MASTER'S THESIS
Virtual Packaging of Parts
Development of a E-course and Packing Logistics
Siar Cicek 2015
Master of Science in Engineering Technology Mechanical Engineering
Luleå University of Technology
Department of Engineering Sciences and Mathematics
Acknowledgement
First of all I want to thank my family and friends who supported me through this whole project, I want also thank my supervisor Torbjörn Ilar at Luleå University of Technology without your teaching in different courses this project would been very difficult to do. I want also thank my supervisors at Scania: Lars Hanson, Franz Achieng Waker, Peter Lööv and Pär Mårtensson without yours expertise this projects wouldn’t be possible. I want to also thank all packing engineers that have given me tremendous amount of knowledge: Carl Malmgren, Mats Ahrin, Tom Varis, Jan Larsson, Benny Quist, and Ingemar Pihlblad. I want also thank the E-course developers at Scania: Carolina Munoz Jara, Marwan Alper and Matilda Rogstedt without your help it would be difficult to make an E-course. Last I want to thank everyone at the department Global Industrial Development for the support and advises.
Södertälje, 2015-11-27.
Siar Cicek
Abstract
This thesis is about educating the packing engineers at Scania to their best potential. The education is made by developing an E-course adapted specially for the packing engineers at Scania. Content of the E-course was defined through analysis of literature, science articles and interviews with the packing engineers it was also decided from analysis. Reason why the packing engineers needed this education is because the packing engineers decisions has a big impact on the company. So it is therefore important that the packing engineers consider different parameters when deciding how the final package should look. One way to improve the packing engineers work is by the virtual packing software Pack-Assistant which is used to pack CAD-files, which is much more quicker then manual packing and efficient.
The main purpose with this thesis is to investigate which parameters has to be taken in to consideration for the most efficient packing (and what is efficient from different
perspectives). How do packaging influence logistic and vice versa and how to adapt the E- course in the most optimal way.
The projects main purpose was to study different E-course educational methods, analysis of how Pack-Assistant works, observation of packages in Scania, experiments was conducted to see how real packages differ when the same parts was simulated in Pack-Assistant. Where it was concluded that Pack-Assistant was a more pack efficient for the majority of the tested parts. From the comparison it was also concluded that Scania could save 13 % of their freight cost, container cost and internal handling cost just from packing in Pack -Assistant. One other major result from the analysis is that packing engineers prefer to pack the number of parts with even “nice” numbers like 10, 20, 50, 100, etc. Which is a great problem economically for Scania, sometimes it is more efficient to pack with 11 parts instead of 10 parts. It was also observed how the setting in Pack-Assistant had for effect on the packing and also in which circumstances to use the different packing structures in the software.
When the course was finish the main subjects is The packaging working process, number of parts in the package, package handle ability and packing structure. The course consist of two parts:
Part 1: Which different parameters to consider in the making of packing instructions.
Part 2: How to use the software Pack-Assistant and what in the software is of great importance for the packing engineer at Scania.
Sammanfattning
Denna avhandling handlar om att utbilda förpacknings ingenjörer på Scania till sin bästa potential.Utbildningen sker genom att utveckla en E-kurs anpassad speciellt för
förpackningsingenjörer inom Scania.Innehållet i E-kursen definierades genom analys av litteratur, vetenskapliga artiklar och intervjuer med förpackningsingenjörer och från analysen.
Anledningen till att förpacknings ingenjörerna behöver utbildningen beror på att deras olika beslut har en stor inverkan på företaget. Så det är därför viktigt att förpackningsingenjörer tar hänsyn till olika parametrar vid beslut om hur den slutliga förpackningen ska se ut. Ett sätt att förbättra förpackningsingenjörer arbete är av den virtuella förpackningsprogramvaran Pack- Assistant som används för att packa CAD-filer, vilket är mycket snabbare sedan manuell packning och effektiv.
Huvudsyftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka vilka parametrar måste tas i beaktande för den mest effektiva packningen (och vad som är effektivt ur olika perspektiv). Hur påverkar förpackningar logistik och vice versa och hur anpassar man en E-kursen på det mest optimala sättet.
Projektets huvudsyfte var att studera olika E-kursutlärningsmetoder, analys av hur Pack- Assistant fungerar, observationer av förpackningar på Scania, experiment gjordes för att se hur observerade förpackningar skiljer sig när samma delar simulerades i Pack-Assistant. Där det konstaterades att Pack-Assistant var mer pack effektivt för de flesta av de testade
artiklarna.Från jämförelse så kunde också slutsatsen dras att Scania skulle kunna spara 13%
av sin fraktkostnaden, container kostnader och interna kostnadshantering bara från att bara använda Pack-Assistant. Ett annat viktigt resultat från analysen är att förpacknings ingenjörer föredrar att packa antalet artiklar med jämna "fina" siffror som 10, 20, 50, 100, etc. Vilket är ett stort problem ekonomiskt för Scania, ibland är det mer effektivt att pack med 11 artiklar istället för 10 artiklar. Det observerades också hur inställningen i Pack-Assistant hade för effekt på förpackningen och även under vilka omständigheter man ska använda de olika förpackningsstrukturer i programvaran.
När kursen var klar så var de viktigaste kategorierna: arbetsprocess vid förpackning, antal artiklar i paketet, paketet hanterbarhet och förpackningsstruktur.Kursen består av två delar:
Del 1: Vilka olika parametrar att beakta vid skapandet av förpackningsinstruktioner.
Del 2: Hur man använder programvaran Pack-Assistant och vad i mjukvaran är av stor betydelse för förpackningsingenjör på Scania.
E-kursen var också granskad av vissa förpackningsingenjörer och alla gillade kursen väldigt mycket!
Contents
1.0 Background ... 2
1.1 The Problems ... 3
1.2 Purpose ... 4
1.3 Delimitations ... 4
1.4 Disposition ... 4
2.0 Theory ... 6
2.1 Packaging ... 6
2.2 Logistics ... 8
2.3 Packing-logistics ... 9
2.4 Product development processes... 11
2.5 Product Quality ... 12
2.6 Package handle ability ... 13
2.7 Number of parts in container ... 15
2.7.1 Economic order Quantity ... 15
2.7.2 Distance to supplier ... 15
2.8 Part considerations: ... 16
2.8.1 Volume-to-Weight ratio... 16
2.8.2 Value-to-Weight Ratio ... 16
2.9.0 logistic costs ... 16
2.9.1 Inventory costs ... 16
2.9.2 Transportation methods and costs ... 17
2.10 E-learning ... 19
2.10.1 Delivery strategies ... 19
2.10.2 Course Content... 20
3.0 Methodology ... 24
3.1 Surveys ... 24
3.2 Experiments ... 24
3.3 Case Study ... 24
3.4 Interview methods ... 25
3.4.1 The relationship between the interviewer and the participant ... 25
3.5 Observation Method ... 26
3.6 The ADDIE-Model ... 26
3.7 Research methods used and why?... 27
3.7.1 Analysis phase ... 27
3.7.2 Design phase ... 28
3.7.3 Development ... 29
3.7.4 Implementation and Evaluation ... 29
4.0 Analysis ... 32
4.1 Pack-Assistant ... 32
4.2 Packing structures for the software Pack-Assistant ... 35
4.2.1 Compartment packing ... 35
4.2.2 Planar intermediate packing with overlapping ... 36
4.2.3 Stacking ... 36
4.2.4 Flexible Intermediate layer ... 37
4.2.5 Bulking ... 37
4.3 Containers and intermediate layers at Scania ... 38
4.4 The packing process at Scania ... 39
4.4.1 Scania selection sheet... 39
4.5 How to integrate the packaging with production, supplier and construction? ... 41
4.6 Real observation of packing... 41
4.6.1 Group 1 Parts form the same supplier ... 42
4.6.2 Group 2 Observation: Parts with only 10 items in each box from different suppliers... 43
4.6.3 Group 3 Observation: Parts with highest consumption rate from different suppliers ... 44
4.7 Psychologic factor when packing ... 44
4.8 Simulations in Pack-Assistant ... 45
4.8.1 Group 1 Experiment: Parts from the same supplier ... 46
4.8.2 Group 2 Experiment: Parts with only 10 items in each box from different suppliers ... 47
4.8.3 Group 3 Experiment: Parts with highest consumption rate from different suppliers ... 47
4.8.4 Summation of simulation results ... 48
4.9 Comparison between simulations and real observations ... 48
4.10 Interview data summation ... 49
5.0 Result... 52
5.1 Package handle ability ... 53
5.2 Number of parts in the container ... 54
5.3 Packing structure ... 55
5.4 The working process for packing the packing engineers... 55
5.5 Test 1 ... 56
5.6 Pack-Assistant description ... 56
5.7 Test 2 ... 57
5.8 Evaluation of the course ... 57
6.0 Discussion ... 59
6.1 Theory relevance to the result... 59
6.2 The result relevance ... 59
7.0 Conclusion ... 62
7.1 Further work ... 63
8.0 Reference ... 65
Appendix ... 68
Appendix 1: Packing Instruction ... 68
Appendix 2... 69
Appendix 3: Summation of simulation experiments ... 70
Appendix 4: Result of simulations in Pack-Assistant ... 71
Group 1: Part 1 ... 71
Group 1: Part 2 ... 72
Group 1: Part 3 ... 73
Group 1: Part 4 ... 74
Group 1: Part 5 ... 75
Group 2: Part 1 ... 76
Group 2: Part 2 ... 77
Group 2: Part 3 ... 78
Group 2: Part 4 ... 79
Group 2: Part 5 ... 80
Group 2: Part 6 ... 81
Group 3: Part 1 ... 82
Group 3: Part 2 ... 83
Group 3: Part 3 ... 84
Group 3: Part 4 ... 85
Group 3: Part 5 ... 86
Group 3: Part 6 ... 87
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1. Introduction
This chapter consist of what packaging has for
effect on industries and what the purpose is for
this research.
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1.0 Background
The main subject of this thesis is about packaging for arrival goods in the company Scania AB, where the study has been focused in Södertälje where the headquarters are. Briefly Scania is a Swedish company which manufactures heavy trucks, buses and marine/industry engines but is own by Volkswagen since the year 2008. The study consist of 20 weeks of research which is equal to 30hp master in mechanical engineering with the field study of production in Luleå Technical University. The study is focused on the importance of packaging in Scania mainly in two of the production facility’s chassis and engines. The department in Scania where this project has been conducted is Digital Factory.
There is a software called Pack-Assistant that are been used by some packing-engineers in the company to simulate packing without the physical product. The software is going to support and educate packing-engineers to their best potential when a packing is made, and what to consider in the process of making a packing-instruction to the supplier. When a packing engineer have decided how to pack a specific part from different packing criteria’s it then sends a final packing instruction to the supplier which can be observed in the appendix 1.
Before the packing instruction is sent it is important that all essential consideration has been taking.
The thesis consist of two major objectives: what to consider when a packing instruction is made for the supplier and take that information into account in the framework of the E-course.
Pack-Assistant is a software which is used for packing simulations of cad-details into different containers to get the optimal packing arrangement. According to producers of Pack-Assistant Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms
and Scientific Computing SCAI: This program saves time for the packing planers because they don’t need to try to pack with the actual physical product. The packing can also be planned in an earlier stage of the product development process. Benefits with the program is:
optimal container utilization, avoiding time-consuming packing tests, allowing early-stage transport, container and storage planning.
Two examples of companies that has been successful by using Pack-Assistant are Audi AG and KTM Power Sports AG:
“In the case of Audi AG they benefited because of rapid calculation and realized the enormous potential savings for parts in large quantities as seen in the case of rear lights for automobiles where they went from 36 part per container to 45 which reduced the transport cost with 57 thousand per year”.
“When setting up a new production facility KTM Power Sports AG has used Pack- Assistant to plan container sizes and the optimal packing of 450 parts. Since neither real parts or prototypes were available during the set-up phase, planning was carried out using CAD-parts. Strategic planning for the containers revolved around the future logistics processes, flow of materials and the production cycle within the plant. So with Pack-Assistant it was possible to shorten the lead times for planning and
implementation of new containers by more than 50 percent compared with an industry standard of nine to twelve months, where KTM used only four months”.
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So almost every physical part that flow through the logistic network is packaged. The main goal with packaging is (Hannan Sadjady, 2011):
To protect or preserve items
To identify the product and provide basic information.
To facilitate the handling and storage of products.
To improve the product appearance, assist in promoting and marketing
The thesis only covers the first three points and nothing about the last point. Reason for why the last point is not emphasized is because the products are already bought from the supplier.
The second major point in this thesis is to know which information to be the relevant for the E-course and how to present the education material. Identification of the knowledge of the participants how are going to use the E-course what their difficulties are. The reason an E- course is chosen is because it resource efficient for Scania instead of having classroom education.
1.1 The Problems
So why is packaging an important subject for Scania ?
Packaging is a relevant subject because it stands for 5 – 10% of the logistical cost ( Bjöörn, 1990) and 8% according to Lancioni & Chandran, 1990. In Sweden alone the potentials of package handling savings for retails outlets and distributions outlets is about five million euro for every second (DULOG,1997). Packaging also affect logistics and vice versa (Hellström, 2007). Also if more products can be packed into a certain container the transport cost per product reduces which then reduces the product price, if the transport cost is depended per product. Packing also influence ergonomics because of the handling of packaging and
unpacking from containers. How sensitive or expensive the product is must also be taking into consideration in the making of the packing-instruction. So the arrangement of the packing structure influence all this aspects which was mentioned because the main purpose of packing according to Paine, F.A. (1990) is: protecting, collecting and providing information about the content.
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1.2 Purpose
The whole purpose is to make the packaging-engineers job easier, efficient and more integrated with the rest of the company. First of all a E-learning course going to be made to educate new upcoming packing-engineers and packing-engineers who has not used the software Pack-Assistant what to considerate when deciding the right packing for a specific part.
The main purpose is:
What parameters has to be taken in to consideration for the most efficient packing ?
How do packaging influence logistic and vice versa ?
How to adapt the E-course in the most optimal way for packing engineers ?
1.3 Delimitations
Because the limited time of 20 weeks some delimitations had to be made, first of all the project is mainly focused on packing in two departments at Scania Södertälje which is Engine Assembly and Chassis-Manufacturing. Most of the interviews was also conducted in this two departments. The project also limited the packaging analysis on smaller containers and more general information about the bigger sized packing containers. It was not relevant also to interview all packing engineers at Scania because there are too many.
1.4 Disposition 1.Introduction
This chapter consist of what packaging has for effect on companies and what the purpose is for this research.
2.Theory
This chapter consist of all the theory’s about packing, logistics, ergonomics and E- learnings.
3.Methodology
This chapter consist of the different methods relevant for this research and why the methods was selected.
4.Analysis
This chapter consist of analysis of how the software Pack-Assistant works, packing process at Scania, observation of packages and simulations.
5.Result
This chapter consist of the main content for the E-Course 6.Discussion
This chapter discusses the relevance of the Result for Scania.
7. Conclusion
This chapter concludes what has been achieved with this research and further research.
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2. Theory
This chapter consist of all the theory’s about
packing, logistics, ergonomics and E-learnings.
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2.0 Theory
2.1 Packaging
The Packaging system can be categorised into three main subjects (Dominic, 2000):
Logistic Flow Requirements: Contribute to the efficiency of management in packaging within the supply chain, the flow requirements can generate more favourable handling efficiency in production and distribution to stores.
Market Requirements: Gives the product more attractiveness, and more value for the consumer if the package is appealing. It also gives information about the product.
Environmental Requirements: Improve the environmental impact, resource management and recycling.
So the ten functions which packaging depend on is (Parvini, 2011) :
1. Containment: The details has to be contained to move them around together and protect them from the outside.
2. Quantity: How many objects which should be in the container depended of customer demand and storage levels.
3. Package Convenience: where the package has features which simplifies in distribution, handling, appearance, use and reuse.
4. Information Transfer: The package and labels communicate how to use the package and what to take into consideration when handling the package. Where some information is a must by the government like chemical, pharmaceutical and food product etc.
5. Physical Protection: Where the package protects the objects from bumping on each other, shock, vibration, temperature, compression and other forces on the package.
6. Barrier Protection: Are usually used in the food industry to keep the food fresh and clean for intended shelf life, where preservatives are used like desiccants and oxygen absorbers.
7. Marketing: How appealing is the package for the customer with design of package and graphic on the surface of the package.
8. Security: To reduce the risk of the package from pilferage a more secure container can be used, electronic article surveillance tags and tempered proof with special bolts so that an unauthorized person cannot open the box.
9. Logistic: Package has to consider logistic in the development of the package as transport and warehouse etc.
10. Environmental: If the package are going to be reused or if it is only one use package and how environmental friendly is the package material.
Packaging itself can be categorised into three main subtitles primary, secondary and tertiary packaging as seen in figure 1 (Bramklev, 2007).
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Figure 1 shows different packing containers depending on where it is one the supply chain.
(Greenblue.org, 2015) Primary Packaging
This package is build for the direct consumer of the product. Example of this is the wine bottle in figure 1. The product is in direct contact with it, in this case the wine with the glass bottle. The objectives for the primary is to contain, preserve and protect.
Secondary Packaging
Secondary packaging is for distribution and multi-unit packaging in this example it's the cardboard box (Figure 1) which is used by the shop assistant to maybe put the wine bottles on to the shelf. Basically secondary packaging is designed to contain several primary packages.
Tertiary Packaging
Tertiary is used as a transport package as seen in figure 1, with many secondary packages stacked on each other. Sealed and then transported.
The package is also a product and therefore packages differ from intended customer and destination. The package can be classified into four main packages (Hanlon, 1998): Industrial, Institutional, consumer and military packages. Where industrial packaging emphasizes the logistic aspect, the institutional packaging which focus more on consumer utility. Consumer packages focuses on optimizing consumer utility and military packaging emphasizes
protection, identification and inspection.
In some cases the part and the package is the same thing for example a red coca cola can is as important as the actual beverage so the package to the customer is as important. So in this case the package has a brand associated with the package and this is a consumer package. But in some cases the marketing of the package is not as important for example industrial
packaging. For example the operator in the production line which unpacks the part from a container don't prioritize how its package looks from the outside they only care about functionality of the package for their different jobs. (Hanlon, 1998)
Package development process consist of the generals steps according to De Maria, 2000 (Figure 2):
8 Figure 2: Package development process (De Maria, 2000)
Where it consist of three major categories planning, proving functionality and package launch.
The majority of steps is in the planning category which has goals set for the package and the business, then a project team has to be arranged of the people how are involved in the packing process. The team then comes up with different packing concept and with feasibility
assessment to a conclusion for a final concept which is then tested by the consumer of the package and evaluated.
After the evaluation development for a prototype package begins which is then tested again by the consumer which is evaluated and developed again further. Then after all this steps the final concept begin to take shape after evaluation.
When the final concept is approved packaging test begins and a final approval from the consumer. Then production start-up begins and monitoring the performance of the whole production process from concept of a package to the final package.
2.2 Logistics
Logistic has its origins from the military when they supplied troops in the field with guns, food, clothes, maintenance of forces, hospitalization of personnel etc. The word logistics comes from the Greek word logistikos meaning skilled in calculations. The definition of the word logistics in term of business is: “Logistics is the process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, effective flow and storage of goods, services, and related information from point-of-origin to point-of-consumption for the purpose of conforming to customer requirements”(vogt,2002).
Key components for logistics is: Warehousing: physical requirements of holding inventory space determination and stock layout etc., Materials Handling: is the requirement of moving in the warehouse and to other facility’s. Purchasing: deals with buying of goods and services so that the business can function, where timing and quantity is crucial. Packaging: where the design for handling, protection, transport and storage is vital. Cooperate with Production Operations: synchronizing the demand in production with the transport of recourses is very important for the business to work properly. Information Maintenance: information is what links all the other logistics subjects. It consist of info collection, data analyses, control
procedures, customer service which mean recognize desires of others (Ballou, 2003). A more detailed view of the logistic system is seen in figure 3.
9 Figure 3: Describe the logistic system.( https://gc21.giz.de)
2.3 Packing-logistics
Packing is not by itself like an island in the ocean, packaging influences many aspects in a business including logistics where the name packing-logistics comes from. The packaging system influences logistics, marketing, production and product development (figure 4).(Johnsson 1998; Jönson 2000;Klevås 2005; Prendergast 1995; Saghir 2004)
Figure 4: Describes the relationship between packaging system and other areas. (Hellstöm,2007) The term packing-logistics is a quite new concept that has getting attention lately from the scientific community. (Johnsson 1998;Twede 1992;Dominic et al. 2000;Öjmertz 1998;Twede
& Parsons 1997;Henriksson 1998; Saghir 2002) In figure 5 you can see if one decision is made in logistics it affects packaging and vice versa. So the term packing-logistics stands for bridging the gap between them as close as possible (Hellstöm,2007). Packaging as a
significant impact on the logistical costs and it’s the other way around also, for example:
storage and transports are directly related to the package density and size. How the
components are packed in the container also affect handling costs. Customer service depends on protection of the package and unpacking costs. Transport costs are related to tertiary packages (pallets and roll cages) and how adaptable is the package for transportation and stack ability (Saghir, 2002). The main purpose of packing logistics is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the systems together and not each by its own (Hellström, 2007).
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Figure 5: How decisions in the packaging effect logistics and vice versa.(Hellstöm,2007)
The package decisions of for example change of package, equipment, material and packing structures affects the logistics because of standards of: storage areas, material handling equipment’s, and transportation, etc. To build an efficient logistic system standards is a must, where most of the standards of the packages has shaped the logistic systems. So it is necessary to find an appropriate balance between standards in logistics and differentiated packaging. In the table below shows the packing cost tradeoffs by Lambert, 1998
Logistics activity Trade-offs
Transportation
Increased package information Decreases shipment delays; increased package information
decreases tracking of lost shipments.
Increased package protection Decreases damage and theft in transit, but increases package
weight and transport costs.
Increased standardisation Decreases handling costs, vehicle waiting
time for loading and
unloading; increased standardization;
increases modal choices
for shipper and decreases need for specialized transport
equipment.
Inventory
Increased product protection Decreased theft, damage, insurance;
increases product
availability (sales); increases product value and carrying costs.
Warehousing
Increased package information Decreases order filling time, labour cost.
Increased product protection Increases cube utilisation (stacking), but decreases cube
utilisation by increasing the size of the product dimensions.
Increased standardisation Decreases material handling equipment
costs.
Communications
Increased package information Decreases other communications about the product such as
telephone calls to track down lost shipments.
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Table 1: The table shows how logistics and packaging are affected by each other. (Lamber, 1998)
To integrate all involved parties in packaging the package development process which is adapted for packing-logistics according to Chan, 2006 is the following six steps:
Step 1: Identify the possible package flow route and the packaging level.
Step 2: Integrate packaging logistics in the product type stage.
Step 3: Create a preliminary package design.
Step 4: Establish information flow among all parties.
Step 5: Redesign the packaging system.
Step 6: Use value-chain model to evaluate the finalized chosen package.
This six steps integrate packaging process with other processes which affects indirect or direct.
2.4 Product development processes
According to Ulrich 2014 to: The development of a product consist of the following steps shown in figure 6: Phase 0 : Planning, Phase 1: Concept Development, Phase 2: system- level design, Phase 3: detail design, Phase 4: Phase testing and refinement and Phase 5:
Production ramp-up
Figure 6: Describes the steps to develop a physical product.
Phase 0: Is the planning phase where a mission statement has to be defined and what the purpose with the project is. Also the goals and delimitations to the project has to be stated.
The process of the product development has to be defined and the method to gather information.
Phase 1: Is the phase where different concepts is developed and compared to each other and evaluated, then some concepts is selected because of higher value for the research. The selected concepts is then tested and for further development. In the concept definition there is the function, properties, and analysis of the competitors product.
Phase 2: System level design means that there is a preliminary design on the most important components and a decomposition of the product into subsystems and components. A
functional specification for each product subsystem and a preliminary description of the final assembly process.
Phase 3: The design of the product at the end of this phase should be complete where material, tolerances, measurements and design etc, are defined in a control document. The
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standard parts is identified which is going to be purchased by the supplier. It is also defined how to manufacture the product which tools, quality control, methods and machines to use.
Phase 4: In this phase there is testing and refinement which consist of construction and evaluation of multiple pre-produced versions of the product in order to test whether the product works as designed. The prototypes has two categories alpha and beta prototypes:
where alpha is the early prototype which has the same material properties and geometry but has not necessarily the same manufacturing process for the actual product. Beta prototypes are in other hand manufactured in the same way but not necessarily assembled the same.
Differences between the two is that alpha emphasizes more the function and that it satisfies the most important customer needs, and beta is more focused on performance and reliability issues to improve for the product.
Phase 5: Is the last step in the product development process which is production ramp-up which translates to start the manufacturing process. The purpose is to train and educate the workforce for upcoming problems in the manufacturing process. It also important to get feedback from the customer to evaluate the whole process.
2.5 Product Quality
The type of product affect which quality requirements is needed for the specific product packaging. For example sugar needs an environment where the moisture low where the paper package help just for that. Some parts are sensitive for vibrations for example electronic equipment’s where vibration could occur under the transportation. There is also parts where the surface of a part is milled in high tolerances so it is crucial to protect it from scratching or even worse a dent caused by the parts in the container bumps into each other.When a package is made it is vital to know every property of the specific part which can affect the package quality, where the sensitivity of: vibration, temperature, humidity, chemical, electromagnetic field, mechanical abrasion most be considered. (Dominic, 2000)
The package methods can be categorised into five subjects ( Dominic, 2000):
1. Adapted packaging: Which is the ideal case, where product and package withstands stresses from the distribution environment.
2. Under packaging: In this case there is not enough protection which can cause product damage.
3. Over packaging: In this case there is too much packaging protection then what is necessary which causes distribution costs to rise and the environment is affected negatively because more material is distributed. As a result the whole package also get more expensive.
4. Optimization 1: If the product itself is more tolerant so can fewer package protections be used, this could be a good alternative if it cost less to improve the part then to make the package more damage resistant.
5. Optimization 2: Sometimes it is better to use a simplified package when the stresses from the distribution environment is reduced if for an example the form of transport method is changed.
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2.6 Package handle ability
Handle ability refers to how well the packaging is adapted to different handling
activities that the packages goes throw in the logistic flow. It refers not only for the end customer but all individuals which interact with the package under the flow process. It is important that the package not contribute to a safety risk of the person who packs the package and unloads. The arrangement of the parts, weight, volume, stack ability, possibility to recycle and hygiene are all important factors for the package handle ability (Dominic, 2000). The package handle ability can be explained as the ease of handle packages within a storage area involving loading, unloading, pelletizing, de palletizing, transportation, etc. (Vogt, 2002) The handle ability can be categorized as manual, semi-automated or fully automated. Manual handle ability refers to package handling with only the human body. Examples of manually operation could be to pick up parts from a package or lifting the whole package. Semi- Automated operation could be the use of for example an overhead crane to lift parts from a package or lift the whole package with a forklift. Automated handling can use automated guided vehicle (AGV) for transport of packages or usage of industrial robots for packing operations.(Vogt,2002)
In the design phase of the package, different handle abilities has to be considered. For
ergonomic purposes the grip opening in figure 8 facilitates for that person who is going to lift the box tremendously both ergonomically and comfortable. Also tools which are adapted to facilitate manual handling is important to not contribute to ergonomic injuries, figures 9-12.
The package most be designed in a way so that the power zones are accounted for shown in figure 7 or tools equipment which can help handle the package as the scissor lifts figure 12 (NIOSH, 2007)
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Figure 7: Work is safest when lifting and reaching is performed in these zones. (OSHA, 2004) Figure 8: Vacuum lifters make the handling of large or heavy containers easier.(NIOSH, 2007) Figure 9: Grip opening for a cardboard box. (NIOSH, 2007)
Figure 10: The tilters is used to elevate the content and thereby avoiding bending injuries.
(NIOSH, 2007)
Figure 11: An air ball table makes it easier to slide containers, thereby reducing workers efforts.(NIOSH, 2007)
Figure 12: Scissor lifts is helpful when dealing with heavy objects and to avoid bending movements.
(NIOSH, 2007)
It is also important that the content in the container is placed in a way so that the stability of the container is not affected when lifted manually or lifting equipment. For example if all the content is placed to one side in the container and not evenly distributed the container will tip over when lifted.(NIOSH, 2007)
Space clearance is also important to have reachability for manual material handling for example when picking up a part from a container to avoid bending, reaching and twisting which includes both in the container and also in the storage space. For semi-automated manual package handling space is also important to reach the packages with the forklift in the storage space or other lifting equipment. (NIOSH, 2007)
There is different ways for a human hand to pick up a part from a container, there is generally two common methods either grabbing or pinching. Where grabbing is also called power grip shown in figure 13 which is also the strongest grip. Pinching is used when precise movement is required and when the weight load is low, the most common is Tip Pinching, Lateral Pinching and Chuck Pinching. Examples when tip pinching is used when holding a small object, Lateral Pinch when turning a key and Chuck when holding a pencil shown in the images below. It is more stressful biomechanically to pinch than grab. Generally speaking is that pinching generates only 15-25% of the force exerted by the power grip. Task which are done frequently and require 2 lbs or more force should not involve pinch grips. The drawback with the power grip is the difficulty to have good control because the fingers move as one entity and only in one direction. (NIOSH, 2011)
Figure 13: Power Grip Figure 14 : Tip Pinch Figure 14: Lateral Pinch Figure 16: Chuck Pinch (NIOSH, 2011)
Standard tool equipment and storage standard effect the package handle ability where the design of the package most be adapted to this standards or the package handle ability cost will increase because of specialized transport equipment, tool, storages, etc. (Lambert, 1998)
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2.7 Number of parts in container 2.7.1 Economic order Quantity
The number of parts in a container has a direct effect on inventory and order costs. There is a formula called Wilson Formula even called EOQ ( Economic Order Quantity) which
minimizes this two costs introduced by Ford W. Harris in 1913 in the article "How Many Parts to Make at Once" . The formula consists of Q which is the order quantity and is the value of importance to minimize inventory and order costs. The D stand for annual demand quantity and S is the ordering costs per purchase which consists of transport, handling and setup costs. And H stands for annual holding costs per unit, also called inventory costs.
The formula is illustrated in the figure 17.
Figure 17: Economic Order Quantity Graph where the total cost is at the lowest point.( http://www.eazystock.com)
Some drawbacks with the formula is that it assumes followings: the order lead time which is the time from placing the order to delivery is constant, purchasing cost don’t change
dependent on the order quantity, the customers demand of parts and the reordering is quantity is the same. (Sabri, 2007)
2.7.2 Distance to supplier
The distance to the supplier also effect the number of parts to be ordered where the following three subjects is mentioned in the book Logistik I Försörjningskedjor by Stig-Arne Mattson:
The space dimension, the time dimension and cultural dimension. The space dimension refers to the distance to supplier where shorter distance generates lower transport costs and can give more frequent delivery with lower quantity’s at each delivery which is part of the just-in-time philosophy and Kanban system. A closer distance also leads to easier access to meetings and thereby establishment of a better partnership with the supplier. When time dimension is mentioned it refers to different time zones when distances between the parties are large. This affect communication opportunities because of different working hours, even holidays differ between countries which lead to no communication at all or worse that products don’t get delivered. To prevent for a stock-out of supplies a safety-stock must be established which causes higher inventory costs. The last dimension is cultural where the language, behaviour
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and approach have great impact on the communication and misunderstandings can occur and affect all things in the supply chain.
In some situation it is more beneficial to buy components from a distant supplier because of cheaper purchase price. It is useful when buying standard components which don’t needed to be changed over long time periods, for example screws, nuts and bolts. But if it is parts which need to developed and improved continuously like engine parts, electric components, etc.
Then it is important to have close relationship both geographically and communication vice.
2.8 Part considerations:
2.8.1 Volume-to-Weight ratio
The Volume to Weight ratio of a component affect transport, storage, handle ability, and packaging. When the Volume to Weight ratio is low it affects all this logistic subjects mentioned in a positive manner, examples could be sheet metal and books. In other hand when the parts volume are larger than the weight for example feathers, foam and food items it takes a lot of space which is not preferable from a logistic perspective. In most cases when the volume to weight is low, the logistic costs is also low except in cases when parts is
transported by air, weight is more important than volume.(Sadjady, 2011) 2.8.2 Value-to-Weight Ratio
When the value of the component is high compared to the weight it tends to absorb the distribution costs because the distribution cost is a relative low in proportion to the products overall cost. Where low value-to-weight ratios like concrete, sand, and ore incur relative high transport unit costs compared to with high value-to-weight ratios for example computers, diamonds, cameras equipment, etc. Also the high value-to-weight ratios products ties up more capital for the inventory costs because of the high value. (Sadjady, 2011)
2.9.0 logistic costs 2.9.1 Inventory costs
An inventory is any stored resource used to satisfy a current or future need where resources could be raw materials, work-in-process, and finished goods are examples of inventory.
Excessive inventory levels are costly and insufficient levels leads to stock outs. Therefore a balance between the two has to made continuously. Inventory costs represent as much as 50%
of the invested capital for many companies. The main uses of inventory is to act as an
decupling function, storing resources, handle irregular supply and demand, quantity discount, avoiding stock outs and shortages.
The decupling function is to decouple the manufacturing processes, for exampleone manufacturing activity has to be completed before a second activity can be started the inventory can act as an buffer between working station to not cause interruption in the manufacturing process.
Storage of resources and storage space cost is two major cost for the inventory. Storage of resources is obvious if the price of a part is high the cost to store it will also be high.
Sometimes security measures has to be taken to protect the part from inaccessible people to have access. The storage space cost is calculated by multiplying cost per cubic meter of the space occupied with the amount of time the inventory is stored. The bigger the storage is the more will it cost to build the facility and inventory service costs and insurance and taxes is
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affected (Vogt, 2002). So the major inventory costs are: items, ordering, carrying or holding inventory, stock outs and safety stock.
The advantage with inventory is also to handle an irregular supply and demand which is crucial to not have production stops and their by not have delivery interruptions which can affect the relationship with the customer. Sometimes the inventory can take advantage of quantity discount which means it in some circumstances it is more profitable to order more parts.
Safety stocks are crucial when the part demands fluctuates up to satisfy the customer needs, if the company is out of stock repeatedly and not available to deliver it will affect the trust between customer and supplier. (Balakrishnan, 2012).
Two fundamental questions to ask in consideration to inventory costs is:
How much to order ?
When to order?
To forecast the demand of a product or service can be categorised broadly into three techniques: Qualitative Techniques, Time Series Analysis and Casual Methods.
Qualitative forecasting is not based on mathematical calculation. It’s based on subjective judgment forecasting where the experience of the business and sales determines the accuracy of the forecast. So this method is more related to knowledge and experience than actual calculations. This method is useful when data are not available or we wish to gain general insights through the opinions of experts.
Time series analysis in other hand uses mathematical data to forecast the product or service demand. It uses historical data to predict the future events. Time series analysis can be categorised into two series: Multi-period pattern projection and single-period pattern less projection.
Multi-period pattern projection produce forecasts from period of weeks, months, quarters, etc.
For example the sales of a specific parts in the last year set the trend or demand for the next year. If part has increased in sales with 10% each year the logistic manager knows that the demand should increase probably with 10% next year. However also if the demand has been constant each month for example it should be the same for the next upcoming month.
Single-period pattern less projection uses shorter history data to predict the demand with the most recent data. It is not as accurate as the multi-period forecasting method.
Causal methods aims to figure out the cause and effect in the demand. To understand why demand patterns change tools like regression analysis, multiple regression and econometric models are used. After the analysis is a more accurate and complex prediction of the future demands can be achieved. (Nieuwenhuizen, 2007)
2.9.2 Transportation methods and costs
The five most common transport modes of packages are by: Road, Rail, Water, Air and Pipeline.
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The transportation on the road is the most popular mode of transportation. It is also the most accessible to most places and it is also quite a fast method to transport. The disadvantage is that petroleum and diesel prices keeps rising which affect the transport cost on the road. Road transportation is also limited to the land and cannot transport across the sea.
The rail transportation is useful when transporting heavy objects and traveling long distances.
It is convenient to transport bulk items like raw materials like coal and iron ore. Cost of transport on rail is generally less than on the road or air. Problem with rail is that the rail is already fixed and cannot change direction which makes it very inflexible compared to roads which there are plenty of directions to choose from. The other disadvantages is that it only provides terminal to terminal services for example Stockholm to Gothenburg instead of direct to the customers address which in the case of the road option it is possible.
Air transport is suitable for handling expensive items like computers, jewellery etc. So transporting low value items by air is not cost-efficient because of the high transport cost. If fast transportation is prioritized air is the method of choice.
Pipelines is constrained to liquids or gases and not actual physical objects. Advantage is that it is fast to transport and cheapest when used but not so cheap to build.
The advantage with transportation on water is that large objects and big amount of quantities can transported compared to the other methods. However the transportation routes are often fixed which limits the flexibility. There is also a restriction on the a minimum weight limit to transport parts. The transport is also restricted to the ports which means that continued transportation must happen to transport the freight inland to the customer. (Kulkarni, 2008) The most expensive freight cost is by air and the least by water. The shipment size and weight is the least on air usually a few kilograms and on water the minimum weight is around 20–40 ton. When ordering the choice of transport method will also have an impact on the lot size restrictions which in turn influence the inventory levels. If the delivery time wants to be minimum air is the preferred choice and the longest by water. Losses and damages of products is highest for rail and lowest for water. (Shah, 2009)
To decide which transport method to use with consideration to the customer the following considerations can made (Voortman, 2004):
Dependability: Which stands for the consistency of the transportation delivery timings.
For example if the parts arrive two days late every time (not consistent).
Time in transit: Is how long time will it take to transport from location A to location B
Flexibility: The transport method affect the flexibility, as an example to transport on the road is more flexible than on rail because there is more roads accessible to different locations then rails.
Loss and damage of products: Some transportation is more unreliable then other, as mentioned transport on the rail has the highest damage rate of the transported modes.
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2.10 E-learning
So what is an E-Learning? “An E-learning can be defined as the use of computer and Internet technologies to deliver a broad array of solutions to enable learning and improve
performance” (FAO, 2011) The E-learning reaches a wider target of audience, It is useful when: the localization differences are large, different time zones or if the learner is busy in a specific date/time it is no problem because the course is not fixt like a classroom session. The skills learned from an E-learning is more knowledge and comprehension based like follow instructions and applying knowledge to new situations which is also referred as cognitive skills. Some other skills is not to suitable with an E-learning for example interpersonal skills like communication with other people, presentation etc. It wouldn’t also be appropriate to use an E-learning for psychomotor skills like how to drive a car or play an musical instrument.
The advantage with E-learning is also that it is made one time and can be used over and over without any teacher present which is cost efficient in the long term.
A E-learning can either be self-paced or instruction led, where instruction led is scheduled and led by an instructor and the participants can communicate live with each other either with audio, video and regular discussion forums. Self-paced is the opposite and there is no time limit when to do the course. And most importantly the participant can perform at their own pace which is crucial in the learning process.
Things to consider in the development of an e-course is: The E-learning should be relevant for the participants needs, the instructions and delivery techniques should be made creatively to engage and motivate the participants, frequent interaction is essential with learner to sustain attention and promote learning, It is also important to follow up each person’s track data (test results) to see if there is a pattern for misunderstandings in the course content compared with the questions which is asked. (FAO, 2011)
2.10.1 Delivery strategies
According to Walter Dick and Lou Carey (1990) the instruction strategies has to consist of:
Pre-Instructional activities which will motivate, gaining the learners attention and inform the learners to recall prerequisite knowledge. Information presentation which consist of the instructional sequence, size of information and examples. Learners participation where practice and feedback play a major role. Testing where pre/post-tests, final test or imbedded tests is used. Follow-through to get enrichment and use the knowledge learnt to apply for new situations.
The order which the subjects mentioned above are put together and designed depends of the different learnings events. Some examples mentioned in The Online Learning
Handbook( Jolliffe,2001):
Structured learning event where the material is in hierarchy of topics where the other follow the next topic as a textbook. Advantage is that it is straight forward to construct it, the disadvantage is the linear instruction method which is not the ideal method all the time.
Unstructured learning event is the opposite mentioned earlier, which allows the learner to explore what is relevant for them instead go throw everything for example a specific topic.
Advantage is it easier to find information for a specific problem, disadvantage learner can be disoriented in all information.
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Presentation learning event is structured to just provide information. It is suitable when something complex wants to be explained step by step or to introduce a new topic.
Disadvantage with this is that it is not to interactive with the learners.
Choice of explanation learning event which consist of a list of topics and chose one and get the explanation and move to the next topic or return to the topic list an view another
explanation. It is best used if the audience has different knowledge levels or different topics which are relevant for the job. Advantages is that the education can be individualized for a particular learner, disadvantage is the unstructured way.
Adaptive learning event is like choice of explanation but the learners have no idea there other explanations available. So the participant can be given a quiz and the learning event set accordingly to the answers. The advantage with this method is that it personalize the
education for the persons weakness and this is a good alternative when you don’t know where all the lack of knowledge is. Disadvantage is there is no choice of what topic to study.
How to learning event is used when guide or procedure is needed for a specific task where the learners is instructed step by step. Advantage it can be used with a lot of animations and video utilities, disadvantage is that it can be difficult to develop.
Supervised learning event where the learners undertake various tasks with help of a tutor, the tutor can send the learners to certain page or monitor their actions and the learner can also monitor the tutor to learn by example. The learners can also have a communication session with tutor to discuss different subjects on video and audio. Advantage is that the if there is any questions or unclearness a tutor is available to answer, disadvantage the learners can be too reliant of the tutor help.
Knowledge-driven learning event where the learners are asked at completion of one topic and correct answer will bring them to the next topic. The advantage is that learners most know what is said before the questions which drives the learners to learn the topic. Disadvantage is if the questions are poor it will affect the learners ability.
Simulation learning event is used to interact the learner with the simulation so by clicking for example on a link it affects the movement of an animation. Advantage is that they can build a mental model because every action results in a reaction in the simulation. Disadvantage is that it is difficult to design.
Reference guide is a list of terms which has links to other learning materials. Advantage it is simple to design and develop, disadvantage learners can get lost in all information.
2.10.2 Course Content
The course content can be delivered with simple learning resources such as documents, videos, audio files, PowerPoint presentation, etc. These types of content are non-interactive in the sense that learners only read and watch but if the resources are combined with interactive questions and feedback the learning experience don’t get predictable and boring. Too even make the content more interactive simulation could be used to real-world situations where the participant learns by testing different options. One other option is to make an Job-aids content
