Smed to increase productivity: A case study in an automobile industry / Smed para aumentar a produtividade: Um estudo de caso em uma indústria automóvel

Abstract

With increasing competitiveness, companies have sought tools to obtain advantages and improvements in the production system. The Lean Manufacturing philosophy, created by the Toyota Production System, has brought several tools to help decision making, reduce production costs and increase competitive advantage. One such tool is SMED, which has the principle of reducing setup time. The purpose of this paper is to be an example of how the tool, created by the Japanese Shingeo Shingo and brought to the West after the Second World War, is applied to different types of industries, more specifically in the automobile industry. This article was based on a case study at a multinational that serves large automakers in Brazil and abroad. With the application of the tool, the factory was able to eliminate one of its great losses