2019Case14DPSATG

55 L EAN C ONSTRUCTION I RELAND A NNUAL B OOK OF C ASES 2019 • Pipe-fitting and Welding • Raised Ceiling Installation To facilitate an additional level of detail, and to identify the specific areas of investigation, a direct observation exercise was completed on each activity. Level 3 data analysis – Gemba and Direct Observation. In a manufactur ing envi ronment , Overal l Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) provides a mechanism to identify untapped capacity by identifying and eliminating impacts to equipment availability, speed, and quality. In a construction environment where the trade resource is the equivalent of equipment, the use of direct observation utilising OEE principles can be utilised to determine the main causes of impacts to Trade Labour Productivity. The DPS Productivity Manager completed a direct observation exercise with the crews completing the top three identified activities over a five-day period to establish the average productivity of the trades during that period, as well as the main causes for non- value-added (NVA) activities. The impact to the trades’ productivity was categorised into twelve impact areas (excluding safety). Figure 2. Construction Labour Productivity pre-Kaizen Project Implementation The average trade productivity was measured at 17% for the project. This indicated that 83% of a trade’s day was spent on activities other than what they were being paid to do. At this stage, DPS deemed that enough data had been gathered to move to the Kaizen phase of the project. Stage 2 – Kaizen Preparation DPS presented the data to the ons i te construct ion management team and outlined the reasons why the Kaizen was to focus on prerequisite works delays and incorrect time estimates. The timeframe for the Kaizen was agreed as one week, but the continuous improvement duration was agreed as five weeks incorporating one week for the Kaizen event; three weeks to implement findings; and one week to complete a recheck to see if the desired improvements were made. As the concept of Lean was new to the construction team, it was agreed that tactile and demonstrable tools would be used that could be replicated by the trade companies on other projects and sites. Stage 3 – Kaizen Event DPS facilitated training on the basics of Lean, including Lean principles, the 8 wastes, the infinity matrix process, the concepts of value-add (VA), necessary non-value-add (NNVA), and NVA, and the direct observation process. The research data was then presented to the Kaizen team members, and the Kaizen team agreed to focus on four major activities during the Kaizen: i. Waste walks post-training to identify sources of waste. ii. Brainstorm session using an Infinity Matrix to identify Just Do It (JDI) improvements on any delays. iii.Targeted reduct ions in Mot ion dur ing cei l ing t i le installation using direct observation. iv. Targeted improvements in Materials Management onsite using a 5S exercise. The Kaizen goals were agreed as a >10% reduction in delay causing activities and a >10% reduction in project costs due to the reduction of NVA activities. Brainstorm Session – Infinity Matrix – A brainstorming session was completed to identify a list of JDI improvements which were changes to be made that were within the control of the project team and required negligible cost and effort. An Infinity Matrix was used so as to help the construction team determine what activities could be improved. Table 1. Infinity Matrix post-Brainstorm Session Mot ion Improvement – There were mul t iple observations of excessive moving but the Kaizen team decided to focus on the movement associated with installing ceiling tiles. A direct observation was completed, and the use of the Spaghetti diagram showed the crew how the practice of placing the pallet of ceiling tiles in one location increased their walking distance as the day went on. The proposal from the team was to put the material pallet on wheels and move the pallet with the team as they moved across the construction area. 5S Improvement – For retrieving materials, the team identified two areas for improvement: walking distance to the material shed; and materials not stored correctly. As a JDI improvement, it was proposed to move the material shed closer to the work place and a 5S activity was planned for the Materials storage areas. One shed was audited and a full 5S was completed to reorder all materials. Bins were to install bins to sort parts into their required positions. A reorder Kanban system and set minimum stock levels for re-ordering. Finally, cable rolls were installed to ease identification and cutting of cable lengths. The team agreed to proliferate the 5S activity to the other materials sheds onsite.