Production improvement by line balancing and 5S

Abstract

For continuous improvement in an organization, Japanese philosophy Kaizen is very popular. flawless. Concepts of kaizen methodology and proper implementation of tools can lead to a successful kaizen program in a company. Various other companies also adapt to various disciplines and methods as per need and ease of application. Few are JIT ( Just In Time), Manufacturing organizations typically have raw materials, components, sub-assemblies, tools and equipment’s; semi-finished goods etc., the inventory of an item should not be neither too high nor too less. It should be optimal. The recent development in inventory management is JIT (Just-in-Time). JIT implies handling of inventory in a much disciplined way. It requires changes in culture. It also encompasses the Japanese managerial characteristics i.e., Lifetime employment, implicit control.The design of assembly lines is an important issue in manufacturing engineering management and control. The idle time is the most interesting performance index for assembly line design. The classical simple line-balancing problem (SALBP) consists of assigning tasks, necessary for processing a product, to workstations such that the idle time (number of stations, cycle time, cost) is minimized while precedence constraints between tasks are satisfied. From the worst-case analysis point of view, the SALBP problems are NP-hard in strong sense. In this company initial the concept of Line Balancing was tried to implemented but due to unnecessary hardships of shifting of stations a new concept was learnt and applied in the company. New concept which was implemented was 'The Concept of 5S’. 5S is a basic foundation of Lean Manufacturing systems. It is a tool for cleaning, sorting, organizing and providing the necessary groundwork for workpiece improvement. This paper dealt with the implementation of 5S methodology in the small scale industry. By following the 5S methodology, it shows significant improvements to safety, productivity, efficiency and housekeeping. The improvements before and after 5S implementation is shown by pictures in the paper. It also intends to build a stronger work ethic within the management and workers who would be expected to continue the good practices.