What is a Time Study?

Time is an essential asset in day-to-day life. Organizations value time and every productive
activity in a firm must be valued in terms of time consumed. Time study is the art of
determining the cumulative time it takes to carry out a specific task or an industrial
activity. The labor required to produce a product and the cumulative time is a significant
aspect that affects the product's price. Scientific management theory provides the
workplace with efficient and effective models for improving industrial operations. Time
and motion studies are essential tools in this theory in the production process.

What is a Motion Study?

In any given industry, work that aligns with the goals and objectives of the firm and,
ultimately, the generation of income must be done. However, there is more than just
getting work done. It has to be done excellently and efficiently. Motion study involves
determining the best method of conducting work for humans or machines and eliminating
waste. It involves scrutinizing the various motions made by employees or machinery and
limiting waste by limiting motion. The end goal of motion study is to increase efficiency
and effectiveness.

History of the Time and Motion Study

Management of work existed for a long time before the industrial revolution. However,
over time there have been significant improvements in managing work. Among the people
that revolutionized management in the late 1800s and early 1900s are Frederick
Taylor, Frank Gilbreth, and Lilian Gilbreth. Managerial practices and understanding
that have stood the test of time emerged in the 20th century. Best practices evident in
workplaces are a product of those who refused to settle on mediocre ways of doing
business.
 Frederick Taylor

Taylor, together with his associates, began involving science in management. While
management existed, Taylor delved into scientifically understanding of the work process
and is considered scientific management's founder. His proposal in 1909, through his
published work, was inclined to increase productivity through optimization and
simplification of work. There was a need for the corporation of workers and managers to
optimize work in the existing system of production workers operated on their own, which
also lacked standards of efficient operation in maximizing production. He began designing
workplace best practices to increase efficiency and came up with scientific methods to do
tasks within a short time. The time allocated for each task was recorded, and the total time
was calculated and optimized to find the best time.
Frank and Lilian Gilbreth focused on motion studies. Lilian was a psychologist, while
Frank had a construction company. The inspiration to focus on innovating scientific
management was after meeting Taylor. The Gilbreths began a managing consulting
business, and Frank, an engineer, gave attention to motion studies in detail. He observed
the workers' movement of the bricklayers in his firm and began recommending how to
reduce the workers' fatigue to increase efficiency. They utilized therblig in their study of
the various parts of the job. Therblig involves the smallest parts of any completed job. They
used cameras to record the motions and timings that workers used to do repetitive work
and reduced the motions according to the system of behavioral units they created. After
classifying the movements of workers working on bricks and accounting for approximately
eighteen motions, he reduced them to four and a half motions. They concluded that
making employees work harder does not make them more productive. On the contrary,
easing the workload on workers intensifies their productivity.

Lillian Gilbreth

The Gilbreths' work was relevant in World War I, especially for the injured soldiers in
helping them navigate their daily activities. Observing their movements, he taught them
new ways of doing things. Lilian also utilized motion studies to improve household chores
by interviewing over 4,000 women.
The industrial revolution came with mass production of products, which meant industries
that did better were those with the highest efficiency in developing products. Taylor and
Gilbreths focused on the way products were created, which was significant and became
their product by affecting the way management was done. Refining the methods of
production meant maximization of value. While Taylor and the Gilbreths collaborated in
making management more efficient, they were also competitors. In some cases, they also
disagreed on how they viewed methodology and building practices. However, their
similarity was in how their work was geared towards increasing efficiency.

Frank Gilbreth

Time and Motion Study Methodology

All manufacturing companies want to achieve the best results with their workers most
quickly and effectively. Time and motion study offers a method that makes it possible to
measure and quantify production in a firm. This means examining every step in the
manufacturing process and the time taken by each process and coming up with ways to
minimize and do away with waste. The steps for doing the study include:

1. Select tasks and analyze them - The management needs to function specifically and
not in general if they are interested in quality results, by being specific means that
 the study's tasks are outlined and analyzed accordingly. It should also be
measurable.
2. Select workers for a sample - The study cannot involve every worker in the firm.
For greater efficiency in the study, having a sample of the workers can make the
study more intense and effective.
3. Estimate the cycles - This involves the average time taken to complete the tasks.
The estimate is critical because it shows where the workers are and how it affects
production. This may vary depending on factors such as time of day or demand for
the product in the market.
4. Communicate with the workers - Increasing efficiency occurs when management
works together with the workers. This occurs through communication on their
performance and what could be improved. Management can also use surveys to
get opinions from the workers.
5. Observe for the prescribed length of time - Observation of the tasks to be optimized
happens for a stipulated period. It could take several days and also at different times
of the day. The observer then records the time taken for accomplishing tasks in
centiminutes.
6. Use the data to calculate standard time - The recorded data is used for calculating
standard time. Since employees are different, an aspect of rating is introduced to
standardize time which is a percentage. Standard time is calculated by multiplying
the recorded actual time by the rating and dividing the results by 100.

For one complete job, the observer records the various divisions and elements that add to
the total time. Time to complete tasks also varies, meaning a time study has to be done
repeatedly. Every section is analyzed well to get the average rating and a more accurate
standard time.

Time and Motion Study Example

Amy, the manager of a successful bank, realizes that by the end of the day, she is usually
worn out because of the amount of work she does in the office. She decides to make
changes in her life to increase her efficiency at work while reducing fatigue by using the
time and motion study as a tool. She identifies the various aspects that make up for her
day at work and the time she takes doing those tasks. She also organizes them according
to their relevance to help her with elimination. She decides to keep this record for a week
and decide how to optimize her schedule. She keeps a timesheet app that helps her record
everything.
At the end of the week, she analyzed the activities, the time spent on them, and the value
of each activity. She notices many things that require changes in her weekly activities,
including:

 Giving less time to less valuable things.

 Overworking and multitasking.
 Doing things that are not in her job description.
  Unnecessary and multiple meetings that could be handled in her absence.
 Delegating work to her assistant.
 Focusing on her personal growth.

She makes changes to her weekly schedule to eliminate fewer valuable tasks or give them
less time when necessary. She decides to have fewer meetings in a week and focus on the
necessary meetings. Sometimes she resorts to sending representatives and delegating work
to others to give her time to focus on what is essential. She also decides to focus on what
is stipulated in her job description and be invested in her growth. Her efficiency at work
increases, and she begins going home without much fatigue.

Lesson Summary
Scientific management theory utilizes time and motion studies as the main tools of the
production process. Frederick Taylor began experimenting with management and
became the founder of scientific management. He focused on time study, while Frank
Gilbreth and Lilian Gilbreth were known for their pursuit of motion study, which sought
to determine the optimal motions needed for accomplishing a task efficiently. Both Taylor
and the Gilbreths were concerned about efficiency at work with the least possible energy.
They emphasized that fatigue did not necessarily signify high productivity and worked to
eliminate fatigue. Motion study uses therblig which are defined as the small parts of a job.
Time and motion studies began in the late 1800s and early 1900s and became essential in
the industrial revolution. The Gilbreths motion study became relevant in the lives of
injured soldiers of World War I, which helped them in their activities. Scientific
management became a significant aspect of the industrial revolution, simplifying tasks
while increasing efficiency. In how to do a time study, various steps involve selecting tasks
and conducting analysis, selecting a sample from workers, estimation of cycles,
communication with workers, observation and recording of and using the data in
calculating standard time.