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WP Inc. – Improvement Team

Robert Eickleberry MGMT 580 – Quality Management and Statistical Analysis Date June 14, 2012 Dr. Corriere Southwestern College Professional. WP Inc. – Improvement Team. Purpose and Objectives.

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WP Inc. – Improvement Team

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  1. Robert EickleberryMGMT 580 – Quality Management and Statistical AnalysisDate June 14, 2012Dr. CorriereSouthwestern College Professional WP Inc. – Improvement Team

  2. Purpose and Objectives • Problem Statement (rough draft): The automatic parts washer spray nozzles are clogging with particles causing the parts washer to be shut down. • It is the goal of this improvement team to Plan, Do, Study, and Act for the above issue.

  3. Team Organization

  4. Roles and Responsibilities • Robert Eickleberry, Quality Management and Statistical Analysis Student, will review the data, produce a solution, implement the resolution, evaluate the solution, and finally determine how to identify continuous improvement opportunities. • WP Inc. automatic parts washer operator will also be involved as he/she is familiar with the issue and can provide key information to help answer important questions directly related to this specific task and device. • WP Inc. Management team will review the recommendations of the improvement team and will have the final decision of implementing any changes.

  5. Recognize a Problem Exist • The automatic parts washer that WP Inc. uses to wash all of its parts is causing major time delays. As a critical quality control process, it is important that this process operate correctly and without impact to production. • Initial investigation relieves that the spray nozzles of the washer are clogging. Operators are reporting that this clogging is resulting the machine being shut down so the nozzles can be cleaned out.

  6. Develop Performance Measures • Determine how often the washer currently has to be shut down a day, week, and month. From that baseline, we are looking for a solution that results in an as close to zero unexpected down time as possible. An operator record sheet will be used to record when the washer is being shut down unexpectedly. • This record sheet will require the time the machine was shut down, when it was restarted, and why it was shut down. This daily record sheet will go to the local quality assurance engineer who can periodically review the data to identify any improvement opportunities.

  7. Clearly Identify the Problem • WP Inc. is experiencing a delay in its production process due to a failure in the automatic parts washer. According to the washer operator the machine is being shut down on a daily basis because the washer’s spray nozzles are becoming clogged with debris. • Since part of the quality control process requires all parts be washed, this delay directly impacts WP Inc.’s ability to meet delivery schedules promised to their customers. This is unacceptable to upper-management and requires a solution.

  8. Clearly Identify the Problem Cont. • Based on initial questioning of the washer operator and data gathered over the past month, the nozzles have been cleaned out twice mid-day and the rest of the shut downs happened at the end of the day. Upon review by the operator the nozzles are clogging with small particles that appear to be white and flake-like in appearance.

  9. Brainstorming: Ideas/Solutions • Identify Particles: 1. Trace amounts of salt 2. Trace amounts of minerals 3. Dust particles 4. Crystallization 5. Fungus/Bacteria 6. Magnesium carbonate buildup 7. Hot water heater tubes disintegrating over time 8. Pieces of the hose disintegrating from the inside (due to chemical or heat)

  10. WHY–WHY Diagram

  11. Purpose and Objectives Reviewed • Problem Statement (reviewed): The automatic parts washer spray nozzles are clogging with particles causing the parts washer to be shut down. This is causing a delay in the production process. It appears trace amounts of a white flake-like substance is clogging the washer spray nozzles requiring the machine to be shut down for cleaning/repair.

  12. Document & Analyze

  13. Document & Analyze Cont.

  14. Document & Analyze Cont.

  15. Force-Field Analysis • (Stop Parts Washer Shut Down Due to Nozzle Blockage) • Driving Forces – • Reduce delays in production • Improve customer relations • Maintain ship dates • Remove bottle neck from production • Restraining Forces – • Machine’s capability • Soap Solutions Solubility • Cost of new machine • Filtration Implementation/Maintenance Cost • Actions – • Purchase Filtration System • Purchase New Parts Washing machine (double production) • Recalculate soaps solubility after evaporation occurs • Cycle water periodically

  16. Solutions: (brainstorming) 1. Create wider spray nozzles 2. Have washer get water from different source 3. Clean the machine periodically throughout the day 4. Use a different detergent 5. (If hard-water or calcium) route water source through water softener. 6. Automatic filtration system a. Nano-filtration - A pressure-driven membrane separation process that generally removes substances in the nanometer size range. Its separation capability is controlled by the diffusion rate of solutes through a membrane barrier and by sieving and is dependent on the membrane type. b. Reverse Osmosis- A pressure-drive process in which almost-pure water is passed through a semi permeable membrane. Water is forced through the membrane and most ions (salts) are left behind. Principally used for desalination of seawater. 7. Purchase another parts washing machine (2 in production) 8. Purchase a larger model parts washing to handle the work load (1 in production)

  17. Recommendations • In order to resolve the issue of the automatic parts washer needing to be shut down because of clogged spray nozzles WP Inc. has several options. The ones that present the best solutions require modifications to the current quality control process. These solutions will allow the organization to meet the shipping schedule of parts that are contracted to customers. • One of the solutions is to purchase an additional automatic parts washer, while this is a great way to expand production; it doesn’t resolve the clogging issue and could result in possibly having both machines shut down at the same time.

  18. Recommendations Cont. • It is the recommendation of this improvement team that WP Inc. implements two new processes to its quality control process for washing the parts and purchase 1 new filtration system to add a control mechanism to its washing process. While the new washing processes are simple changes, one will increase cost while the other will reduce cost. Since the improvement team is not aware of the cost of detergent used in the cleaning cost, we cannot provide those cost changes.

  19. Recommendations Cont. • The first change to the washing process is to require the water holding tank to be flushed out mid-day. This will allow for any impurities to be removed and allow for the proper water-detergent ratio to be achieved. This purging of the holding tank will allow the operator and quality control team to factor in this process to their production times, allowing them to meet schedule times and customer shipping demands. There should be a daily schedule form that the operator fills out when this process happens, so that the quality control team can monitor the information. • Due to evaporation the required water-detergent ratio becomes unbalanced, this leads to the second improvement process, which changes how the tank if refilled when the operator replenishes this deficit. Currently the operator will replace the evaporated water with a detergent-water solution. We recommend the operator refill the tank with water only. Since only the H2O is being changed into gas form, the detergent is becoming highly concentrated causing clogging and buildup. We recommend again that the parts washer operator be required for fill out a form when water is added, part of the form should require how much water was added to due evaporation.

  20. Recommendations Cont. • While it is not necessary to purchase and install a filtration system to resolve the clogging issue, it is this team’s recommendation that by implementing a Nano-filtration system higher levels of quality control can be reached. The filtration system would allow any impurities in the water to be removed. This allows for better solubility with the detergent. The filtration system can also help control water temperature, which also helps contribute to better solubility. By installing a filtration system, WP Inc. can be proactive in helping resolve future clogging issues that directly affect production. Again, it is beyond the scope of this improvement team to give an estimated cost analysis for this equipment. • WP Inc. can improve its production process and reduce impact to customers if these simple modifications to its current processes are made. By not having a bottleneck delay at the automatic parts washer due to unexpected down time, the organization can maintain important shipping dates, which will lead to improved customer relationships; a win-win for WP Inc. and its customers.

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