1st Edition
The Standardized Work Field Guide
This field guide can be used directly on the gemba (work area) for implementing and documenting standardized work. It promotes the "future state" of standardized work along with crucial step-by-step techniques and explanations not found in other publications. The authors furnish many real examples of work problems that cause Lean practitioners difficulty with documentation, along with accurate solutions to those problems. The many illustrations and graphics focus on practice rather than theory. Readers learn that standardized work is not simply a tool for documentation but a method for reducing variation and providing continuous improvement through kaizen.
How to Use This Field Guide
Introduction
Layout Sketch: Where It All Begins
Introduction
Basic Layout Sketch Rules
Some Problems Are More Complicated
Food for Thought
Questions for Layout Sketch Review
Introduction
Answers for Layout Sketch Questions
Standardized Work Chart: Building on an Idea
Introduction
SWC
TT and Desired Cycle Time
Stopwatches
Some Tips on Choosing Start/Stop Points
Simple Stopwatch Method
Memory Stopwatch Method #1
Variation
Memory Stopwatch Method #2
Summary of the Three Stopwatch Methods
Food for Thought
Some Other Information on the SWC
Questions for Standardized Work Chart Review
Introduction
Answers for SWC Questions
Work Combination Table: Where Time and (Work) Space Collide
Introduction
How-To: WCT
Meanwhile, Here in the Work (Real) World
Real-World Problem: OCT > TT
Real-World Problem: OCT < TT (and Forced Wait at End of Work Cycle)
Real-World Problem: Forced Wait during Work Cycle
Real-World Problem: Showing Work Elements with No Walk between Them
A Dose of Reality: Some Problems Are Much More Serious
Real-World Problem: Work Sequence Does Not Match Geographic Sequence
Real-World Problem: Worker Returns to Same Location during Cycle
Real-World Problem: Parallel Machines Due to Excessive Machine Cycle Times #1
Some Problems Seem Impossible to Resolve
Real-Life Example: Parallel Machines Due to Excessive Machine Cycle Times #2
Do Not Get Hung Up: Some Rules Are More Like Guidelines
Sometimes, We Outsmart Ourselves
Some Food for Thought
Watch Your Step: Waste Is Everywhere
Real-Life Example: Changing the Unit of Flow during the Worker Cycle
Wrap-Up
Questions for Work Combination Table Review
Introduction
Answers for WCT Review
Where Do We Go from Here?
Introduction
Man–Machine Utilization Graph
Task Summary Sheet
Questions for Miscellaneous Tools Review
Introduction
Answers for Miscellaneous Tools Questions
Biography
Timothy D. Martin worked in manufacturing engineering for more than 32 years in the electrical and electronics industries. He has been a Lean practitioner for more than 20 years and has a broad range of continuous improvement experience, including extensive hands-on Lean implementation. Since 2010, Tim has been working to implement Lean transformation in the healthcare industry. He earned a BSEET from Purdue University and a MSM from Indiana Wesleyan University. He also is co-author of New Horizons in Standardized Work: Techniques for Manufacturing and Business Process Improvement , with Jeffrey T. Bell. Jeffrey T. Bell has over 25 years in the aviation manufacturing and automotive electronics manufacturing sectors where he designed numerous manufacturing systems using standardized work as a basis. He earned a BSIE from Kettering University and a MSE in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University. Scott A. Martin is a freelance artist/illustrator and business manager living in Birmingham, Alabama. His most recent works include book illustrations and website designs in digital media, although he also is experienced with other forms of traditional art, including pencil, ink, oil, and acrylics. He also is an amateur sand sculptor, pumpkin carver and print maker. Scott studied communications at the University of Alabama.
"The real power of Lean occurs when a specialized technique that is typically practiced by a highly technical person, such as an industrial engineer, is taught, understood, and used by an everyday person. I love what Tim and Jeff have created! They have brought standardized work into the realm of understanding of anyone. I do not think that I have seen anyone take a dry subject like this and make it so fun, engaging, and interactive. The Standardized Work Field Guide kept my inner five-year-old child entertained and wanting to turn each page. It is clearly written and explained in language that mere mortals can understand. The drawings help make the material interesting and fun. The fun and interactive nature of the book helped to embed the learnings more deeply. The exercises and the examples are practical and represent real-life situations. I learned a number of tips about standard work that I had not understood before. This is now my go-to book on standardized work."
—Joseph Swartz, administrative director, business transformation, Franciscan Alliance, Inc."This guide is intended to be a workbook that walks you through the development of your standardized work. I encourage you to take it to the gemba and use its templates and tables to document your processes as they exist today. It is through its lessons, exercises, and repetitive use that you will gain experience and confidence to develop your documentation and reduce variation to create a better product. I hope you enjoy the book and the lessons as much as I did."
—Brian W. Hudson, senior advisor, Lean Six Sigma Purdue Healthcare Advisors
