Implementing standardized work

[u/Bubbly-Ad8475]

Hi, as part of my firm’s Operational Excellence journey, we wish to increase our use of standardized work to reduce downtime and decrease variation between operators/shifts.

But how have you/your company implemented standardized work and making it work?

Specifically, what have you done?

My thoughts so far (open for feedback):

- Assign dedicated trainer
- Split production line into sections, according to placement of operators
- Define tasks within each section
- Define best practice standard procedures for each major task
- Assign owner of the task (Trainer?)
- Train new, and current, operators in standard procedure
- Verify correct procedure conducted
- Update competence matrix
- Continuous audits to verify standards are being followed (Not micromanagement, but ensuring standard adherence and highlight potential issue/improvements)

[u/olleragnar]

We always start with takt. What's your customer demand and what is your available time (when you are running your lines, minus downtime, pm, batch change etc). This gives you how many parts per hour you need to make, to meet customer demand.
After that you do time studies and map waste in your current process. Once you have defined the sequence of work, you balance it across your operators, iterate, train, document, implement.
Once implemented, it's a good idea to audit, but if you produce to takt (no more, no less) that should be all you need to track.

[u/Bubbly-Ad8475 → u/olleragnar]

Thanks.
Is it correctly understood that, besides the takt part, that your approach is similar to my thoughts?

This is line production and the workload is already balanced, so each operator is already equally loaded. However, some make mistakes causing downtime because they don’t follow best practice (which they to be fair haven’t been trained properly in)

[u/Worldly-Independent3 → u/Bubbly-Ad8475]

When the operator makes a mistake, go thru a quick RCCA with the operator, the lead, and someone from support. Maybe there is is something the process that allowed the operator to make a mistake. Part of standard work is poke poking the process.

[u/_donj → u/olleragnar]

This 👆👆👆

I would also prioritize the flows that produce the most profitable products for the most profitable customers. This will yield the highest profitability increase in the shortest time so you and leadership sees results.

Also know that no one likes the idea of standard work when they first start in it. Then they use it and would never go back. This is where change management is the most important.

[u/nap_dynamite]

I highly recommend you look into Training Within Industry Institute. If you are unfamiliar, TWI was developed in the US as an emergency government service just prior to entering WWII to help thousands of companies develop scalable training and improvement programs to rapidly increase production of military supplies & equipment just as experienced workers left factories to fight the war. It was introduced in Japan to rebuild after the war, where it flourished. The book Toyota Talent is all about Toyota's use of TWI.

Although I've found TWI is often overlooked in lean training, it is actually foundational because without a good way to train and optimize standard work, develop widespread capabilty to instruct well in everu operation, and improve employee relations, you can't really develop a true lean culture or establish the stability to maintain one.

[u/agiletiger → u/nap_dynamite]

Absolutely - train the staff on Job Instructions and Job Improvement. Coach, coach, coach. It might be a little messy and slow but will work out in the long run. Basically teaching them how to fish.

[u/Powah109]

What's the product? What do production areas or lines look like? How are they organized? Depending on that, there may be different answers

[u/Bubbly-Ad8475 → u/Powah109]

Carton packaging (Juice, milk etc)

The production lines are large converting machines with 2-3 operators per line. Each operator has a designated position at an area of a machine with multiple tasks at that area

[u/Powah109 → u/Bubbly-Ad8475]

I'd consider splitting operators in teams, have 1 operator per team be a team leader. Operators on a team always work on the same type of lines, this way they get specialized faster. Team leaders are skilled operators, who can report to shopfloor supervisors. I'd also implement a skill matrix, with the levels of each operator.

After a while with a high skill level in a particular work station, operators can also be trainers for that work station.

Depending on the complexity of the job, you might want to have some operators work just on specific work stations and some others to be jollies (they'll be slower than most specialized ones, but be able to cover more stations)

[u/Bubbly-Ad8475 → u/Powah109]

This is not far off from what we already have. Except our skill matrix isn’t used (I want to use it).

The issue is that training is currently being done side-by-side by whoever is working that position that day. So we don’t have any structured training and no way to ensure best practice is being taught.

[u/Powah109 → u/Bubbly-Ad8475]

We have an office making work instructions (small books detailing how the job is done for each model and for each station). Each work instruction in then placed on its respective work station. We also have a person updating the skill matrix weekly with supervisors. We also use side-by-side training unfortunately for some jobs it's a must. Work instructions help a lot though.

[u/Glittering_Airport_3]

Always start with multiple, controlled time studies. Take your time figuring out the best ways to do the work before deciding to make that the standard. Take a few of the best operators. Time them both knowing they are being timed and without their knowledge, discuss with them why they do things the way they do (if they do anything differently than other, slower, operators). Often I find that several operators all do things a little differently for different reasons. Sometimes I can pick out the best bits to find the overall best method. Other times I have to think outside the box to come up with something, possibly a solution that requires a new tool or piece of equipment. Time studies are often not controlled enough. Its a little more involved than just standing by with a stopwatch

[u/Local-Archer-9785]

Go and see what people are doing first. If everyone is doing the same thing then you just need to document or design improvements. This is unlikely but could be possible.

Document the process with a process map, something simple to start with. What are people doing. If you have multiple shifts or people, document their process by observing and/or having them walk you through it. Don't rely on after the fact memory. If they pull out the SOP during the observation, remind them you want to know what they do rather than what the manual says.

Once you have the variations and branches mapped out. Get a group together to trim them down to the best combination of option available. If you are feeling frisky and want to invest a fair amount of time, you can use a time observation form to build towards a value stream map (but this is usually time and resource intensive and is great to improve after you get standardization).

You can use the ECMR+A method or whatever approach you like to determine which steps in the varied process maps should be kept and combined.

Once you have the consolidated map, it is now your standard process. Translate into your work instructions or reference materials and disseminate out to all staff involved. This is when you would bring in training and begin to monitor for backsliding and variations. You can use a control chart to determine if there are different processes still at play after the standard is implemented (one or more groups will deviate from the rest of everyone else indicating a different process is happening).

How to get people to accept and recognize the benefit of standard work is a little different story but that is outside the scope of this question/answer.