Integration of lean manufacturing and ergonomics in a metallurgical industry

Striving to improve productivity, industries have used different management approaches, being lean manufacturing the most used over recent years. Lean manufacturing is based on value creation for the customer and elimination of waste that occurs during the production process, while improving working conditions. The incorporation of ergonomic aspects in the workstation design also contributes for the referred objectives, since it will reduce awkward postures or excessive effort during work, leading to better working conditions and increased productivity. The present study highlights, through a case study in four production areas of a metallurgical industry, the benefits of using an integrated operations management approach to improve productivity and ergonomic aspects. Several ergonomic methods, such as Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA), Strain Index (SI), and Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA), were chosen to evaluate the ergonomic situation and lean manufacturing tools such as Value Stream Mapping (VSM) and 7 wastes were also used to analyze the systems and increase the productivity by eliminating several wastes. The results of this study show that it is possible, and desirable, to consider both aspects, ergonomic conditions and productivity, during continuous improvement’ implementations. In fact, the improvements reached through the advances in ergonomic conditions can contribute very positively for productivity increasing.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Lean manufacturing e ergonomia na industria metalúrgica: uma abordagem integrada para a melhoria de desempenho

Due to an increasingly competive market, most companies can only survive through continuous improvement, by increasing their productivity and reducing costs. The Lean Production System (SPL) is more and more often used for this purpose.However, the workers' well-being is often neglected, leading to musculoskeletal problems and other occupational diseases. Several authors have identified a gap in the literature regarding the identification of the best practices in the integration of the prevention of musculoskeletal diseases in an SPL. The main objective of this thesis is to clarify the relationship between Ergonomics and LPS and provide the necessary tools for practitioners to implement an ergonomic LPS in their production areas. To achieve this objective, a systematic review was performed and case studies were conducted in four production areas in a metallurgical company using Lean concepts, ergonomic analysis and simulation. From the results found in the literature, which were validated by the four case studies, we can conclude that the integration of Ergonomics during an SPL implementation has the potential to result in gains in productivity and simultaneously improve working conditions. To potentiate these results, several components must be taken into account, namely: the integration of ergonomics in the design of the workstation, the tools for monitoring and evaluation, training and the automation of the manual tasks. Beyond the results obtained and the lessons learned from the case studies, two important tools were developed and validated which were a great support to the implementation of future studies in different areas or sectors: the methodology flowchart and ErgoSafeCI (a tool to evaluate and monitor the LPS implementation while taking into account the ergonomic and safety aspects of a production area). This work offers a valuable contribution for researchers and professionals because it demonstrates how the integration of ergonomics into an SPL increases productivity by providing the necessary tools which make it possible to replicate the procedure in other production areas or sectors.Atualmente, devido ao mercado cada vez mais competitivo, a maioria das empresas só sobrevive através da melhoria contínua, aumentando a produtividade e diminuindo os custos. O Sistema de Produção Lean (SPL) é cada vez mais usado com esse objetivo. No entanto, o bem estar dos trabalhadores é muitas vezes negligenciado, levando a problemas músculoesqueléticos e a outras doenças profissionais. Diversos autores identificam uma falha na literatura quanto à identificação das melhores práticas na integração da prevenção das doenças músculoesqueléticas num SPL. O objetivo principal desta tese é clarificar a relação entre a Ergonomia e um SPL e desenvolver as ferramentas necessárias para ajudar os profissionais na implementação de um SPL ergonómico nas suas áreas produtivas. Para atingir esse objetivo foi realizada uma revisão sistemática à literatura e foram desenvolvidos casos de estudo em quatro áreas produtivas numa empresa metalúrgica onde foram usados vários conceitos Lean, análises ergonómicas e a simulação. Através dos resultados encontrados na literatura e validados nos casos de estudo, concluímos que a integração da ergonomia durante a implementação de um SPL resulta em ganhos de produtividade e simultaneamente melhora as condições de trabalho. Para potenciar estes resultados, diversos fatores devem ser considerados, nomeadamente: a integração da ergonomia no desenho do posto trabalho, nas ferramentas de monitorização e avaliação, na formação e a automatização das tarefas manuais. Para além dos resultados obtidos através dos casos de estudo, e da identificação de algumas “best practices” através das lições aprendidas ao longo deste trabalho, foram ainda desenvolvidas e validadas duas ferramentas importantes no apoio à implementação de futuros estudos em diferentes áreas produtivas e setores: a ErgoSafeCI (ferramenta para avaliar e monitorizar a implementação de um SPL considerando os aspetos ergonómicos e de segurança numa área produtiva) e uma proposta de metodologia geral para abordar a questão da integração das práticas Lean com as práticas de ergonomia. Este trabalho apresenta um contributo, que se espera valioso, para investigadores e profissionais por demonstrar como a integração da ergonomia num SPL potencia a produtividade fornecendo as ferramentas necessárias para a replicação da metodologia proposta noutras áreas produtivas.Programa Doutoral em Engenharia e Gestão Industria

A simulação como ferramenta de apoio à decisão na reorganização de um layout fabril

Mestrado em Engenharia e Gestão IndustrialA análise e avaliação periódica dos layouts fabris tem-se tornado, cada vez mais, uma preocupação das empresas. Por este motivo, a Cifial decidiu analisar o layout atual da área de preparação de superfícies de uma das suas fábricas. O objetivo principal consistiu na identificação de desperdícios e de oportunidades de melhoria, tendo como foco a diminuição do lead time, redução de WIP e melhoria da eficiência da área produtiva. De modo a efetuar uma análise quantitativa com um considerável número de medidas de desempenho recorreu-se à simulação, avaliando-se o cenário atual e cenários alternativos com potenciais melhorias. Após a definição da proposta final de alteração de layout pode-se concluir que, com as modificações sugeridas, poder-se-ia obter uma redução de cerca de 56% em WIP, 7% de melhoria na taxa de utilização dos recursos e uma diminuição de 34% no lead time. É de salientar que o investimento necessário para a alteração do layout terá retorno financeiro ao fim de 5 meses.The analysis and periodic evaluation of factory layouts has become a concern for business leaders. For this reason, Cifial has decided to start an analysis to the current layout of the surface preparation area in one of its factories. The main objective was to identify wastes and improvement opportunities, focusing on the reduction of lead time and WIP and on the improvement of the efficiency of the productive area. In order to perform a quantitative analysis with a considerable number of key performance indicators, simulation was used to evaluate the current scenario and possible alternative layouts with potential improvements. After the definition of the final layout proposal, it can be concluded that, with the layout modification, there could be a reduction of 56% on WIP, 7% more resource schedule utilization and a decrease of 34% on lead time. It is noteworthy that the necessary investment for the layout alteration will have its financial return after 5 months

Production Engineering and Management

The annual International Conference on Production Engineering and Management takes place for the sixth time his year, and can therefore be considered a well - established event that is the result of the joint effort of the OWL University of Applied Sciences and the University of Trieste. The conference has been established as an annual meeting under the Double Degree Master Program ‘Production Engineering and Management’ by the two partner universities. The main goal of the conference is to provide an opportunity for students, researchers and professionals from Germany, Italy and abroad, to meet and exchange information, discuss experiences, specific practices and technical solutions used in planning, design and management of production and service systems. In addition, the conference is a platform aimed at presenting research projects, introducing young academics to the tradition of Symposiums and promoting the exchange of ideas between the industry and the academy. Especially the contributions of successful graduates of the Double Degree Master Program ‘Production Engineering and Management’ and those of other postgraduate researchers from several European countries have been enforced. This year’s special focus is on Direct Digital Manufacturing in the context of Industry 4.0, a topic of great interest for the global industry. The concept is spreading, but the actual solutions must be presented in order to highlight the practical benefits to industry and customers. Indeed, as Henning Banthien, Secretary General of the German ‘Plattform Industrie 4.0’ project office, has recently remarked, “Industry 4.0 requires a close alliance amongst the private sector, academia, politics and trade unions” in order to be “translated into practice and be implemented now”. PEM 2016 takes place between September 29 and 30, 2016 at the OWL University of Applied Sciences in Lemgo. The program is defined by the Organizing and Scientific Committees and clustered into scientific sessions covering topics of main interest and importance to the participants of the conference. The scientific sessions deal with technical and engineering issues, as well as management topics, and include contributions by researchers from academia and industry. The extended abstracts and full papers of the contributions underwent a double - blind review process. The 24 accepted presentations are assigned, according to their subject, to one of the following sessions: ‘Direct Digital Manufacturing in the Context of Industry 4.0’, ‘Industrial Engineering and Lean Management’, ‘Management Techniques and Methodologies’, ‘Wood Processing Technologies and Furniture Production’ and ‘Innovation Techniques and Methodologies