Recent Trends in Production Engineering

Volume 3 Issue 1

Implementing Milkrun in Lean Production

Mock Kar Wai, Chin Jeng Feng*, Zarirah Karrim Wani
School of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia.
*Coressponding Author
E-mail Id:- zarirah@usm.my

ABSTRACT
Milkrun denotes a material conveyance and replenishment method to deliver and retrieve
materials simultaneously. The method has gained popularity in the manufacturing industries
to improve logistic efficiency and facilitates lean transformation by simulating pull system,
reducing inventory and streamlining processes to eliminate waste. This paper introduces a
multi-step milkrun system development and implementation framework. Aligned with lean
philosophies, several components were extended through the framework, such as leader
standard work and continuous improvement. A case study, based on the final assembly of an
electronics assembly company is adopted to illustrate the execution of the implementation
framework. The approach successfully generates a significantly complete, stable and
integrated milkrun. As a practical implication, the work provides guideline to practitioners to
systematically develop and implement milkrun as primary material handling system in
production.

Keywords:-Milkrun system, framework, Kanban, continuous improvement, lean management.

INTRODUCTION can be deployed, depending on the

Milkrun is a quantity variable material application, availability of resources and
conveyance and replenishment method [7]. constraints of the company. Groover [11]
Derived from the milk delivery business, introduced five categories of material
items such as empty containers are transport equipment including industrial
returned to the source on the return trip of truck, automated guided vehicles, rail-
delivering raw material. Figure 1 illustrates guided vehicles, conveyors, and cranes and
a milkrun cycle. Formally described, hoists. For example, Urru, Bonini, &
varying materials are to be transported to Echelmeyer [24]deployed a tugger train
distinct locations along a closed traveling system to transport materials from
path. Various material transport equipment warehouse to defined destinations.
2. Transport the load (the first set
of material) to the destination

1. Loading the first set of 3. Unloading of the first set of

material from the material. The material is
original location. unloaded at the destination for
consumption.
A milk-run
Original cycle
Destination
location

6. Unloading the second 4. Loading of second set of material.

set of material to be used
at the original location.
5. Transport the load (the
second set of material) to
the original location
Certain material such as containers,
information signal, unwanted
byproduct are loaded to be sent to
the different locations along the
travel path. The material can be
from previous delivery.

Fig.1:-Milkrun process

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Milkrun is prevalent in manufacturing
industries to circulate materials between
multiple locations such as warehouse and
production. Consistent with lean concept,
milkrun process reduces inventory levels
on shop floor, eliminates wastes and
reduces non-value adding activities in
supply chain [13]. Incorporating milkrun
into lean warehouse management reduces
transportation cost and builds consistency
into an inbound supply network [19].
Nemoto, Hayashi, and Hashimoto [20]
noted three milkrun benefits to production:
clarification of distribution cost in the
prices of parts; reduction in transportation
costs due to consolidated transportation;
improvement of the production line and
greater accuracy of JIT goods delivery due
to synchronization.
Various contemporary literatures reported
different milkrun systems implemented in
the industries. In general, there are two
main types of milkrun, namely logistic and
in-plant milkrun. The former indicates
procurement method of logistic control
using routing to consolidate goods by the
buyer while the latter regulates material
replenishment from warehouse to
production line or otherwise. Logistic
milkrun reduces waste in term of
transportation and in-plant milkrun reduces
waste in term of inventory on production
floor. In [20], a Japanese automobile
manufacturer adopted logistic milkrun to
maintain production procurement while
reducing the number of trucks dispatched,
to improve the urban traffic condition. In-
plant milkrun is highly suitable for
automotive industry due to high numbers
of uniquely assembled products [1].
Milkrun operation has to be stable and
reliable to avoid delays and material
shortages [22]. As milkrun usually shares
resources, such as tracks, loading areas and
technology, any traffic congestion and
blockage affect cycle times and system
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Volume 3 Issue 1
stability [22]. In milkrun, material handlers
collect Kanban cards while replenishing
raw material to all work cells [16].
Window time is imposed to material
picking from the source, where loading
dock may only cater a limited number of
milkrun trucks at a time [27]. It is also
noteworthy that material picking is the
most laborious operation in warehouse and
the configuration affects material handling
[26], such as milkrun.
Academic research works commonly
consider and examine milkrun in vehicle
routing, scheduling, and order picking
optimization. A system view of milkrun
system is provided in research done by
Harris [14]. The proposed implementation
begins with devising a plan for every part,
followed by developing the purchased-
parts market, designing delivery routes and
information management system,
implementing pull signals, and sustaining
and continuous system improvement.
Bocewicz, Nielsen, & Banaszak [4]
investigated and articulated a vehicle
routing and scheduling delivery problem
with a declarative milkrun model. A
framework to design and manage milkrun
was proposed by [10]. Here, the impacts of
the long-term problems (Kanban and fleet
sizing) along with the short-term problems
(fleet loading) are combined, providing
optimal settings for the supermarket and
management attributes. Baran [3]
optimized in-plant milkrun of tugger train
/forklift between factory cells, through
multi-objective mathematical modelling.
In these works, practical considerations are
somewhat absent, such as how milkrun is
integral to and its influence within a
complete manufacturing entity, especially
during the development and deployment.
There also remains a tendency in these
works, to a limited extent, to leave human
aspects to take care of themselves.
Noteworthily, in-plant milkrun often
reoccurs in specific routine, which consists
of patterns of action, activity, behavior and
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interaction between multiple actors [9].
This brings sociotechnical considerations
to the foreground of any milkrun
development which consciously underlines
reciprocal interrelationships between
people and technology to minimize
conflicts between efficiency and humanity
[23] to constantly align customer
requirement and remove all operational
wastes. Besides, human operators who be
the ones required to understand, support
and follow the rules and standards in most
production settings [18]. The interrelating
lean concepts and tools affect sustainable
milkrun development and deployment.
Toyota built up a lean system of respect
for workers, emphasizing waste
elimination, safety and self-displaying of
capabilities by entrusting them with
greater responsibility and authority [17].
Five fundamental principles of lean
thinking are specify value, identify the
value stream, continuous process flow,
pull system and pursuit of perfection
through continuous improvement [29].
Lean practices work in synchronization to
create a streamlined, defect-free system to
produce finished products apace with
customer demand and generation of
minimum waste [15]. The quantifiable
benefits are significant and potentially
motivating industries to implement lean in
their processes [8]. Lean compels complete
change to business [21]. Integrating lean
into all aspects of supply chain maximizes
benefits within the organization [21].
This manuscript presents a multi-step
milkrun system development and
implementation framework. A case study
is conducted by implementing the
developed framework in the studied
company. The remaining sections of the
paper are organized as follows. Section 2
presents the five steps appertaining to the
proposed framework. Section 3 provides
an illustration of a milkrun implementation
in a real case study following the proposed
steps. Finally, in conclusion, the paper
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Volume 3 Issue 1
gives attention to key findings of the
implementation, including lean tools
helpful to establish an effective milkrun.
MULTISTEP MILKRUN
DEVELOPMENT AND
DEPLOYMENT
Boysen, Emde, Hoeck, and Kauderer [5]
commented warehouse decisions typically
need to be made quickly without extensive
computational resources. Further, the
management generally demands a solution
method to be simple, intuitive, and reliable
to minimize the training costs. Design
considerations in material handling include
material characteristics, flow rate, routing
and scheduling and plant layout [11]. In
these spirits, five basic steps were
conceived to facilitate the development
and deployment of a functional milkrun
with support from warehouse, as shown in
Figure 2. A common production goal is to
eliminate inventory on production floor.
The framework only considers in-plant
milkrun as logistic milkrun would require
deliberating other factors such as logistics,
cost, materials with multiple suppliers etc.
To integrate both types of milkrun, the
resultant management complexity
outweighs the benefits in most cases. In
addition, Mello, Hellingrath, and Martins
(2019) opinoned in-plant milkrun would
inherent a higher pitch of delivery
compared to logistic milkrun, therefore
decoupling both systems at warehouse
would be the most practical option.
The framework would be suitable for
production with the criteria of a discrete,
high mix; low volume, and having
multiple stages and lines. Consequently,
raw material at different processing
stations needs to be replenished
periodically, drawing from the upstream
processes or warehouse. Production is
pulled based on levelled demand. The
system has been standardized with
predetermined pitch and regulates material
replenishment in the production. In term of
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 Recent Trends in Production Engineering
Volume 3 Issue 1

facility layout, proper defined transport warehouse are required.

routes to access to different stations and

Fig.2:-Framework of multistep Milkrun development

Step 1- Determine Desired Level of (1)

Inventory
The first step determines an initial level of Where,
inventory on production floor. In most I = inventory level (hr), N= quantity of
cases, the level of inventory largely parts available in production (units), Q =
depends on high runners which are consumption rate (units/hr).
products constantly having large
production volume and also consume high The management needs to maintain and
portion of inventory. These high runners standardize the inventory level in current
can be identified through Pareto analysis. condition. Nevertheless, from the
The inventory needed by a high runner can perspective of lean manufacturing,
be calculated in term of hours with respect management should be mindful on the
to the consumption rate as formulated in possibility of keeping a lower inventory
Equation (1); level. The implication would be simplified
inventory management and better

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production floor space utilization. One
way to meet this end is to match inventory
level to a smaller delivery pitch (illustrated
in the next section).
The desired inventory level, Idesired depends
on demand level, demand fluctuation,
delivery promptness and delivery lead
time. Demand fluctuation can be best
estimated through historical data. Delivery
lead time is the time required to deliver
and replenish parts soon an order is placed.
Related operations include material
picking, material feeding and delivery
truck traveling. Delivery should be made
just-in-time, as any delivery inconsistency
should be investigated and minimized.
As any stockout is undesirable, delivery
lead time must be shorter than time to fully
deplete inventory in production as
preventive. A discreet amount of safety
stock in the inventory cushions against
variability and fluctuation in demand; and
avoids overabundance of inventory [6]
determined safety stock by Equation (2);
√( ) ( ) level. After the pitch is calculated, find the
(2)
Where,
SS = Safety Stock, Z = Service factor, µT =
Average delivery lead time, µd = Average
demand per unit time, δT = Standard
deviation of delivery lead time, δd =
Standard deviation of demand per unit
time. Using Z scores, proportions of the
demand fluctuation (in normal
distribution) representing the confidence
level of safety stock to obviate stockout
can be decided. The demand fluctuation
can be obtained from a historical record of
hourly demand.
The safety factor, isafety, can then be
calculated in term of percentage using SS
as a fraction of consumption rate, Q per
unit time, as the Equation (3);
(3)
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For example, a high running assembly line
averagely consumes 85.6 parts per hour
with standard deviation 1.8. Average
delivery lead time is 1.03 hours with
standard deviation of 0.06 hours. A 90%
confidence level requires seven parts of
safety stock, or 8% of the hourly
consumption (isafety = 0.08). The level of
safety stock estimates the level of
inventory required to buffer against
variations. Continuous improvement to
lower safety stock by stabilizing the
milkrun is vital. For instance, overstocking
can be avoided by making loading time
reliable [30].
Step 2- Compute Delivery Pitch
Delivery pitch is the pace of delivery or
time interval between two deliveries.
Delivery pitch fundamentally affects all
aspects of milkrun such as inventory level,
efficiency and utilization of the material
handling process. The pitch can be
determined by setting a desired level of
inventory, and vice versa. It is generally
easier to set the pitch to control inventory
nearer time (time multiplier) that is easy
and simple for calculation and
remembering, such as 6 hours, 4 hours, 2
hours, 1 hour, 30 min and etc. The formula
to calculate the delivery pitch as per
Equation (4)
( )
(4)
Where,
Tpitch = delivery pitch (hr). Inventory level
can be reduced by progressively reducing
delivery pitch.
Step 3- Set Up and Coordinate Process
Four basic elements to milkrun process
are;
1. Replenishment signal (Kanban Card)
2. Delivery
3. Feeding
4. Picking
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Today, Kanban cards and barcode replace
standard containers as alternative to
signals for replenishment. Kanban cards
ease control over buffer and inventory
level. According to [2] supplied container
with a Kanban card identified few
information indicates the storage location
of the material in the production. The
flexibility of using Kanban cards also
encourages continuous improvement. The
number of Kanban cards in circulation can
be expanded if part consumption rate
increases; or can be reduced if delivery
pitch is shortened.
The following formula (Equation (5)) can
be used to calculate number of Kanban
Cards in circulation for each part:
( )
(5)
The formula takes into consideration that
(1+isafety) sets of inventory remain in the
production floor while another set of
consumed inventory will be returned to
warehouse for replenishment. Regardless
of standard pack size, a minimum of two
cards are required. Ideally, one Kanban
card is to be attached to one part. The
smaller the standard pack size, the easier is
to control inventory and this leads to
higher inventory accuracy.
For example, a milkrun process running at
1-hour pitch, with a safety factor 10%. The
consumption rate is two parts per hour.
With a standard pack of one part per pack,
a total of 4.2, rounded up to five Kanban
cards would be required. At any given
point of time, three Kanban cards would
remain on production floor and two
Kanban cards would be circulated back to
warehouse for picking process.
The delivery section connects component
between material source (warehouse) and
recipient (production floor). Picked
materials are loaded onto the delivery train
and delivered to the production floor at
specific pitch. On the return trip, the train
collects empty containers and Kanban
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cards for use in subsequent replenishment.
The amount of material to be delivered
depends on the number of withdrawal
Kanban received from the previous
milkrun session. A dispatching schedule
must be defined and made known to all
drivers on duty. The delivery route should
be planned, designed and defined to
deliver parts efficiently.
The feeding section receives materials
from the delivery section and loads them at
the inventory holding area. Usually done
by manual labor called feeders, it is
important that work needs to be performed
within the delivery pitch to prevent
subsequent delay in milkrun and possible
line down issues.
Picking needs to be attuned to delivery
pitch, not vice-versa. The process is
usually performed by manual labor called
pickers, with the aid of machines such as
forklifts and automated storage/retrieval
systems. As order picking is generally
recognized as the most expensive
warehouse operation, various picking
strategies could improve picking efficiency
[12]. For example, departments are further
organized into pick zones. Batch picking
and wave picking naturally complements
milkrun. Batch picking or known as multi-
order picking combines several orders into
one pick instruction. As many customer
orders need to be picked in a specific
period, batch picking is a mutual way to
systemize the picking process [26]. Wave
picking assigns orders into grouping
(waves) which will be released in specific
interval. The picking section receives
empty containers and Kanban cards.
Materials and parts are picked accordingly
and loaded onto the delivery train and
ready for the next delivery. Data entry may
be required to simplify the picking process
by generating easy-to-access picking list.
The picking list should include part
description as well as actual location for
the pickers to locate the parts. With each
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clearly defined sections, the milkrun
system is ready to run.
Step 4- Establish Standards and Provide
Training
The basic standards of milkrun include:
1. Delivery transport must depart for
delivery and collection according to
schedule, regardless whether there are
parts to be delivered or not.
2. Any empty container (consumed
Kanban) must be collected in the same
delivery trip.
3. Parts are picked in quantity as
indicated by the Kanban.
4. No items are picked or transported
without a Kanban.
5. Always attach a Kanban to the parts.
6. Defective products are not sent to the
subsequent process. The result is
100% defect-free goods.
Training is essential to milkrun operation.
All operators should understand their
respective roles and interdependency of
elements. Their job scopes and roles
should be well-defined in work instruction
(WI).
Step 5- Stabilize, Monitor and Improve
After the implementation of milkrun,
process stabilization about two to three
weeks may be required. Variability, line
stop due to material shortage, delivery
inconsistency and etc. may arise in this
period. These issues are primarily caused
by unfamiliarity with the new WI,
coordination and learning curve of
operators.
The monitoring of milkrun performance
continues after the stabilization period.
These performances include departure
punctuality, delivery accuracy, picking
lead time, feeding lead time, delivery lead
time, process breakdown frequency etc.
The data obtained should help the
management to see problems previously
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hidden by high inventory level.
Leader standard work is created to support
the follow-up and monitoring process.
Leader standard work prescribes daily
tasks or routines including follow up
meeting responsible by different levels of
relevant personnel to maintain healthy
running of milkrun. It helps the process
leaders or owners to shift their focus on
results of the milkrun to both process and
result. Leader standard work provides
discipline for leaders to consistently follow
up on core processes to ensure its integrity
and operation. Any discrepancy or
potential issues in the process can be
detected instantaneously and tackled
accordingly. It helps to expose hidden
problems and patterns which eventually
lead to coaching and improvement
opportunities.
When the process appears to be stable and
running smoothly, management can
consider improving milkrun, in several
ways proposed below:
1. Reduce safety stock
2. Reduce inventory level
3. Increase delivery pitch
4. Reduce delivery, feeding, or picking
lead time
5. Improve delivery method, route or
schedule
6. Improve production and warehouse
layout
Operators must be given thorough and
proper training to ensure compliance of the
newly created standard. Step 5 is repeated
after every improvement to allow system
to stabilize and for monitoring.
CASE STUDY
Company Background
The observed company is a sound system
manufacturer located in Malaysia.
Production departments include Surface
Mounting Technology (SMT), Through
Hole Technology (THT) and Final
Assembly (FA). FA contains a floor space
Page 7

of 52895 m2 and houses eight
manufacturing cells for more than ten
speaker models. The highest running cell
produces 138 units per hour. Warehouse is
immediately adjacent to the Production
and has 6283 m2 of floor space. About
3000 units of racks are built into 25 rows ×
30 columns × 4 storeys to give more than
6000 pallets space. The assembled
products are packaged and shipped
globally. The Company has more than a
thousand of employees and operates 16
hours in two shifts per day.
Previously, material was prepared by
Warehouse one day ahead based on daily
production schedule. It was delivered by
Warehouse operators to central
supermarket located at FA. Most materials
were placed in bins in predetermined
quantities. A supervisor stationed at the
area to organize and monitor the stock
level. By referring to the daily production
schedule, cell leaders decided and
retrieved the quantities and materials to the
cells at the beginning of the shift. He or
she also needed to update the information
system on the quantities taken away.
Additional material would be returned to
Warehouse on the second day by
warehouse operators. There were several
shortcomings to the practice. Supermarket
Table 1:-Inventory Level of Via 1 and Via 2
Cell Consumption Rate, Q (units/hr)
Via 1 138
Via 2 138
Fig.3:-Pareto Chart
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was needed as the intermediate stage of
replenishment. This also brought along the
implications of additional time to organize
and search stocks at the supermarket.
Material displacements were rather
frequent when certain materials identified
available on the information system could
not be found at the supermarket.
Driven by tow tuggers, milkrun was to be
developed and deployed using technology
commonly available to the company. The
project including the stage of refinement
and stabilization was completed fewer than
three months with the support of the top
management. Management commitment
was instrumental to solve emerging
problems especially ones involving
employee and acquisition of new
technology. The execution of individual
steps is given next.
Step 1 - Determine Desired Level of
Inventory
A Pareto Chart (Figure 3) presents the
highest running cells were Via 1 and Via
2. Both cells produced the same model and
have the same capacity: The current
condition of the cells was recorded in
Table 1:
Inventory Level, I (hrs)
4
4
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The current inventory level was
maintained at capacity lasting for four
hours production. After management
deliberation and analysis, a lower
inventory level (below two hours) was
targeted.
Step 2 - Compute Delivery Pitch
In response to the desired inventory level,
a corresponding delivery pitch was
calculated. With isafety set at 0.5 (by
management decision), the calculated
delivery pitch was approximately 1.333
hours. The management set the delivery
pitch to an hour, to dispatch tow train
hourly. The resultant inventory level falls
to 1.5 hours.
Tpitch = 2 / (1 + 0.5)
= 1.333 hrs ~ 1 hr
 The tow train dispatch hourly according
to the delivery pitch
Yellow
cart
Fig.4:-Tow train formed with tow tugger and carts
Loaded carts were connected one another
to resemble a train (Figure 4), prior to
departure. The whole installation is
referred as tow train hereafter. Two
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Step 3 - Set Up and Coordinate
Kanban cards
Warehouse generates Kanban cards with
bar code as the replenishment signal. The
cards were laminated to protect against
wear and tear, and designed with a tag clip
to attach onto representing parts. Equation
(5) computes the number of Kanban cards
needed for all parts consumed within 2.5
hours, rounding up to approximate their
standard pack sizes. These numbers would
be reviewed monthly by leaders to check
for loss, insufficiency, standard pack size
etc.
Delivery section
Two different tow trains, each consists of a
tow tugger and a number of carts were
installed to deliver parts from Warehouse
to production. Each was operated by a
tugger driver.
Tow tugger
separate and alternating routes were
developed to deliver material to each cell
at the specified pitch: Pengasus Express
and Unicorn Express (Figure 5).
Page 9

Fig.5:-Tow train delivery routes
Pengasus Express leaves the departure
every hour, starting from 7:00am. As it
leaves the departure area, it travels straight
to Station 1. At the station, tugger driver
detaches the cart designated for a cell and
collect Kanban cards for parts consumed in
the past hour. Later, the tow train moves to
Station 3 and repeats the process. Before
returning to Warehouse, it makes a final
stop at Station 5 to collect carts emptied in
previous delivery run.
Unicorn Express takes the similar route for
delivery every hour, starting from 7:30 am.
It stops at Station 2 and 4 for delivery
process, and Station 5 for empty cart
collection. Figure 4 outlines both delivery
routes. Stop points for tow train (termed as
Bus stops) with sign boards (Figure 6)
were placed at each station with detailed
instruction and arrival timetable. These bus
stops serve as visual tools to facilitate
process monitoring and accountability.
Figure 6: Bus stop
Feeding section
A feeder receives parts from tow train on a
cart and returns detached Kanban card to
the tugger driver. Feeder later verifies
these parts are attached with the correct
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Kanban cards before feeding them to the
rack from outside and around the cells.
Each cell is configured with customized
material flow rack to enable First-In-First-
Out (FIFO). Rack inlets were labelled
according to part numbers and only
matching parts can go into the rack. Each
rack was designed to hold exact amount of
quantities stipulated in Kanban cards to
avoid excess inventories. Efficient feeding
route and sequence were studied and
established.
Picking section
Figure 7 illustrates the workflow of each
section where the detached Kanban cards
are collected and sent back to Warehouse.
At Warehouse, the detached Kanban cards
are scanned using barcode scanner and the
information enters the SAP system to
generate a picking list. A picking list
contains information such as part number,
quantity, pack size, bin location etc. Picker
picks parts, loads them onto the carts and
attaches them with the corresponding
Kanban cards. Finally, the picker brings
the carts to the departure area ready for the
next replenishing trip. Picker also scans
the attached Kanban cards to close the
picking order.
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Fig.7:-Milkrun system workflow
Step 4 - Establish Standard and Training
Several training sessions were conducted
for managers, supervisors, Warehouse and
production operators to improve their
understanding on milkrun. The technical
training is considered to reduce time for
implementation [28] because most of them
have to be aware of their job
responsibilities and roles in milkrun. The
training introduced the concept of milkrun,
milkrun rules and prerequisites. As a part
of interactive training, a Lego simulation
of the milkrun was included. The first
round of the simulation focused on the
shortcomings of a production system
without milkrun system. The subsequent
rounds introduced and resulted to an
improved milkrun system. The trainees
were later trained on their assigned roles.
Work instruction included task
prioritization, safety and precautions,
technical handling of equipment, reporting,
housekeeping and maintenance. For
example, tugger drivers must be
experienced in battery replacement and
charging.
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Step 5-Stabilize, Monitor and Improve
A provision of three weeks aims to
stabilize the milkrun process. Leader
standard works support the monitoring and
accountability process. In border terms,
audits will be conduct on Kanban cards,
milkrun schedule, departure punctuality,
inventory accuracy, daily core team
meeting etc. Leader standard works were
displayed on a review board and visible to
everyone. Pockets are reserved to keep
completed audit forms. The process status
was displayed and updated on the review
board (Figure 8). These forms were
collected and documented by process
owners at the end of work. All metrics of
the milkrun process such as milkrun status,
inventory accuracy, departure accuracy,
downtime etc were reviewed daily. Green
magnetic button was used to indicate a
normal condition and red to indicate an
abnormal condition. Further actions were
written in the ―Remarks‖ section and being
removed upon completion of the actions.
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Fig.8:-Milkrun review board

Kaizen for continuous improvement
After studying the collected results,
several improvements (kaizen activities)
were undertaken to fine-tune the milkrun.
A case to stabilize milkrun departure is
presented here. Within three weeks of
monitoring, production line was down
three times due to insufficient material. A
time study was conducted on the tow train
departure punctuality, traveling time of
tow train between stops and time for the
tow train to complete a milkrun. Figure 9
shows that tow trains departed from the
warehouse with time variations within 16
minutes later and 19 minutes earlier than
the scheduled time, with a standard
deviation of 8.95 min. As implications,
late departure led to insufficient parts and
material at cells, starving these processes
upon exhausting the safety stock. Special
deliveries had to be called, which were in
essence operational waste and cost to
Warehouse. Meanwhile, early delivery
caused WIP accumulation at cells and
affected Kanban cards circulation. In
additions, this deprived time to unload all
carts and consequentially inadequate carts
collection to perform the next delivery.

Fig.9:-Tow train departure time deviation

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As observed, tugger drivers were unaware
of the delivery time while attending to
other tasks. To sustain a functional
milkrun process, the tow train must depart
for material delivery no later or earlier
than one minute from the scheduled time.
An alarm system could improve the
delivery consistency and help all operators
in the milkrun system to work smoothly.
The alarm system generates signals at
specific interval audible to the entire
warehouse. It also presents visual
information such as departure time, current
task and delivery destinations. The alarm
system comprised of a complete set of
computer, Windows 7 Operating System
and a speaker. The system was mounted
eight feet above ground at the tow train
departure point as shown in Figure 10. The
alarm system integrated Windows Task
Scheduler, Windows Media Player and
Microsoft PowerPoint for the following
tasks:
1. Trigger an audio signal ten minutes
prior to departure.
2. Trigger an audible and visual ten
seconds countdown to departure.
3. Display the next departure information
for numbered lists
Fig.10:- The alarm system installation and the information display
HBRP Publication Page 1-17 2020. All Rights Reserved
Recent Trends in Production Engineering
Volume 3 Issue 1
The first signal alerts the tugger driver and
pickers. The tugger driver on-duty should
drop all tasks at hand and proceed to drive
the tow tractor to departure area. With ten
minutes to spare, tugger driver retrieves
parts at designated location and loads them
onto carts. Meanwhile, pickers complete
their picking process and attach the cart
onto the tow train. The ten-second
countdown alerts the tugger driver ready
for departure. All preparation for departure
must be completed and tugger driver
stands by on the tow train. The countdown
also alerts the team leaders to monitor the
process. One minute after the departure
signal, the information of the next
departure will be displayed.
Management used Single-Point Tutorial
(SPT) for quick briefing and training on
the alarm system. SPT includes easy-to-
understand WI, visual instructions and
warning to be read by operators. Operators
signed the SPT acknowledgement form to
indicate their awareness to the changes.
After the implementation, the tow trains
departed significantly more punctually
(Figure 11). The milkrun is significantly
stabilized, more manageable and
predictable.
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 Recent Trends in Production Engineering
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Fig.11:-Time deviation in tow train departure after improvement

Lastly, shop floor conditions before and after the deployment of milkrun are compared and
tabulated in Table 2.

Table.2:-Comparison of conditions before and after milkrun

Criteria Before milkrun After milkrun
Communication between warehouse Warehouse delivered raw material to Material handler delivered raw
and production central supermarket at the beginning of material to cells based on withdrawal
the shift based on daily schedule. Kanban every hour.
Cell leaders retrieved from the
supermarket at the assembly.
Information is scanned to the system.
A supervisor monitored and organized
the stock at the supermarket.
Additional material was returned to the
warehouse on the second day.

Efficiency* 7% production loss due to material 0% production loss due to material

shortage. shortage.

WIP level at production** 223 ft2 (space at the central 0

supermarket)

Replenishing lead time Twelve hours Two hours

Further Kaizen* 2 per month 7 per month

Incidents related to material High. 7-8 times per week. 0 occurrence

displacement*
Headcount 1 shop floor supervisor for incoming 2 material handlers (also the certified
material tugger driver)

CONCLUSIONS easily recognizable to a material handler,

In this study, a framework is created to
enable milkrun to be deployed on
production floor. The designed framework
helps the production line to run smoothly
and product quality can be preserved under
a stabilized environment. The framework
considers sociotechnical or human factors
in milkrun design, such as introducing
clear steps to determine delivery pitch
the provision of training, WI, leader
standard work and concerted efforts
driving for continuous improvement. It
was revealed that systematic milkrun
system encourages workers to work in a
comfortable situation. The system
implemented suits the workers' ability, the
tasks, and the environments involved.
Second, the framework includes lean

HBRP Publication Page 1-17 2020. All Rights Reserved Page 14


transformation effort by simulating a pull
system (Kanban), reducing inventory and
streamlining processes to eliminate waste.
During the framework setup, the training
provided to enhance a good practice
implemented to the production line.
Milkrun is a largely manual process and
each section of the process is
interdependent. Cooperation, support and
discipline from all sections are important,
as failure of one section to fulfil its role
faithfully can cause the entire system to
fail. For instance, failure by tugger driver
to depart punctually for material delivery
can cause production starving and
breakdown. In addition, failures by
Warehouse to support and replenish
material duly undermine milkrun process,
subsequently leading to production halt.
Production line breakdowns or stoppages
must be avoided at all cost. Also, as
milkrun is considered as supporting system
to production, it is crucial that materials
are replenished on time to avoid any
production stoppage. In other words, while
production processes directly add value to
product, material replenishment is
considered non value-added.
More frequent deliveries evenly spread
workload over the entire day. Further
implication includes exposing inadequacy
in work design and thus leading to
improved labor working environment and
condition. However, labors may be
uncomfortable with a higher frequency of
delivery and hence resist changing. Thus,
motivation, persuasion and other informal
approaches from management are required
to achieve process compliance.
As a conclusion, the research has
developed and through a real case study,
demonstrated the framework improves on
human and milkrun efficiency and
effectiveness, safety, health, comfort etc.
The current multi-step approach provides a
systematic mean to develop and deploy
milkrun system for industry practitioners.
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Recent Trends in Production Engineering
Volume 3 Issue 1
Future development can be extended to
streamlining the system setup, continuous
reduction of inventory and development of
replenishment signals.
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