Homework 3 Question 1A: Production Line Is To Be Designed Fo

Home Work 3question 1a Production Line Is To Be Designed For A Job Wi

Production line is to be designed for a job with four tasks. The cycle times are 5.4 minutes, 2.8 minutes, 3.9 minutes, and 4.7 minutes. The raw process time is ______ and the bottleneck cycle time is ______ minutes.

Do some research on what takt time is and then determine takt time from the information below. In your assignment submission please make sure you define takt time.

The takt time a production line is expected to meet is 3000 parts over the next five day week in which each day has 12hrs of available time. There are four operations in the line and their cycle times are 1.5 minutes, 0.4 minutes, 1.03 minutes, and 2.9 minutes per job. The takt time is ______ minutes, and the bottleneck time is _________ minutes. · Will the line make the takt time? (Please show your work)

Consider the following three-station production line with a single product that must visit stations 1, 2, and 3 in sequence. · Station 1 has 3 identical machines with an average processing times of 5 minutes per job · Station 2 has 10 identical machines with an average processing time of 20 minutes per job. · Station 3 has 4 machines with average processing times of 3 minutes per job. a. How long does it take for a product to go through the entire production line? b. What is the cycle time of each station? c. What is the bottleneck rate for the production line and what station is it? d. Compute w0 for production line? e. What is the takt time of the line given that 5600 parts have to be made over the course of 100 hrs? f. Can the three station production line make this takt time? If not how many machines would I need at station 1, 2, and 3?

T&D electric manufactures high-voltage switches and other equipment for electric utilities. One line that is staffed by three workers assembles a particular type of switch. Currently the threes workers have fixed assignments; each worker fastens a specific set of components on the switch and passes it downstream on a rolling conveyor. The conveyor has capacity to allow a queue to build up in front of each worker. The bottleneck is the middle station with a rate of 11 switches per hour. The raw processing time is 15 minutes. To improve efficiency of the line, management is considering cross-training the workers and implementing some form of flexible labor system. a) What is the critical amount of WIP that is needed by this line? b) If the current throughput is 10.5 switches per hour with an average WIP level of 7 jobs what is the average cycle time? c) What is the practical worst case throughput of the line? d) Is there any room for improvement on this line?

Floor-On, Ltd., operates a line that produces self-adhesive tiles. This line consists of single-machine stations and is almost balanced (i.e., station rates are nearly equal). A manufacturing engineer has estimated the bottleneck rate to be 2200 cases per 16-hour day and the raw process time to be 30 minutes. The line has averaged 1,500 cases per day, and cycle time has averaged 5 hours. a) What is the estimated average WIP level? b) How does the performance of the average throughput compare to the practical worst case throughput? c) What would happen to the throughput of the line if we increased the capacity of bottleneck station and held the WIP at its current level? d) If after process improvements the ten machines that required ten workers to run them are no longer needed. Instead five workers are now needed what would you do with the remainder of workers not working on that line anymore? (And please don’t fire them)

Paper For Above instruction

In this analysis, we explore various facets of production line design and efficiency, emphasizing concepts like cycle time, takt time, bottleneck identification, work-in-progress (WIP) levels, and workforce flexibility. These elements are vital in optimizing manufacturing processes to ensure productivity, balance, and responsiveness to demand.

Calculating Raw Process Time and Bottleneck Cycle Time

The raw process time in a production line refers to the total sum of processing times for all tasks involved in manufacturing a product. In the scenario with four tasks having cycle times of 5.4, 2.8, 3.9, and 4.7 minutes, the raw process time is the sum of these cycle times: (5.4 + 2.8 + 3.9 + 4.7) = 16.8 minutes. This cumulative duration represents the total processing time if each task were performed sequentially without any parallelism.

The bottleneck cycle time is defined by the slowest operation in the sequence — the process that limits the overall production rate. Thus, the bottleneck cycle time is the maximum of the individual task cycle times, which in this case is 5.4 minutes.

Understanding Takt Time and Line Capacity

Takt time is a key lean manufacturing metric representing the pace at which a finished product needs to be completed to meet customer demand. It is calculated by dividing available production time by the required output. Based on the given data, the company aims to produce 3000 parts over five days, with each day offering 12 hours of work. The weekly available time is 5 days × 12 hours/day × 60 minutes/hour = 3600 minutes. Therefore, the takt time is calculated as: 3600 minutes / 3000 parts = 1.2 minutes per part.

The bottleneck cycle time, given the operation times, is the longest cycle time among the individual process steps, which is 2.9 minutes. To determine if the line can meet the takt time, we compare the cycle times to the takt. Since the slowest individual cycle (2.9 minutes) exceeds the takt (1.2 minutes), the line cannot meet the demand unless adjustments such as reducing task times or adding resources are made.

Production Line with Sequential Stations and Bottleneck Analysis

For the three-station system with multiple machines at each station, the total processing time per product is calculated by considering the fastest possible processing at each station—multiplying the number of machines by the individual machine processing time, assuming parallel processing. For station 1, with 3 machines processing 5-minute jobs, the effective throughput is: (3 machines × 5 min) / 1 machine in parallel, which suggests that each machine independently takes 5 minutes, and the overall processing time depends on the slowest station.

Calculations for total processing time, station cycle times, and bottleneck identification reveal that station 2, with longer processing times or less parallel capacity, likely forms the bottleneck. To meet requirements for 5600 parts over 100 hours, the takt time is calculated as: total available time / total parts = (100 hours × 60 minutes/hr) / 5600 parts ≈ 1.07 minutes per part.

Determining whether the existing setup can produce this throughput involves evaluating machine counts and processing times, and adjusting the number of machines at each station accordingly. Additional machines may be required at stations where bottlenecks are identified to meet the takt.

Analyzing the Assembly Line for Switches

The production line with three workers, where the bottleneck is the middle station with a rate of 11 switches per hour, highlights the importance of balancing workflow and WIP levels. The raw processing time of 15 minutes per switch indicates efficiency limitations. To improve throughput, cross-training workers enables flexibility, distributing tasks to avoid idle time and reduce WIP Levels. The critical amount of WIP ensures smooth operation without excessive delays, typically derived from Little’s Law: WIP = Throughput × Cycle Time.

Using the data, with an average throughput of 10.5 switches/hour and WIP of 7 units, the average cycle time can be estimated as: Cycle Time = WIP / Throughput ≈ 7 / 10.5 ≈ 0.67 hours (or 40 minutes). Adjustments in labor flexibility, along with capacity enhancements at the bottleneck, could significantly boost overall productivity.

Optimization of the Surface Tile Production Line

The self-adhesive tile line operates with nearly balanced stations, with a bottleneck rate estimated at 2200 cases per day and a raw process time of 30 minutes. The observed average day’s output (1500 cases) and cycle time (5 hours) suggest potential excess capacity or underutilization. The average WIP level can be estimated by Little’s Law: WIP = Throughput × Cycle Time. Here, approximate WIP = 1500 cases / 2200 cases per day × 16 hours ≈ 10.91 cases, assuming steady state.

Increasing bottleneck capacity while maintaining current WIP could reduce cycle time, leading to higher throughput. Alternatively, reducing WIP might improve responsiveness but could require capacity adjustments to prevent bottleneck constraints. The redeployment of workers following process optimization might involve reassigning staff to other operational areas or increasing flexibility across other production lines.

Conclusion

Effective production line design hinges on balancing cycle times, identifying bottlenecks, and managing work-in-progress levels. Flexibility in workforce deployment and capacity are essential strategies for maintaining optimal throughput, especially when aiming to meet surges in demand or improve efficiency. Continuous analysis and adjustments aligned with lean principles enable manufacturers to adapt swiftly and sustain competitive performance.

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