Done by

Eman Almahdawi – 2103279

 

 

 

 

Increasing The Production Level Of A Firms By Eliminating Wastage Of Time

 Keywords:

         productivity, pointless time, constant interruption, productive worker, preoccupation

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction

The manufacturing industry has continued to thrive significantly over time, especially because of the availability of resources, the process is complex and usually begins with the purchase and distribution of resources that are used for the production of goods. In this case, the manufacturing process has contributed greatly to the growth of the economy since it contributes to the production of new goods. Additionally, it also creates job opportunities for the younger generation since they get the chance to work and offer their services in the industries. Essentially, the growth of this sector has brought significant benefits to the economy due to the generation of countless opportunities.

This analysis shows the need for continuity of the production and manufacturing process. It is predominantly controlled by the efficiency of the transport system which sets the base for the process of production. This is mainly because the continuity of the supply chain usually begins with the transport system efficiency which allows the factors of production to move sufficiently from one location to the next. Ideally, the production process is also defined by intensive research which controls how well the participants are able to engage in the activity. This article will be insightful on the role of research in production in terms of supply chain management.

  Research problem:

The main focus is how the manufacturing industries have continued to thrive through the production system. Essentially, the main way for them to continue garnering huge amounts of profit is to increase the levels of productivity. This way, there will be a lot of goods being brought into the market for circulation. The research narrowed down to JIT strategy in a bid to understand how the owners have continued to maintain the relevance of the company in the market. In lean production processes, they usually benefit from increased storage spaces. However, the major challenge is that the production process should not be stopped at any point. This is because it ultimately leads to the production of stale goods.

In these cases, it is imperative to ensure a system of continuity in the production of the goods, especially because the main point of focus is ensuring that there is an increased flow of profit-making. Primarily, the entire process occurs through a chain, where all the suppliers in the process need to ensure that they have completed their part of the role. The main issue is the break of the supply chain, which is one of the main reasons for the stale production process (Carlos, 2021). In this case, the main establishment from the research problem is that the producers should have a sound communication system, which would help identify where the problem could b and effectively deal with it. At the same time, the research also sought to clarify how the companies use the strategy in the event of demand fluctuation. The system mainly works well depending on the customer demand, and in this case, the information should be collected and analyzed thoroughly. Also, this involved coming up with a risk management strategy for the process.

         Research Objective:

Below are some of the reasons why the research was extremely important;

• Establishing the concept used by the manufacturing companies to remain relevant and productive.
• Establish how the JIT strategy works, together with the challenges associated with it
• Establish the methods used by companies to increase the levels of productivity and profitability.

       Research Importance:

The research has been significant, especially on the parts where it gives information on the manufacturing companies’ productivity. This would push the rest of the industries in the field to embrace the same techniques, which would ultimately lead to the creation of employment opportunities. Additionally, it has also been quite eye-opening about the supply chain structure and how it works for the JIT strategy, making it clear that any form of interruption would affect product quality. In this case, all the people involved in the supply chain should be committed to their role to prevent stale productivity as this would culminate in losses.

It also noted a gap in the study, whereby all the companies using the JIT strategy are required to have information on the demand gap. This is because the customers played a great role in determining the amount of production that would take place. Essentially, their demand for the goods would be an indicator of how much production should take place to reduce loss-making otherwise. Lastly, it also showed that some companies only focused on what they did and neglected the rest of the chain in the supply chain system, which would lead to the loss.

         Literature Review:

Manufacturing industries have thrived in the production sector by maximizing their productivity by eliminating time wastage. Increased productivity leads to more profits that give the firm a high market power than its competitors. This study will focus on lean manufacturing, also referred to as Justin time production strategy.Just in time, production operates on an as-needed basis in that companies do not keep extra stock. The JIT strategy is a concept used by firms to increase productivity and minimize wastage of time, resources, and space by ordering and producing only what is needed by the customers (Inman, 2021). It also involves identifying irrelevant activities in the production process from design, customer relation to the supply chain. And eliminating them to improve productivity and reduce wastage of time and resources. Lean manufacturing focuses on eliminating the following Time wastage: Long response time or
downtime, late meetings, Late payments, Times wasted in meeting clients, and Waiting for approvals (“Principles and Philosophy of Lean Management”, 2021).There is no clear clarification of the origin of lean manufacturing. Studies have shown that it originated from Japan in the Toyota company while H. Ford used it in 1920 (“Principles and Philosophy of Lean Management”, 2021).  Ford claims that they had to cut the production process to make sales because the longer the products stayed in the warehouse, the more cost incurred, and the customer felt threatened. Ford’s system did not allow for changes in the final output; Ford made no improvements on the product and the processes. And therefore, the Japanese initiated the strategy the explored all avenues to ensure increased productivity and came up with the Toyota production system (“Principles and Philosophy of Lean Management”, 2021).

Apart from increased productivity, JIT offers the benefits of reducing storage space for inventory by bringing production units close to one another hence reducing the physical distance needed in moving stocks from one place to another (Inman, 2021). Another benefit is the yield from frequent feedback in downstream production; hence, it is easy to spot products that have not met the firm’s quality standards and redo them to the required standard.

JIT does not require constant interruption because it leads to stall production. An interrupted supply chain is a potential risk to the firm using the JIT strategy in production. If one supplier fails to deliver the raw material, the production process stops leading to time wastage, and therefore the chain of ordering and delivering of products are disrupted (Carlson, 2021).  It’s hard to track demand after such disruptions.

Researchers insist on implementing the lean system, but there is scarce research on risk management in its processes. Therefore, many firms fear its implementation although they are aware of its benefits (Pearce & Pons, 2013). Firms can manage the risks by prioritizing some lean tools used to manage the risks that may occur during production. It is pointless time to have processes without intervention methods in case of breakages or fire.

However, there is a study gap to demonstrate effective plans for companies using the JIT strategy in demand fluctuation. JIT strategy depends on customers’ demands, yet demand is not a constant factor in the market. Another study gap has been noticed in the study on JIT in relation to the firms’ supply chain function. Most firms concentrate on other functions neglecting the supply chain unit (Manzouri, Ab-Rahman, Zain & Jamsari, 2014). More studies should be done on the supply chain unit because it is also an important unit in the overall product production.

                                                             Methodology:

The research aims at elaborating on how companies have opted to increase their productivity by reducing the time wastage by workers and other stakeholders. The study has utilized a survey as a method of research. In its extensive use, the survey has enabled the collection of qualitative data from the case sample.  This method was used to establish the underlying techniques that companies have opted to conceptualize ideas like the use of JIT strategy to enable its productivity to continue and increase profits. It has also been used to explain how limiting time wastage while for firms helped businesses to thrive well.

Also, secondary data methodology has been widely used all through the work. The secondary data has been collected from existing articles, research papers, and dissertations focused on addressing the same issue in the past (Corbin & Strauss, 2014).  Furthermore, use of primary data has also been utilized to ensure reliable data has been obtained.  The main primary data we have used is questionnaires that have used the standard rules for scientific research. The questions contained in the questionnaires are the same to ensure the respondents answer similar questions (Neelankavil, 2015). Also, it has used the five-point Likert scale, which consists of some questions having particular answers and others with objective answers required. All the methodologies used have also observed the research ethics, such as confidentiality and informed consent.

 

 

Conclusion

In closing, the above reserch has shown the necessity of research in manufacturing. Additionally, it has also paved way for better understanding on the fundamentals of manufacturing in the productivity of the company. It is influential in understanding the JIT strategy and its role in the manufacturing process. Ideally, this is mainly in terms of the demand gap which determines the rate of production.

 

Previous studies

• (Malihe study,2014) Increasing Production and Eliminating Waste through Lean

Tools and Techniques for Halal Food Companies

This study aimed to identify the effective lean tools required for eliminating wastes in the supply chain. Because of the large number of consumers and the global market of Halal products, this study focuses on Halal food supply chains. Out of the questionnaires distributed to 300 Halal food firms in Malaysia, only 61 usable replies were obtained. The results showed that demand collaboration, continuous improvement, and inventory management practices are the most important tools in Lean Supply Chain (LSC) implementation.

The results indicated:

• Only a small percentage of Halal food companies are implementing LSC.
• Malaysia is an important Halal food producer in the word, but has low level of LSC implementation among its Halal food producers.
• LSC is a new concept that needs more effort to be understood and implemented.

The paper suggests some steps to help them in implementing these practices more successfully. The first step is to understand the ultimate goal of LSC via benchmarking from leading LSC companies and participating in training courses. In this stage understanding LSC concepts, implementation, requirements, barriers and benefits by top managers indicate the critical role, since they will supervise all changes in future. In the next step these companies need to change their point of view from seeking individual benefits to the whole supply chain interests.

• (Saumyaranjan study,2018) Lean implementation in small- and medium-sized enterprises: An empirical study of Indian manufacturing firms

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which lean management practices are adopted by small- and medium-sized manufacturing organizations in India and their impact on firm’s operational performance (OP). Also, the paper makes an attempt to identify the barriers and challenges faced by Indian SMEs that are striving to succeed with improvement efforts based on lean manufacturing.

The results indicate that

• all the three lean constructs are significantly related to OP
• In the context of Indian manufacturing SMEs, “PI” and “WM” practices have shown a higher level of significance on OP, compared to “FM” practices.
• The findings suggest overall positive effects as a result of applying lean tools and philosophy in Indian SMEs.

 

The study suggests that implementing lean in small and medium manufacturing firms is by no means an easy task, as it is heavily burdened by several internal and external organizational barriers. In addition to the identification of the major barriers to implementation of lean manufacturing in Indian SMEs, the paper also investigated the effect of lean manufacturing implementation on Indian SMEs performance.

 

3-(Leksic study, 2020) the impact of using different lean manufacturing tools on waste reduction

The concept of a study was to define best lean toolbox for reduction of each category of waste and to determine right sequential order of lean tools implementation. Stepwise multiple regression model revealed that Total Productive Maintenance, Poka‐Yoke, Kaizen, 5S, Kanban, Six Big Losses, Heijunka, Takt Time, Andon, OEE, SMED, and KPIs are best waste management techniques. Nevertheless, it has been demonstrated that 5S, Kaizen, Kanban, Poka‐Yoke and TPM are highly recommended for start of every lean manufacturing initiative.

The results indicate that

• Each lean implementation should be launched and supported by 5S, Kaizen, Kanban, Poka‐Yoke and TPM since these waste management techniques reduce several types of waste.
• In doing so, 5S and Kaizen should be implemented first, Kanban and Poka‐Yoke immediately after, while TPM as most powerful waste management technique should be implemented last and with great care.

The paper documented the most frequent and most significant basic lean tools for waste elimination among lean practitioners. The documented lean implementation framework enabled us to examine the occurrence of lean tools in all lean implementation stages, where the key lean tools were pinpointed. The results can help organizations see the lean experts’ way of thinking. Every organization should investigate the best practices in their industry for lean implementation.

The lean practices identified in this survey are not unique lean implementation paths. Each company should redesign and adapt the lean framework for its needs.

 

4-(Loïc study, 2022) how an incineration tax changes waste management practices among firms

Sustainable management of industrial plastic waste is crucial in the transition to a circular economy. Today, most industrial plastic waste is incinerated, whereas it could be recycled. As a consequence, governments increasingly make use of incineration taxes to improve current waste management practices. This paper presents an econometric panel analysis that studies the effects of an incineration tax on industrial plastic waste in Flanders (Belgium).

The results indicate that

• Provides policymakers with insights into the effectiveness of an incineration tax to change current waste management practices.
• Empirical estimates imply that heterogeneous firms generate industrial plastic waste in different ways
• That heterogeneous firms reduce their waste generation in different ways after the incineration tax rate increases.

The estimates also show that the unique decrease of the incineration tax in 2007, did not change waste management practices. These estimates show that firms do not disinvest or indicate that loss aversion theory, i.e. a preference for avoiding losses over acquiring equivalent gains, might apply to firms that are faced with environmental taxation in a waste management context.

 

5-(Zimbabwe study, 1998) Quality, waste and cost considerations in architectural building design management

The reduction of design fees in the UK since the start of the 1990 recession has emphasized the need to reduce waste and improve efficiency of the design process. Quality management and its application to the building design process is still a relatively new technique as are the concepts of waste, quality and efficiency. Waste, quality and efficiency are concepts which are difficult to appreciate and quantify in building design.

The results indicate that

Factors contributing to waste in building design are examined and appear to be mainly    management problems. The paper concludes with management recommendations to reduce wastage and improve quality and profitability in architectural design.

The study suggested that significant costs savings can be achieved if the desired customer experience is understood clearly at the start and integrated into the brief.  Many find this correlation surprising as they assume delivering a great customer experience only adds cost.  However, frequently the opposite is true.

 

 

6-(Christer, 1996) Assessing changes towards lean production

 The study developed a model which operationalizes the different principles in lean production, with a focus on those that concern the work organization in the manufacturing part of a company. The model has been developed using available theory and has also been tried out in a clinical field study. The model has implications both for research and practice. For research, it can be used as a model for operationalizing lean production to be able to study change processes properly. In practice, the model can be used as a tool to assess the development taking place in an effort to become lean.

The results indicate that

• Lean should be seen as a direction, rather than as a state to be reached after a certain time
• The focus lies on the changes in the determinants, not on their actual values.

The study suggested that the important point to note, however, is that lean should be seen as a direction, rather than as a state to be reached after a certain time. Therefore, the focus lies on the changes in the determinants, not on their actual values. It should also be noted that all the determinants might not point in the right direction all the time. There could be instances where they can send mixed signals. However, keeping this in mind, the model is a helpful tool for companies to check that they are not deceiving themselves.

7-(Hicks, 2007) Lean information management: Understanding and eliminating waste.

 

 

This paper deals with the development of a new approach for supporting the improvement of information management and the overall information systems infrastructure. In particular, the paper discusses the application of lean thinking to information management; where information management can be considered to involve adding value to information by virtue of how it is organized, visualized and represented; and enabling information (value) to flow to the end-user (customer) through the processes of exchange, sharing and collaboration. The potential benefits of lean thinking are discussed and the fundamental barriers for its application to information management are highlighted.

The results indicate:

That the core contribution of this paper is the development of an understanding of these critical elements and the creation of a conceptual framework for a set of lean principles within the context of information management.

 

8-( Magdalena study, 2015) Barriers to Eliminating Waste in Production System

The paper is based on a case study conducted in a large-sized production service company, manufacturing plastic products. The presented research concerns the efficiency of project implementation encompassing lean manufacturing concept. For this aim the scope of the implementation of such tools as 5S, SMED, TPM, Hoshin Kanri, Kaizen and Kanban, and their meaning in the elimination of different types of waste were analyzed.

The results indicate:

 

• The unsatisfactory functioning of lean manufacturing tools was not only related to the ways of the implementation of particular tools
• Other circumstances such as lack of the fundamentals of the implementation of lean philosophy or lack of culture change and continuous improvement

 

The study implements Lean Manufacturing, shows the need of profound system research concerning searching determinants of efficient implementation and also consequences during long-term project realization.

 

9-(Berlec, 2009) eliminating waste in companies

Designers of new products, production process planners, and toolmakers have an important role in the company. Also important is a dialog between them, which ensures execution of harmonized processes of new product development, i.e.: processes without waste. Elimination of waste in the company is the first step towards automated production. On the basis of these simple procedures, the productivity of the employees (and the company) will rise. At the same time, the number of defects will reduce. If everything is done properly, the morale of employees will rise, because they will be able to significantly contribute to easier and tidier work.

The results indicate:

• If everything is done properly, the morale of employees will rise, because they will be able to significantly contribute to easier and tidier work.
• Designers of new products, production process planners, and toolmakers have an important role in the company.
• Elimination of waste in the company is the first step towards automated production.

The study suggested that Eliminating waste is the first step towards automation and introduction of Kaizen system (continuous improvement), Companies with a good starting position do not have any advantage on the global market; companies that can respond quickly to market demands and can optimize highly flexible processes have gained an advantage over them.

10-(Gabriele study, 2020) Understanding and eliminating waste in Engineer-To-Order (ETO) projects: a multiple case study

This article explores how waste reduction approaches as found in lean thinking can be applied to engineering design in Engineer-To-Order (ETO) projects based on a multiple case study of ten companies over a 2-year period. ETO projects deliver capital goods that are customized to individual customer requirements. Customization and ultimately value generation are achieved through an iterative engineering design process. Although inevitable, iterative engineering design allows much leeway for waste generation, expressed in higher costs and longer lead times. Accordingly, this paper investigates the iterative nature of engineering design in current practice and discusses how these iterations create wastes. It applies the concept of lean engineering design and elaborates on how this concept can eliminate wastes.

The results indicate:

• the number of iterations varies according to the degree of integration among the participating disciplines
• An implication of such iteration structures concerns the time frame (i.e. the length of iterations)
• For most of the case companies, their iterative processes could last from a few hours to several months, depending on the number of participants, disciplines and changes.

The study provide evidence that a lean approach to engineering design has a positive impact on the waste reduction. The enabler planning participation is ranked as having the highest probability to reduce waste.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Pearce, A., & Pons, D. (2013). Implementing Lean Practices: Managing the Transformation Risks. Journal Of Industrial Engineering, 2013, 1-19. doi: 10.1155/2013/790291

Manzouri, M., Ab-Rahman, M., Zain, C., & Jamsari, E. (2014). Increasing Production and Eliminating Waste through Lean Tools and Techniques for Halal Food Companies. Sustainability, 6(12), 9179-9204. doi: 10.3390/su6129179

Carlson, R. (2021). Just-In-Time (JIT) Inventory Management for Your Business. Retrieved 12 March 2021, from https://www.thebalancesmb.com/just-in-time-jit-inventory-management-393301

Inman, A. (2021). Lean Manufacturing and Just-in-Time Production – organization, levels, system, advantages, model, type, company, competitiveness, system. Retrieved 12 March 2021, from https://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Int-Loc/Lean-Manufacturing-and-Just-in-Time-Production.html

Principles and Philosophy of Lean Management. (2021). Retrieved 12 March 2021, from https://www.universalclass.com/articles/business/principles-and-philosophy-of-lean-management.htm

Carlson, R. (2021). Just-In-Time (JIT) Inventory Management for Your Business.

Retrieved 12 March 2021, from https://www.thebalancesmb.com/just-in-time-jit-inventory-

management-393301

Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. (2014). Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. SAGE Publications, 2014.

Neelankavil. (2015). International Business Research. M.E. Sharpe, 2015.