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CASE  STUDY  Process  De-­‐Bottlenecking

CLIENT:  Major  Pipe  Manufacturer  

LOCATION:  NSW,  Australia  

 

   

THE  CHALLENGE:    

The  client  was  Australia’s  largest  manufacturer  of  Oil  and  Gas  pipe.  

Market   pressures   and   delivery   timeframes   for  some   specific   customers   meant   that   increased  throughput   without   additional   production   shifts  was  required.  

THE  SOLUTION:  

To  understand   the  process   and   its   performance,  12  months  of  production  data  was  analysed,  with  initial   analysis   showing   that   there   was   a  significant  bottleneck  in  the  production  line.  

More  detailed  analysis  using  the  Six  Sigma  DMAIC  toolset,   in   particular,   Failure   Modes   and   Effects  Analysis   (FMEA)   and   statistical   analysis   of   cycle-­‐by-­‐cycle  production  data  showed  that  there  were  a  number  of  factors  that  were  contributing  to  the  area  being  the  bottleneck:  

1. Component   reliability   in   the   production  equipment  

2. Errors  in  the  equipment  control  systems  that  meant   that   product  was  processed  multiple  times  

3. Product   specification   inconsistencies   that  forced   processing   of   product   through   the  bottleneck  that  did  not  require  processing.  

     

THE  RESULT:  

Dependent   on   the   product   mix,   an   increase   of  between  15%  and  30%  throughput  was  achieved.  

The   analysis   also   quantified   the   throughput  through   the   production   steps   and   enabled   an  understanding  of  the  movement  of  the  constraint  areas,  through  the  plant,  as  product  mix  changed.    This   facilitated   a   heightened   awareness,   by  production   personnel,   of   plant   bottleneck   areas  and   their   effect   on   overall   performance.     This  awareness  then  changed  the  shift  tactics  used   in  the  operation  of  the  equipment.      

This   work   also   enabled   more   efficient   and  effective   maintenance   of   equipment   in   the  bottleneck   area,   as   the   critical   components   had  been  identified.  

Having  greater  knowledge  of  the  bottleneck  area  and   the   inter-­‐relationship  with   other   equipment  in   the   production   line,   more   appropriate   plant  throughput   measures   and   targets   were  developed  and  implemented.