Work in Progress
& Line Balancing
Topics
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Work in Progress
Balancing
Reasons of Balancing
Balancing: How to Start?
Balancing Tools
Balancing Matrix
1. Work in Progress/Process
Work in process (acronym: WIP) or in-process inventory
includes the set at large of unfinished items for products in
a production process. These items are not yet completed
but either just being fabricated or waiting in a queue for
further processing or in a buffer storage. In manufacturing
WIP stands for something that has been worked on such
that it is no longer viable as raw materials while not yet
sellable as a finished product
Garment/Parts issued to sewing from cutting and still in
sewing lines are WIP of sewing lines
Complete parts are only considered as WIP
1. WIP
Day1
Starting WIP
200 pieces
Cutting issued to Sewing 5000 Pieces
Output
1000 pieces
WIP
200+5000-1000 = 4200
pieces
Day 2
Cutting Issued to sewing
5500 pieces
Quality Rejection
100 pieces
Output
2000 pieces
WIP
4200+5500-2000 =7700
pieces
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1. WIP
Front
Back
Loading
5000
5000
Output
2000
1500
50002000=3000
50001500=3500
Initial WIP
WIP
1. WIP
Front WIP
300
0
Back WIP
300
0
Assembly WIP
510
0
210
0
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Total WIP
1. WIP
Pocket Hemming=800 Pieces
Back yoke attach=500 pieces
Back seat attach=300 pieces
Back pocket attach=200 pieces
Total WIP in back section=??
1. WIP
WIP is made up of all garments and their parts that are not
completely finished. For example a bundle of shirts that has
everything attached but has no bottom hem.
We can measure WIP in Units/Pieces or in units of time. For
example, if we know that an operation A takes 0.5 minutes per
unit to process and we have 5 bundles of 12 units each then we
have 30 minutes of WIP for that operation (5 X 12 X 0.5).
In some factories, some operations have days of inventory waiting to
be processed! This is unacceptable for many reasons.
High
Inventory/WIP
Inventory Hides Problem
Low WIP forces us to address issues
High
Inventory/WIP
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2. Balancing
What is a balanced production system?
System where you meet the production expectations (output)
and find the same amount of work in process at every
operation at any point in the day. To be able to achieve this is
extremely difficult. If we choose to have balanced inventories at
the end of every day that will prove to be a reasonably difficult
challenge.
How do you keep all operations producing at the same rate?
This is very difficult since operators skills vary. We are able to
balance using multiple operators or Utility operators that fill
holes in production.
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3. Reasons for Balancing
Help supervisors undertake regular changes because of :
Machine break down
Operator beats target (shortage and excess)
Absenteeism
Operator hurt/sick
Cutting not correct
Alterations
Benefits of Line Balancing
Balanced line helps in consistent production
Keep inventory costs low
Keeping normal inventory levels lets the operator work all day long giving him/her
the opportunity to increase his/her efficiency
Keeping the line balanced lets the supervisors improve other areas like quality,
methods improvement etc. because they can use their time better
It is very important that all supervisors put line balancing in their daily
plans
every day.
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4. Balancing- How to start
Determine how many operators are needed for each operation for
a determined level of production
Next determine how much WIP we need to anticipate production
problems. We recommend a 1-hour inventory level for each
operation. A good range would be from 30 min to 120 min
inventory level.
Any variation outside this range should be
avoided. A variation of this magnitude signifies an unbalanced
line and should be looked into immediately.
Rules for balancing
Have at least hour and maximum 2 hours of WIP for each
operation
Solve problems before they become larger
Operator should be used in the primary operation/ operation with
maximum capacity
Shifting should be minimum for 2 hours
Line supervisors who are directly involved in each line
are most suited to balance their own individual
section/line.
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5. Balancing Tools
There are a number of tools that can be used for balancing.
These are applied according to the plants needs.
The most basic ones are
Production Sheets / Gum Sheet
Inventory levels by operation and bi-hourly production
monitoring
Production Boards
Daily sewing report
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5. Bi-Hourly Report
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6. Line Balancing What to do when?
OUT PUT
HIGH
LOW
The Balancing Matrix
Transfer OUT
after WIP is
normal
Transfer IN
temporarily
Transfer IN +
BBB Follow-up
Transfer OUT
now
No Change
Transfer IN +
BBB Follow-up
WIP
Transfer OUT to
Transfer OUT to previous operation Transfer IN +
Temporarily +
previous
Study previous
Study previous
operation
operation
operation
LOW
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Thank You
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