Agile & Lean

Agile

Lean

Fat

Agile & Lean

Or

What is Agile Paradigm

The term AGILE linked to the 21st Century Manufacturing Enterprise Strategy which is published by Lacocca Institute in 1991 It is Ability of an Enterprise(es) to cope with
unexpected changes, to survive unprecedented

threats from the business environment and to take advantage of changes as opportunities.
Irani S. and Subramanian S. (1999) Introduction to Cellular Manufacturing Systems in Irani S. (eds.) Hand book of Cellular Manufacturing Systems . Pp.1-24. John Wiley & Sons. Canada.

Give Examples for the Three

Unexpected Changes

Unprecedented Threats

Changes as Opportunities

So Agility is the Ability to Cope with the Three

How an Enterprise gets Agility

The enterprise using Agile manufacturing should be supported by three primary resources:
- Innovative Management Structures and

Organization; - Skill base of knowledgeable and empowered people; and - Flexible and Intelligent Technologies.
Kidd P. (1994) Agile Manufacturing: Forging New Frontiers. Addison-Wesley.

Innovative Management Structures and Organization

Skill base of knowledgeable and empowered people

Flexible and Intelligent Technologies

Shift to Agile Production

The manufacturers should change massive production into mass-customized production Massive production aims to reduce the costs by generating large quantities of standard products
On the contrary, agile manufacturing is capable of low unit costs while producing far smaller quantities of high quality, highly customized products.
Carrie D. and Carrie A. (1998) Future Enterprise Types and Strategies for Agile Manufacture in Okino N. (eds.) Advances in Production Management Systems: Perspectives and Future Challenges. Pp. 115-126. Chapman & Hall. London, UK.

How an Enterprise gets Agility

The Agile capacity helps the enterprise to win

the advantage of responding rapidly to changing

market and to gain more opportunities

Kidd P. (1994) Agile Manufacturing: Forging New Frontiers. Addison-Wesley.

Why Quick Change Over?

Quick Changeover of Products

It is a useful lean implementation technique It enables small lot manufacturing It reduces the waiting waste of Ohno

Examples and Benefits of Quick Changeover ?

Internal & External Changeover

Internal changeover activities are those for which production is required to be stopped External changeover activities are those for which production is not required to be stopped

SMED Case Study: Company Profile

Case Company: Artform International Ltd UK
Largest dedicated permanent Point-of-

Purchase (POP) businesses in the UK About 50% of the POP products are exported
to 40 countries across globe

More than 400 permanent employees

Products of Artform International Ltd UK

U-Shaped Lean Assembly Cell at the Artform

Station 3

Station 4

Raw Material Storage (Bins/trolleys)

Station 2

Components inventory/tools

Station 5

Finished Goods Storage

Station 1 2 Bins of component /shift

Station 6
Assembled product

Component Bins/trolleys

U-Shaped Assembly Cell

Changeover Activities at the Assembly Cell

In the Artform, changeover at assembly cells includes 6 activities namely; 1) availability and understanding of the next job order, 2) cell inventory (2 bins of component) changeover, 3) consumable (nut-bolts) replenishment and changeover, 4) assembly tools and equipment availability and changeover, 5) assembly cell (line) balancing and 6) staff training.

Product Changeover at U-shaped Assembly Cell before SMED

SMED 3 Step Approach

Step 1) Identify Internal and External changeover activities.
Step 2) Shift Internal changeover activities to External.

Step 3) Streamline and improve remaining Internal changeover activities.

Internal changeover activities are those for which production is required to be stopped External changeover activities are those for which production is not required to be stopped

Product Changeover at U-shaped Assembly Cell after SMED

Future state activity diagram to illustrate improvement potentials for individual activities.

SMED Case Study Conclusion SMED is effectively used and approximately 70% of the product changeover time at assembly cells is reduced. EM is used to graphically represent the quick change over process.

Leagile Approach
Leagile is defined as the combination of lean and agile paradigms that, applied to the strategy of supply chain respond satisfactorily to the volatile market demands (Hock et al.,2001). The agility does not confront but explores the volatility to get a competitive edge. The lean provides customers with good quality products at low prices through the elimination of inventories and losses in processes and the agile manufacturing deals with the strategy to enter in the market place with customers having specific needs (Rigby et al., 2000, Maskell, 2001).

Leagile: Decoupling Point Approach

Christopher, M, & Towill, D. An Integrated Model for the Design of Agile Supply Chains. International Journal of Physical Distribution& Logistics Management, 2001, 31(4), 235-246.

Leagile: Decoupling Point Approach

There may be some confusion with the concept of a de-coupling point; lean manufacturing is a pull type system in pure lean but when used in a leagile system, the lean processes prior to the decoupling point are push However, the system as a whole is demand driven (pull) and is more responsive as a result

Leagile: Pareto Curve Approach

Related to 80-20 rule, law of vital few 80% of total demand is generated from just 20% of products It could be argued that this 20% is more predictable than the remaining 80% and is best suited to lean production; the remaining 80% on the other hand, may be better suited to agility In order to carry out this paradigm split, lean philosophies, such as waste minimisation, production levelling and optimising flow, must be adhered to.

Leagile: Pareto Curve Approach

Christopher, M, & Towill, D. An Integrated Model for the Design of Agile Supply Chains. International Journal of Physical Distribution& Logistics Management, 2001, 31(4), 235-246.

Comparison of Different Production Paradigms

Hormozi, A.M. Agile manufacturing: the next logical step. Benchmarking: An International Journal, 2001, 8(2), 132-143.

Postponement
Postponement is one of leagiles central principles Postponement means delaying activities in the supply chain until customer orders are received with the intention of customizing products as opposed to performing those activities in anticipation of future orders

Postponement Strategies
Time postponement: delaying the forward movement of goods until customer orders are received (delaying the determination of the time utility); Place postponement: storage of goods at central locations in the channel until customer orders are received (delaying the determination of the place utility); Form postponement: delaying product finalization until customer orders are received (delaying the determination of the form / function utility)

Postponement

Mass Customization
Mass customisation is another manufacturing paradigm closely related to agile manufacturing Mass customisation, on the other hand relies on economies of scope; a given process can be made to achieve a greater variety of product quickly and at a lower cost Mass customisation can be linked with the need for modularisation and designing parts for ease of assembly Modularisation allows parts of the product to be made to stock as standard modules; these modules can then be combined in different arrangements to provide varied and distinctive products in response to the customer trends

Examples of Mass Customization

Swatch has common or very few internal mechanism but thousands of different options in terms of color, straps, fascia, and so on. Levi Strauss, which pioneered the idea in 1994 with its Original Spin jeans for women, measured customers in its stores and sent their details electronically to its factory. The customized jeans were then cut electronically and mailed to the customer.

Push and Pull Production Systems Push system: System for moving work where output is pushed to the next station as it is completed
Pull system: System for moving work where a workstation pulls output from the preceding station as needed (e.g. Kanban) Pull system produces what customer wants and only when customer wants it

Just in Time (JIT) Just-in-time (JIT): A highly coordinated processing system in which goods move through the system and services are performed just as they are needed JIT is implementation of lean production JIT is a Pull (demand) system JIT operates with very little fat

Fat??

Just in Time (JIT) Just-in-Time is widely regarded as a way to reduce inventory levels and lot sizes Just-In-Time (JIT) the principle refers to providing and producing necessary amount of products and delivering at the right place at the right time with minimum amount of facilities, equipment, materials and human resources

Case Study Just-in-Time (JIT)

The Ford system promotes large lot sizes, handles vast quantities (economy of scale) and produces lots of inventory In contrast, the Toyota system (JIT) works on the idea of totally eliminating the overproduction generated by inventory and costs related to workers, land, and facilities needed for managing inventory. To do this, Toyota practice the kanban system in which a later process goes to an earlier process to withdraw parts needed just in time.
Source Ohno 1988, (p.95).

Comparison of Traditional and JIT Approach

Factor Inventory
Deliveries

Traditional
Much to offset forecast errors, late deliveries

JIT
Minimal necessary to operate

Few, large
Large

Many, small
Small

Lot sizes
Setup; runs

Few, long runs

Long-term relationships are unusual Necessary to do the work

Many, short runs

Partners Assets

Vendors Workers

JIT II
JIT II: a supplier representative works right in the companys plant, making sure there is an appropriate supply on hand In a JIT II relationship, a supplier's sales representative attending planning meetings and determining material needs The in-plant sales rep. is then authorized to purchase materials from the supplier for the customer

Kanban
Kanban is a Japanese word meaning signal, visible record or Display Card Kanban is a Pull type production control system It is a production control tool for work and inventory scheduling
Kanban Card or other device that communicates demand for work or materials from the preceding station

Kanban Card Specimen

Kanban
Authority to pull or produce comes from a down stream process Use a pull type Kanban signal system to schedule materials and parts from the central supermarket to the cells

Can be a Paperless production control system

Kanban: Pull Type Production Control System

Case Study Kanban; the Supermarket Concept The Supermarket concept is widely regarded as a kanban system in operation: the customer brings goods to the checkout where they are barcode scanned, paid for and the customer takes them away. When the barcode is scanned, a message is sent to the stores informing that the goods have been removed from the shelves. The stores then send replacement goods back to the shelves; this way the shelf replenishment is directly linked with real customer demand.

Shed versus Super Market

Kanban Super Market Concept at Factory

By applying the supermarket concept to a factory scenario, once a part (or more commonly a box of parts) has been used a kanban signal or card is created. The card is then passed to the next upstream process or to the supplier to trigger production. Cards can take physical form, but it is equally common to have electronic signals. This is an example of a Just-in-time (JIT) pull system where all areas of production are in constant communication.

Fax-ban Page (2004) introduced Faxbans to speed up vendor supplied products Combining the concept of kanban with the immediacy of a fax machine Production floor fax machines are used to let suppliers know when a re-supply of parts or materials is required This idea creates improved communication between supplier and customer
Page, J. Implementing Lean Manufacturing Techniques. Hanser Gardner, 2004, Chapter - Changing to become a lean organisation.

e-ban
A more modern approach to faxban may be ebans using email as the intermediary between the shop floor and the supplier.

T-ban??

5S Introduction
5S is the name of workplace organization methodology that uses a list of five Japanese words which are;
seiri, Sorting seiton, Stabilizing or Straightening Out seiso, Sweeping or Shining Seiketsu, Standardizing Shitsuke, Sustaining the Practice

The purpose is to quickly see if anything is abnormal through workplace organization

5S Methodology

5S Audit Sheet

5S in Use

Possible Use of 5S
At Banks; At Airports; At Manufacturing Industries; At Hospitals; At IT Parks; At Food Chains; At Offices/ Public Service Centres etc. Any other!

Generic Production System

Production of Part A

Raw Materials for Production of Part A, B &C

Production of Part B Production of Part C

Assembly of Parts A,B&C

Storage of Finished Product ABC

Assembly Line
An Assembly Line is a manufacturing process (sometimes called progressive assembly) in which parts (usually interchangeable parts) are added to a product in a sequential manner using optimally planned logistics to create a finished product much faster than with handcrafting-type methods.

Assembly Line of VW Tougan

Assembly Line Design

In general assembly line design involves achieving a balance between throughput, cost and possibly flexibility Balance needs to be achieved during the design, installation and prototype development of any assembly line Also frequent rebalance of assembly lines may be needed during their useful operational life; as customers requirements change and/or when assembly line improvements are identified and made

Assembly Line Balancing

Stevenson (2002) state that the purpose of assembly line balancing techniques is to smooth the flow of semi-finished goods so that best possible utilization of human and technical resources is achieved

Single-Model Assembly Line

A single-model line is described as a production line which makes / assembles one product (model) (Yano and Bolat 1989) Baudin (2002) described this type of line as a Dedicated line which makes one and possibly quite complex product for a long period of time, during which volume is adjusted up and down many times He also explained that whenever a major rate changes happens, a group of engineers is required to rebalance the line by calculating how many operators need to be added or pulled out

Single-model line (Becker and Scholl 2006)

Example of Single-Model Assembly Line Assembly Line of Honda CD70 ??

Mixed Mode Assembly Line

A mixed-model line is the line to assemble more than one product type The requirements for each product are typically rarely different A mixed-model line requires engineering assembly operation times to be as close as possible for the different products, for example, applying more sub-assembly work or more automation on some products than on others (Baudin 2002).

Mixed-model line (Becker and Scholl 2006)

Example of Mixed Mode Assembly Line Customized CPU Assembly Line ??

Multi Model Assembly Line

'Typically a multi-model line produces a sequence of batches (each containing units of only one product model or a group of similar product models) with intermediate setup operations' (Burns and Daganzo 1987) In this type of assembly line, because the operation requirements for each product are typically significantly different, rearrangement of the line facility (set-up/ change over) is required whenever product changes occur Therefore, the idea of separate batches in multi-model line is to minimise the inefficiencies of set-ups (Scholl 1999)

Multi-model line (Becker and Scholl 2006)

Example of Multi Model Assembly Line Assembly Line of the Artform International Ltd UK; from use perspective ??

U-shaped Assembly Line

To partially overcome inflexibility in process oriented lines, a U-shaped assembly line can be designed to achieve a better balance of station loads through;
communications between operators,

sharing machine capabilities; particularly when there is a large number of task-station combinations (Scholl and Klein 1999)

The assembly line is organised in a U-shape, such that both ends of the line are close together forming a U. Industry has developed this configuration of assembly lines in conjunction with paradigms like JIT (Just-in-Time) and GT (Group Technology) (Scholl 1999, Hall, 1983, Monden 1998).

U-shaped assembly line

U-shaped assembly line (Becker and Scholl 2006)

Example of U-shaped assembly line Assembly Line of the Artform International Ltd UK; from Shape and some what functionality perspective ??

Parallel Station Assembly Line

Further development in flexibility in assembly lines can be obtained by establishing parallel station lines; where parallel lines may be designed for a product family or a related group of products This can often allow better balance and increased productivity (Lehman 1969) Due to their inherent flexibility to change work flows, parallel station lines enable production engineers to react quickly to changes in demand, which also reduces risk associated with machine breakdowns which can stop production. Moreover, the cycle time is improved via this kind of line organisation as a consequence of achieving better line balance (Scholl 1999).

Parallel Station Assembly Line

Parallel station assembly line (Becker and Scholl 2006)

Example of Parallel Station Assembly Line Assembly Line ??

Moving Assembly Lines

A type of assembly line in which large products like cars or airplanes move slowly along the line while the assemblers work on them
Henry Ford developed a cost effective model to produce cars in a lean and mass produced manner, namely, the moving assembly line which has became the norm of the car industry (M2 Presswire 2000)

The concept is also used in other industries like aircraft manufacturing

Moving Assembly Lines

Moving assembly line example models (Lu and Sundaram, 2002).

Assembly Line Design

In general assembly line design involves achieving a balance between throughput, cost and possibly flexibility Balance needs to be achieved during the design, installation and prototype development of any assembly line Also frequent rebalance of assembly lines may be needed during their useful operational life; as customers requirements change and/or when assembly line improvements are identified and made

Assembly Line Balancing

Stevenson (2002) state that the purpose of assembly line balancing techniques is to smooth the flow of semi-finished goods so that best possible utilization of human and technical resources is achieved

Purpose of Assembly Line Balancing

Meyers and Stephens (2000) stated that the purpose of assembly line balancing techniques is commonly to: equalise the work load among workstations; to identify bottlenecks; to determine the needed number of workstations and their related labour and production costs; to determine and predict the likely utilisation of resources; and to support plant layout planning.

KPIs for ALB

key performance indicators (KPIs) in terms of assembly line balancing can be categorised into two aspects:
1. Cycle time (in line): which normally relates to the time for each workstation to complete its task (which only sometimes is equal to the make span). In assembly lines, when batching and moving are considered, the average line cycle time is equal to the sum of a number of cycle times at each stations (including processing, setting up and moving cycle times) less any time that overlaps two or more stations. 2. Utilisation (of workstations): which refers to the fraction of time a workstation is not idle, such as because of a lack of parts. Utilisation can be computed as U= Arrival rate / effective production rate. Both aspects 1) and 2) are important to revenue generation and production costs. Also they can help determine the throughput (or production rate) of the assembly line.

Assembly Line Efficiency

Total work content: Sum of the task times for

all the assembly tasks for the product. Precedence diagram: network showing order of tasks and restrictions on their performance
Measure of efficiency
Efficiency = Sum of task times (T) Actual number of workstatio ns (N a ) x Cycle time (C)

Flow Time and Cycle Time

Minimum rational work element
Smallest feasible division of work.

Flow time = time to complete all stations Cycle time

Maximum time spent at any one workstation. Largest workstation time. How often a product is completed. Inverse of the desired hourly output rate = the amount of time available at each work station to complete all assigned work.

1 4 min

2 5 min

3 4 min

Flow time = 4 + 5 + 4 = 13 Cycle time = max (4, 5, 4) = 5

Illustrative Example Youve just been assigned the job a setting up an electric fan assembly line with the following tasks: 2 1 1
A B G 1.4 H F 1
Predecessors None A None A, C D E B F, G

C 3.25
Task A B C D E F G H Time (Mins) 2 1 3.25 1.2 0.5 1 1 1.4

D 1.2

E .5

Description Assemble frame Mount switch Assemble motor housing Mount motor housing in frame Attach blade Assemble and attach safety grill Attach cord Test

Illustrative Example: Max Production and CT

Production time per day 420 mins Max Production = = = 129 units Bottleneck time 3.25 mins / unit

Production time per period Required Cycle Time, C = Required output per period

420 mins / day C= = 4.2 mins / unit 100 units / day

Illustrative Example: No of Work Stations

Theoretical Min. Number of Workstations, N t Sum of task times (T) Nt = Cycle time (C)
11.35 mins / unit Nt = = 2.702, or 3 4.2 mins / unit

Some Practical Problems

Behavioral options
Job enlargement and rotation. Wages related to task. Distribution of slack time. Inventory buffers. Involving work group in decisions. Arranging stations to facilitate interaction. Personnel selection.

Time to move an item between stations Machine-dominated work stations. Task times which exceed the cycle time. Stochastic task times. Mixed model assembly lines.