Defining Improvement Areas & Reducing the Waste - With Lean production philosophy & tools

Abstract: FTRTIL is rapidly expanding on the Indian market after initiatives by the Indian government to increase the number of rolling trains. FTRTIL is today experiencing a greater demand for their products. Meanwhile are they also planning to expand their product range with new introductions. After trying to respond to the prevailing market demand for the E70 brake panel without any success made FTRTIL realize that there are some serious efficiency problems within their production system Research questions: Where are the bottlenecks and largest gaps between the current situation and a future state where improvements can be implemented to meet the customer demand? How can these bottlenecks/gaps be eliminated or reduced? How should improvements proposals be implemented? Deliverables: The project contains a full view and analyses of the current state map followed by a future state map with recommendations on improvement areas. Proposals were implemented during the project’s work which has formed a new work pattern at FTRTIL. Methodology: The thesis was conducted as an explanatory case study with qualitative data gathered through observations, interviews and archival data. The need of a holistic approach made Lean production theories appropriate to use as a frame of reference. The theory was both selected during the literature review as well as it evolved during the empirical study. FTRTL’s “current state” were visualized and described out of a value stream map (VSM). The VSM later worked as a foundation when analysing FTRTIL’s production system against the frame of reference in order to identify the improvement areas. Proposals on how the wastes could be eliminated / reduced were then developed into practical solutions. The last part of the thesis was then conducted as an action research where the author participated in the implementation process together with the employees. Delimitations: The Master’s Thesis is limited to the door-to-door processes, mainly focused on the value stream between the warehouse and the shipping. The analyses are primarily focused on the processes involving material handling & supply, assembling and testing. Conclusions: The largest gap according to a Lean flow, when comparing the current state with a possible future state were identified to be the batch assembly policies together with the material supply. The key focus has thereby been to move from batch production to single piece flow together with an efficient material supply. FTRTIL can today benefit from an increased productivity by 50%. With the remaining changes and further studies it is not impossible for FTRTIL to improve the productivity even more and reach the objective of 20 panels a month and be able to fully satisfy the market demand. With these large steps in increased productivity there is no doubt about the effectiveness in practising Lean. Lean production can really make a difference and take companies to new heights.