Engineering
Management
MSE507

Lean Manufacturing

Cellular Manufacturing
One Piece Flow for Workteams

Chapter 1
An Introduction to
Cellular Manufacturing
 

Chapter 1 Overview
 What Is Cellular Manufacturing?

• One-Piece Flow

• High-Variety Production

 Understanding Process and Operations

• Process

• Operations

 Benefits of Cellular Manufacturing

• How It Helps Companies

• How it Helps You


Summary
 

What Is Cellular Manufacturing?

Manufacturing?

  A lean manufacturing approac

approach h that helps companies build a
variety of products with as little waste as possible
 Equipment and workstations arranged in a sequence that
supports smooth material flow through the process, with minimal

transport or delay 
 Derived from the word Cell 
  A Manufacturing Cell consists of people and machines or
workstations required for performing the process steps
 For example
example - if a process for a product requires cutting, followed
by drilling and finishing, the cell would include the equipment for
performing those steps, arranged in that order 
 Helps companies achieve two important goals of lean:

• One-piece flow
• High-variety production
 

One Piece Flow


One-piece flow is the state that exists when products move
through a manufacturing process one unit at a time, at a rate
determined by the needs of the customer 
 The opposite of one-piece flow is large-lot production
• Goods produced in large lots build delays into the process
• No items can move on to the next process until all items in the lot
have been processed
• The larger the lot, the longer the items sit and wait between steps

One-piece flow is an ideal state
 In daily operation, it is not always possible or desirable to
process items just one at a time
The importa
important nt thin
hingg is to promot
promotee continuous fl
flow
ow of
 produ
 pr oducc ts , with
wi th the lea
leass t amoun
mountt of delay
delay and waiti
waiting
ng

One-Piece Flow Vs. Large-Lot Production
LARGE-LOT PRODUCTION CAN
LOWER A COMPANY’S
PROFITABILITY
Makes leadtime between
customer’s order and delivery of
product longer 
Requires labor, energy, and space
to store and transport products
Increases chances of product
damage or deterioration
ONE-PIECE FLOW SOLVES
THESE PROBLEMS
 Allows to deliver a flow of products
to customers with less delay
Reduces resources required for
storage and transport
Lowers risk of damage,
deterioration, or obsolescence
Exposes other problems so they
can be addressed
 

High-Variety Production

 In the early days, a company could produce one type of product

• Customers would buy it even if it wasn’t exactly what they liked
 Today customers expect variety and customization
• Specific quantities delivered at a specific time
 If your company is not flexible enough to serve their needs
customers will go to your competitor 
 Cellular manufacturing offers flexibility to give customers the
variety they want
• By grouping similar products into families that can be processed on
same equipment in the same sequence
• Encourages companies to shorten changeover time between
products
• Eliminates a major reason for large-lot production
 

Understanding Processes and Operations

 Converting a factory to cellular manufacturing means
eliminating waste from processes as well as from operations
 How do Processes and Operations differ and intersect?
PROCESSES OPERATIONS
  A process
process is a continuous flow through  In contrast to process, which focuses on
which raw materials are converted into flow, an operation focuses on action.
flow,
finished products in a series of operations.   An operation is any action performed by

 The focus is the path of the materials as workers or machines on the materials.
they are transformed into something to sell.  Operational improvements focus on how
 Manufacturing processes have four basic specific actions are carried out, and include
i nclude
types of steps or phases: studying the motions required for a specific
•Transformation
Transformation –
 – assembly, machining action.
•Inspection
Inspection –
 – comparison to standard
•Transport
Transport –
 – change of location
•Storage
Storage –
 – waiting period
Only Transformation adds value!
 

Understanding Processes and Operations

 To improve production for lean manufacturing, it is not enough

to improve operations
 Companies must also improve their processes
 Improving a process involves streamlining the flow of materials
to minimize obstacles and wastes such as:
1. Time spent in non-value-adding steps
 Such as waiting and transport
2. Downtime caused by changeover and adjustments

Distance materials or WIP must travel between transformation

3. steps

4. The need for inspection or rework

The cellul
cellula
ar ma
manufa
nufacturi
cturing
ng approa
pproachch work
wor k s on improving
improvi ng the
 proc
 pr oces
es s as well as s pec
pecii fi
ficc oper
op era
atio
tions
ns
 

Benefits of Cellular Manufacturing

 Promoting one-piece flow through cellular manufacturin

manufacturing
g can
help make your company more competitive
 Cut costly transport and delay from the manufacturing process
 Shortens the production leadtime
• Serves customer needs
• Gives an earlier return on the investment in the product
 Saves space in the factory
• Can be used for other value-adding purposes
 Promotes continuous improvement
• By forcing solutions to problems that block low-inventory production
 

How Cellular Manufacturing Helps You?

 Cellular manufacturing also helps you as a company employee

 By straightening the company’s competitiveness, it helps
support job security
 Makes daily production work go smoother by:

•• Removing clutter of and

Reducing transport excess WIP inventory
unnecessary handling
• Reducing walking required to complete processes
•  Addressing causes of defects and machine problems that cause
delays
 You may have to learn a process sequence you have not done
before.
• Raise your skill and flexibility,
flexibility, and may change how you think
about your role in the company
 Learning about and participating in a JIT transformat
transformation
ion
ultimately will make you more employable!
employable!
 

Summary

 Cellular Manufacturing
• Lean manufacturing approach that helps build a variety of products
with minimum waste
 Equipment and workstations arranged in a sequence with a
smooth flow of materials and components through the process
• Minimal transport or delays
 One-piece flow
• Products move through a manufacturing process one unit at a
time, at a rate determined by the customer’s needs
 Cellular Manufacturing gives the flexibility to give customers the
variety they want
 Converting a factory to cellular manufacturing means
eliminating waste from processes and from operations
 

Engineering
Management
MSE507
Lean Manufacturing

Cellular Manufacturing
One Piece Flow for Workteams

Chapter 2
Working in a Manufacturing Cell
 

Chapter 2 Overview

 Operating in a U-Shaped Cell

 Becoming Multi-skilled, Multi-machine Operators

• Cross-Traini
Cross-Training
ng for Maximum Flexibility
• Moving with the Work

 Using Small, Flexible Machines

 Using Autonomation (Jidoka) to Eliminate Machine Watching

Watching

 Summary
 

Operating in a U-Shaped Cell

 Changing from an operation-based layout tot o manufacturing

cells will change how people do their work in the factory
 In a manufacturing cell, the equipment and workstations are
arranged close together in sequence of processing steps
• Reduce unnecessary walking and transport to promote flow
 The equipment in a cell is usually laid out in a curved shape
• The operator’s path is like a U or C
 These shapes bring the end point of the process close to the
beginning point
• Minimizes distance the operator has to travel to begin the next
cycle
 

Becoming Multiskilled/Multimachine Operators

 Creating a manufacturing cell often changes the relationship
between people and and machines in thet he workplace
 Operators may need to learn how to run different types of
equipment to support the process
 In cells where automatic machines are used, most of the operator’s
operator ’s
time is spent watching the equipment run
• Such waste is avoided by teaching people to operate several different
machines in the process
• Operators can be setting up a workpiece for step 2 while step 1
machine is processing another workpiece
  A cell may be run by one person or by severa
severall people working
together 
• Depending on the size of the cell, cycle times, or production volume
 Flexibility to change how people work together in a cell comes from
cross-training
 

Cross-Training for Maximum Flexibility

Cross-Training

 Cross-training enables employees to perform different functions

within a process
• Lets teams take full responsibility for their processes.
 Operator trained on several machines is qualified to respond to
changes in production needs by performing different tasks as
needed
• This versatility makes employees more valuable to their teams and
to their companies

Cross-training
workplaces is a source of employee pride in many
 Visual display charts are often used to recognize people’s skill
attainment in a public way
• Cross-training metrics
 

Moving with The Work

 Running several machines in sequence

•  An operator needs to work standing up rather than
than sitting down
 To assist one-piece flow manufacturing
• People stand and walk so that work moves smoothly through the
process
 Working while standing
• Enables people to respond more quickly if machine problems
occur 
 

Using Small, Flexible Machines

  A cellular manufacturin
manufacturingg process may use equipment different
from that used in large-lot production
• Works best with machines that are smaller and often slower than
large-lot equipment
 Smaller machines save space
• Placing them close together reduces walking distance
• Leaves no space for excess WIP to accumulate
 Slower machines are appropriate
• They can produce one piece at a time at a speed determined by
customer requirements
 Machines for cellular manufacturing
• Flexible and be easy to set up quickly
• Used to make a greater variety of products during a single shift
 Smaller machines are less expensive
• Easier to operate and maintain
 

Autonomation (Jidoka) to
Using Autonomation
Eliminate Machine Watching

 A utono
utonoma
matio
tionn - an approach
approach to auto
automatio
mation
n that gi
gives
ves
equipment “intelligence” so people don’t have to monitor
automatic operation
 “  Autonomated”
Autonomated” machines - semi-
semi-autom
automatic
atic machi
machines
nes that
autonomously (independently) support one-piece flow
processing:
• Stop and signal when a cycle is complete or when problems occur 
• Often loaded by operators

• Often set up to unload automatically after processing

• Do not have to be tended
 Many companies invest in automation
• People don’t have to perform difficult,
difficult, dangerous, or repetitive work
 

Summary

 Equipment and workstations arranged close together in

sequence of processing steps (U or C)
 Relationship between people and machines changes
• Operators may need to learn how to run different types of
equipment to support the process
 Machine-watching is avoided
• Teaching people to operate several different machines
 Flexibility to change how people work together in a cell comes
from cross-training
 Cellular manufacturing works best with smaller and often slower
machines
  Autonomation (jidoka) is an approach to automation
automation that gives
equipment “intelligence” so people don’t have to monitor
automatic operation
 

Homework Assignment
1. What did you learn from chapter 1 that stands out as
particularly useful or interesting?
i nteresting?
2. What did you learn from chapter 2 that stands out as
particularly useful or interesting?
i nteresting?

 Read Cellular Manufacturin

Manufacturing
g
• Chapters 3 & 4 (pages 22-61)
 

Questions? Comments?