Assignment title: Information
Module 1 - Case
PRODUCTIVITY AND PROCESS IMPROVEMENT
Assignment Overview
Case: The Excellent Manufacturing Company & Productivity
Note: Click the following link for information on the Excellent
Manufacturing Company (EMC). You will find information on (A)
EMC—Background Information; (B) Product Brochure; (C) Plasti-Brack
Information; (D) Manufacturing Processes; (E) Basic Financial Information
about EMC; (F) Organizational Chart; (G) Plant Layout
Scenario
Company E-Mail
FROM: Gerald Garcia
SUBJECT: Annual Productivity Plan
The Plasti-Brack product line is an important part of our business and with
your qualifications, I am looking for some good things to happen with these
products.
I am announcing the annual productivity plan and goal, which is for EMC to
improve productivity this year by 5% overall. I am asking each manager to
develop a productivity plan for their areas. This plan is to identify areas of
productivity, the productivity measurements, and provide a plan for how the
productivity will be accomplished.
I want you to consider using this multi-factor productivity measure: (Total
Production of Plasti-Bracks) / (Total Paid Labor Hours). Using the most
recent data available, this Productivity Measure is 332.73 pieces produced
per paid people hours, for Plasti-Brack. You can review the detailed data to
see how I determined this measurement. A 5% increase translates to
349.37 pcs/pd ppl hr.
You can plan on a 3% to 5% increase in demand for the next year.
ListenHere is the data that has been collected and analyzed for the Productivity
Index for Plasti-Brack.
Note: There is a lot of non-production time. I am sure we can eliminate
some of this and convert it into productive use.
Given this overall productivity measure and the 5% goal, you should
consider your next steps. First, do an assessment of the current situation.
Then determine other subordinate productivity indices or factors that will be
measured in your area of responsibility. What are the main issues and
concerns about improving productivity this year? What are some of the
possible processes that should be considered for process re-engineering
or "lean" analysis? What improvements do you plan on making, and how
will they achieve the 5% productivity goal?
Please do this analysis for your area. You should consult with the
production managers as necessary. I want a report that provides an
assessment of productivity measures and process improvement issues for
the Plasti-Brack product line and related production processes. Your report
should include the following sections: Review of the Current Situation,
Goals & Objectives, Action Plans, and Explanation/Justification.
Since you are new to EMC, your report also should include a process flow
diagram of several key Plasti-Brack processes. (See Section C: PlastiBrack Information, Figure 2.)
I will be looking for your report in the next several weeks. Thank you. ~GG
PS - I know you are new to EMC and you may not be familiar with how we
write reports. So I have attached a copy of a blank report template that I
would like you to use: Report Template for Case Assignments.
And I also have attached a copy of a report that was done awhile back by
Manny Jones. It is a report providing a plan to solve a big problem we were
having in the Zinc Die Cast Machine Group. It is not about productivity, so
you will need to taylor your report with appropriate content that I am
looking for. Manny Jones Sample Report
Case Assignment
Analyze the processes that are used to produce the Plasti-Brack product
line. Determine appropriate productivity measures and then develop a
productivity & process improvement plan. Justify your plan. Write a report
to the VP of Operations.Privacy Policy | Contact
Assignment Expectations
• Use the information provided in the Background readings. It is not
necessary to do any additional research.
• Review the information about the Excellent Manufacturing Company
and become familiar with the products and processes.
• Analyze the processes and determine productivity measures for the
various processes.
• Determine a plan for improving productivity via process improvement
and lean thinking.
• Justify your plan based on the concepts of process improvement.
READ the information provided by the resources and references on
the Background page. Understand the theory and concept of
productivity, productivity measures, process improvement,
productivity improvement, and lean manufacturing.
Study the information about the Plasti-Brack product line.
Understand the manufacturing processes and the Productivity
Measurement that G. Garcia is using. Look for ways to Increase
OUTPUTS and/or Decrease INPUTS (paid people hours).
NOTE: Cite the references in the Background, as well as additional
references you use in your case paper.
The report should be 4–5 pages and submitted by the Module 1 due date.y onto the Safeassign. One submission only per group.