A fundamental component of world-class manufacturing (WCM) is that of total productive maintenance (TPM), linked to both total
quality management (TQM) and the concepts of continuous-flow manufacturing which are embedded in cellular manufacturing.
An investigation was conducted in collaboration with a ®rst tier automotive component supplier to determine the overall equipment
effectiveness (OEE) of a semi-automated assembly cell. The big losses associated with equipment effectiveness were also identi®ed.
The production output of the cell over the observed period was 26 515. This represents 97% good components, 0.33% scrap and 2.67%
rework. The number of stoppages recorded was 156, where the 10 most common causes were identi®ed. The OEE was 62% and the six big
losses represent 38% loss of the productive time.
Based on the ®ndings, it was recommended that a pilot project to be conducted to implement a TPM programme for the cell and expand it
further to the other cells in the factory. # 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.