The Efficiency Improvement by Concurrent Engineering and ECRS Technique : A Case Study in Automotive Small Parts Manufacturer

Abstract

This research studies is to study and improve the efficiency of metal forming process in the production plants of automotive parts having the same left-right dimension. From the study, the customers' demand of the metal stamping part has increased. However, the production capacity could not satisfy the increase in such demand. The methodology of research used Concurrent Engineering and ECRS Techniques for improvement. As some of the processes in the production line are duplicated and redundant, we, therefore, analyze the possibility to reduce such redundancy. The research started from the study of punch-die design, the running time of each stage. There are two functions improved in this research, the punch-die design, and manufacturing processes. The results from the improvement showed that the step of operation was reduced from 7 to 4 steps which were 42.8% reduction. Also, the number of machinery and staff together was reduced from 7 to 4 machines which were 42.8% reduction. The excess staffs, therefore, can further produce additional parts in the other production lines. In brief, the production efficiency increased after implementing the proposed strategy.