Sunday, June 30, 2013

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING THE TOYOTA PRODUCTION SYSTEM by Towill

Industrial engineering the Toyota Production System - Summary


Denis R. Towill, (2010) "Industrial engineering the Toyota Production System", Journal of Management History, Vol. 16 Iss: 3, pp.327 - 345




Introduction
                    
 The paper is intended to highlight the undervalued industrial engineering contribution of the Gilbreths to the Toyota Production System. Typical of all innovative engineering projects, TPS brings together, sifts, and successfully adapts ideas from many sources. Critically, TPS is manifestly a system, in which case the totality is (much) greater than the sum of the constituent parts. Furthermore effective linking of the latter is critical in enabling improved throughput. The viewpoint here is that the Toyota Production System is an evolutionary output with some of its roots clearly traceable back to method study combining multiple flows together with more informed design principles and control strategies. The quality movement helped to enable what was ordered to actually become useful goods (as distinct from making scrap). There are three traceable pathways connecting method study and TPS, which were pursued in paper. These include the Japanese Management Association activities; the lecture activities of Lillian Gilbreth and her associates; and  the Scientific Management Movement and FW Taylor.

              Other related topics include the contributions of the quality movement, JIT designers, and the industrial engineering viewpoint of Shigeo Shingo (1989). The cultural implications of successful TPS implementation compared to earlier industrial relations problems are also exemplified in the paper. An important adjunct is the positing of “contemporary” industrial engineering.

However, the  author is apparently still anchored in the “traditional” IE more reminiscent of the inter-war years. Simple vision for TPS – the achievement of continuous material flows. We also examine the “systems” context of TPS operation which ensures the whole is greater than the sum of the constituent parts.

 Continuous material flow

                Crystal Hall project in UK has many features of TPS. Important contributions to the future of logistics and mass production were undoubtedly made in the execution of this massive project. The real innovation was in the process of producing the components, delivering them to the site, and putting them together. Wilkinson (2000) thus comments:

                The exhibition hall was not built. It was assembled. The various parts (including cast-iron columns, wrought iron beams, wooden components, and glass were made all over the UK and delivered directly to the exhibition site by train. They arrived more or less ready for use, and at the right time and were taken straight to the place where they were needed.  From the supermarket we got the idea of viewing the earlier process in a production line as a kind of store. The later process (customer) goes to the earlier process (supermarket) to acquire the needed parts (commodities) at the time and in the quantity needed. The earlier process immediately produces the quantity just taken (re-stocking the shelves). To achieve this in Toyota, Ohno had to make many major changes to production operations. Because the supermarket logistics were designed to replenish only what had just been taken in a timely manner, lot sizes had to be drastically reduced. Hence, the Single-Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) initiatives (Shingo, 1989). To achieve the efficiencies needed, Ohno and his Toyota colleagues engineered many creative ways to reduce such changeovers. 

            

Holistic view of TPS

        In their seminal paper, Spear and Bowen (1999) argue that to unravel the DNA of TPS the key factor to understand is that the (surprisingly) rigid specification is the very thing that makes the flexibility and creativity possible. That conclusion was reached by Spear and Bowen (1999) based on an extensive four-year study of the Toyota Production System. They examined the inner workings of more than 40 plants in the USA, Europe, and Japan, some successfully operating the system, but some were not. These authors studied artifacts produced in both continuous process  and discrete manufacturing companies. Products ranged from prefabricated housing, auto parts and final auto assembly, cell phones, and computer printers through to injection-moulded plastics and aluminium extrusions. They studied not only routine production work but also service functions such as equipment maintenance, workers’ training and supervision, logistics and materials handling, and process design and redesign.

 The Gilbreth's “four step” approach

(1) To define the current situation noting anything that could have any possible effect on the job and its performance.
(2) To analyse the job using the special equipment he had either invented or adapted for use for this purpose and supported by one of the several systems of analysis that he had also developed.
(3) To examine the results of these analyses, cutting out any part of the job he found unnecessary, combining different parts where possible and, if practicable, designing equipment that would reduce still further the motions to do the job.
(4) Taking what was left of the job to synthesise this into a new job method which was, to him, the best way the job could be done in the given situation.



Productivity, Safety, Comfort, and Operator Health Management - Article Collection


Productivity, Safety, Comfort, and Operator Health Management

Productivity, Safety, Comfort, and Operator Health Management

Authors

Collected Knols

All new links. Links removed for articles no longer available on Knol.


Bibliography

Worker productivity, and occupational health and safety issues in selected industries
Ashraf A. Shikdar, , Naseem M. Sawaqed
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University, P.O. Box 33, Al-Khod 123, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
Computers & Industrial Engineering
Volume 45, Issue 4, December 2003, Pages 563–572

Technology-Man Integration - The Big Achievement of Industrial Engineering



F.W Taylor and Frank Gilbreth worked on principles of motion economy, motion study, stop watch time study, wage payment plans, incentive plans, motion economy devices and made man-machine integration more efficient and productive. Thus technology-man integration is a big achievement of industrial engineering. Ergonomics developed into a big discipline and is helping industrial engineering profession by providing theories and data on human factors.

From this foundation industrial engineering developed method study, which is study of complete process for producing a component or a product, value engineering - evaluation of the product design for cost reduction, and operations research - optimization of various systems having multiple variables with divergent behavior.



The Technology Integration of Man - by Scott Klososky
http://blog.speakersoffice.com/speakersoffice-blog/bid/9127/The-Technology-Integration-of-Man-by-Scott-Klososky

Man-machine Integration Design and Analysis System (MIDAS) v5:
Augmentations, Motivations, and Directions for Aeronautics Applications
Brian F. Gore, PhD
NASA AMES RESEARCH CENTER
Mail Stop 262-4
P.O. Box 1
Moffett Field, CA, USA 94035-0001
http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20110013227_2011014023.pdf

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Design of Statistical Industrial Experiments


A systematic approach to planning for a designed industrial experiment
David E. Coleman
Alcoa Laboratories
Alcoa Center, A 15069

Douglas C. Montgomery
Industrial Engineering Department 
Arizona State University
Tempe, AZ 85287

Design of experiments and analysis of data from designed experiments are well-established
methodologies in which statisticians are formally trained. Another critical and rarely taught
skill is the planning that precedes designing an experiment. This article suggests a set of tools
for presenting generic technical issues and experimental features found in industrial experi-
ments. These tools are predesign experiment guide sheets to systematize the planning process
and to produce organized written documentation. They also help experimenters discuss com-
plex trade-offs between practical limitations and statistical preferences in the experiment. A
case study involving the (computer numerical control) CNC-machining of jet engine impellers
is included.

TECHNOMETRICS, FEBRUARY 1993, VOL. 35, NO. 1


Learning Curve - Experience Curve - Bibliography



THE LEARNING CURVE: HISTORICAL REVIEW
AND COMPREHENSIVE SURVEY
Louis E. Yelle, University of Lowell
Decision Sciences, Vol 10, Pp 302-328



Bibliography Provided in the paper


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Behind the Learning Curve: A Sketch of the Learning Process
Paul S. Adler and Kim B. Clark
Paul S Adler: Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, Stanford University
Management Science, Vol. 37, No.3, March 1991
This exploratory paper sketches some of the behavioral processes that give rise to the learning curve.

The Sociology of Organizations: Classic, Contemporary, and Critical Readings - 2003 - Michael J. Handel - Book Information



SAGE, 2003 - Social Science - 541 pages
For the first time, a single volume offers a comprehensive selection of primary readings and companion overview essays on the sociology of organizations. These readings and essays provide incisive and guided coverage of the subjects normally included in a one-semester sociology of organizations course.  

The Sociology of Organizations covers the full range of theoretical perspectives and substantive topics through readings that are either classics in the field or widely discussed and debated "new classics."  

Scholars and students in the fields of sociology, management, organizational behavior, and organizational psychology and those within political science and economics who are interested in how organizations function will find this work a welcome, invaluable resource.


Google Book link with preview facility
http://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=zuZ3HEi4dXIC

See Chapter 10 Control to Commitment in the Workplace
by Richard E. Walton

Chapter 27 Engineering Culture: Control and Commitment in High Tech Corporation by Gideon Kunda

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

12 Disruptive Technologies and Their Contribution to Economy by 2025 - McKinsey Report




Immediate Impact Technologies

- Mobile Internet

- Cloud technology

- Knowledge work automation

- Internet of things

Intermediate Impact Technologies

- Energy storage

- Renewables

- Genomics

Long-term Impact Technologies

- 3D manufacturing

- Robotics

- Autonomous vehicles

- Advanced materials

Source

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-company/corporate-trends/india-and-the-20-trillion-innovation-opportunity-in-these-12-disruptive-technologies/articleshow/20751368.cms?curpg=2


Download full report from McKinsey Site
http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/business_technology/disruptive_technologies

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Engineering Statistics - Handbook - Book Information


Chapters of a handbook available at


ftp://ftp.pwut.ac.ir/Exercises/Afzalian/Eng-Statistic-Handbook/

One chapter is on process improvement - 480 pages

Business Systems Engineering

 Index of concepts
  1. Aa to Az
  2. Ba to Bz
  3. Ca to Cz
  4. Da to Dz  
  5. Ea to Ez
  6. Fa to Fz
  7. Ga to Gz
  8. Ha to Hz
  9. Ia to Iz

 Concept Definition and Explanation

 


Business systems engineering joins all engineering activities and software processes that have to be achieved in order to develop useful software in business domain.

 Source

Agent Business Systems Engineering Development Approach

 

________________________________

 

XYZ

Related Knols

________________________________________________________________

Books

Business Systems Engineering
by Gregory H. Watson
John Wiley & Sons
1994
Google Books link with preview facility
http://books.google.co.in/books/about/Business_Systems_Engineering.html?id=8PsNheYRtrkC
(Interesting Book)

______________________________________________________________________________________

Research Papers


2009

Agent Business Systems Engineering Development Approach

2008
2007

Management Knowledge Revision Knols

Knols that facilitate revision of various subjects of MBA curriculum to keep management professionals' knowledge fresh



Original knol - http://knol.google.com/k/narayana-rao/business-systems-engineering/2utb2lsm2k7a / 1225

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Productive Efficiency

In a Wikipedia article productive efficiency is defined at economy level.

Productive efficiency requires that all firms operate using best-practice technological and managerial processes. When all firms operated at optimum productive efficiency,  an economy can extend its production possibility frontier outward, so that efficient production yields more output.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Productive_efficiency

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Inkjet Versus Laser Printing - Engineering Economics


2013 March

Basic monochrome laser printer models can be bought for less than £100, although more sophisticated colour versions – with features such as Wi-Fi and duplex printing – can sell for three times that, and more. This compares with the £50 and less that inkjet printers sell for. So a laser will only make sense if the savings on ink outweigh the extra cost of the machine.

Standard laser cartridges – coloured toner (dry ink), typically cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK) – contain a lot of intricate components, print anything from 1,500-3,500 pages but can set you back a hefty £60-£120 each. Still, that compares well with the measly 200 pages you are likely to get from the standard inkjet cartridge costing around £15.

So do laser printers now represent a cost-effective alternative for the home consumer?

"It depends on how many pages you print," says Patrick Stead, head of cartridge recycler Environmental Business Products. "Laser can be better value over the longer term, but the initial outlay can be a lot more."

Hewlett Packard manufactures more than half of the printers sold in the UK. Its bestselling HP Deskjet 3050A inkjet retails for about £90. The cartridges sell for £10-£15 and have a standard page yield of 190 (black) and 165 (colour).

The company's top-selling HP CP2025 colour LaserJet sells for about £300. Cartridges retail for about £110 and have a page yield of 2,800 (colour) and 3,500 (black).

Cursory number-crunching indicates that if you print only, say, 1,000 pages a year – based on ISO standard 5% paper coverage – then the inkjet, at about 5p per page, is better value

But for anyone who prints more than 2,000 pages a year, a laser printer, at about 3p per page, is cheaper. The savings increase the more you print. A screenwriter, for instance, who prints 10,000 pages, stands to save hundreds of pounds by switching.

"If you print a lot of black and white documents then a laser can save you a lot of money," says Laura Heywood, managing director, at laser cartridge remanufacturer Kleen Strike.

But inkjet does have its advantages. At the domestic end of the market the print quality is higher and the colour definition better. "If you print mostly photos then you probably want to stick with an inkjet printer," Heywood adds.

David Connett, editor of industry magazine The Recycler, says: "If you're buying a laser printer, it's important to work out what you're going to use it for before deciding on a model. As a rule of thumb, the cheaper the printer, the smaller the cartridge, and the lower the page yield."

Samsung's ML2160 monochrome laser printer, for example, costs about £50. But the cartridges also cost £50 – and print a comparatively modest 1,500 pages.

"Do not buy a laser printer on price alone," says Heywood. "Always look at the cost of the replacement cartridges and their print yield."

One way to save money on these is to buy refilled cartridges, which can be 30-50% cheaper than the original price, according to the European Toner & Inkjet Remanufacturers Association.

Peter Thompson, director at laser cartridge recycler PBT International, says: "Properly remanufactured laser cartridges are excellent value. But some producers find ways to cut corners, which can result in leakage and sometimes uneven printing. Try to buy from a reputable seller."

Experts say it's always worth investing in a laser that supports duplex printing – printing on both sides of the paper – which cuts down on energy and paper consumption.

"Some laser printers automatically print on both sides," says Connett. "Other models allow you to reinsert pages manually to print the second side. And some do not support duplex printing at all."

It may also be worth buying a printer that is Wi-Fi compatible so that one click of a button will allow you to print, whether from laptop or smartphone.

Thomson concludes: "If you think how little ink is in the average inkjet cartridge compared to the average laser cartridge the economics are in favour of laser. Sometimes the cartridge prices aren't that different. But those for the laser can last an awful lot longer."

What you pay – and what you get

HP CP2025N A4 colour laser printer Cost: Around £350

Speed: Up to 20 pages per minute

Features: Auto Duplex (automatically prints on both sides of a page)

Cartridge cost: Original HP: Colour £110 (2,800 pages at 3.9p per page). Black £120 (3,500 pages at 3.4p per page).

Warranty: One-year limited

Brother HL-4140CN A4 colour laser printer

Cost: Around £200

Speed: Up to 22 pages per minute

Cartridge cost: Standard Brother*: Colour £66 (1,500 pages at 4.4p per page); Black £46 (about 2,500 pages at 1.8p per page)

Warranty: One-year onsite (upon registration)

Oki C301dn A4 colour LED printer

Cost: Around £100

Speed: Up to 20 pages per minute

Features: Auto Duplex (automatically prints on both sides of a page)

Cartridge cost: Original Oki: Colour £64 (1,500 pages at 4.3p per page); Black: £60 (2,200 pages at 2.7p per page)

Warranty: Three-year return to base

(*All page yields based on ISO standard 5% paper coverage.)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2013/mar/30/inkjet-or-laser-printing-cost-effective