Effects of basic mass production concepts and 5S implementation on a constrained process at Great Dane Trailers

Waste management in a manufacturing facility is often times a major contributing factor tomanufacturing efficiency and productivity. The issue of individual part and subassembly workflow to the major assembly stations is one of the numerous elements that have a direct correlation with manufacturing efficiency and productivity. The purpose of this research centers on the resultant cycle times of a single preselected assembly station with basic mass production principles and a 5S plan implemented.;A time study was conducted on the eleven main assembly stations at Great Dane Trailers in Terre Haute, Indiana in order to record twenty cycle times from each station. The time study was conducted on a standard composite trailer run in order to maintain consistency throughout the study. Mean cycle time of each station was compared to the company cycle time goal and the worst station was identified. Qualitative mass production practices and a 5S plan were then applied to the selected station based upon the specific needs to improve manufacturing efficiency and productivity.;Post-implementation and pre-implementation cycle times of the samples were analyzed via the use of Minitab 17 statistical software. The cycle time difference was assessed by use of a Two-Sample T-test at the 0.05 significance level. The test result provided a statistically significant reduction in the cycle time of the post-implementation compared to pre-implementation. Post implementation data was also compared with the production capacity required cycle time to meet the company goal, and was found to be significantly down.