TPM Knowledge Series - 02 [TPM Team Activities and Inspections]

Thread Content

　　TPM Team Activities and Inspections I. Autonomous Team Activities in TPM Autonomous team activities in TPM should be integrated into the organizational structure. The main aspects of these activities and their goals are the four \"Nos\": no defects, no failures, no accidents, and no work errors. The key characteristic is full participation by all members, turning tasks that were previously carried out by a few people into actions undertaken voluntarily by everyone. 　　1. Composition of the team and methods of operation The team is a grassroots organization under the workshop; it usually consists of 3–10 members. The team leader is elected by the team members, and a regular meeting is held once a week, lasting about 0.5–1 hour. The company holds TPM meetings twice a year to reward outstanding teams. The success of TPM can be said to depend on the enthusiasm of the managers. As long as managers understand TPM and have a drive for improvement, they are bound to succeed. First, managers must clarify the key points for promoting TPM within the basic business policies, which are the establishment of TPM’s basic policies and goals. Every employee must fully understand the goals that the management aims to achieve. We need to figure out, \"How can we make a decision on-site that aligns with what the operator hopes for?\" ”The perspective comes from clearly defining the group goals. This is the team format in TPM. Self-awareness: It refers to promotion under the guidance of organizational systems. The basic way of thinking behind TPM is to integrate top-down target management with regular on-site team activities. 　　2. Objectives of TPM team activities Achieve comprehensive efficiency in the system through mutual respect and full participation by all members. Thoroughly eliminate the 7 major losses that affect equipment efficiency, bring the equipment to its optimal operating condition, and ensure safety, the fulfillment of production plans, stable and improved quality, cost reduction, and compliance with delivery deadlines. Therefore, it can improve performance and also become a factory with a promising future. It aims to promote the development of the company as well as the improvement of the skills of each employee. In TPM, this kind of thinking and action is transformed into activities carried out by repeat teams; the purpose of TPM team activities can be said to be the same as the purpose of TPM itself. 　　3. Main contents of group activities 　　① Formulate the group’s goals based on the company’s overall TPM plan ； 　　②Propose suggestions and measures to reduce downtime due to failures, as well as personal goals to achieve ； 　　③Carefully fill out the equipment status records and conduct analysis and research on the actual situation ； 　　④Hold regular meetings to assess the progress toward goals ； 　　⑤Assess the results and set new goals ； 　　Group activities have different focuses at various stages; in the initial phase of TPM implementation, cleaning and training are the main priorities. In the middle phase, maintenance operations are the main focus, while in the later phase, group meetings, inspections, and self-maintenance take precedence. 　　4. Behavioral science principles in group activities 　To align the goals of group activities with those of the company, it is necessary to make achieving the company’s goals a necessity for every employee. Whether this can be done well depends mainly on management philosophy. 　　“The “authoritarian” management style focuses solely on production variables; it tends to manage enterprises through “rules” and “commands”. Employees fear their superiors, and this kind of management can only boost productivity in the short term. “\"Participatory\" management pays more attention to people’s interests, sense of achievement, and motivation; the improvement in productivity is long-term. Good management should combine an “authoritarian” approach with a “participatory” one. But it should be primarily “participatory”. 　　5. TPM team activity methods 　　① Activity contents include: STEP activities, MY-Machine activities, improvement activities for sub-projects, One Point Lesson training, etc ； 　　②It is carried out self-disciplined during regular working hours; no separate time is designated for such activities, and all team members work together to carry out thorough cleaning and improve the implementation of tasks ； 　　③It is best to have meetings around once a month and on-site activities with a frequency of more than once a week ； 　　④Implement individual MY-M/C activities for more than once per week (or daily), and announce them on the activity board ； 　　⑤During regular meetings, compare the planned actions with actual results, discuss plans for the next event, and address issues along with improvement suggestions during the event ； 　　6. Evaluation of group activities It mainly considers four aspects: ① Stage of self-development: a willingness to master skills and confidence ； 　　②Improvement phase: Continuously improving work and skills, with a sense of achievement ； 　　③Problem-solving phase: Goals complement those of the enterprise, with proactive problem resolution ； 　　④Self-management phase: Set higher goals for the team and work independently ； 　　II. The equipment inspection system in TPM
Definition of the inspection system:
The inspection system is a maintenance management system centered around equipment inspections. Its medical analogy is similar to how people undergo physical examinations; it utilizes various inspection methods to conduct early checks, diagnoses, and repairs on equipment. Each enterprise can establish its own inspection system based on its actual circumstances. 　　“The concept of the “Trinity” inspection system and the five-layer protection framework. “Trinity”: refers to an inspection system that combines daily inspections carried out by operators at their posts, regular inspections performed by specialized inspectors, and thorough inspections conducted by technical experts. 　　The five-layer protection system is as follows: First layer of protection: daily inspections carried out by the operators on duty ； 　　Second line of defense: regular inspections by professional inspectors ； 　　Third line of defense: thorough inspection by professional technicians ； 　　Fourth layer of protection: Further identify the causes and appropriate solutions for problems through technical diagnostics and other methods ； 　　Fifth layer of protection: precise testing every six months or one year ； 　　Characteristics of the inspection system: The characteristics of the inspection system can be summarized as eight “fixities”.
① Fixed personnel: Designate both part-time and full-time inspectors among the operators ； 　　②Fixed points: Identify the locations of equipment malfunctions; specify the parts, items, and contents to be inspected ； 　　③Quantification: Quantitative measurement of the degradation side ； 　　④Fixed cycle: Different devices have different inspection cycles based on their respective failure points ； 　　⑤Set standards: Provide a basis for determining whether each inspection point is normal ； 　　⑥Plan making: Create work cards and guide inspectors to carry out tasks along the specified routes ； 　　⑦Fixed records: Establish a fixed format for records ； 　　⑧Establish procedures: Define the procedures for inspection tasks and the handling of inspection results ； 　　Classification of inspections: 　　By purpose of inspection: tendency inspection, degradation inspection. 　　By whether disassembly is involved: disassembly inspection, non-disassembly inspection. 　　By cycle and scope of work: routine inspection, periodic inspection, precision inspection. 　　Appendix: The philosophy behind promoting TPM \"Others may be able to replicate our model, but they cannot copy the years of hard work we’ve invested, nor can they replicate our innovative team,\" said the CEO of Alibaba. Taiichi Ohno, the legend of Toyota, when he decided to improve Toyota’s production methods, did not know what TPS was. Inspired by the management practices in American supermarkets, he devoted himself fully to making improvements on the factory floor at Toyota. Thanks to his determination to bring about improvements, TPM was successfully implemented. Through decades of effort by Toyota, a production method that has amazed the world was created – TPS. Whether it was the emergence of Alibaba or the rise of Toyota, it is the determination to take action, to make changes and to improve that serves as the driving force behind ultimate success. The author explains this from the following points: 1. Promote what is lacking in order to create the conditions for implementation. Nowadays, TPM is highly favored by many companies, which is certainly a good thing; but how can better results be achieved? Over the decades of development and dissemination of TPM, different approaches have emerged, which is easy to understand. Take Toyota’s original TPM as an example: it emphasizes self-maintenance as its core principle. This is because Toyota adopts a production system aimed at achieving JIT just-in-time production and high levels of automation, as well as improving the entire supply chain. TPM serves as the foundation for this approach, ultimately forming the complete Toyota operational model; hence, the original TPM is centered around self-maintenance. When implementing TPM, Korean companies adopt a dual-driven approach based on problem-solving and autonomous maintenance; companies that have been relatively successful in this regard include Samsung and LG. 　　The implementation of TPM in China is represented by Professor Li Baowen’s standardized Total Productive Maintenance system. Taking into account the behavioral habits of employees in Chinese companies as well as the characteristics of these enterprises, this system uses the SOON framework as its core, relies on the “6S” and “6H” activities as a foundation, and utilizes OPS and OPL initiatives to drive improvements; it has achieved good results in companies such as Sinopec, Chongqing Jianfeng Chemical, and DK Wheel. 　　Different companies have varying corporate cultures and management levels; therefore, when deciding on how to implement TPM, companies should adopt it in a manner that takes their specific circumstances into account. TPM is a management activity that involves all employees; although its core aspect is the autonomous maintenance of production facilities, its implementation is influenced by various factors, including team collaboration, the willingness of different departments to cooperate with each other, employee morale, and the determination of management. Therefore, before implementing such measures, companies should make thorough preparations by creating the necessary atmosphere and a suitable institutional framework, including the establishment of incentive mechanisms, the design of the organizational structure, the use of pilot lines (machines) first, and the commitment of top management. Before troops are deployed, supplies must be prepared first; only by making thorough preparations can TPM efforts achieve the desired results! 　　2. Strive for an ideal state to enhance the enterprise’s capacity. Although TPM has achieved certain results in its application in many companies, many enterprises encounter numerous problems when implementing it; they either stop progressing or keep making repeated attempts. Over time, employees become tired of these implementation efforts, which ultimately prevents this management practice from continuing! The author believes that the following points should be considered: a. TPM is a management activity that focuses on production facilities, but businesses exist to achieve profits and sustainable development; business improvements target production processes, supply chains, and business models, therefore TPM’s autonomous maintenance activities should be a dynamic process. Running a business is akin to carrying water in a bucket. The bucket holds the products; the bucket and the pole represent our company’s hardware facilities such as equipment. The person carrying the water represents business operators and employees. How to transport water to the destination – the market – is not merely about ensuring the integrity of the buckets through TPM activities; what’s more important is maintaining stability and efficiency during the transportation process, as well as the ability to continue transporting water. Therefore, the barrel theory should be understood as a dynamic one; it is not only necessary to pay attention to the effect of the weakest link, but also to the company’s capacity to bear loads and its ability to adapt while carrying those loads during movement. In Toyota companies, TPM serves as the fundamental foundation for TPS; similarly, when implementing TPM in Chinese companies, it is necessary to aim for an ideal approach in order to achieve sustainable corporate development. 　　b. TPM activities involve maintaining the current status to ensure maximum efficiency under the existing conditions. Even if TPM is implemented very well in the production site, once the set goals are achieved, issues such as material shortages during production, unstable orders, and inaccurate production plans still remain severe. As a result, the advancement of TPM comes to a halt, leading managers and employees to develop resistance toward TPM activities. The author believes that these issues should be addressed from two aspects: First, companies should control materials, orders, and inventory levels, and through comprehensive improvement efforts, reduce the amount of raw material inventory. This will increase the turnover rate of raw material stocks, achieve zero unnecessary inventory in raw material warehouses, zero inventory in the production process, and no production without orders. In this way, all departments involved in procurement, sales, and production within the company, as well as the entire supply chain, can be kept free from unnecessary waste. Secondly, after implementing TPM for production maintenance, TPM activities should be gradually introduced across various departments and the supply chain of the enterprise, covering everything from tangible products to intangible services. 　　3. Patience over haste; speed is key to success. The advancement of TPM is aimed at achieving zero failures, zero defects, and zero accidents as ultimate goals. However, in the fierce competitive landscape of today’s market, thanks to the convenience of modern communication, knowledge can be transmitted very quickly. If a competitor acts faster than you, it’s highly likely that they will seize the market advantage. It’s not just the big fish that eat the small fish – even the faster fish will eat those that are slower. To advance TPM more rapidly, one can refer to the following points. 　　a. Be neither too hasty nor too slow; if you are 50% confident, go ahead and try it. Companies face problems as a result of their development; these problems are essentially the gap between goals and the current reality (problems = goals – current reality). If we ignore such problems, they can eventually become persistent issues for the company (such as oil accumulation on the floor or a messy working environment), and these issues in turn cover up the real causes that affect work performance (such as equipment leaks or faulty components)! In management, there is a concept known as the \"bullwhip effect,\" which refers to the fact that in the early stages of a problem, only a very small amount of effort is required to address it; however, as the problem progresses, it becomes more severe, and more effort is needed to resolve it. When implementing TPM, companies must pursue continuous improvement and address various issues that arise during the development process at an early stage. They should not be satisfied with a barely acceptable level of performance; problems that affect operational efficiency and quality need to be resolved as quickly as possible. Companies should also create an environment that tolerates failure, allowing the teams involved in operations to fully utilize their creativity and intelligence. The Toyota philosophy emphasizes the spirit of improvement that involves acting quickly at first and then refining things later; this aligns with the two-cycle improvement model of \"P-D-C-A-N-D-C-A\" in the TPM system. To successfully implement TPM, it is necessary to take action promptly, as one’s competitors will not wait for you, and problems will only keep accumulating. Unless you do not want to progress, then your goal will remain the status quo. 　　b. Fully integrate and utilize various resources. We are not pushing for TPM just for the sake of it; ultimately, TPM initiatives are aimed at improving the efficiency and quality of on-site operations, and these efforts will ultimately lead to increased profitability. Modern enterprises are increasingly recognizing the importance of people within an organization. To improve the difficulties associated with people’s work – including work processes, workload, and efficiency – and to help them reach their full potential, companies should enhance the working conditions for their employees and make use of various resources. These resources include knowledge resources (such as the principles of TPM, the experiences and achievements of successful companies, as well as the application of new methods and innovations), software resources (such as ERP systems and IEM systems for improving production efficiency and OEE), and hardware resources (such as equipment monitoring devices, SPC online inspection systems, and fixtures).