Time Study and Work Measurement

Chapters: 12. Introduction to Work Measurement 13. Direct Time Study 14. Predetermined Motion Time Systems 15. Standard Data Systems 16. Work Sampling 17. Computerized Work Measurement and Standard Maintenance 18. Economic Justification and Applications of Time Standards 19. Learning Curves
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Part III

Introduction to Work Measurement

Sections: 1. Time Standards and How They Are Determined 2. Prerequisites for Valid Time Standards 3. Allowances in Time Standards 4. Accuracy, Precision, and Speed of Application in Work Measurement

Chapter 12

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Time Is Important
Most workers are paid for their time on the job The labor content (cost of labor time) is often a major factor in the total cost of a product or service For any organization, it is important to know how much time will be required to accomplish a given amount of work

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Some Definitions
Work measurement evaluation of a task in terms of the time that should be allowed by an average worker to perform the task
4 techniques Focus on human work

Standard time (allowed time) amount of time that should be allowed for an average worker to process one work unit using the standard method and working at normal pace
Includes allowance

Time study
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Some Definitions
Work measurement Time study all the ways in which time is analyzed in work situations
Broader term

Focus on machine times

How much time it should take to accomplish a given task

Both terms (work measurement and time study) can be used interchangeably
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

When Are Time Standards Beneficial?

Characteristics of industrial situations in which time standards would be beneficial Low productivity: significant opportunities for improvement Repeat orders: once the time standard is set for the first, it can be used for successive ones Long production runs: reduced average cost of work measurement Repetitive work cycles: work measurement can be justified more readily Short cycle times: requires less time to set standards
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Functions of Time Standards

They define a fair days work They provide a means to convert workload into staffing and equipment needs They allow alternative methods to be compared objectively They provide a basis for wage incentives and evaluation of worker performance They provide time data for: Production planning and scheduling Cost estimating Material requirements planning
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Methods to Determine Time Standards

Vary in terms of accuracy and reliability of the values derived from the method amount of time required to apply the corresponding method
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Methods to Determine Time Standards

Estimation
Judgment of a person who is familiar with the job
Subjective Least accurate method

Historical records
Records on the actual times and production quantities for previous identical or similar job orders - Time cards
Average time per part Improvement over estimates Limitation: No indication of efficiency measures

Work measurement techniques

Time consuming More accurate than estimation and historical records
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Work Measurement Techniques

1. Direct time study (DTS)

2. Predetermined motion time system (PMTS)

3. Standard data systems (SDS)

These 3 are known as engineered standards Some effort has been made to determine the best method to accomplish a given task

4. Work sampling Determine proportions of time spent in work activities using randomized observations
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Task Hierarchy & Work Measurement

Pyramidal Structure of Work

Work measurement techniques measure work at different levels of this hierarchy

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Direct Time Study

Direct observation of a task using a stopwatch to record the time taken to accomplish a task. The task is usually divided into work elements and each work element is timed seperately. During the observation, the analyst evaluates the workers pace - performance rating Normal time Tn=Tobs(PR) where Tn= normal time, min; Tobs=observed time, min; PR=performance rating of the workers pace Standard time Tstd=Tn(1+Apfd)
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Predetermined Motion Time Systems

A database of normal times of basic motion elements (therbligs) such as reach, grasp, move etc. Conditions under which the motion elements (work variables) are performed are important. Example: normal time for TL
Distance moved Weight of the object being moved

The analyst list all of the basic motion elements that comprise the task; then normal times for basic motion elements are summed up to obtain the normal time for the task

Advantages:
No need for performance rating Can be applied before production starts
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Standard Data Systems

A compilation of normal time values for work elements used in the tasks performed in facility Used to establish time standards for tasks composed of work elements similar to those in the database

Source of data: direct time study, PMTS, work sampling, historical data
Effect of work variables should be included
Tables Charts Mathematical equations
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Work Sampling
A random sampling technique to estimate the proportions of time spent in different activities Identify activities clearly. Example: machine setup, production, idleness Multiple subjects (entities) can be included

Observations
Random: minimize bias Large in number: to achieve statistical accuracy

Objectives:
Setting time standards: Statistical estimation error is high Estimating resource utilization (different from other techniques) Determining an allowance factors (different from other techniques)
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Computerized Work Measurement

Facilitates collection of data Performs routine computations Organizes time standards files and databases Retrieves data in predetermined motion time systems and standard data systems Assists in the preparation of the documentation Methods descriptions Reports
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Prerequisites for Valid Time Standards

Time to perform a task depends on
worker (gender, strength etc.),

workers pace,
method used, work unit

Factors that must be standardized before a time standard can be set (except for the worker)

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Average Worker
A worker who is representative of the persons who usually perform tasks similar to the task being measured.
if the work is performed mostly by men (women), then the average worker is male (female)

have learned the task, practiced and proficient at it is capable of performing the task consistently throughout the shift

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Standard (Normal) Performance

A pace of working that can be maintained by an average worker throughout an entire work shift without harmful effects on the workers health or physical well-being The work shift includes periodic rest breaks and occasional interruptions are experienced by the worker (except for lunch breaks) Benchmarks of standard performance:
Walking at 3 miles/hr on level flat ground Dealing four hands of cards from a 52 card deck in exactly 30 sec

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Normal time / Standard time

Normal time: Time it takes to perform a task under the normal (standard) (100%) performance Normal time does not include allowances for time losses Standard time: Normal time + allowance Normal time(1 + Apfd)

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Distribution of Worker Performance

Variations among workers performance variations

Worker performance is expressed in terms of daily output

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

More on Standard Performance

Standard performance is commonly defined to be a pace that can be readily attained by the majority of workers (in stead of using allowances) Companies want most workers to be able to achieve the standard performance easily. A typical policy is to define standard performance so that an average worker is able to work at a pace that is 130% of that pace Thus, most workers are able to easily achieve standard performance
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

How a Standard Time is Defined

Distribution of worker performance, indicating how standard time is defined so that it can be readily achieved by most workers

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Standard Method
Determining the optimum method for processing a work unit One best method: the safest, quickest, productive, and least stressful to the worker most

Must include all of the details on how the task is performed, including:
Procedure - hand and body motions Tools Equipment Workplace layout (what are the locations of the parts, tools) Irregular work Working conditions (is the work performed outside or inside) Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work Setup by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7.
2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Standard Work Units

The time needed to process the work unit depends on its starting condition
Therefore this condition must be specified by engineering documents If the actual condition deviates from the specification, then extra time may be required to accomplish the task

Exactly what changes are made in the work unit by the task? What is the final state of the completed work unit? Service work: more difficult to define
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Allowances in Time Standards

Normal time is adjusted by an allowance factor Apfd to obtain the standard time Purpose of allowance factor is to compensate for lost time due to work interruptions and other reasons Standard time: Tstd = Tn(1 + Apfd) where pfd = personal time, fatigue, and delays
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Reasons for Lost Time at Work

Work-related interruptions Non-work-related interruptions

Machine breakdowns Waiting for materials or parts Receiving instructions from foreman Talking to co-workers about work-related matters Rest breaks for fatigue Cleaning up at end of shift

Personal needs (e.g., restroom breaks) Talking to co-workers about matters unrelated to work Lunch break (not included in Apfd) Smoke break Beverage break Personal telephone call

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

How to Allow for Lost Time

Two approaches used by companies: 1. Scheduled rest breaks during the shift Typical - one 15-minute break in midmorning and another in mid-afternoon 2. A PFD allowance is added to the normal time This allows the worker to take a break on his/her own time

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

PFD Allowance
Personal time
Rest room breaks, phone calls, water fountain stops, cigarette breaks (5% typical) For example: A larger value will be approporiate if the work environment is hot

Fatigue
Rest allowance to overcome fatigue due to work-related stresses and conditions (5% or more)- refer to Chapter 23 For example: If the work is physiologically very demanding, then relaxation time should be allowed periodically for the body to recover (in this case use 20% allowance)

Delays
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

PFD Allowance
Personal time

Fatigue
Delays
Random, unavoidable interruptions Machine breakdowns, foreman instructions (5% typical) Usually management is responsible for these delays. Sudden urge for a cigarette break? Is it personal or delay? Do you know how to measure allowances?

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Other Types of Allowances

There are other reasons for adding allowances, which are not as common as PFD allowances. They are applied in addition to Apfd Contingency Allowance
Additional allowance due to a problem with the task (e.g., raw material problem ) - not greater than 5% Temporary basis after solving the underlying problem, it will disappear

Policy allowance: They are based on company policy

Machine allowance (set by company policy as a part of the wage incentives.) Training allowance for teaching new workers Learning allowance learning a new task

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Contingency Allowances
Problem area Materials or parts Process Problems and examples Starting materials or parts are out of specification, and extra time is needed to correct the nonconformance (e.g., oversized casting that requires an extra machining pass or slower feed rate). Manufacturing process is not in statistical control (Section 10.2), and additional time is required to inspect every piece rather than inspect on a sampling basis. Equipment is malfunctioning or breaking down more frequently than what is provided by the unavoidable delay factor, and additional time is needed to compensate the worker to make adjustments, lubricate the machine more frequently, or other extra task(s) not included in the standard time.

Equipment

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Policy Allowances
To cover special work situations that are usually associated with a wage incentive system. Example: Machine allowance provides an opportunity of the worker to maintain a high rate of earnings even though (s)he has control over only a portion of the cycle. Tstd = Tnw (1 + Apfd) + Tm (1 + Am)

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Example: Use of machine allowance in a wage incentive plan

Given: A wage incentive plan pays workers a daily wage at a rate of $15/hr multiplied by the number of standard hours accomplished during the shift. Tnw =1 min, Tm =3 min, Apfd =15%. Workers work elements are external.

Determine the standard time for a) Am=0, b) Am=30%. c) What does a worker earn for the day under each Am (policy!) if (s)he produces 115 parts a day?
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Example Solution
a) Tstd = 1 (1 + .15) + 3 (1 + 0)=4.15 min b) Tstd = 1 (1 + .15) + 3 (1 + 0.30)=5.05 min c) Hstd under a) Hstd=115(4.15)/60=7.95 hr b) Hstd=115(5.05)/60=9.68 hr The worker is paid under a) 15(7.95)=$119.25 b) 15(119.25)=$145.19

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Other types of policy allowances

Training allowances: for workers whose responsibilities include teaching other workers Learning allowances: for workers who are learning a new job, or new employees

Worker would be reluctant to train others or to learn new jobs unless some form of compensation were provided to cover the losses because of training.
If a wage incentive plan is not used, there is no reason to have policy allowances.
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Measurement
A procedure in which an unknown quantity is compared to a known standard, using an accepted and consistent system of units Important attributes of a measurement system: Accuracy Precision Speed of response Work measurement is a measurement process
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Accuracy and Precision

Accuracy Degree to which the measured value agrees with the true value of the quality of interest Freedom from systematic errors, which are positive or negative deviations from the true value that are consistent from measurement to measurement Precision Repeatability of the measurement system High precision means random errors are small, where errors are assumed to follow a normal distribution Plus or minus three standard deviations often used as a benchmark: [m-3s,m-3s]
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Measurement Accuracy vs. Precision

High accuracy Low precision

Low accuracy High precision

High accuracy High precision

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Accuracy in Work Measurement

Accuracy is concerned with closeness to the true value But what is the true value of a task time? Measurement is a procedure in which an unknown quantity is compared with a known standard But the known standard in work measurement is the definition of standard performance used by the company The standard is not based on time
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Precision in Work Measurement

Precision is concerned with the expected variability within a single time study Precision of a time standard is determined at a certain reliability or confidence level
For example, the standard time for a task is 4.00 min, and we are 95% confident that the actual time is within 5% of that time 95 out of 100 time studies performed on the task, the resulting standard time values lie between 3.80 min and 4.20 min

Related term: Consistency concerned with variations in standard time values among different time study analysts
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Relative Accuracy of Time Standards

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Engineered Standards
Time standards that are based on measured time values that have been adjusted for worker performance Some effort has been made to determine best method to accomplish the task

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Application Speed Ratio

Speed of response the lag between the time when the measuring device is applied and when the measured value is available to the user how much time is required to determine the time standard for a given task
Varies for different work measurement techniques

In work measurement speed of response is application speed ratio. Application speed ratio = ratio of the time required to set the standard divided by the value of the time standard itself
Typical values = 100 to 250 Application speed ratio=100: It takes 100 min of analyst time to determine a 1 min-time standard.
Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.

Relative Application Speed

Work Systems and the Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work by Mikell P. Groover, ISBN 0-13-140650-7. 2007 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved.