Velocity Scheduling System for job shop scheduling

Step-by-Step Setup Reduction for Job Shops

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Setup Reduction to Increase Flow and Productivity for Job Shops and Machine ShopsSetup Reduction for Job Shops and Machine Shops

Setup Reduction for Job Shops can be a challenge, no doubt. We often hear job shops explain that they can’t increase FLOW & PRODUCTIVITY because they have long setups.  We’ve found that all setup times can be reduced, and flow can be improved.  In this article we are going to dig into the HOW. Watch this video of Formula 1 Pit Stops from the 1950s vs the 2013:

  • “Only 4 crew members including the driver can work on the car”
  • It’s a tense time.
  • Notice everyone standing…maybe 3 people working? Maybe?
  • The guy changing the tire unbolts it, takes it off, puts on the new one, installs the lug nut then tightens.
  • Everyone is busy…but the pace is somewhat relaxed.
  • Nice, clean white coveralls.
  • 67 seconds to complete.
  • White lines outline the parking area

2013

  • From the get-go, the pace is…INTENSE!
  • There’s 21 folks on camera, how many off camera?
  • Notice how the folks are leaned in, awaiting the car to come in? The front two tire guys have their hands on the car before it stops moving.
  • It’s hard to tell how the tires even come off it happens so fast.
  • Notice the arms hovering over the crew which hold the air lines for the impact guns?
  • The guys are wearing helmets, gloves, and select crew members have specialized uniform features (gunners have neon green gloves, front tire pullers have yellow/black striping on forearms to indicate stopping point for driver).

…And there’s more differences to notice if you watch it a few more times. Now watch the improvements from 1990 to 2023: They are still improving! So what? How do we translate these concepts from the video onto the floor of a job shop? We’re glad you asked:

  • Stop letting your nay sayers block improvements.  Ask the guys in the 1950s if they were working hard? You bet. Were they doing “the best we can”? Absolutely. The announcer even said it was a “tense time”.  Does that mean improvement was impossible? NO!  So, don’t except excuses. Dust off your leadership skills and get improvements made on YOUR floor.
  • Notice one of the keys to success of the Ferrari (2013) team is that they are doing many things in parallel, at the same time, instead of serially, one-at-a-time as in the 1950s.Well, one way they did this was to add many, many more crew members. Another was they specialized the tasks amongst the team.  In your shop, this might mean hiring a parts changer worker so your setup guy can keep doing the difficult setups on machines. This is also why a person in the tool room doing presetting on tools can be one of the most valuable employees you have.
  • Did you see guy changing tires in the 1950s? He has to reach back into the pit to get the tires out that he’s going to change. Not so in the 2013.In the 2013, there’s a person waiting to just PULL the tire off the car, one with an impact gun (which is READY), and another to install the new tire.

This is all about SYSTEMS, PROCESS AND PREPARATION. Guess what Velocity Scheduling System (VSS) is? VSS is a SYSTEM with PROCESSES (e.g. TBR Board, POOGI, Detailed Planning) which help you prepare for your jobs (e.g., ensuring you have Full Kit). Now, there’s many, many more ways to apply these concepts to YOUR shop. And there’s also a few unanswered questions:

  1. WHERE do we begin? (I feel like EVERY work center needs improvement, NOW!)
  2. How do we cover the cost of setup reduction and continuous improvement?
  3. How to do setup reduction, step by step?

Let’s answer these 3 questions.

1.     How to Determine WHERE to Reduce Setup Times in Job Shops

Here’s another video, again from the F1 Racing world. Check it out: Here are some notes from that video:

  • 11 years of Red Bull Racing
  • Started with off the shelf, third-party supplier.
  • Happy with about a 4 second tire change in the beginning (because fuel took 5 seconds).
  • The team then decided to decouple refueling from tire changes (meaning do some pits without fuel) which prompted a lighter weight and faster design for the lug nut.
  • The team then moved to a similar design, but one that featured a captive nut design.
  • Aerodynamics drove the need for larger front axles and thus larger wheel nuts for the front.

All interesting points…but how exactly did the Red Bull team select the wheel nuts to work on and improve? Great question.

Where do we begin when we feel like EVERY work center needs improvement, NOW!

The answer is simple, if you’re doing Velocity Scheduling System (VSS):  The POOGI Process tells you exactly where to focus your continuous improvement efforts including setup reduction.

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