Automation from lean perspective-potentials and challenges

The competitive climate of production and high labour cost, motivate western companies to use technologies like automation as a mean to increase manufacturing competitiveness. On the other hand companies are aware about cost reductive policies like lean production which has shown noticeable achievement, consequently some manufacturers tend to follow such system. In this situation, in order to have lean enterprise, it is vital to find a clear picture of challenges and potentials of implementing automation within a lean environment. So, finding the right level and type of automation becomes vital for companies, and achieving this is not possible without a lean development of automation. The paper presents an overview of automation development from a lean perspective. The focus is on manufacturing and a case study in the automotive industry is presented. Challenges and potentials of automation are pinpointed and some suggestions regarding automation development is given

Protocolo de avaliação de competências para o lean automation

O Lean Automation corresponde a uma integração entre as tecnologias da indústria 4.0 e os princípios e práticas Lean. O presente trabalho propõe um protocolo de avaliação de competências para o Lean Automation (ACLA). O protocolo foi desenvolvido após uma revisão de literatura, entrevistas com 10 pesquisadores e com 3 profissionais de ensino profissionalizante. Em seguida, o protocolo foi aplicado em dois estudos de caso, nos setores calçadista e de manufatura. O protocolo possui 4 etapas, sendo a primeira a identificação do contexto do Lean Automation (LA) na empresa, seguida por uma sensibilização sobre o LA realizada com funcionários, autoavaliação das competências e a elaboração de um plano de ação. A autoavaliação de competências é realizada com base em um formulário composto por 15 competências subdivididas em 3 domínios, sendo eles: metodológico, sócio comportamental e tecnológico. Os estudos de caso contaram com a entrevista de 9 gestores e a aplicação do protocolo em 10 participantes ao todo. Posteriormente foram realizadas avaliações quanto a usabilidade e utilidade do protocolo. Os resultados indicaram que as competências do domínio tecnológico são as menos desenvolvidas nos casos estudados e as competências do domínio metodológico são as mais bem desenvolvidas.Lean Automation is an integration between Industry 4.0 technologies and Lean Production principles and practices. The present work propose a competence assessment protocol for Lean Automation (ACLA). The protocol was develop after a literature review, interviews with 10 researchers and with 3 professional education specialists. Then, the protocol was apply in two case studies, in the shoe industry and metal manufacturing sectors. The protocol has 4 steps, the first is the identification of the Lean Automation (LA) context in the company, followed by an introduction of the LA subject carried out with employees, self-assessment of competences and the elaboration of an action plan. The competences self-assessment is carried out based on a form composed of 15 competences subdivided into 3 domains: methodological, socio-behavioral and technological. The case studies includes the interview of 9 managers and the application of the protocol with 10 participants in total. Subsequently, the protocol was assess regarding his usability and utility. The results indicates that the technological domain competences are the least developed in the cases studied and the methodological domain competences are the best developed

Integrasi Digital Lean Automation dengan IoT untuk Efisiensi Proses Assembly di Industri Otomotif

Dalam meningkatkan laba perusahaan, diperlukan beberapa pendekatan dalam proses bisnisnya. Seiring dengan perkembangan zaman, konsumen memiliki permintaan yang tinggi dalam hal suatu produk. Salah satunya adalah produk mobil lego yang dapat dijadikan sebagai prototipe pembelajaran di industri manufaktur. Semakin tinggi permintaan, maka perusahaan dituntut untuk dapat menerapkan sistem lean dalam memproduksi permintaan tersebut. Dengan pendekatan digital lean masih belum optimal karena perkembangan teknologi saat ini. Oleh karena itu, adanya pendekatan digital lean didukung oleh pendekatan teknologi (IoT) yang memaksimalkan jalur otomatisasi (full automatic line). Berdasarkan layout, dengan menerapkan semi otomatisasi pada titik awal bagi perusahaan yang baru mulai menerapkan aplikasi lean digital akan sangat membantu perusahaan dalam mengurangi biaya dari segi waktu yang terbuang karena banyak operator yang menunggu dan juga produk jadi dapat diselesaikan. tepat waktu sehingga perusahaan akan memperoleh keuntungan yang tinggi dari pelanggan. Dengan penerapan digital lean seperti semi-otomatisasi line dapat membantu dalam menghilangkan cacat dalam proses sementara, menghilangkan pemborosan dalam proses dengan meningkatkan nilai bagi pengguna akhir

Assessing to what extent smart manufacturing builds on lean principles

This study explores to what extent the adoption and performance of smart manufacturing technologies builds on the adoption of lean principles. Primary explorative survey data on the level of adoption of smart manufacturing technologies and lean principles and various operational performance outcomes were collected from a set of Dutch manufacturers and analysed using Cluster Analysis, ANOVA, and Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA). The Cluster Analysis shows that while lean is also applied without smart (“lean-only” companies), smart technologies are mostly applied in conjunction with lean (“lean and smart” companies), suggesting that the presence of lean principles is necessary for smart implementation. A third group of companies shows a low use of lean and smart (“non-adopters”). The NCAs further specify the extent of this necessity by showing that all individual smart manufacturing technologies used in our construct require presence of lean principles, with MES systems having the strongest dependency. Performance wise, lean-only and lean and smart companies have comparable superior performance compared to non-adopters when considering an aggregate operational performance measure using the dimensions of quality, delivery, flexibility and cost. When analysed separately, the aggregate level results remain true for quality and delivery performance. However, for flexibility, the superiority of lean-only companies is more apparent, while for cost, lean and smart companies are superior. This shows that implementing smart requires lean, but lean may suffice depending on the specific performance objectives strived for

Identification and characterization of opportunities for improvement in industrial processes by lean automation method

Mestrado de dupla diplomação com a UTFPR - Universidade Tecnológica Federal do ParanáConsidering that the need to adapt industries to remain competitive is increasing, this research is being carried out with the objective of identifying and characterizing improvements in industrial processes, in order to improve them through resources and methods widely used in the industry, such as Lean Manufacturing (LM) and Industry 4.0 (I4.0). Therefore, it was necessary to analyze the LM and I4.0 methodology, resulting in Lean Automation tools, the process of a real company was also analyzed as a case study so that improvement suggestions could be provided. In addition, it was important to interpret the biggest losses that happen in industries with the objective of avoiding them. Finally, it was found that the application of Industry 4.0 in lean tools brings convenience and flexibility since the combination of the two methodologies can be done according to the needs of each industry. Regarding the suggestions for improvements found in the process, initially, it was the implementation of a dashboard as an aid to visual management. Furthermore, it is also suggested to apply the OEE together with the production notes, also in the form of a dashboard. The implementations already carried out were satisfactory in terms of facilitating the automated monitoring of the process. Therefore, it is possible to verify that Industry 4.0 helps with lean tools that can facilitate the visualization and monitoring of industrial processes.Considerando que a necessidade de adaptar as indústrias para se manterem competitivas é cada vez maior, esta pesquisa está sendo realizada com o objetivo de identificar e caracterizar melhorias nos processos industriais, a fim de melhora-los por meio de recursos e métodos amplamente utilizados na indústria, como o Lean Manufacturing (LM) e Indústria 4.0 (I4.0). Portanto, foi necessário analisar a metodologia LM e I4.0, resultando em ferramentas de automação enxuta, também foi analisado o processo de uma empresa real como um estudo de caso para que sugestões de melhoria pudessem ser fornecidas. Além disso, foi importante interpretar as maiores perdas que acontecem nas indústrias com o objetivo de evitá-las. Por fim, verificou-se que a aplicação da Indústria 4.0 nas ferramentas enxutas traz comodidade e flexibilidade, visto que a combinação das duas metodologias pode ser feita de acordo com a necessidade de cada indústria. No que diz respeito às sugestões de melhorias encontradas no processo, inicialmente foi a implementação de um dashboard como auxilio de gestão visual. Além disso sugere-se também a aplicação do OEE juntamente com o apontamento de produção também em forma de dashboard. As implementações já realizadas foram satisfatórias em termos de facilitar o monitoramento automatizado do processo. Portanto, é possível verificar que a Indústria 4.0 auxilia nas ferramentas enxutas que podem facilitar a visualização e o monitoramento dos processos industriais

Enhancing Lean Manufacturing Utilizing Industry 4.0 Technologies: A Focus on Cyber-Physical Systems

The industry is a significant part of our economy, providing our material goods in a highly mechanized and automatized way. The industry has gone through three acknowledged revolutions, and now the industry is on the verge of the fourth industrial revolution as known as Industry 4.0. Industry 4.0 surfaced in the 21st century and has gained interest exponentially after 2016. However, the research on this topic is still in its early stages. Thus, this has been taken into account as the research is conducted on a more specific topic. Industry 4.0 composes of many different technologies, from which the main focus of this thesis' is on Cyber-Physical Systems and what they might offer to Lean Manufacturing. The aim of this thesis is also to provide basic knowledge of lean and Industry 4.0 in general so that it allows more profound exploring of Cyber-Physical Systems and helps to perceive the possibilities more extensively. This thesis also presents significant concerns regarding the use of Cyber-Physical Systems. Based on these topics, the conclusion can be formed to answer what possibilities Industry 4.0 offers. The main findings from this literature review prove that Industry 4.0 and Cyber-Physical Systems can offer a great variety of possibilities to Lean Manufacturing. As it is debated that Lean Manufacturing, as is, is reaching its limits, implementing Industry 4.0 technologies are becoming crucial to maintain competitive capability. Cyber-Physical Systems could offer enhancement through streamlining the manufacturing process, reducing waste and workload, and better deficit and abnormality detection, for example. As a contribution, this thesis provides information in a chronological order to provide extensive enough understanding and an answer to the research question

The integration of Industry 4.0 and Lean Management: A systematic review and constituting elements perspective

This paper explores the prevalent themes for integrating Industry 4.0 and Lean Management to provide a red thread concerning ‘what’ and ‘how’ to execute their integration. Furthermore, gaps in current literature are identified, and an agenda for future research is developed. The research is based on a systematic literature review of 111 papers that were published in academic journals between 2015 and 2021. In contrast to previous reviews, we focus on constituting elements of Lean Management and Industry 4.0 to offer a perspective closely related to practical implementations. The findings suggest Total Productive Maintenance as one exemplary constituting element representing the ‘what’ level and Change Management as a discipline with answers concerning the ‘how’ level. The paper offers a holistic view for practitioners facing the need for an integrated implementation of Industry 4.0 and Lean Management. Prevalent themes can be included in organisational transformation efforts to increase success rates in change projects. Deriving gaps in the current literature and developing an agenda for future research focused on operational concepts offers possibilities for further research with high practical relevance

Impact of IIoT and Lean bundles configurations on proactive work behaviors

This thesis investigates the impact of IIoT and Lean bundles configurations on team proactivity, that is calculated as a mean of individual proactivity values. It is divided in four chapters: in the first chapter an introduction to Industry 4.0 and a description of its main technologies is performed, the second chapter is characterized by a literature review on the integration between Industry 4.0 an Lean Production, the third chapter consists on a description of the Qualitative Comparative Analysis approach and the last chapter discusses the results of the analysis

Data-driven framework to improve collaborative human-robot flexible manufacturing applications

The manufacturing assembly lines of the future are foreseen to dismiss fully unmanned systems in favour of anthropocentric solutions. However, bringing in the human complexity leads to modeling and control questions that only data can answer. Moreover, many human-robot collaborative applications in flexible manufacturing involve manipulator cobots, whereas little attention is given to the role of mobile robots. This work outlines a data-driven framework, which is the core of a brand new project to be fully developed in the very next future, to let human-robot collaborative processes overcome the barriers to successful interaction, leveraging mobile and fixed-base robots