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krishna-agrawala Teacher
Graduate School
Debater
Educator
productivity
Definition
Relative measure of the efficiency of a person, machine, factory, system, etc.,
in converting inputs into useful outputs. Computed by dividing average output
per period by the total costs incurred or resources (capital, energy, material,
personnel) consumed in that period, productivity is a critical determinant of
cost efficiency.
1. Define and explain the concept of just in time manufacturing and inventory
control system
Just-In-Time concept
Just-In-Time Concept:
Under ideal conditions a company operating at JIT manufacturing system would
purchase only enough materials each day to meet that days needs. Moreover, the
company would have no goods still in process at the end of the day, and all goods
completed during the day would have been shipped immediately to customers. As this
sequence suggests, "just-in-time" means that raw materials are received just in time to
go into production, manufacturing parts are completed just in time to be assembled into
products, and products are completed just in time to be shipped to customers.
Although few companies have been able to reach this ideal, many companies have been
able to reduce inventories only to a fraction of their previous level. The result has been a
substantial reduction in ordering and warehousing costs, and much more efficient and
effective operations. In a just in time environment, the flow of goods is controlled by a
pull approach. The pull approach can be explained as follows. At the final assembly stage
a signal is sent to the preceding work station as to the exact amount of parts and
materials that would be needed over the next few hours to assemble products to fill
customer orders, and only that amount of materials and parts is provided. The same
signal is sent back to each preceding workstation so a smooth flow of parts and
materials is maintained with no appreciable inventory buildup at any point. Thus all
workstations respond to the pull exerted by the final assembly stage, which in turn
respond to customer orders. As one worker explained, "Under just in time system you
don't produce any thing, any where, for any body unless they ask for it some where
downstream. Inventories are evil that we are taught to avoid".
The pull approach described above can be contrasted to the push approach used in
conventional manufacturing system. In conventional system, when a workstation
completes its work, the partially completed goods are pushed forward to the next work
station regardless of whether that workstation is ready to receive them. The result is an
unintentional stockpiling of partially completed goods that may not be completed for
days or even weeks. This ties up funds and also results in operating inefficiencies. For
one thing, it becomes very difficult to keep track of where every thing is when so much
is scattered all over the factory floor.
4. Defect rates are reduced, resulting in less waste and greater customer
satisfaction.
As a result of advantages such as those cited above, more companies are embracing
just in time manufacturing system each year. Most companies find, however, that
simply reducing inventories is not enough. To remain competitive in an ever changing
and ever competitive business environment, must strive for continuous improvement.
Real Business Examples
PCs Just In Time Management:
Del Computer Corporation has finally tuned its Just-in-Time system so that an order for
a customized personal computer that comes in over the internet at 9 AM. can be on a
delivery truck to the customer by 9 P.M. In addition, Dell's low cost production system
allows it to under price its rivals by 10% to 15%. This combination has made Dell the
envy of the personal computer industry and has enabled the company to grow at five
times the industry rate. How does the company's just in time system deliver lower costs?
"While machines from Compaq and IBM can languish on dealer shelves for two months
Dell does not start ordering components and assembling computers until an order is
booked. That may sound like no biggie, but the price of PC parts can fall rapidly in just a
few months. By ordering right before assembly, Dell figures it s parts, on average, are
60 days newer than those in an IBM or Compaq machine sold at the same time. That can
translate into a 6% profit advantage in components alone."
Source: Gray McWilliams, "Whirlwind on the web, "Business Week, April 7, 1997.
Harley Davidson
General Motors
Manufacturing Magic
If you are not satisfied with our article then search for the term just in time articles
using a search engine like Google.
Six Sigma:
Example:
It used to take well-mark Inc., a managed-care health care company, 65 days or more
to add a new doctor to its Blue cross & Blue shield association medical plans. Now thanks
to six sigma, the company discovered that half the process it used were redundant. With
those unnecessary steps gone, the job now gets done in 30 days or less and with
reduced staff. The company also has been able to reduce its administrative expenses by
$3 million per year, an amount passed on to consumers through lower health insurance
premiums.
Six Sigma aims to maximize customer satisfaction and minimize defects Globalization and instant access to information, products and services continue to
change the way our customers conduct business. Today's competitive environment
leaves no room for error. We must delight our customers and relentlessly look for new
ways to exceed their expectations. This is why Six Sigma Quality has become a part of
our culture.
Six Sigma is far more in depth than this document has illustrated. It is a tool that if
used correctly, can identify key areas of business processes that need attention to lower
defect rates. One of the greatest advantages is that all the measured improvements
achieved through this technique can be directly converted into financial results. In fact,
more and more shareholders even require that Six Sigma method be implemented.
In the sales field there is an old saying; "Eagles never fly with doves. But to find
angles you go through lots of doves." In today's world there is so much information on
turnover based on specific industries so baseline the norm should be easy to come up
with unless your industry is very special. Getting a sigma value is very easy as well with
your current date on how your company is doing. Change however may not be from a
process improvement unless management is willing to change as well.
Research proves that firms that successfully implement Six Sigma perform better in
virtually every business category, including return on sales, return on investment,
employment growth and stock value growth. The strategy that has to be applied in
today's educational arena is a thoughtful concern on the part of the management to
understand customer needs and strive to reduce defects throughout all educational
processes.
Most organizations embracing Six Sigma apply it without measuring the "buy-in"
(enthusiasm for Six Sigma) of their employees. In some types of operations this may be
critical. The performance of Six Sigma in many types of operations has never been or
cannot yet be measured. For example, if a company sees that Six Sigma has improved
the quality of its baseball cap production line, then it might presume that applying Six
Sigma to its engineering think tank will improve its creativity by the same degree.
Certainly any company, in a lawsuit involving the quality of its products, will proclaim its
quality programs at the forefront of its defense. This causes some skeptics to claim that
their organization has embraced Six Sigma only to look good in court. Whether this is
the case or not, the fact that the statement is believed reduces the "buy-in" by the
company's employees, which may reduce the ability of Six Sigma to improve quality. Six
sigma is no different than "reducing variation" or piece-to-piece consistency (at what
cost?). IS the reduction of variation the only solution or the choice of when to reduce.
Therefore, what is achieved by Six Sigma is piece-to-piece consistency or focus on parts.
Piece-to-piece consistency may be adequately required for large volume production only
when it is established by its "piece-to-system" consistency requirement (target thinking).
Dept. of Corrections, Ford Motor Company, GEC Marconi, General Dynamics, General
Electric, Hazeltine Corp, Hewlett packard, Holly Sugar, Honeywell, Intel, Junior
Achievement, Kaiser Aluminum, Kraft General Foods, Larson & Darby, Inc, Laser
Magnetic Storage, Lear Astronics, Lenox China, Littton Data Systems, Lockhee Martin,
Loral, Los Alamos National labs, Martin Marietta, McDonnell Douglas, Merix, Microsoft,
Morton Int'l, Motorola, NASA, Nat'l Institute of Corrections, Nat'l Institute of Standards,
Nat'l Semiconductor, Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America, Northrop Corp, PACE,
Parkview Hospital, Pentagon, Pharmacia, PRC, Inc, Qualified Specialists, Ramtron Corp,
Rockwell Int'l, Rohm & Haas, Seagate, Society of Plastics Egineers, Solar Optical, Sony,
Star Quality, Storgae Tek, Symbios Logic, Synthes, Technicomp, Tessco, Texaco, Texas
Commerce Bank, Texas Dept. of Transportation, Texas Instruments, Titleist,
Trane, TRW, Ultratech Stepper, United States Air Force, United States Army, United
technologies, UPS, USAA, Verbatim, Walbro Automotive, Walker parking, Woodward
Governor, Xerox
8. Kanban:
9. A Kanban system is a means to achieve just in time (JIT) production. It works on
the basis that each process on a production line pulls just the number and type of
components the process requires, at just the right time. The mechanism used is a
Kanban card. This is usually a physical card but other devices can be used. Two
types of such cards are usually used. Click here to read full article.
tools and techniques for continuous improvement based on facts and analysis;
and if properly implemented, it avoids counterproductive organizational infighting.
Click here to read full article.
defects per million units or procedures. What does the name mean? Click here to
read full article.
2.Observation - How you are selected from the pareto 80:20 rule , to drill down
the major problem you have selected.- Gemba
3.Analysis - Analyse the problem with the team through brain storming with the
particular and selected problem and proceed with the Fish bone diagram from
level 1 to Level 3 (From the all the causes to identified causes) - In this stage we
have identified the causes of the problem by validating each identified casuses
through good/bad analysis for real root cause Gemba.
Do phase
4. Action Take corrective action and implementing the actions for identified
causes. Monitor the process , whether the problem is re-occuring, make action
plan in the 3W- 1H , To implementing and responsibility of each problem cases
and Each person have responsible to do the work done.
Check phase
5. Check : Check the corrected process , measure and analyse with data , of all
Before and after improvement.
Project the all the results through PQDCSM
Achivements through Productivity , Quality , Delivery, Cost , Safety and Morale
Act phase
6.Standardisation : Implement the results and standardize all the changes related
to process and quality checks, in 5W-1H, Drawing, SOP , Measures, Training ,
Audit etc.
7 . Conclusion : End of the analysis and presentation
Lesson learnt, analysis next problem and take as the project,Things gone right
and wrong in this project etc.
Show parent | Reply
18.
Re: How would you explain PDCA: Plan, Do, Check and Act methodology?
by Anjana Gaurav - Thursday, 2 October 2008, 01:33 AM
Check (C): Check the results. The results are checked time to time to ensure
whether the progress of work is heading in the right direction, according to the
plan. Check the performance of the procedures, changes in the conditions or any
anomalies that may have appeared.
Act (A): Take the necessary action. Appropriate measure are taken if the results
do not conform to the plan as anticipated. Look for the causes of the anomalies
and difference sin the behaviors of the procedures and the conditions and change
them to bring the results in right direction.
Productivity
What Does Productivity Mean?
An economic measure of output per unit of input. Inputs include labor and capital, while output is
typically measured in revenues and other GDP components such as business inventories.
Productivity measures may be examined collectively (across the whole economy) or viewed industry
by industry to examine trends in labor growth, wage levels and technological improvement.
The difference in scope of Do and Act remains confusing for the ordinary
uninformed person. The correct word for Act is actually Improve.
Similarly, Plan has a limited range of meaning linguistically. The Compact Oxford
dictionary defines Plan as
Shewharts and Demings PDCA includes aspects in the "Plan" phase such as
creative or innovative thinking and handling complex adaptive systems, outside what
one normally associates with planning, again causing confusion to the uninformed.
Some people left out of the loop or unable to keep pace with the change continue
following outmoded practices when others adopt the changed practice, leading to
organizational dysfunction.
The success of any process or intervention depends on how the people involved
accept the same. PDCA assumes that people will use the cycle and make things
happen and makes no effort to include people. A good change management process
needs to cover people, process, and product. While PDCA looks into the product and
process, it ignores the people component of change.
References