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Setup Reduction

PROBLEM:  

A plastic injection molding company specializing in under-the-hood plastic parts for the automotive industry was experiencing setup times significantly longer than industry benchmarks.  This situation was increasing production support costs and impacting the company’s ability to effectively reduce lot sizes and quickly respond to changes in customer delivery requirements.

APPROACH:

A cross-functional team was established to address the entire setup/changeover process. A high-level process flow map was drafted describing current state of the mold preparation and setup function process.  Time studies for setups across several classes of presses were conducted to provide data for the value stream mapping process.  Analysis of all available data highlighted that there were two major contributors to overall changeover times: handling of water lines to the mold (32%) and constant interruptions once the setup team started their setup process (20%). 

Further analysis indicated that use of manifolds for heating and cooling water lines might significantly reduce the overall time for any setup.  Average improvement for a given press size was estimated at approximately 30 minutes per setup.  Based on these findings, the team designed a prototype manifold, performed initial ROI estimates and recommended to management that a pilot project be done on a large, high activity press to verify projected savings.  Results from the pilot installation confirmed savings estimates and all six presses in that size category were retrofitted with water manifolds. 

The project team also recommended development of a “best practices” setup procedure, definition of a comprehensive training program for all setup teams, and methods for improving communication across production operations.  They felt that better communication would optimize the use of overall resources such as material handlers, quality inspectors, and production supervisors.

 RESULTS:

• Reduction of 450 hrs/year in setup labor for the six presses in this size range
• Increased production capacity of 225 hrs/year with minimal investment
• Payback of seven months for total labor and hardware costs of the retrofits
• Improved safety in aisles and around presses
• “Best Practices” procedure incorporated into a new training program for all setup teams. Initial results from improving communication methods indicate an additional time savings of at least 7%.
• Activities underway to better integrate and utilize total manufacturing resources

BEFORE

AFTER

Process Improvement Home

Material Flow 

Setup Reduction

Lean Manufacturing

Cost Reduction

Waste Reduction

President 

Vice President

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