Solutions to minimize defective products and errors in industrial production (Part 1)

Creating faulty and defective products is one of the inevitable in industrial production, and to handle them is also very costly. Careful manufacturing planning can minimize the material loss and the effort required to handle defective products.

Firstly, “by-products” are parts of the excess material in the production process. It is different from waste because it is still recyclable and gives a little profit to the manufacturer. Defective products occur when defective parts are detected on the product and need to be repaired, replaced, or reassembled.

In order to control waste, managers need to devise a clear classification system for waste and by-products. Next, identify the source of waste, review each step in the process, and ask the question, “In this step, which error is most likely to occur, human error or equipment failure?”

If the fault is human, it usually comes from transportation or when handled by hand, so it is advisable to apply automation to the manufacturing process to avoid direct human impact. Much will ensure the stability in the quality of the product.

Mike Lynch, founder of CNC-concept pointed out that: “Too many by-products during the manufacturing process proves that too many mistakes have occurred and your human resources need more training”. Well-trained and thorough training will help reduce human error, well-trained workers will use application software more accurately and make fewer mistakes.

If the defect stems from a lack of equipment, it’s time for your organization to evaluate its overall equipment performance. A suitable tool for this is TPM (Total Productive Maintanance). The TPM implementation is aimed at maximizing equipment efficiency, improving productivity with a maintenance system that is implemented throughout the device’s life cycle, while raising awareness and job satisfaction for laborer. With TPM, people join forces and interact with each other to improve the performance of the device in the most efficient way.

One of the pillars of TPM is Autonomus Maintenance (Jishu Hozen) – Self-maintenance maintenance: the purpose of helping machine operators know how to repair, maintain and identify damage to a certain extent. This work helps the operator know the structure and function of the machine, understand the relationship between the machine and the quality, get used to the strict compliance with regulations so that it can detect and diagnose correctly any often as well as a quick and appropriate fix. Combined with the evaluation of the overall equipment performance index (OEE), businesses can significantly reduce the amount of defective products by continuously monitoring the status of machinery and equipment and perform predictive maintenance before an error occurs.

Productivity and Quality Office