Opm500: Module 5 Case Study

Memorandum for Mr. George Washburn:

I will attempt to analyze the situation in the Plasti-brack product line, diagnose the problem and identify possible solutions to the capacity and order backlog. After conducting my analysis, I will determine an appropriate plan for correcting the problem., and make recommendations using my knowledge of productivity, process management, inventory, capacity, forecasting, and quality.

The existing problems that are affecting EMC's production capacity can be summarized as below:

1.) There is a high reject rate of plastic inserts coming from MG 251, as found in the Plastic-Brack Assy, MG403 - it seems to be somewhere between 12% to 20% reject rate, depending on which plastic insert.

2.) Molding dies are very old and some of the mold cavities are closed off because of previous poor quality, which further reduces the yield rates from the standard expectations. Dies for P90, P120B, and P135 each have one cavity closed off.

3.) New plastic injection molding dies cost $25,000 each, or $30,000 each if they are designed for quick changeover. The lead time for manufacturing these dies by an outside tool and die company is 6 weeks each.

4.) One of the four molding machines, M101, has a record of high unscheduled repair and downtime. It seems to need some minor adjustments several times per week, which is causing low uptime for it.

5.) The die change over times are almost 500% more than the new standards that are available in the market and in conjunction with the other delays are contributing significantly to the loss of peak yield that the company is witnessing.

Below are other existing obstacles that is affecting capacity utilization:

 The capacity utilization for the processes are not uniform, thereby, causing wait time and excess inventory at each of the work stations. This is resulting in loss of productivity and efficiency.

 The bottleneck process has an upside of only 7% considering only 1 shift is running on a day today basis.

There are 4 major processes in the Plasti-Brack end to end process with each having different total throughputs:

* 153 Bracket presses have a throughput of 4800 units per hour (assuming 2 presses operating)

* Plastic injection moulds have a throughput of 4800 pieces per hour (assuming 4 molding machines operating)

* Machine group assembly has a throughput of 3360 pieces per hour (assuming 7 workers are performing the assembling activities)

* Bulk packing machine has a throughput of processing 24,000 pieces per hour

The above analysis is the foundation for my short term