contents

How to improve work study?

Reducing excess work content
Reducing ineffective time
Introduction to work study
Techniques of work study
Basic steps used in work study.
Improving the productivity
 Higher productivity of organization leads to national
prosperity and better standard of living.
 This has motivated many organizations to improve
productivity at different levels.
 Importance of time and the difference between actual
and required input for raising the productivity shall be
focused in this presentation.
Productivity of a man/ machine
 Time required to do a job
 Basic work content
 Excess work content
 Ineffective

 Increasing the productivity

 Reducing excess work content
 Reducing ineffective time
  Basic work content of

 Total ineffective
Total time to manufacture under existing conditions
product/ production

time
 Excess work content due to
defect in design of product

 ineffective time due to

lack of management

 Excess work content due to

 Total work

ineffective method of
content

operation/ manufacture

 ineffective time due to

lack of workers
Reducing excess work content
caused by imperfect design
 Product development and value analysis.
 Design and production the people should work together
 Improve the design in product development stage itself(in
light manufacturing and assembling needs)
 Alternation in design can be made for in reduced material
processing
• Standardization and specialization
 To reduce product variety
 increase batch size of production
 Allows use of high volume production processes.
Reducing excess work content due
to imperfect design
 Proper quality standards
 Market and consumer and research: needs of market
and consumers.
 Product research: technical requirement of product for
longer and better performance.
Reducing excess work content due
to inefficient manufacturing
 Process planning function
 Selection of machine for manufacturing
 Necessary tool are identified for use
 Identification of processing parameters(speed, feed etc)
Reducing excess work content due
to inefficient manufacturing
 Process planning and method study
 Factory lay out (reducing unnecessary movements)
 Developing improved working method

 Method study and workers training

 For improved working method and so as to reduce scrap
Reducing ineffective time due to
management’s inefficiency
 Productivity of an organization largely depends on its
production policy (batch size and expertise of worker)
 Marketing policy of management
 Should it go for specialized and standard product
 Should it go for variety of products demanded by each
customer?
 Proper product development before commencement of
production: avoids redesign , wastage as scrap and
rework.
Reducing ineffective time due to
management’s inefficiency
 Proper production planning:
 It makes job available to be done by the worker
 It should be based on sound standards of production
 These standards are set by work measurement.

 Proper materials control

 Foresee the requirement of tools/raw materials
 Purchase them at economical prices
 Reduce inventory cost
Reducing ineffective time due to
management’s inefficiency
 Proper maintenance results in
 Tools and machines in good working conditions
 Reduced rejections and scrap
 Good working on environment and training of workers
on safety may lead to
 Reduce accidents
 absentees
Reducing ineffective time due to
worker’s inefficiency
 Sound personnel policy of management
 Relationship between worker and management
 Training of workers and managers: worker/ attitude /
carelessness
 Motivational strategies (incentive, awareness, vision,
mission etc)
 Proper work/ rest schedule for workers
 Proper working conditions
 Looking into the grievances of worker and demands
How to increase productivity?
 To increase productivity there may be many methods
 Development of new manufacturing methods/processes
 Modernize the existing infrastructure and high capacity
machines
 Work study
Comparison of methods
 Development of new manufacturing process/ methods
 Long time
 Huge investment
 No limit on increase in productivity
 Modernize the existing infrastructure and high capacity
machines
 Purchase of machines/ process technology
 Huge investment
 No limit on increase in productivity
 Work study
 Limited or no investment
EVOLUTION OF WORK STUDY
 F.W.TAYLOR: founder of modern method and time
study.
 Taylor began his time study work in 1881.
 He established that each job should have a standard
time, determined by time studies.
 In the timing process Taylor advocated dividing the
work into small divisions of effort known as elements.
 Time was obtained for these element individually and
their collective values were used to determine the
allowed time for the task.
Work of Gilbreth
 Gilbreth is considered as the founder of ‘modern
motion study technique’
 Which is defined as the study of body motions used in
performing an operation for the purpose of improving
the operation by :
 Eliminating unnecessary motions
 Simplifying necessary motions
 Then establishing the most favorable motion sequence
for maximum efficiency
Gilbreth’s work
 He developed the technique of filming motions for
study, known as micro motion study.
 The Gilbreth also developed the cycle graphic and
chronocycle graphic analysis techniques for studying
the motion paths made by an operator.
 Consequently, with the chronocyclegraph it became
possible to determine direction and compute velocity,
acceleration and deceleration, in addition to study of
body motions.
Work study
 Work study may be defined as the analysis of a job for
the purpose of :-
 Finding the preferred method of doing it and
 Determine the standard time to perform it by the
preferred(or given) method.
 Work study therefore comprises of two areas of study :
 Method study (motion study)
 Time study (work measurement)
What is work study?
 Work study is a generic term for those techniques
(method study and work measurement) which are
used in examination of human work in all its contexts,
and which lead to systematic investigation of all the
factors affecting the efficiency and economy of a
situation under review in order to effect improvement.
 Linkage between work study and productivity is
apparent from above.
Techniques of work study
 Method study: it is a technique of systematic recording
and critical examination of existing and proposed
method of doing work for developing and applying
easier and more effective method and reducing cost.
 Work measurement: it is the application of techniques
designed to establish the time for a qualified worker to
carry out a specified job at a defined level of
performance.
Method study
 It is mainly concerned with reduction of added work
content of a job.
 It is mainly used to improve the method of doing work
and develop an effective method for new jobs.
 For existing jobs, method study aims to find better
method
 which is economical and safe.
 Requires less human effort
 Needs shorter make ready/ put away time.
Work measurement
 It is mostly concerned with investigation and
reduction of any in effective time associated with
existing job.
 Subsequently establishment of time standard for the
operation which has been improved my method study.
 There is no hard and fast ‘whether improved study or
work measurement is to be applied first.
 It depends whether operation for a job has been
perfected or not.
Relationship between work study
techniques

Method study
To simplify the job and
develop more economical
methods of doing a job
Work
study

Higher
prod
Work measurement uctiv
ity
To determine how long it
should take it carry out
Effect of work study
 Application of work study technique in any
organization can result in
 Greater output at less cost
 Better quality
 Higher productivity
Work study and ergonomics
 The work study and the ergonomics are the two areas
of having the same objective ‘ designing the work
system so that operator is same , so that operator is
safe,
 Subjected to less fatigue
 Takes less time to do the job.
Basic steps of work study
 Select: a job for study
 Record: direct observation or recording of events
 Examine: critical study of recorded events to check
their needs.
 New/ improved method in light of prevailing
conditions
 Measure: quantity of work involved in selected
method to find standard time.
 Define: new/improved method