Tech Arsenal 1/Tech Arsenal (Arsenal Computer).ISO/tek-19/alps3.zip/VENDOR.DOC

Text File | 1991-04-29 | 20KB | 393 lines

                 ALPS Software
            INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERS TOOLBOX
               (SHORT DESCRIPTION)

  The Industrial Engineers Toolbox is a modular collection of
18 programs which can be used as a personal consultant for
the business manager, who wants an efficient operation.  It
looks at the side of business too often ignored, where
countless unnecessary dollars go down the drain.  It looks at
facility management (including overhead cost), work
measurement, investment strategies, probabilities, and value
engineering of products or services.  PC Key Draw has been
customized to allow CAD presentation of the data developed in
the toolbox.  The entire toolbox, including manual, uses
approximately 1.4 mb, but because of the modular design, only
the commonly or currently used tools need to be on hard disk.
The rest of the toolbox can rest outside in floppy disk until
needed.  376 files are archived on 3-360kb floppy disks.  For
full implementation you must have PC Key Draw also.

                   INTRODUCTION
            INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERS TOOLBOX
                (LONG DESCRIPTION)
   In business today `down sizing' seems to be the in word.
It is a term used to mean that a business is taking advantage
of Parkinson's law, which says in effect that the available
workload will tend to completely fill the available time.
Or stated another way, workers will pace themselves to use
the allotted time.   What isn't stated, when the term is
used, is that the time frame was too large to begin with.
Either because, the workload wasn't properly understood (how
long will this process take?) or there was an unexpected down
turn in the demand creating the workload.   In either case,
there is no sure way for today's manager to know how much to
down size without knowing the true value of the workload.
   Just about everyone at one time or another has had or will
have someone at their right hand giving them specialized
advice.  We see it on TV in congressional hearings and in
court proceedings.  The technical advice is supplied to the
participants, on both sides, by their right-hand-man.  That
is precisely the Industrial Engineer's role in the business
world.  He is a consultant on engineered values to apply to
every day business problems.  That is not to say that he has
all the answers needed, but within his area of knowledge and
experience, he can be depended on to give valid information
to be used by managers to make the best decisions they can.
He is basically a management consultant.
   The Industrial Engineers Toolbox was a natural progression
out of the Facilities Management Series, and incorporates
those programs into the toolbox.  It was developed because
no collection of the programs within it could be located,
and it was felt that a set of these tools organized into one
toolbox would be beneficial to an analyst performing
management studies.   An users manual has been written only
for the Facilities Management Series.  The balance of the
programs are either well enough menu driven or
are of technical enough nature to require a certified
analyst, and as such, a user's manual was deemed not
required.   The highly technical programs, such as MTM,  are
written so as to protect the uncertified person from faulty
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judgement.  In those programs a statement is always made to
the effect that no attempt is made to teach the discipline.
The non industrial engineer is not excluded from using these
programs, but should be encouraged to learn the more
technical areas as they are needed.   In this manner the
series has enough depth to become ever more valuable to the
user as they become more expert,  but can be of value also
from the first day.   It can be like a Hoehner Marine Band
harmonica, but is like a Chromonica,  allowing sharps, flats,
and varying shadings to problem solving.  If from evaluation
of questions coming from registered users a need is indicated
for additional user manual, it will certainly be written.
   An industrial engineer's efforts can be directed in
numerous directions.   Five of these areas are Facilities
Management, Facilities Acquisition, Decision Analysis, Value
Engineering, and Work Measurement.   At this point the
toolbox has programs directed towards these areas.   Since
the area is dynamic, development work is continuing to
expand the toolbox, and each release should have some new
tools.   In places the areas tend to merge and overlap, so
that a program can be used in more than one area.   Each
program is a module or tool within the control of the main
menu program which allows each program to blend into an array
that gives the appearance of a very large program.   Yet each
program can be stored in floppy disk, streamer tape, or
bernoulli media, waiting, away from the computer for the time
it is needed.   The Main menu allows the analyst to keep only
the tools most commonly used, ready at hand, while the
balance are left available but not using storage space.   The
Main menu alerts the analyst when a tool called for must be
loaded.   Only a modular program approach accommodates this.
   What follows is where each tool fits into the overall
scheme of things and how it is valuable to that scheme.   No
valid advice can be given without understanding the question,
and anything that can have a value assigned to it can be
managed.   Each of the programs that follow allow the analyst
to assign values to a given function or aid visualization of
values that have been assigned by a previous program.   These
programs are analysis aids, only.   90% of true analysis
occurs when the analyst is forced to put the facts and
figures developed in the study into written form. A
narrative or report, whatever it is called, presents the
problem, the study data, the conclusion from the data, and
recommendations of alternatives for solution of the problem.
Most will also include a study showing the impact to the
operations of each alternative.   The toolbox does not
provide a text editor.   There are numerous good ones on the
market.
   The Layout Planning program is used to aid in both
Facilities Management, Work Measurement, Manpower Planning
and Facilities Acquisition.  In facilities management, one
essential consideration is efficient and optimum use of the
facilities.  Layout Planning accomplishes this through
consideration of which operation or department should be
neighbor to which other operation or department within the
facility, multi-floors can be considered also.  After that is
accomplished, each operation or department is considered for
detailed placement of furniture and equipment within the
operation or department.   Using the Furniture and Equipment
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program to develop Work Station Units (basic modules showing
total space, specific standardized layout of furniture,
equipment and operator space plus allowance for aisles),
those work station units can be blocked into an operation or
department with other work station units and modified to meet
existing need and provide a standardized detailed layout.
One key in work measurement is, how much time is required
because of required walking, both within and without an
operation or department.   The distance information is
developed in Layout Planning and in Furniture and Equipment
Survey, and can then be developed into standard time using
MTM.   By developing the data in Layout planning, the analyst
is developing staffing requirements to validate the furniture
and equipment needs.  These needs can either be present or
sometime in the future.  To develop future needs the Decision
Analysis program has compounding algorithms available, and
the Statistics program allows regression analysis and or
random sampling and probabilities.   When extending the
analysis into the future you are looking at the operations
requirements for possible replacement (acquisition).   By
putting layout planning at the very core of your planning you
begin to look at facilities as functional entities before
looking at their form (functional buildings can be attractive
but not all attractive buildings are functional).   Are you
in business to look attractive or perform a function?   As
you are probably beginning to see the programs within the
toolbox are interdependent and yet can stand alone, depending
on how much depth you want to put into your study.   Layout
of facilities on a site can be accomplished also.
   The Furniture and Equipment Survey as mentioned above is
needed if, one you are going to rearrange your layout, and
two if you are anticipating moving into a different building.
The furniture and equipment program develops work station
unit data, equipment costs and square footage requirements.
You can identify furniture and equipment by floor and
operation or department.   This information dovetails with
the Overhead Cost program.   It is also used in the Custodial
Requirements program.   Depending on the ambition and
sophistication of the analyst, the data developed here can be
used to evaluate furniture and equipment usage, identifying
unused furniture and equipment, methods improvements,
additional furniture and equipment needs.   Once again the
thrust is to optimization and efficiency.
   The Overhead Cost program allows development of the
overhead cost of each operation or department.   The costs
aren't intended to be developed to a degree of accuracy that
an accountant would appreciate, but rather as a measuring
device to draw the attention of first line managers to an
area of facility management often overlooked.   It can turn
the spot light on poor housekeeping, furniture and equipment
management, utilities management, etc..   This program uses
data from the Furniture and Equipment program and the
Custodial Requirements program.
   The Custodial Requirements program uses data from the
Furniture and Equipment program and allows development of
custodial requirements for each function required of
custodians.   It develops requirements for the workroom by
operation or department, and can be used to develop employee
work assignments when used with a detailed layout drawing
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developed in PC KEYDRAW or some other CAD program (even
AutoCad if you are ready to spend or have spent $3,000.00).
A drawing can show blocked out assignments with codings to
indicate cleaning needs and frequencies.   Also the program
develops work hour requirements including fringe to develop
staffing requirements.
   The Graphical Representation program uses data developed
in the Layout Planning, Furniture and Equipment Survey, and
the Overhead Cost programs.   This program develops scaled
graphs for visualization of data developed above, from
calibration charts to overall cost/operation charts.   This
program does not stand alone.   It requires at least one of
the four programs mentioned above to be able to graph
anything.
   The last program in the Facilities Management Series is
the Space Relationship program.   This program takes combined
flow and service rankings from the Layout Planning program
and puts the affinity pairs of operations or departments in
rank order in a table to be used in a CAD program to draw the
Space Relationship Diagram (Block Diagram).   The listing
also gives suggested length of the side of the square for
square footage of each operation.   This allows a starting
place at a square to be ran, by the analyst, into the shape
of best fit.   While the other programs aid in developing
this data, only this program and the Furniture and Equipment
Survey data are carried over into PC KEYDRAW or another CAD
program.   Where eventually a detailed furniture and
equipment layout drawing can be developed.   As mentioned
earlier then data from the other programs can be overlaid on
either the block or detailed drawings.
   PC KEYDRAW needed some customization to make it more
compatible with the thrust of these programs, so two
libraries were developed to accomplish this.   The first is
a library of architectural symbols, to aid in making facility
drawings.   The second is a library of flow chart symbols, to
be used in developing the various process charts used in work
measurement.   This library is accessed from each individual
process analysis program and brings up the appropriate form
header along with a help page to show how to access the
symbols needed for insertion on that form.   Of the process
analysis procedures only Simo Charts goes directly from the
Main Menu into PC KEYDRAW.   There is one other bonus library
included, and that is a library of electrical engineering
symbols, for possible work in schematics.
  The Work Measurement Series starts with the various process
charts: Operations Process, Flow Process, Operator Process
(Right and Left Hand), Man-Machine Process, and Simo (Memo-
motion using Therblig symbols to chart).   The Simo chart is
rarely, if ever, used any more but was included for
completeness.   Each procedure gives a fast track to overall
understanding of a complex procedure or operation.   The
process charts are useful in any study, from Facilities
Management through Value Engineering, where understanding of
a process or function is required.
   Winding up the Work Measurement series is the Element
Analysis program.   Since Methods Time Measurement (MTM) is
of a technical nature that requires analysis by trained
analysts, the Element Analysis program performs only the
grunt work of filling out the various forms.   Routine
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calculations are performed, but the analyst must use a Time
Measurement Unit (TMU) chart supplied by the MTM Association.
The forms do provide total seconds, minutes, and hours for
each element and the total operation or method analyzed,
after the analyst has filled in the motion descriptions,
frequencies and TMU's.   There is a summarization form also.
   Value Engineering, like MTM, is another area where
untrained analysts could develop conclusions hazardous to
good management decisions.   However, if the menus are
followed, a group of people could come to some functional
activity simplifications.   The menu steers selection of the
VE team, also.   The trained analyst can through the use of
OVAL (Organization Value Analysis Logic) analyze the office
environment for down sizing.   This procedure helps to
question activities or parts not supporting the intended
function of the item or operation under study.
   Most every study should present alternative solutions for
management consideration.   To aid in alternative evaluation
the Decision Analysis program is included.   This program
allows the analyst to look at the economic impact of each
alternative through the use of discounted differential cash
flows.   It also develops salvage value for buildings and
land, and develops depreciation schedules (in straight line
or sum of the years methods).   Amortization schedules can be
generated, showing fixed payments for the entire term, single
additional principle payments at specified dates, or fixed
additional principle payments starting at a specified future
date.   This feature allows looking at various prepayment
strategies to evaluate alternative strengths and weaknesses.
Each of the six compound interest algorithms can be called to
perform individual calculations.
   The final program in this version is Statistical Analysis.
While there are numerous statistical programs on the market,
it was felt that one should be included in the toolbox.
This program uses the random number generator to develop a
listing of random samples from a selected sample size.   It
allows the analyst to perform regression and correlation
analysis.  It uses universe standard deviation to avoid bias,
and looks at normal distribution, `t' and chi square.  The
program allows repeated passes with the data until the
analyst wants to quit.   For those who can't let go of
reference tables, normal distribution,`t', and chi square
tables are provided as
help screens and can be referenced for insertion data.
   With this array of programs accessible in modular form,
the analyst needs only a manpower planning module to allow
performing a fairly thorough operations review.   A Manpower
Planning module is in development now for release in the next
version.










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