A structured approach to process improvement in manufacturing systems

The methodology of continuous improvement in manufacturing is a well-known practice originated by the ‘Japanese approach’ to industrial production. However, some needs still exist for an easy implementation of the improvement procedures it involves. In fact, in practical implementations in the manufacturing system, difficulties are encountered for clearly identifying the existing weak point to attack. To respond to this concern, the authors developed a special parameter called operating system effectiveness (OSE) that was very effective in measuring the performances of a manufacturing system and in detecting the causes of low productivity, thus offering a powerful tool for implementing process improvement measures. The article describes this approach by first setting the problem and reviewing the state of the art of similar methods already available in literature. Afterwards, the limits of existing methods are discussed and the new OSE parameter is presented and analysed in detail explaining how its components take into account both efficiency and effectiveness, thus effectively guiding the implementation of an improvement process. Then, a structured procedure centred on the OSE, called OSE-structured improvement approach (OSE-SIA), is presented as a practical tool to monitor, diagnose and improve the performances of a manufacturing system, by precisely and selectively detecting the causes of reduced productivity. Finally, a demonstration of how the procedure works is presented through an application case in the electronic manufacturing sector.