Abstract
Purpose: This study was carried out in a cork company and its purpose was to observe and analyze the practices and methods used during the tools/series change moments and to propose improvements and alternatives to these same procedures so that the time needed to carry out the setup is reduced by 15% in both lines. Methodology/Approach:The methodology included the following phases: 1st - historical data collection and setup video recording, 2nd - footage analysis and conduction of informal interviews with employees, 3rd - flow, Gantt, and spaghetti charts creation and making of an action plan based on the waste and improvement opportunities identified in video analysis, 4th - validation with the line workers of the new operating mode created with the Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) tool and communication to the Maintenance department about their role in this project, 5th - making and placement of plasticized cards on the cutting lines to ensure that new operating mode is followed and carrying out the actions identified in the action plan. Findings: Throughout this project using observations, video recording and its subsequent analysis, as well as interviews to the workers operating in the line, it was found the existence of several actions carried out by them during the setups which did not add value to the product, lack of adequate tools for the work to be performed and lack of work tools in general Research Limitation/implication: The study was limited by the lines and products under study and by the duration of the curricular internship, which was about five months. Originality/Value of paper: The article demonstrates the added value in terms of product quality and production output rate that SMED methodology can bring to companies that adopt the lean philosophy and in particular this continuous improvement tool.
Highlights
In the last decades we have seen a significant change of the manufacturing sector
The challenge is to use the Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) methodology to promote an improvement in product quality, productivity and reduction of setup times (Vieira et al, 2019; Rosa et al, 2017)
The present work was carried out in a cork company and its goal was to observe and analyze the practices and methods used during the tools/series change moments and, with the help of Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) methodology implementation in the cutting lines present in the final finishing areas of the process, propose improvements and alternatives to those same procedures, so that the time needed to perform the setup is reduced by 15% in both lines and the likelihood of errors on the part of employees and malfunctions on machines decrease
Summary
In the last decades we have seen a significant change of the manufacturing sector. According Parwani and Hu (2021), companies focus on reducing non-value-add activities, eliminating wastage, and decreasing the setup time to remain competitive. The most effective way to achieve this is to increase flexibility by producing smaller lots (Costa et al, 2018; Bravi, Murmura and Santos, 2019), this type of production tends to lead to an increase in setup frequency (Costa et al, 2013) For this reason, companies must find a way to reduce setup times, eliminate waste and limit non-value-added activities (Sousa et al, 2018; Santos et al, 2019c) where it is important a quality culture (Zgodavova, Hudec and Palfy, 2017) and control the risks (Ferreira, Santos and Silva, 2019). The present work was carried out in a cork company and its goal was to observe and analyze the practices and methods used during the tools/series change moments and, with the help of Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) methodology implementation in the cutting lines present in the final finishing areas of the process, propose improvements and alternatives to those same procedures, so that the time needed to perform the setup is reduced by 15% in both lines and the likelihood of errors on the part of employees and malfunctions on machines decrease
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