Hawassa University

Department of Industrial
Engineering
Thesis Research proposal
Improvement of Layout of a specific department in the
production process

Group members
Tesfamariam Teshome 0875/09
Yohannes Melaku 1952/08
Mebru Bereket 0218/09

Submission Date; May29

Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................................... 2
BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT ................................................................................................................... 2
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 2
Problem statement ....................................................................................................................................... 3
Objective ....................................................................................................................................................... 4
GeneralObjective ...................................................................................................................................... 4
Specific Objectives .................................................................................................................................... 4
METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................................................ 4
LITERATURE REVIEW ..................................................................................................................................... 6
PLANT LAYOUT .............................................................................................................................................. 6
INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 6
OBJECTIVES OF PLANT LAYOUT................................................................................................................. 7
FACTORS AFFECTING PLANT LAYOUT ....................................................................................................... 9
Human Factor........................................................................................................................................ 9
Nature of Material to be Used .............................................................................................................. 9
Machine—Their Types and Sizes .......................................................................................................... 9
Movement of Men and Material .......................................................................................................... 9
Building Layout...................................................................................................................................... 9
Service Factor ...................................................................................................................................... 10
SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF PLANT LAYOUT ................................................................................................... 10
Integration Principle............................................................................................................................ 10
Flow Principle ..................................................................................................................................... 10
Space Utilization Principle.................................................................................................................. 10
Minimum Movement Principle ........................................................................................................... 11
Safety and Comfort Principle .............................................................................................................. 11
Flexibility Principle ............................................................................................................................ 11
PLANT LAYOUT PROCEDURE ....................................................................................................................... 11
Information Collection ........................................................................................................................ 11
Analysis and Coordination .................................................................................................................. 12
Choice of Machinery and Equipment ................................................................................................. 12
 Selection of Material Handing System ............................................................................................... 12
Sketching the Plant on the Plot ........................................................................................................... 12
General Flow Pattern .......................................................................................................................... 12
Individual Work Stations Design ........................................................................................................ 13
Scheduling of our time with respect to our activities;- .............................................................................. 14
Reference .................................................................................................................................................... 15

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CHAPTER ONE

BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

Introduction
The overall performance of an industrial firm is significantly affected by the design of its
manufacturing facility. This research study is very important and actual, because the cost
reduction and the improvement of productivity are very important goals of all of
manufacturing companies. Within production, the resources (raw materials, energies,
humans, machines, equipment and other facilities) are always limited. It is very important at
the manufacturing companies to produce cost effective products which can be realized by a
minimized production cost with higher effectiveness. The optimal facility layout is an
effective tool in cost reduction by enhancing the productivity.

A facility is an entity that facilitates the performance of any job. It may be a machine tool, a
work center, a manufacturing cell, a machine shop, a department, a warehouse, etc. A facility
layout is an arrangement of everything needed for production of goods or delivery of services
. A well-designed facility layout results in efficient material handling, small transportation
times/cost, and short paths. This, in turn, leads to low work-in-process levels, effective
production management, decreased cycle times and manufacturing inventory costs, improved
on-time delivery performance (no delay or waiting time), and consequently, highly efficient
and profitable.

The efficiency of a layout is typically measured in terms of transportation cost. The

transportation costs are directly influenced by the distances a unit load must travel.
Moreover, an efficient layout results in an effective material flow path with no backtracking,
congestion, undesirable intersections with other paths, and bypassing.

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An effective flow within a facility includes the progressive movement of materials,
information, or people between departments without delaying of working time. Therefore the
goal of improving the existing layout is to meet this effective way of facility layout building.

A process layout is the arrangement of facilities and equipment in group according to the
function performed. In this type of layout, similar types of machines or similar types of
operations are grouped together and put in one department. For example, all grinding
machines may be at one place, all drilling machines at another place and all turning machines
at yet another place.

It means that all the machines have been arranged according to their functions. It is preferred
for the industries engaged in job order type product. Examples of such layouts in
manufacturing are machine shop, shoe making industries, garment industries, etc. and in
service sector hospitals, universities, bank, etc. are the examples. They are organised so that
their resources are grouped according to the different functions performed.

Problem statement
Productivities and competitiveness are the crucial performance measuring criteria and
survival in the competitive market. Today’s globalization made the competitiveness laboring
some and need more effort for continuing in the position they had. With this regard
pittardsmanufacturing PLC, wishes attaining daily demands in stitching departments.
Because the method they use at the present time in stitching department is not efficient and
The flow of material is destorted or not continous enough that operators needs to move a
number of times to give the product they have finished working on to the next process or
opretor in the flow because there is tooo much movementof material and operators in the
stitching department miss attainment of targeted output or will have too much WIP.

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Objective

GeneralObjective
 The main objective of our project is to re-design the layout of stiching area at pittards
manufacturing plc by re-arranging some works(proceses) in order to get optimized
effective layout in the stiching department.

Specific Objectives
 To develop alternative optimized flow of material in stitching department for pittards
manufacturing,
 To Re-arrange all the works(processes) of the department according to the precedence
diagram
 To show the Time lost due to unnecessary movement of material,
 To imrove the setting of the entire stiching department so as to decrease the un
wanted motion while increasing the productivity of that particular department in the
glove factory.
 Implement the new method and compare it with existing method.
 To reduce setup and queue times of the product in the prdouction department.

METHODOLOGY
Methodology is a way to solve problems and reach new knowledge. Everything that can
contribute to these goals is considered as methodology .The science of methodology will
give the researcher information of how to plan the work in a systematic way around
questions like what, how, and why. Having a good and clear methodology will give a
platform to achieve a better and more truthful result around the circumstances that are
investigated .

the first step to begin the project. This step requires lot of knowledge and resources to obtain
the idea that will become the main topic of the project. The next process is seeking for
project scope and limitation to define problem identification. Then, literature review can be
used to give explanation about theoretical background of the problem. Next process is to
determine the problem statement and define the purpose of the project.

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I have been collected the whole data by using the two perspectives of data collection
methods which is both primary and secondary data sources in order to accomplish my
desired project

1. Primary data : - I have used the following primary data collection methods;

 Observations :by this method of data collection I look about the overall situations of
the company like its production flow, material handling type, types of products etc I
used this method mainly to identify current problems in the manufacturing plant.
 Measurements :I used this data collection method to get information about available
spaces of the sticthing department in the plant And, the time wasted on the movement
of the product in the same department.
 Records :by this technique we record time taken for each operation using stopwatch.

2. Secondary data: - these data’s collected from both of published and unpublished data
sources.

 My exercise books and different research works: - I have used my material handling
exercise book which I was taken notes during classroom lecture and some reading
material from that given my teacher and some PowerPoint slides.
 Internet websites: - I have gathered more information’s from the manufacturer’s web
sites, Wikipedia, different literature reviews from the internet.

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LITERATURE REVIEW

PLANT LAYOUT
INTRODUCTION
Plant layout involves relative allocation of adequate spaces at the appropriate places for
equipment, workers, materials other supporting activities and customers in service industries.

The objective behind the arrangement of work areas is to produce most economically, to
design service effectively and to provide safe and good physical environment for workers
and customers. Thus, plant layout is an effective physical location or configuration of
different departments, machines, equipment and services of an organization used to create
product or provide service in efficient and economic manner.

It is the process of determining the systematic arrangement of facilities and equipment

capable of satisfying and anticipating demand with respect to quantity, quality and timing at
lowest cost. It requires meaningful integration of all the elements of conversion process, like
men, machine and materials, conveniences and services. It plays an important role in creating
an environment conductive to high productivity and satisfaction of social and psychological
needs of people at work place.

In addition, it requires the knowledge of the constraints imposed by legal, technical or other
factors for new facilities. Such knowledge is also required for existing buildings and other
physical structures that form part of the production facilities and the transportation network
to which it is integrated.

Thus, in the words of James Hundy, “Layout identically involves the allocation of space and
the arrangement of equipment in such a manner that overall operation costs are minimized.”
The cost takes into account the losses or gains, if any due to social and psychological needs,
health and morale of people.

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OBJECTIVES OF PLANT LAYOUT
A plant is an arrangement of production facilities and equipment. An ideal plant must result
in economical production and provide safe and satisfying place to the users and workers. A
good layout serves the following objectives:

 Placing equipment in a position resulting in its maximum utilization.

 Reducing congestion in the flow of materials or movement of workers through
successive stages in the process.
 Providing easy access to equipment for maintenance and repair.
 Facilitating effective and easy supervision.
 Minimising production delays.
 Providing efficient and smooth flow of material with in the plant.
 Providing for fast and safe material handling.
 Effective utilization of cubic space.
 Providing comfortable and safe working environment.
 Providing flexibility to allow minor changes as and when required.

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 Process Layouts Product Layouts

Nature All similar facilities grouped • Sequence of facilities

Application together derived. from needs of
charachterstics • Low quantity production product.
only a few products. • Large quantity production
• Permits specialist range of products.
supervision. • Little specialized
• High volume of work in supervision
progress required.
• High material handling • Minimum work in
cost. progress.
• Ease of provision of • Minimum material
services. handling
• Can tolerate breakdown. cost.
• Easy to incorporate • Difficult to provide
inspection. services.
• Individual Bonus possible. • Single breakdown stop all
• Flexibility, variety and machines.
product change possible. • Difficult to incorporate
• Maintenance easy. inspection.
• Production control • Group bonus.
complex • Little variety possible.
• Maintenance out of
production
hours..

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FACTORS AFFECTING PLANT LAYOUT
The major factors which influence the nature of layout of plant in any type of production
system are as follows:

Human Factor
It is the most important factor of production system. It arranges, coordinates and integrates
physical infrastructure, machines, equipment and materials for effective conversion. Human
factor is most critical as well as highly flexible element of production system which may
decide about the facilities and their arrangements.

Nature of Material to be Used

Material takes three aspects during manufacturing. The incoming material is in raw form and
has own shape and size. During process its form is changed and waste produced.

The material in process has to move from machine to machine. The final product has a
different form. The plant layout will have to be based on ease of handling and safety at each
stage.

Machine—Their Types and Sizes

Machines, their types and sizes dictate the types of plant layout. Machines are required for
processing of materials, testing and inspection. Some equipment are needed for repairs. All
the machines are identified and then placed as per the requirement.

The first three factors, viz. human, material and machines are basics of physical facility.

Movement of Men and Material

It is related to movement of men, machines and materials, besides information flow for the
purpose of effective communication within the industries and outside. This factor of plant
layout is generally concerned with different types of movement in production system.

Building Layout
It is another important factor in the process of plant layout design as well as in the
installation.

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Basically, plant building is a shell which houses the basic facility and other supporting
services. It includes every factor inside as well as outside which is related to plant building
design and building utility distribution system.

Service Factor
Several activities are carried out in a plant which indirectly contribute to production. Many
of them require specialized equipment and machines which have to be moved on shop floor.
These activities include:

 Maintenance of plant.
 Quality control.
 Inspection of product.
 Control of wastage.
 Scheduling.
 Material handling.
 Dispatching.
 Fire protection.
 Facilities for employees.

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF PLANT LAYOUT

The six basic principles relating to plant layout are given below:

Integration Principle
All other things being equal, best layout is one which integrates men, materials and machines
in the best possible manner.

Flow Principle
All other things being equal, best layout is one which provides for smooth and uninterrupted
flow of men and materials.

Space Utilization Principle

All other things being equal, best layout is one which make best use of available cubic space.

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Minimum Movement Principle
All other things being equal, best layout is one which results in minimum movement of men
and material in the plant.

I imphesized on this principle while upgrading the stiching department layout because there
is so many movement of material and workers there is a wastage of time and energy because
of this wastage the specified department is not workin to it’s full capacity in other words if
we organize the works in the department and decreased the movement to it’s minimum we
can increase the productivity of the department.

Safety and Comfort Principle

All other things being equal, best layout is safe and comfortable for employees working in
plant.

Flexibility Principle
All other things being equal, best layout provides flexibility.

PLANT LAYOUT PROCEDURE

Plant layout exercise requires a systematic approach. The procedure requires the following
steps:

Information Collection
The following data are to be collected:

 Volume and rate of production.

 Production specifications and bill of materials.
 Process sheets indicating tools, equipments and methods.
 Flow process charts.
 Standard time to complete the operation.

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Analysis and Coordination
The information collected is used to decide the following:

 The work force size and type.

 Number of work stations required.
 Types of equipment required.
 Storage and other space requirement.

Choice of Machinery and Equipment

The machinery and equipment needed for the production service is to be decided on the basis
of following:

 Number of components to be produced.

 Capacity of each equipment.
 Time in which a particular work order is completed.

Selection of Material Handing System

The selection is based on the following factors.

 Material/products to be moved.
 Container in which it will be moved.
 Length of movement
 Speed of movement.

Sketching the Plant on the Plot

Building out line, roads, storage and service areas, etc. are marked on the available plot. It
must be kept in mind that the orientation of plant should utilize maximum natural head, light
and other weather conditions.

General Flow Pattern

The next step is laying out the details of shop areas as follows:

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  Machinery may be laid as per production process requirements, and plant building be
constructed around the same.
 Flow pattern of materials should be such that the distance involved is least between
the store and shipping department through the production centers. There should be
minimum backtracking and bottleneck.
 Flow pattern may be analysed using operation process charts or flow process charts.

Individual Work Stations Design

Each work station is laid for achieving optimum performance of operations, material and
space utilization and safety and comfort of employees.

Below listed are main workstatios in pittards manufacturing sc.

 Storage section
 Cutting section
 Stitching section
 Ironing section
 Packing section

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Scheduling of our time with respect to our activities;-

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Reference
Muther, R. Systematic Layout Planning. Boston: Industrial Education Institute, 1961.

Russell, R. S., P. Y. Huang, and Y. Y. Leu. "A Study of Labor Allocation in Cellular

Manufacturing." Decision Sciences 22, no. 3 (1991): 594-611.

Sumichrast, R. T., R. S. Russell, and B. W. Taylor. "A Comparative Analysis of Sequencing

Procedures for Mixed-Model Assembly Lines in a Just-In-Time Production System."

International Journal of Production Research 30, no. 1 (1992): 199-214.

Jablonowski, J. "Reexamining FMSs." American Machinist, Special Report 774 (March

1985).

Luggen, W. Flexible Manufacturing Cells and Systems. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice

Hall, 1991.

Monden, Y. Toyota Production System, 2d ed. Atlanta, Ga.: IIE Press, 1993.

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