The client
The client is a company specialized in mechanical processing, engaged in the production of components for highly technical systems. Thanks to a highly automated machinery fleet, the company is a benchmark for quality, reliability, and flexibility.
The growing variety of products, combined with the need to reduce delivery times and ensure consistent quality, has made the definition and application of standard operating processes increasingly urgent. Work standardization, one of the founding principles of Lean philosophy, was therefore identified as a strategic lever necessary to improve the efficiency of production processes.
The client’s requirement
In recent years, the company has experienced an increase in operational complexity. The causes lie in the customization of orders, the demand for increasingly stringent product parameters, and the expansion of the customer base. The department particularly affected is assembly, where about 20 employees work.
Assembly instructions were conveyed through samples, often marked with tags or notes written directly on the components.
This system gave rise to a number of challenges.
Variability, quality, and defects
The samples lacked clarity and precision regarding the operations to be carried out, their sequence, and the necessary tools. Many instructions, guidelines, and precautions were even missing altogether. To fill these gaps, more experienced operators and department heads were constantly consulted. However, many aspects still escaped this ‘control,’ making the final result variable and dependent on the skills and experience of the operators. This led to errors and non-conformities, which required rework or scrapping of the part. This situation was in direct contrast with the organization’s culture of excellence, and therefore had to be addressed as a priority.
Expertise transfer
Given the inadequacy of the sample-based system, know-how was fragmented and remained in the hands of the most experienced staff rather than within the company itself. In addition to retention issues and resistance to improvement, this made its transfer between operators difficult. In fact, in order to learn a new assembly, it was necessary to be paired with an experienced operator. Transferring know-how in this way proved to be very complicated, leading to errors and requiring significant time. These difficulties discouraged learning and led operators to specialize in specific assembly codes, creating production rigidity. All these consequences were further exacerbated by the generational turnover taking place in the department, representing another critical issue to be addressed.
Time and space inefficiencies
The samples were arranged on shelves around the department and took up a significant amount of space. Some of them, being very bulky, were stored further away and had to be transported with pallet jacks and lifted onto the benches with overhead cranes. Many samples also had to be disassembled before they could be used. In addition, using the samples required constant information exchange with experienced personnel. All these factors, although unrelated to each other, demonstrate how the use of samples was the cause of numerous time wastes.
Solution provided
To address these issues, it was decided to implement a structured standard work system. Standard work instructions are a detailed and comprehensive list of operations that define how to perform a specific task according to the best-known method within the organization. They are therefore a very important tool not only for quality, variability control, and training, but also for continuous improvement and its dissemination.
This initiative is part of a broader Lean transformation journey aimed at fostering an organizational culture focused on operational discipline, waste reduction, and active people engagement. Moreover, this effort paves the way for significant future efficiency initiatives, such as process digitalization and certification.
Creation of the tools, consumables, and PPE list
Before starting work on the assembly instructions, the tools, consumables, and PPE available in the department were recorded. In addition to providing a foundation for the subsequent phases of the project, this also made it possible to identify and eliminate unnecessary or redundant items. Alongside this, a 5S activity was carried out, aimed at renewing the workbenches and tool cabinets in the department.
Model development
Another very important preliminary phase was the creation of a standard model for instructions. This had to meet three key objectives:
- Simplicity and clarity: the instructions had to be easy for operators to read and use.
- Completeness of information: the instructions had to include all the information needed to carry out the assemblies, without having to look for it elsewhere.
- Common model for the different assemblies: all assemblies had to follow a single shared model.
A significant portion of each sheet was dedicated to images, so that one could be associated with each instruction line. Images are the first element to capture attention, and highlighting them greatly facilitates understanding.
Another important space was dedicated to the tools and consumables needed, making it simple and quick to use the right ones at each stage. These are also summarized on one of the initial pages of the photo guide, allowing them to be gathered all at once at the beginning of the procedure, saving time compared to retrieving each tool individually. Finally, the item codes and descriptions were included to eliminate any ambiguities that may arise when dealing with very long bills of materials.
Development of assembly instructions
The drafting phase of the instructions was carried out together with department managers and designated operators, i.e., those with the most in-depth knowledge. To achieve a satisfactory result and test the various alternatives, two trials were usually required for each pre-assembly. Based on these, the standard instructions were drawn up. In addition, these trials provided an opportunity to assess quality, improve processes and products, and update documentation.
Instruction validation
After drafting an instruction, and before giving it final approval, a validation phase was always carried out. An operator with no prior experience on that product performed the assembly by following only the standard instructions that had been created. This served to verify that the instructions were correct and easy to follow, even on the first attempt. If no critical issues emerged during this final test, the standard was definitively approved.
Instruction revision
Even after the approval of the standard, the work on the instructions was not finished: many improvements become evident with experience and over time, and various external decisions also have an impact on them. To keep up with changes and improvements, these guides were therefore updated.
Benefits achieved
The initiative implemented in the pre-assembly department has led to the following results:
- Non-conformities decreased by 32%, thanks to the clarity and completeness of the standard instructions compared to the samples.
- The training path for new resources has been improved, and from the very first stages they are now able to work with a certain degree of autonomy.
- Production flexibility has significantly improved, as the standard instructions facilitate the sharing and learning of assembly procedures among all operators; absences and the unavailability of a resource can now be managed more easily.
- The elimination of the samples freed up an area of 670 sqm, which can now be used more productively.
- The actions taken have had a positive impact on the department’s productivity, which has increased by 9%.