REDUCING DIRECT LABOR COSTS THROUGH U-SHAPED CELLULAR LAYOUT IN INJECTED AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY

Reducing direct labor costs can be used to create a low operation cost as the way for winning future markets including injected automotive components. This paper aims to provide an overview of direct labor costs reduction in injected automotive components through a U-shaped cellular layout as part of the lean concept. Over a decade, many types of research had already used the lean concept to solve problems in production activity through lean tools. In this paper, several lean tools such as Takt time, value stream mapping, and U-shaped cellular will be used for reducing direct labor costs that have increased yearly in Indonesia since 2015. Those lean tools will be performed in a job-shop of injected automotive components. After performing the U-shaped cellular layout, the direct labor costs were reduced to 25 % by combining the job held by two operators to become one operator.

TAKT TIME E BALANCEAMENTO NO FORMATO DA PROGRAMAÇÃO DE LINHA DE PRODUÇÃO

Produzir mais, empregando menos tempo e menos recursos, é o sonho de qualquer empresa. Diante disso, este estudo busca resolver problemas de utilização da capacidade e de desnivelamentos de produção. Dessa maneira, o objetivo consiste em propor um formato de programação que otimize a utilização dos recursos e resulte em maior equilíbrio na produção de uma empresa do ramo metalúrgico, produtora de implementos rodoviários e localizada na região Sul do Brasil. Por meio de um estudo de caso, identificaram-se a forma de trabalho e a situação da programação da empresa. A partir disso, criou-se um modelo de um novo formato de produção, voltado à minimização das variações de volumes e fundamentado, basicamente, na utilização dos conceitos de takt time e de balanceamento das linhas. Conclui-se que o modelo proposto permitirá um ritmo continuado na produção, sendo capaz de estabilizá-la. Ademais, conforme for aplicado nas linhas da empresa, evidenciará os pontos ao longo do fluxo que precisam de melhoria, identificando gargalos e ociosidades. A soma de tais fatores proporcionará o aprimoramento contínuo dos processos da empresa e a otimização dos recursos disponíveis para a produção. Palavras-Chave: Linha de produção. Programação de produção. Takt time. Balanceamento de linha. Capacidade produtiva. Abstract: Producing more, using less time and fewer resources, is the dream of any company. Therefore, this study seeks to solve problems of capacity utilization and production unevenness. Thus, the objective is to propose a programming format that optimizes the use of resources and results in greater balance in the production of a company in the metallurgical sector, producer of road implements and located in the southern region of Brazil. Through a case study, the way of working and the situation of the company's programming were identified. From this, a model of a new production format was created, aimed at minimizing volume variations and basically based on the use of the concepts of takt time and line balancing. It is concluded that the proposed model will allow a continued pace in production, being able to stabilize it. Furthermore, as applied to the company's lines, it will highlight the points along the flow that need improvement, identifying bottlenecks and idleness. The sum of these factors will provide the continuous improvement of the company's processes and the optimization of the resources available for production. Keywords: Production line. Production schedule. Takt time. Line balancing. Productive capacity.

Analisis cycle time proses perakitan senjata di PT Pindad (Persero)

This paper aims to analyze the cycle time of the assembly line of one of the weapons products at PT. Pindad (Persero) and to explore the effective methods to improve its performance. The method used is a quantitative analysis of assembly data involving 155 components and 56 tasks distributed over 43 work stations, accompanied by document analysis, especially on scientific literature, to elaborate various appropriate methods to become solutions to the problems encountered. The results show that almost all workstations had a cycle time greater than the takt time. It is also known that there is an imbalance of existing workstations, with the lightest workload lasting 67 seconds while the largest workload lasting 253 seconds. The results of the elaboration of the literature show that several potential methods can provide solutions to the problems encountered by considering the characteristics of the assembly line with a straight-line configuration. This study contributes to the literature by analyzing cycle times and assembly line balances in the defense industry relatively rarely studied in Indonesia.

Pengurangan Lead Time dengan Lean Manufacturing: Kajian Literatur

Perkembangan teknologi dan globalisasi meningkatkan persaingan pada industri manufaktur. Agar dapat bertahan dalam persaingan bisnis, perusahaan manufaktur harus memenuhi permintaan dan memuaskan pelanggan dengan meningkatkan produktivitas dan efisiensi. Produktivitas dan efisiensi dapat ditingkatkan dengan mengurangi lead time. Lean manufacturing telah terbukti dapat meningkatkan produktivitas dan efisiensi dengan mengurangi lead time dari proses produksi. Studi ini bertujuan untuk meluaskan pemahaman tentang bagaimana lean manufacturing dapat mengurangi lead time dan memahami tantangan yang mungkin muncul. Lead time dari proses produksi dapat dikurangi dengan menggunakan bantuan pendekatan diagram SIPOC, peta aliran proses, penghitungan takt time, model evaluasi pemborosan, dan kuesioner evaluasi pemborosan. Namun, penerapan lean manufacturing untuk mengurangi lead time akan menjadi tidak efektif apabila perusahaan tidak siap dalam hal pengelolaan manajemen sumber daya, manejemen manusia, dan standardisasi.

A Scooping-Binding Robotic Gripper for Handling Various Food Products

Food products are usually difficult to handle for robots because of their large variations in shape, size, softness, and surface conditions. It is ideal to use one robotic gripper to handle as many food products as possible. In this study, a scooping-binding robotic gripper is proposed to achieve this goal. The gripper was constructed using a pneumatic parallel actuator and two identical scooping-binding mechanisms. The mechanism consists of a thin scooping plate and multiple rubber strings for binding. When grasping an object, the mechanisms actively makes contact with the environment for scooping, and the object weight is mainly supported by the scooping plate. The binding strings are responsible for stabilizing the grasping by wrapping around the object. Therefore, the gripper can perform high-speed pick-and-place operations. Contact analysis was conducted using a simple beam model and a finite element model that were experimentally validated. Tension property of the binding string was characterized and an analytical model was established to predict binding force based on object geometry and binding displacement. Finally, handling tests on 20 food items, including products with thin profiles and slippery surfaces, were performed. The scooping-binding gripper succeeded in handling all items with a takt time of approximately 4 s. The gripper showed potential for actual applications in the food industry.

JUST IN TIME INVENTORY MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUE AND SUPPLY CHAIN PERFORMANCE IN PROCESSING FIRMS IN KENYA: A CASE OF CROWN PAINTS LIMITED

ABSTRACT The main objective of the study was to investigate the effect of just in time inventory management technique on supply chain performance in processing firms in Kenya with focus to Crown Paints Limited. This study analyzed several theories majoring on the deterministic inventory which deterministic models of stock control are utilized to decide the ideal stock levels in the company. This study adopted descriptive research design. Target population of this study was 279 staff working in various department at Crown Paints Limited. Stratified random sampling technique was used in this study to come up with a sample size of 81 respondents. Questionnaires were used to collect primary data. Qualitative and quantitative data was collected where quantitative data was coded in the SPSS (Version 22). Data has been presented using frequency tables and figures while interpretation has been done in prose form. Inferential statistics was used to establish relationship between just in time inventory management technique on supply chain performance. The study concluded that customer order cycle influence supply chain performance. There was significant relationship between customer order cycle and supply chain performance. The study concludes that supply chain cycle contributes to supply chain performance, and that there was significant relationship between supply chain cycle and supply chain performance. The study concludes that there was linear relationship between Takt Time and supply chain performance. There was significant influence of Takt Time on supply chain performance. The study concludes that pull system contributes to the supply chain performance. The study concludes that the overall significant relationship between pull system and supply chain performance. The study recommends that organizations should have multiple objectives like enhanced competitiveness, better customer service and increased profitability among other. To seek these objectives organizations should employ various defensive as well as offensive business performance improvement approaches. In order to receive an accurate result using takt time formula on supply chain performance, organizations should put both the production time available and the customer demand into frames. Goods should simply be produced according to the pace of consumption in the market a market demand-pull supply chain system.

Finding Features of Actions Efficiently Synchronized with Dishwashing Robot

In this study, we propose a method for extracting the characteristics of body motions that contribute to reducing the takt time in a cooperative task between a dishwashing robot and a human operator. The proposed method collects the takt time and motion data from novice operators until they become experienced using an inexpensive acceleration sensor. The operation data is classified into experienced and novice periods using the variance value of the takt time. In addition, the Hidden Markov Model is generated to classify the motion data into multiple motion phases. The motion features of the operator are extracted for each phase from the generated model. The proposed method finds the motion features whose difference between the experienced and novice periods are similar to the takt time transition. It uses them as important variables. We verified the effectiveness of the proposed method by conducting experiments that simulate actual work at a restaurant. The Hidden Markov Model classified the operation phases into three categories with the AUC of 0.9. In all samples, we were able to extract the motion characteristics of the experienced operators. This study showed the potential to improve the speed of novice's progress by the extracted motion characteristics to improve education guidelines and to show operators how they should physically move.

Die Material Selection Criteria for Aluminum Hot Stamping

The aim of this work is to develop a die material selection criterion for aluminum hot stamping applications. The criterion has been based on the back-to-back comparison of a set of reciprocating friction and wear tests. Three representatives belonging to different stamping die material families have been selected for the study: a cold work steel, a hot work steel, and a cast iron. These tool materials have been combined with an exemplary member from two heat treatable aluminum families: 2XXX and 6XXX. Each die-material/aluminum–alloy combination has been tested at three temperatures: 40, 200, and 450 °C. The temperatures have been selected according to different stamping scenarios: long takt time press quenching, short takt time press quenching, and very short takt time hot forming without quenching, respectively. The results show that, among the three die material options available, the cold work steel turned out to be the most favorable option for high volume production and long takt time, the hot work steel fitted best for high volume production coupled with short takt time, and cast iron turned to outstand for short runs with prototype dies and for hot stamping without die quenching.