A Study of the Causes of Man-Hour Variance of Naval Shipyard Work Standards
This paper presents the results of a study conducted at a U.S. Navy shipyard during 1987 concerning the relationship between engineering standards and the variances that were occurring in production budget and charged man-hours. The ten engineering standards having the greatest man-hour variances were examined. These standards, as a group, accounted for about 62 percent of the man-hour variance that was reported during the first nine months of 1987. The study indicated that, with one exception, all of the standards were "generic" in their application, that is, they can be applied over a wide range of job orders. The study also concluded that engineered standards are only partially responsible for the production variance.