6 Tips For Managing Standardized Work

The Definition of Standardized Work

Standardized work (also referred to as standard work) defines the current best practice to complete the task using available people, equipment and materials. It includes:

• Cycle times, production sequences, and the methods to use
• Operator procedures, work instructions, QC checks and safety issues
• Material flows, optimal WIP and layout

The Purpose of Standardized Work

To insure that tasks performed repeatedly are accomplished optimally and consistently. Variations in the process will create quality issues requiring rework or scrap and will decrease labor performance.

6 Tips for Managing Standardized Work

• A ‘work standard’ is not the same as ‘standard work.’

A work standard created by a time study by using predetermined time systems covers production sequence and time, but is not necessarily best practice. A time study of existing work is rarely best practice. It is a benchmark of current work content.

• A ‘best practice’ starts with a benchmark of the work. Method improvement is where further analysis is carried out on examining each motion evaluating its value-added/non-value-added content and whether it can be eliminated. This does not exclude a completely new method that achieves the same result.
• Actual time is the time it took to perform the task for a given run. Labor performance is based on the variance between standard and actual time
• Standard work is not fixed but subject to continuous improvement
• Standard work contributes to your ISO 9000 compliance
• Standard work does not by itself create optimal and repeatable labor performance. It enables the process. Operators still need to be trained and supervised
• You cannot do kaizen effectively without standard work. If everyone can follow their own method, what are they improving on?

With Ease Inc. You Can:

• Create and document the work content
• Optimize the work through method improvement and Value Added Analysis
• Write, maintain, control and present work instructions
• Use best practices established
• Index and present related documents from QC, Safety, Materials and Layout