Manufacturing Organization and Management

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Pilani Campus

BITS Pilani
Pilani Campus

Fundamentals of Control Lecture 13

Introduction
Planned control of all activity is a basic characteristics of modern industry. Effective control of people, materials, machines, and money contributes toward the making of profits so essential to the free-enterprise system. Control of materials
Their procurement and storage The processing of these materials by workers and machines.

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Control Fundamentals
Manufacturing control: it is usually in terms of automatic control of industrial manufacturing processes. The principles of process control are well established and there are many very successful applications of automatically controlled production processes in industry. Basic principles that work well for controlling processes can be applied to the manufacturing management process. It will be instructive to look at some of the concepts of process control before showing their use in management control. Two types of control systems:
Open loop Closed loop

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Open & closed loop heating systems

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 The important distinction between the two systems is that closed-loop systems have feedback, whereas openloop systems do not. Although open-loop heating systems of the type shown in figure no doubt exist, their operation consists of manually turning the furnace on when ever heat is needed, letting the unit run until the desired temperature is reached, then turning the unit off manually. No provision to control the temperature of the heated space automatically or to start and stop the heating unit has been provided in the arrangement. No matter which phase of manufacturing requires control, either singly or in combination, there must be four basic elements in the control system.

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1. 2. 3. 4.

These basic control elements are interdependent and dynamic in all manufacturing situations. They are: There must be a plan. A record of actual performance must be maintained. Through feedback, actual performance must continually be compared to and evaluated with the plan. Provisions must be made for corrective action in manufacturing operations when the results of the evaluation indicate the need for such action.

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Plan
A state of control can never exist unless some sort of a plan has been made. In manufacturing organizations, the plan generally consists of three elements: policies and procedures, long-range plans, and short-range plans. Company policies and procedures are organizational guidelines used to describe how routing function of day-today operation are to be handled. Procedures which can include items such as the warning of eye protection in designated areas, company travel policy, and so on, are generally documented in standard practice manuals. Other documentation, such as Q/A manuals and operating manuals used within departments, are further evidence of control.
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Plan cont
It should be pointed out that long-range planning has become increasingly difficult because of changing technology, greatly intensified world competition, the growth of government regulation and its effect on business, and the continuing inflationary spiral. Successful companies also understand that their growth and possibly their very existence do not depend exclusively on what they are doing today but rather what they planned to do years ago. Plans can be identified with workers, materials, machines, or money, or with any combination of these elements of manufacturing. However, in making a plan, a common yardstick for measurement must be established.

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 Any one of these elements may be used as a basis for measurement, but the most common base for measurement and as a result the foundation for most planning - is either money or time. Time is the common denominator to which practically all manufacturing elements can be resolved.

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Actual Performance
All effort used in making plans is a total loss unless attempts are made to follow these plans in the manufacturing activity. Keeping records of actual performance on the same basis of measurement as the plan is an activity that is prerequisite to any system of control.

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Comparison and Evaluation

The comparison of the records of actual performance to the plan and the evaluation of the results tell us how well the plan was made and how well it is being followed. When the actual performance meets the planned performance, the manufacturing situation is said to be in control. When performance fails to meet the plan, the situation is considered out of control It is possible to be in control and still not be operating at optimum efficiency; such a situation should be evident in the broad evaluation of performance. Another aspect of evaluation is the prediction of possible failures in the manufacturing activity by a study of trends in performance. Anticipation of possible production bottlenecks or materials shortages by careful study of performance is one of the most valuable tools to management.

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Corrective Action
Ideally, no corrective action should ever be necessary. Realistically, corrective action is the most important aspect in a control situation. Modern manufacturing is too complex to anticipate all possibilities of delays and failures when making the plan; and at the same time the allowance of too much time or money in anticipation of such problems is not good planning. As a result, corrective action is often necessary and should be taken without hesitation. Corrective action does not recognize any change in the original plan, for the objective of the corrective action is to get operations back on the original schedule or budget. When such changes are made, the performance of the plant is the controlling element not be plan. It is because of this that a state of control seldom exists except where effective corrective action is being taken.
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Re-planning
Re-planning has its place in modern control situations. However, it is most effective when used to improve the making of plans in the future. The key to successful manufacturing controls is the constant improvement of all plans for the manufacture and distribution of goods. The use of a re-plan to compensate for failure to meet an original plan should be made only when one is aware of all the circumstance involved. There may be external circumstances beyond the control of the planner- for examples, a market demand change or an economic downturn.

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Common Characteristics of Good Control Procedures

For optimum results, there must be a clearly defined objective for every manufacturing control situation. This objective should state what is to be controlled and the degree of control that is to be maintained. Control is a tool of management that requires careful study and analysis in order to avoid the establishment of controls for the sake of control only. Degree of control means how close a control needs to be maintained. The design and installation of control systems present a challenging problem to the industrial engineer.
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Simplicity: Control systems should be made as simple as possible. The fewer the forms, records or instruments that must be maintained, the easier the system is to operate, and the fewer opportunities for error. Simple systems are also easily understood by the personnel involved. Low cost: This is an obvious benchmark. As we shall see in later discussion of the many manufacturing control, the savings that those controls make are often intangible. This makes the justification of high-cost systems difficult.
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Adequate and timely information:

This is a principal characteristics of the second phase in a control system, the recording of actual performance. Determination of the adequacy of information the system will obtain requires considerable judgment. Enough information must be gathered for the making of decisions; however, in many cases the accumulation of all the information that might seem desirable is too shortly. An economic balance must be struck between record costs and the value of the information obtained. Information must also be timely.

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Flexibility:
Although it is generally agreed that re-planning should be held to a minimum, a certain amount is almost always necessary. This requires changes in plans, with the resultant changes in the control records. In much the same manner, corrective action will require adjustments in plans and schedules. A good control system permits the making of such changes without upsetting the apple cart and with a minimum of confusion and expense.

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Permit Management by exception: The system of reporting actual performance and comparing and evaluating it with the control plan should be such that only situations that require corrective action are brought to the immediate attention of management or supervisory personnel. However, procedures should be so established that corrective decisions can be made at the lowest level possible in the management structure. Force planning and corrective action : A control system can be so designed that management and the personnel operating the system are continually forced to look ahead. Manufacturing control is dynamic in every aspect: it is not a static or one shot affair. Good control plans should foster better planning for future operations. Also good control plans force corrective action by signaling failures to the next higher level of management

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Manufacturing Controls and People

People are involved in both management and labor. They must be educated and trained for its effective operation. Recognition of need:
A definite recognition of the need for the control must be established. Losses due to ineffective controls can be identified and savings that will result from better controls predicted. The biggest obstacle is the natural human tendency to resist change. It is often difficult to sell a new control plan to a management that is currently making good profits with the present system. The need for control must be clearly defined and constantly kept before all people involved.

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Selling the system:

A successful control procedure requires the full cooperation of all manufacturing personnel from the operator on the machine or assembly line to top management. Effective control is everybodys job

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Education and training: A sound program and education and training will materially influence the success of any control program. More detailed education and training are indicated for those personnel who will actually operate the system. For optimum effectiveness, continuing program of education and training is required.

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 Recognition and reward:

Important aspect of successful control is recognition and reward of all effort of all people make control work. Companies with proven long term records of successful operation recognize and reward their employees not only for short term but for long term performance as well.

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Basic Causes of Control Failure

Many well-designed control system fail to produce the anticipated results. It is not possible to enumerate all the factors contributing to such failures. However, we can consider briefly a few of the principal reasons why a control system of procedure does not function properly. Any control system can be likened to a chain it is as strong or effective as its weakest link. Most control procedures are in reality a system of industrial communications consisting of many steps. A failure at any point in the procedure contaminates all subsequent results that are recorded or observed by control personnel. All information up to the point of failure is valid, after the point of failure all information is inaccurate and may contribute to inefficient operation of the plant. These are tow basic sources of trouble: operating personnel and basic data.
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Operating Personnel
It is obvious that incompetent personnel who continually make mistakes should be relieved of their assignments. This, however, may be only a short-range correction of the problem. The failure of a clerk may be due to lack of proper training. He or she did not understand the what, how and why of the duties or their importance. In the preceding paragraphs we discussed the importance of education and training of personnel if the control procedure is to be effective. Also, we pointed out that personnel who are thoroughly competent must be sold on the system. Sometimes a system fails because a single person does not do the job properly.

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Basic Data
The results obtained from any control procedure are no better than the accuracy of the information fed into the system. Inaccurate costs, standard times, inventory counts, or any one of the other items of basic data upon which the system operates will result in poor performance. One grossly inaccurate estimate as to either cost or production time for a large component of a product may result in a poor plan for the control of production. The reporting of an inaccurate count of materials in a mass production plant may result in a complete shutdown of the lines. Basic data must be as accurate as the degree of control demands.
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Control as a Tool of Management

Any control procedure is a tool of management and not an end in itself. Maintenance of control communications and records must be justified by savings resulting either from their use in planning future operations or from the improved efficiency of day-to-day manufacture. Every system of control has its limitations. Control procedures, for example, do not make decisions; they simply indicate when decision are necessary and possibly what decisions should be made. Effective use of manufacturing controls depends upon the considered judgment of the people involved. There must be a thorough understanding of the control system and of the extent and validity of information resulting from the communication procedures in the system. The objective of the system must be in evidence at all times. The least control that accomplishes the objective is the best control. The fewer the records, reports, and steps in the control procedure, the simpler and less costly the system.
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Thank You

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