and the change over time to meet the bottleneck demand.

The operator would stop the machine whilst cleaning

the work bench, set in order the workpieces and some cases doing minor repairs or adjustments on the machine.
In this case the machine may have been underutilized but not the operator.

The formulas are used to control the WIP using Kanban. Products with longer processing cycle time (Toyota
Corolla-2018) will have a smaller TTG quantities whilst those with shorter cycle time (Toyota Hilux -2018) have
large TTG quantities.
35
1 PO1 = = 87%
40
35
2 PO2 = 36
= 97%
35
3 PO3 = = 100%
35
35
4 PO4 = 38
= 92%
35
5 PO5 = 36
= 97%

If a manufacturer can produce 1,000 parts per hour, but has a 10% rejection rate, they’ll waste 100 parts every
hour, or 800 parts a shift. If the rejects rate can be reduced by 2% this would make it a bit easier to meet the
quotas, and reduce money wasted on remanufacturing or reprocessing parts. The throughput rate would have
increased.
Workspace organisation using (5S) ensures that inventory is at the nearest and convenient place all the time to
reduce house-keeping bottlenecks by eliminating motions that are wasteful. 5S creates the optimal layouts of
tools and materials for the job.
The Drum Buffer Rope (DBR) technique can be applied to control the flow of product through the different
machines centres and use the bottleneck machine centre (milling) to set the process flow by limiting entry of
material into the milling machine. This is used to set the pace/takt time for the entire process. Production systems
tend to lose efficiency when a variation exists in lead times from component to component and operation to
operation. Single piece flow is sensitive to randomness and variation in lead times, and efficiency decreases
rapidly as randomness and variation increase.
Applying the TOC, if a bottleneck exists, the first step is to identify the bottleneck and the resources causing it
then to exploit it. For bulk material processing machine say a quarry that supplies the ore to the mill, you can
exploit by running the machines during tea and lunch breaks whilst other machines are stopped. For the automotive
assembly plant, you can increase the fitters or operators at a station where you have a bottleneck. Where you have
a metal cutting machines you can have a buffer machine that will run when there is a bottleneck.
If the bottleneck neck cannot be exploited, then subordinate it by making all the other machines that depend on
the machine in question to do the tasks at the pace of the bottleneck machine. The bottleneck machine controls
the production lead times. One can reduce the workers at the machine centres that do not have a bottleneck and
place then elsewhere rather than underutilizing them.
Besides exploiting and subordinating the bottleneck can be removed by elevating the machine with a bottleneck
by way off improving the technology on the machine. Modifications, redesigns and use of jigs, fixtures and
templates can improve the machine performance and rate of doing work in machine tools by TSAM and its
suppliers. For process Engineering machines like boilers at a power station the feed water can be preheated by
used/ exhaust steam and water before it gets to the condensers and cooling towers by counter flow. This would
increase efficiency of the boiler and removes the bottleneck. The counter flow of cool water and air in industries
uses heat to produce steam is not only for energy conservation and green technologies but also for balancing the
production flow.
5.2 Graphical results
A production line for the manufacture of wheel spanners was observed and quantities determined from
individual operators. The productivity at each machine centre was determined and used to draw fig 2 and fig 3.
 Fig 2.Productivity of a metal machining workshop for one product/ shift.
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Power Saw Parallel Turning Milling Surface Grinding Threading
1 2 3 4 5

Series3 Series4

This was done during the peak of the pandemic where a skeleton staff was allowed to be at work. Most of the
operators had very little experience. The experienced had retired, retrenched, were sick or had succumbed to
covid 19. The productivity on the milling machine was highest at 100% whilst the other operations were low
down to 87%. The power saw was which was at 87% was the bottleneck in the production line and the TOC
steps were carried out to remove the bottleneck and balance the production line. A buffer power saw was roped
in to cut more blanks and supply the production line.

Fig 3. The impact of various Lean tools to productivity improvement by

reducing bottlenecks
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Fig 3 shows the impact of various aspects in reducing the bottlenecks in a manufacturing plant. Training, safety,
Value Stream Mapping and 5S are critical in reducing bottlenecks seconded by Heijunka, OEE, Transport, Takt
time, TPM and plant layout. The Kanban Card system, going on a Gemba walk and use of Andon light is used
to identify and minimize the bottlenecks.
5.3 Proposed improvements
The findings indicate that most of the TSMA suppliers are applying VSM, transport and logistics, health, and
safety, 5S and training extensively in the manufacturing plant to minimise the bottlenecks.
The training and monitoring are done at the training centre at TSAM in Prospection. For each attribute the
suppliers carefully select a worker with a talent in that attribute for training. The trained worker will cascade the
knowledge and skills to his peers and will be the champion of the attribute. This helps to reduce the bottlenecks
caused by the process because the manpower can reduce the set up and maintenance time. Often there are
improvements that can be done by operators if trained properly. Employee education and training is an ongoing
process and can be done at the beginning of the shift as a tea talk. Employees requires training to get the most
value when people, equipment, and technology changes.
Delays in shift changeovers waste time for adding value, the new shift will be waiting for the predecessor to
finish. The senior management uses Gemba Gembutsu to see the causes of the delays and find an immediate
solution before finding the root cause. Rescheduling the processes to meet the takt time and work balancing by
adjusting the number of personnel per centre is the common solution to the problem in order to reduce WIP.
At TSAM most of the bottle necks in the assembly line are eliminated by increasing or decreasing staff at a
station. For instance, if for a particular car model say Toyota corolla the demand is low, the takt time is increased
by reducing staff at each station or at some stations. The removed staff are placed on the Hilux section that has
a high demand and needs less takt time (Kaizen Africa 2018 tour in the TSAM factory). This levelling (Heijunka)
practice is used by the suppliers as well to eliminate bottlenecks.
IT Software’s are used in manufacturing to make discreet decisions in manufacturing. Visual Control (VC) of
machine tools increase uptime by reacting faster to b problems because of great visibility. Instant updates are
critical to the production process to eliminate bottlenecks and produce what the customer desires in real time.
To improve productivity, workers should have access to information whenever required, unlike in NLM where
information is top secret.
TPM reduces unexpected work stoppage by empowering operators to stop the machine and do minor repairs
without allowing a minor defect to continue in the production line and only to produce a reject final product.
TPM and the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) is improved by mobile solutions. The mobile solution puts
visibility in the technicians, operators, and artisan’s hands and enables viewing of planned service orders on
specific dates to help prepare and complete service calls without skipping. Mobile solutions reduce the data gap
and significantly increase responsiveness to changing market conditions and customer requirements.
An industry with many suppliers avoids or reduce bottlenecks by applying the Kanban card system where
replenishing information is shared by all supplies so that each supplier is updated on when the stock needs to be
replenished. A single or dual Kanban can be used by these suppliers so that parts are always available whenever
needed. All the TSAM supplies are linked to TSAM so that they supply parts just in time. The supplies are also
linked to their raw material suppliers using the Kanban system.
When failing to meet throughput goals, the review, development and improvement of raw materials and
production process capacity is important to reduce parts rejections. For continuous improvements, the process
needs to go through a value mapping periodically to assess process improvement points and bottlenecks.
Equipment and technology must be mapped to see if the equipment is in good repair and the technology optimal
or easy to make changes in production.
6 Conclusion
This study shows that addressing the bottlenecks is key to achieving sustainable lean success in manufacturing
Enterprises need to overhaul and improve functions, from the procurement of raw material, training personnel
to operate, maintain the equipment, balance the processes, and provide a good health and safety environment,
housekeeping, to finished goods and reaching out to customers. A sustainable increase in productivity is driven
by deliberate long term change solutions to problems. Trying to increase productivity on the backs of employees
is costly and cause safety problems. Regular mapping of the Value stream uncovers hidden bottlenecks that may
be easily remedied by a change in the process or new technology. Adopt better manufacturing equipment,
materials, and techniques that provide the most value for your company. Good workplace organization (5S)
provide a safe working centre and eliminate delays due to pileup and time wasting retrieving a part or tool from
the stores. The different knowledge and conflicting goals of different actors are combined by providing similar
training to the manufacturing company and suppliers. Collaborations creates a synergy needed for achieving the
overall goals.
The rollout of Lean manufacturing at Toyota South Africa Manufacturing (TSAM) and its suppliers is
sustainable and has shown good results. The rollout improved work centre performance by applying 5S, Poka
Yoke, Jidoka, Heijunka, TPM and Gemba. The outcome was an increase in productivity, staff development, job
satisfaction and financial gains.