EN412300 Industrial Work Study and Productivity Improvement

Introduction to Work Study

Asst. Prof. Sirawadee Arunyanart

Department of Industrial Engineering
Khon Kaen University
 Outline

▪ Introduction
▪ Definition Scope and Objective of Work Study
▪ History of Work Study
Introduction to Work Study
 Introduction to Work Study
▪ With increasing complexities in the technological world, the requirement
to simplify the work system has been increasing day by day.
▪ Work study is an area of knowledge that addresses the problem of work
simplification with the basic objectives of
1. Productivity enhancement, and
2. Human comfort & safety
 What is work study?
One of the most powerful tools for increasing productivity is work study.

It is the systematic examination of activities in order to improve the

effective use of resources and set standards of performance for the
activities being carried out.
Supply Chain System
 Production System
Production The action of making or manufacturing from components or raw
materials to things to be sold, especially in large quantities.

SIPOC model..

MAN
MACHIEN
OPERATION PRODUCT
MATERIAL
METHOD TRANSPORTATION SERVICE
INFORMETION STORAGE
MONEY INSPECTION
 Characteristics of Goods

 Tangible product
 Consistent product definition
 Production usually separate
from consumption
 Can be inventoried

8
Characteristics of Service
 Intangible product
 Produced and consumed at same
time
 High customer interaction
 Inconsistent product definition
 Often knowledge-based

9
 Value-added production system
Input Process Output
paddy milling machine/electricity/ rice
labor
24 baht/ 5 baht/ 30 baht/
kg kg kg

Other products
Cost = Input + Process = 24 + 5 = 29 baht/kg 3 baht/
kg
Revenue = Output + other product = 30 + 3 = 33 baht/kg
Value Added (มูลค่าเพิ่ม) = 33 - 29 = 4 baht/kg e.g. rice hulls
Producing rice 50,000 ton/year => value added = 200 million baht/year
 Increase ROI - ROA
Increasing capital turnover rate Increasing profit margins

Reduction in machinery investment Inventory reduction Increasing sales

Maintenance of machinery Cost reduction Quality Assurance

Performance Modification of
improvement product design QC
TPM
Adjusting to Elimination of Standard
small lot sizing MURI- MURA -MUDA Operation
VE
Standardization

Organization Target
IE
 Relationship of IE, VE, and QC in production
IE Industrial Engineering
The branch of engineering that concerns the
development, improvement, implementation,
and evaluation of integrated systems of
people, knowledge, equipment, energy,
material, and process. Industrial engineering
draws upon the principles and methods of
engineering analysis and synthesis. It
eliminates the waste of time, money,
materials, energy, and other resources.
VE Value Engineering
The review of new or existing products during the
design phase to reduce costs and increase
functionality in order to increase the value of the
product.
QC Quality Control
The act of ensuring that a company's goods and
services are built and delivered according to
specifications, on time, and at a reasonable cost.
 Relationship of IE, VE, and QC in production (cont’d)
Resource & production
Design preparation Manufacturing

- product - material/method - product

- process - machine/equipment
- land/building
- energy
Analytical Approach
Design Approach

VE IE
QC
 Cycle of increasing industrial productivity

Find waste in the

production system

Eliminate waste
Set as standard using IE technique

Improve
continuously
 Waste in the production process
MURI MUDA MURA
(overburden) (wastefulness) (unevenness)

Using less input than Using more input than Using less or more input
the desired target the desired target than the desired target

Target Input Target Input Target Input Target

Target > Input Target < Input Target <> Input

 MUDA (7 Wastes)

Overproduction

Unnecessary Transportation

Excess Inventory

Unnecessary Motion

Excess Processing Waiting

Defect/Rework
Techniques for waste reduction
Man Machine
* Kaizen
* QCC * Quick Setup
* TQM
5S * TPM
* Poka-Yoke
* Visual Control
* JIDOKA
* Motion and Time

* Leveled Production
* Value Engineer
* Six Sigma
* Kanban * Kaizen
* General Problem
* MRP solving

Materials Method
Definition, Scope and
Objective of Work Study
 Definition of Work Study

Knowledge dealing with the systematic determination of a preferable work

method and the time required for the use of humans and equipment to
perform such work, as well as the development of materials and tools to
make the established method and time practical.
“Work study” has many other names
For example:
Methods engineering,
Work science,
Work design,
Job design,
Work methods design & work measurement
Motion & time study
Original names were:
Motion Study, Time Study
& then, Motion & Time Study
 Work Study
Method Study Work Measurement
(การศึกษาวิธีการ) (การวัดผลงาน)
➢ analyze workflow ➢ determine standard time required to
➢ improve and develop preferred methods complete a specific task (work
of doing work (work method design) measurement)
➢ set standards for correct operation ➢ set as standards in production
(written standard practice) ➢ establish incentive schemes

Training operator

Productivity Improvement (การเพิ่มผลิตภาพ )

“Work study is a generic term for those techniques, particularly method study
and work measurement, which are used in all its context and which lead
systematically to the investigation of all the factors, which effect the efficiency
and economy of the situation being reviewed in order to effect improvement.”

Work study is a technique which deals with the following problems:

(a) How should a job be done, and
(b) How much time a job should take for completion.
Answer for (a) is found by Motion Study or Method Study or Work Simplification.
Answer for (b) is found by the Time Study or Work Measurement.
 Objective of Work Study
Work Study is the systematic study of work systems for the purposes of:
1. Developing the preferred system and method (with the lowest cost)
2. Standardizing the system and method of doing work
3. Determining the standard time for doing a specific task or operation
4. Training the operator the preferred method
 1. Developing preferred method
▪ A design of working method for fully utilization of all available resources
(labor, machinery, raw materials, etc.). This includes the study of production
systems, the use of machinery, and procedure for production and
transportation.
▪ Using ‘General Problem Solving Process’

Before improvement After improvement

 2. Standardizing the operation
After developing the right approach of working methods, the work will be
broken down into a sub-work or task that explains the following details:
▪ Movement of hands
▪ Size and shape of the material
▪ Tools used for assembly
▪ Working conditions
 3. Determining standard time
▪ Standard time is the time required by a qualified and properly trained
operator working at a normal pace to perform a specified task using a
prescribed method
▪ Standard time will be used in production planning and cost estimation
▪ Standard time can be determined using the following techniques:
➢ Direct time study (using stopwatch)
➢ Work Sampling
➢ Standard data system
➢ Predetermined time system (PTS)
 4. Training the operator
▪ It is the implementation of improved work methods and training of
workers to perform standard work until the specified time is achieved.
▪ Using on-the-job training (OTJ)
Steps involved in work study
1. Select
a work or process to be studied
2. Record
all the detailed data by using various recording techniques
3. Examine
recorded facts critically by asking questions (5W1H)
4. Develop
The most economical method
5. Measure
the amount of work involved and set standard time for completing it
6. Define
a new method and standard time
7. Install
the new method as a standard practice
8. Maintain
the new method as agreed standards
Scope of Work Study - Tools and Techniques

Method Study
 Work
Measurement
 Benefit of Work Study
Method Study
▪ To improve the production process and working method
▪ To increase the ease of work and reduce fatigue of the worker
▪ To increase the efficiency of the use of production resources
▪ To improve the workplace and work environment
▪ To set standards for working methods used for personnel development
 Benefit of Work Study (cont’d)
Work Measurement
▪ To set the standard time of a specific task
▪ To measure the work performance
▪ To balance the production line
▪ To determine the proper number of workers to operate the machine
▪ To control production costs
▪ To be used as a basis for determining the salary and incentive for the
worker
History of Work Study
 History of Work Study
Work Study

Frederick W. Taylor Frank B. Gilbreth

(Time Study) (Motion Study)
 Frederick W. Taylor (1856-1915)
▪ Frederick Winslow Taylor is a founder of method and time study and is called the
“Father of Time Study”.
▪ He is also known as the father of scientific management and industrial engineering.
▪ Taylor was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
▪ He received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the Stevens Institute.
▪ He went to work for Midvale Steel Company and began his time study work in 1881.
▪ He established that each job should have a standard time, determined by time studies.
▪ In the timing process, Taylor advocated dividing the work into small divisions of effort
known as “elements.”
▪ Time was obtained for each of these elements individually, and their collective values
were used to determine the allowed time for the task.
▪ He is the first person to use a stopwatch to study work content (1881).
▪ Taylor states that "...in these experiments we were not trying to find the maximum
work that a man could do on a short time but to learn what really constitutes a full
day's work for a first class man, the best day's work that a man could properly do...”

Taylorism
▪ Which is the best way to do this job?
▪ What should constitute a day's work?
▪ Selection of the best worker, training, and teaching him
▪ The division of the work equally
▪ Time study
– Divide each task into work elements
– Time each element separately
– Useful than timing the whole task
 Frank (1869-1924) and Lillian (1878-1972) Gilbreth
▪ Gilbreth is considered the founder of the “modern motion study technique.”
▪ They are known as the parents of motion study.
▪ Study of the body motions, eliminating unnecessary motions, simplifying necessary motions,
and then establishing the most favorable motion sequence for maximum efficiency.
▪ Frank Bunker Gilbreth started his working life as a bricklayer’s apprentice.
▪ He searched for the best method to lay bricks.
▪ He divided work into basic motion elements called “THERBLIGS.”
▪ There is “one best method” to perform a given task.
▪ Gilbreth improved bricklaying method: from 120 to 350 per man per hour.
▪ Lillian Moller Gilbreth was a trained psychologist and a people-oriented person.
▪ They developed techniques for methods study: Process chart, Micromotion study, Cycle graph,
Chronocycle graphs, Movie cameras, etc.
 Exercise
1. Explain the definition and objective of work study thoroughly.
2. What is the combination of work study? How is each part different?
3. How many steps are there in the work study process? Explain the details.
4. What are the principles obtained from the study of Frank B. Gilbreth?
5. Why can it be said that work study is a tool to increase productivity?