Charts related to movement and

utilization of
workers/material/machine

N M Khandre
 Multiple Activity Chart Or Man-machine Chart
• Definition:
• A Multiple activity chart is a form of process chart recording the related
sequence of work of a number of operators and/or machines on common
time scale. In it, the activities of more than one item, worker, machine or
equipment are recorded on a common time scale to show their inter relation
ship.
• Why:
 Multiple Activity Charts are very useful tool for understanding the flow of
work in a cyclic process and as a consequence understanding which resource is
controlling the overall progress of the work.

 The tool can be used to model different scenarios to determine the optimum mix
of resources for the work.
 Multiple activity chart brings out the comparative utilisation of men and
machines very clearly and helps to synchronise the various activities and
improve the situation. It is a useful tool for planning team work and
determining the staffing pattern.

 The multiple activity charts shows up clearly the periods of ineffective time and
by rearrangement of work it becomes possible to eliminate or reduce the
injective time.
Multiple Activity Chart Or Man-machine Chart
• Work load is evenly distributed among the workers or machines by this
the idle time of worker or machine is reduced. Multiple activity chart is
very useful in planning team work in production or maintenance.
• Only two symbols are used in man-machine/ Multiple Activity Chart :

Working Idle
• Types of Multiple Activity Chart :
– Man – Machine Chart
– Man – Multimachine Chart
– Multi – Man Chart
– Multi – Man machine Chart
 Purpose of Multiple Activity Chart
• To detect the idle time on machine and workers
• To optimize work distribution between workers
and machines.
• To decide no. of workers in a group.
• To balance the work team
• To examine the activities.
• It is used for recording the complex movements
of material or men.
• Used to find out the most economical route.
Example on on
Example ManMachine
Man Machine Chart
Chart(Present Method)
(Present Method)

TIME MAN MACHINE TIME

(MIN) (MIN)
0.2 Remove finished casting IDLE 0.2
cleans with compressed air

0.4 Gauge depth of slot on IDLE 0.4

surface plate

0.8 PLACE in a box obtains new IDLE 0.8

casting

1.0 Cleans machine with IDLE 1.0

compressed air

1.2 Locates castings in fixture, IDLE 1.2

starts machine

1.4 IDLE Cutting slot 1 1.4

1.6 IDLE Cutting slot 2 1.6
1.8 IDLE Cutting slot 3 1.8
2.0 IDLE Cutting slot 4 2.0
5
 (EXAMPLE ON MAN MACHINE CHART
(Summary of Present method)
method)

CYCLE TIME(MIN)= 2.0

Man – Working Idle Time Utilization

Machine Time (min.)
(min.) (%)

MAN 1.2 0.8 60%

MACHINE 0.8 1.2 40%

6
 Example on Man Machine Chart (Improved Method)
)
TIME MAN MACHINE TIME
(MIN) (MIN)
0.2 REMOVED FINISHED CASTING CLEANS WITH IDLE 0.2
COM PRESED AIR

0.4 CLEAN MACHINE WITH COMPRESED AIR IDLE 0.4

0.6 LOCATEES A NEW CASTING IN A FIXTURE IDLE 0.6

START MACHINE

0.8 BREAKS SHARP EDGES WITH FILES CLEANS CUTTING 0.8

WITH COMPRESSED AIR SLOT 1

1.0 GAUGE DEPTH OF SLOT ON SURFACE PLATE CUTTING 1.0

SLOT 2

1.2 PLACES CASTING IN A BOX PICKS UP NEW CUTTING 1.2

CASTING AND PLATE BY MACHINE SLOT 3

1.4 IDLE CUTTING 1.4

SLOT 4
7
EXAMPLE ON MAN MACHINE CHART
(Summary of Improved method)

CYCLE TIME(MIN)= 1.4

Man – Working Idle Time Utilization

Machine Time (min.)
(min.) (%)

MAN 1.2 0.2 85.7%

MACHINE 0.8 0.6 57.0%

8
 COMPARISION BETWEEN
PRESENT AND IMPROVED METHOD

CYCLE MAN IDLE MACHINE

TIME TIME(MIN) IDLE TIME (
(MIN) MIN)
PRESENT 2.0 0.8 1.2
METHOD

IMPROVED 1.4 0.2 0.6

METHOD

9
 application of Multiple Activity Chart

• Plant repair & maintenance.

• Job construction.
• Planning team work.
• It is used to check whether the work station is
correctly located.
 String Diagram:
Procedure and Purpose of String Diagram!
• String diagram is one of the useful and simplest techniques of
method study.
• It can be defined as a scale model on which a thread is used
to trace the path or movements of man and materials during
a specified sequence of events.
• It can also be stated that string diagram in a special form of
flow diagram.
• As a thread is used to measure distance, it is necessary that
the string diagram should be drawn up to scale. The same is
not necessary in case of flow diagram. A typical string diagram
is drawn in Fig.
 A brief procedure for the construction of string diagram
(i) Study and record the complete information about the movement of
various resources.
(ii) Draw a scale layout of the shop area and mark various features
such as machinery, work benches, stores etc.
(iii) Mark and insert panel pins at all workstations between which the
journeys are made. More pegs/pins may be stretched in between
the facilities to trace more or less the actual path followed by men
and materials.
(iv) A continuous colored un-strechable string, taken from the first to
last warned to trace the path followed by operators or materials.
Use strings/ threads of different colors if the movement of more
subjects is being shown so that their movements are easily
recognized and distinguished.
(v) Remove the string to measure their lengths which approximately
gives distances traveled by a worker or a machine or the material.
 Features of string diagram
• Like the flow diagram. It is also used to supplement a flow-process
chart. Generally the work study man proceeds to follow the worker
in whom he is interested or whose movements he wants to record.
If area of the working is small, work study man can simply sit on a
place and can notice the various movements of worker from there.
• This recording of movements continues till the work study man
thinks is that he has recorded all the movements. Totally misleading
results are produced with insufficient data.
• Examination of the diagram and development of new layout is done
in same manner as we have earlier explained in case of flow
diagrams.
• This can be done by moving the thread around the pins in the
various positions. Length of thread left is subtracted from the
original length of thread. Procedure is repeated till the maximum
length of left thread in obtained.
 A string diagram is a useful aid for following purposes
1) It represents the record of an existing set of conditions and thus
helps the method engineer in visualizing the actual situation.
(2) It indicates complex movements, back tracking, congestion, bottle
necks and over and underutilized paths on the shop floor.
(3) It is an aid for comparison between different layouts or methods
of doing a job as far as the distances moved are involved.
(4) It helps in tracing existing paths of movement for incorporating
necessary modifications, if any.
(5) It is prefixed when movements are not regular as far as frequency
and distance moved are concerned.
(6) Indicates the pattern of movements and thus helps in deciding
the most economical routes to perform a particular operation.
 Travel chart
 String diagram is good to explain movements and critical
examination but
o it takes longer time to get constructed and
o many movement along complex paths may lead to a
diagram with maze of crisscrossing line.
 Therefore, when movements are very complex travel chart is quick
and more effectively manageable recording technique.
• How is it made ?
o A travel chart is a tabular record for pressing
quantitative data about the movements of subject
between any numbers of places a over a given
period of time.
o This chart is a square table and each square within
table represents a station.
o It has number of rows and columns equal to the
number of stations that can be visited by the subject.