Fritz: All Fritz/All Fritz.zip/All Fritz/FILES/GRAP_CAD/IDTOOL2.LZH/ALPS2.EXE/lha/ALP_INTR.TXT

Text File | 1991-10-15 | 16KB | 273 lines

                     INTRODUCTION
            INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERS TOOLBOX
   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 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.   Six of these areas are Facilities
Management, Facilities Acquisition, Decision Analysis, Value
Engineering, Work Measurement and Manpower Planning.  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 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
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
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 cali-
bration 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 complete-
ness.   Each procedure gives a fast track to overall under-
standing 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
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 next program 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 uni-
verse 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.
   In the Manpower Planning module,Complements & Schedules
allows the analyst an opportunity to develop enough personnel
data to schedule people.  This data also gives ready
reference for home address, telephone, and can be used to
develop seniority listings.  This program can also be used to
build proposed schedules for recommended staffing levels
developed in the Volume, Hours & Productivity program.  The
Volume, Hours & Productivity program allows development of
volume and hour data, to develop productivity reports.  It
also allows use of historical data to develop average daily
volumes and hours for projections into the future.  With
these additions, the Industrial Engineers Tool Box should be
a fairly complete tool for the management analyst.