss francs
Productivity management: A practical handbook, by Joseph Prokopenko
This book offers a new, refreshing approach to productivity: why it is important, and how to manage and
measure it. Productivity should be the starting-point of any business or management decision: it should be
planned, organised, implemented, measured and corrected. In other words, productivity has to be managed.
The book deals in a stimulating way with such productivity improvement programmes as action learning, quality
circles, inter-firm comparisons, and business clinics. The reader will also find information on the most important
areas in which productivity can be improved - quality maintenance, waste reduction and human resource
management - and on a number of techniques which have been field-tested by enterprises and in ILOprojects
in developed and developing countries.
ISBN92-2-1 05 901 -4 40 Swiss francs
Prices subject to change without notice.

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INTRODUCTION

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