UNIT 7: DESIGN OF WORK SYSTEMS

OPERATIONS STRATEGY

It is important for management to make design of work systems a key element of its
operations strategy. In spite of the major advances in computers and manufacturing
technology, people are still the heart of a business; they can make or break it, regardless of
the technology used. Technology is important, of course, but technology alone is not
enough.

The topics described in this chapter job design, methods analysis, motion study, work
standards, and incentives all have an impact on productivity. They lack the glamour of high
tech; they are closer to the back-to-the-basics fundamentals of work improvement.

Workers can be a valuable source of insight and creativity because they actually perform
the jobs and are closer to the problems that arise. All too often, managers have overlooked
contributions and potential contributions of employees, sometimes because of ignorance
and sometimes because of a false sense of pride. Unto management differences are also a
factor.

In the same vein, an increasing number of companies are focusing some of their attention
on improving the quality of work life and instilling pride and respect among workers. Many
organizations are reaping surprising gains through worker empowerment, giving workers
more say over their jobs.

People work for a variety of reasons. Economic necessity is among the most important, but
beyond that, people work for socialization, to give meaning and purpose to their lives, for
status, for personal growth, and for other reasons. These reasons can play an important
role of the lives of workers and should be accorded serious consideration in the design of
work systems.

 Job Design
The act of specifying the contents and methods of jobs. The goal of job design is to
create a work system that is productive and efficient, taking into consideration of
costs and benefits of alternatives for the organizations and the workers. Job design
answers the questions:

• What will be done?

• Who will do the job?
• How the job will be done?
• Where the job will be done?

 Ergonomics (Human Factors)

The scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among human
and other elements of a system

Three domains of ergonomics:

• Physical (repetitive movements, layout, health, safety)

• Cognitive (mental workload, decision making, HCI, and work stress)

• Organizational (communication, teamwork, work design, and telework)

 Efficiency vs. Behavioral Job Design

Efficiency School - Emphasizes a systematic, logical approach to job design
Behavioral School - Emphasizes satisfaction of needs and wants of employees
 Behavioral Approaches to Job Design

I. Job enlargement
 Involves giving the worker a larger proportion of the work, this is called horizontal
loading.

Example: Assigning additional work of same skill and responsibility.

II. Job rotation

 Workers periodically exchange jobs. Involves assigning different kinds of jobs to
workers in turn.

Example: A clerk can be assigned jobs in recruitment, accounts, establishment,

academic sections on a rotating basis.

III. Job enrichment

 Increasing responsibility for planning and coordination tasks, by vertical loading.

Example: An assembly worker can be given the additional job of inspection.

For Management For Employees

1.Simplifies Training 1. Low education and skill

requirements
2. High Productivity 2. Minimum responsibility

3. Low wage cost 3. Little mental effort needed

 Specialization •Work that concentrates on some aspect of a product or service.

Advantages

Disadvantages

For Management For Employees

1.Difficult to motivate quality 1. Monotonous work

2. Worker dissatisfaction, possibly 2. Limited opportunities for advancement

resulting in absenteeism, high turnover,
disruptive tactics, poor attention to quality. 3. Little control over work

4. Little opportunity for self – fulfilment

 Methods Analysis

Methods Study is the systematic recording and critical examination of the factors and
resources involved in existing and proposed ways of doing work, as a means of
developing and applying easier and more effective methods and reducing costs.
 Methods Study basically deals with finding better ways of doing work and it helps
improve productivity by eliminating unnecessary work, avoidable delays and other types
of waste. These are achieved by;

•Improved working procedures

• Improved layout

• Improved working environment

• Improved product design

The Basic Procedure of Methods Study

The need foe methods analysts can come from a number of different sources:

1. Changes in tools and equipment.

2. Changes in product design, or new product.
3. Changes in materials or procedures
4. Government regulations or contractual agreements. 5. Other factors such accidents
and quality problems

The Basic Procedure of Method Analysis is:

1.Identify the operation to be studied, and gather all pertinent facts about tools,
equipment, materials, and so on.

2. If the job is currently being done, discuss the job with the operator and supervisor
to get their input.

3. Study and document the present method of an existing job using process charts.
For

new jobs, develop charts based on information about the activities involved.

4.Analyze the job.

5.Follow up Installation to assure that improvements have been achieved.

6. Propose new methods.

7. Install the new methods.

Selecting an Operating to Study.

1. Have a high labor content.

2. Jobs are done frequently.
3. Jobs are unsafe, tiring, unpleasant, and/or noisy.
4. Jobs are designated as problems.

Analyzing the Job and Proposing New Methods

I. Flow process chart

• is a device for recording a process in a compact form, as a means of better understanding

it and improving it. It shows the various steps or events (such as Operation, Inspection,
Movement. Storage said Delay) that occur during the peformance of work or during a series
of actions.
 II. Worker - Machine Chart

• Chart used to determine portions of a work cycle during which an operator and
equipment are busy or idle.

III. Installing the Improved Method

• Successful Implementation of proposed method changes requires convincing

management of the desirability of new method and obtaining the cooperation of the
worker.

IV. The Follow-up

• In order to ensure that changes have been made and that the proposed method is
functioning as expected, the analyst should review the operation after a reasonable period
and consult again with the operator.

V. Motion Study

• Systematic study of the human motion used to perform an operation. The purpose is to
eliminate unnecessary motions and to identify the best sequence of motions for maximum
efficiency.

Search Looking for an item The most-

used
Hold Retaining object after it been techniques
grasped are:
Transport Empty Reaching for an object
1. Motion
Transport Loaded Moving hand with the object held study
in hand principles
Release Hold To deposit the object
•
Select To choose from group of objects

Guidelines for designing motion-efficient work procedures.

I. Principles related to use of human body

II. Principles for arrangement of work place, and

II. Principles for the design of tools and equipment.

2. Analysis of therblings
Therbligs are kinds of elemental motions that make up a set of fundamental
motions required for a worker to perform a manual operation or task. They are used
in the study of motion economy in the workplace. Some of the commonly used
therbligs are;

3. Micromotion study
 • Use of motion pictures and slow motion to study motions that otherwise would be
too rapid to analyze.

4. Charts
• Simultaneous Motion (SIMO) chart is used to record simultaneously on a
common
time scale, the therblings (basic elemental motions) performed by both the hands of
the operator. The idea behind the use of therbligs is to break the jobs down into
minute elements and make improvements on the analysis of these elements by
eliminating, combining or rearranging them.

Working Environment

Working environment has a significant impact on the person and on task performance.
There are a number of environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, ventilation,
illumination, noise etc. affecting worker performance. The work designer must know how
each factor affects the person or performance, how to diagnose the problem and what
solutions will be effective in different situations. Environmental problems are the ones that
involve the surroundings of the worker. There is a relationship between the worker, the task
and the environment as shown below.

The common environmental factors are outlined below:

1.)Temperature
Human beings can perform under a wide range of temperature. However,
work gets. adversely affected if temperatures are outside the comfort
range. Temperature problems are less problematic in offices than in
factories.

2.)Humidity
Humidity is an important variable for maintaining a comfortable working
environment. Temperature levels depend on humidity levels since human
beings are more sensitive to temperature variables at high humidities.
High humidity requires more cooling on a warns day: and more locating on
a cold day, than love humidity.

3.) Illumination
Illumination consists of both the quantity and quality of light. Each of
these may contribute to lighting problems. The amount of illumination
depends on the type of job. For example, more illumination is needed for
detailed work. Lighting can be classified in various ways such as:

Primary and Secondary lighting

Primary lighting is the lighting required to perform a task, whereas
Secondary lighting is light needed to move about and for safety needs.

General and Specialized lighting

General lighting is lighting from overhead sources over abroad area.
Specialized lighting is needed for situations like checking quality defects.

Natural and Artificial lighting

Natural lighting is used widely due to its low cost Artificial lighting is used
for specialized lighting.

Usually, lighting problems; arise from the quality rather than quantity of
illumination.
Glare and contrast are important aspects.

Glare occurs when a bright light shines in a person’s eye and reduces its
visibility of the object to be seen. It can be from a light source or may be
reflected from the object itself. Hence, there should be proper shielding of
light sources or relocation of sources of reflected glare. For example, the
computer display screen should be perpendicular to the nearby window,
to eliminate sources of direct or reflected glare.

Contrast is caused when the illumination level of the object is

significantly different from the visual surroundings.
Solutions to lighting problems include the following:
: Controlling the light source by shielding or relocation
: Changing the illumination level
: Changing the task to require less fine visual perception
: Changing the object to control reflectance.

4.) Noise
Noise is unwanted sound. Noise is caused by vibration of machines as well
as human beings. Noise is annoying, thereby leading to errors and /or
accidents. It can damage impair hearing if it is very loud. Noise limits are
set by three criteria: hearing loss, speech interference and annoyance.
Intermittent noise causes less hearing loss than continuous noise-because
the hearing mechanisms have a chance for recovery before each new
exposure. Unwanted background noise has detrimental effect on oral
communication. Noise has a definite effect on work performance.
Measurement of noise levels and exposure times will indicate the extent
of noise effect measures for tackling the noise problems include the
following;
: Isolating the person from the noise source by distance and /or barriers.
: Modifying the exposure time.
: Use of earplugs

5.) Vibration

Is also an important factor in job design. Vibration can conic from various sources like
machines, tools vehicles, human activity. Corrective action for vibration include use of
shock absorbers, padding, cushioning, rubber mounting.

There two basts causes of accidents are worker carelessness and accident hazards. OSHA
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970; Occupational Safety and Health
Administration.

Job Design Success

Successful job design must be:

1. Carried out by experienced personnel who have the necessary training and background.
2. Consistent with the goals of the organization.
3. In written form.
4. Understood and agreed to by both management and employees.

Job design determines the content of a job, and methods analysis determines how a job is
to be performed.

 Work Measurement
Work measurement is concerned with determining the length of time it should take to
complete job. Job times are vital inputs for manpower planning, estimating labor costs,
scheduling, budgeting, and designing incentive systems.

Standard time

The amount of time it should take a qualified worker to complete a specified task, working
at a sustainable rate, using given methods, tools and equipment, raw materials, and
workplace arrangements.

Work Measurement Techniques:

 Stopwatch time study

Currently the most often used method of measuring work output. This technique records
the times and rates of working for job elements under specified conditions and analyzes the
data to determine the time required to complete the job at a particular level of
performance. The stopwatch study consists of the following steps;

i. Defining the Task

The time study analyst should be well familiar with the job. Before imposing a time limit,
he checks that the job is completed efficiently. In other words, method studies come
before time studies. The engagement of management and workers is critical to the
successful completion of the time study.

ii. Determining Job Elements

The analyst divides the work into components and allots time for each element after
defining the tasks and obtaining everyone’s cooperation. This elementalisation process
is carried out for a number of reasons. First, a few Not all cycles contain all of the
elements. Second, a worker may not be equally proficient in all aspect of their
profession. A manual of element limes that may be used to calculate timings for various
tasks is prepared with the aid of the third elemental breakdown.

iii. Timing the Elements

Once the job is broken down into different elements, the analyst proceeds with actual
measurement. The timing is usually done with a standard decimal minute stopwatch.
There are usually two methods of timing the elements: the continuous method of
timing, the watch is started form zero position at the beginning of the study, the watch
runs continuously and the analyst simply records the stopwatch reading at the end of
each element and while the snapback method he watch is also started from the zero
position at the beginning of the study, at the end of each reading, the analyst
simultaneously notes down the stopwatch reading and snaps back (by depressing the
crown).

iv. Determining the Number of Observations

At some point in his study, the analyst must decide if adequate number of observations
have been taken. The number of cycles that must be limed depends on three things;
variability of observed time, desired accuracy and desired confidence level.

v. Rating

Rating is the process in which the time study analyst assesses the rate of working of the
worker with respect to his own concept of normal rate. Rating is carried out because the
worker being observed may be working at a rate different from file ‘normal’ rate. Therefore,
an adjustment factor known as performance rating, is used by the observer to adjust the
‘observed time’ to ‘normal time’.

vi. Determining Standard Time

Normal time is the amount of time a worker takes to perform a job if there are no delays or
interruptions, Factors, such as personal delays (attending to personal needs like getting
water to drink, going to rest room), unavoidable delays (like machine breakdown, tool
breakage, material non-availability,. No power etc,) or rest breaks must be considered. The
standard time for a job is equal to the normal time plus the allowances for such delays.

 Work Sampling

One method for calculating the percentage of time that a worker or machines spend on
different tasks is work sampling. In accordance with the rules of probability, a large
number of real-time observations are taken on a group of workers, machines, and
processes at random intervals over a predetermined amount of time. Its principal
application was in ratio-delay studies, which examine the duration a machine remains
idle or the amount of time a worker is engaged in productive tasks. The work sampling
procedure consists of the following basic steps:

i. Defining the problem

ii. Designing the work sampling study:

•Description of the elements to be studied

•Determining the number of observations

•Deciding on the number of days/shifts needed for the study

•Developing the times at which random observations are to be made

iii. Analyzing the results : The analyst makes the observations and records
them by making a series of tallies.

 Standard Elemental Times

Standard Elemental Times are derived from a firm’s own historical time study data.
Over time, a file of accumulated elemental times that are common to many jobs will
be collected. In time, these standard elemental times can be retrieved from the file,
eliminating the need to go through a new time study to acquire them. Steps for
standard elemental time are the following:

1. Analyze the job to identify the standard elements.

2. Check the file for elements that have historical times and record them.
Use time studies to obtain others, if necessary.
3. Modify the file times if necessary.
4. Sum the elemental times to obtain the normal time, and factor in
allowances to obtain the standard time.

 Predetermined Time Standards

Predetermined time standards involve the use of published data on standard
elemental times. Developed in the 1940s by the Methods Engineering Council. The
MTM (methods-time-measurement) tables are based on extensive research of basic
elemental motions and times. To use this approach, the analyst must divide the job
into its basic elements (reach, move, turn, etc.) measure the distances involved, and
rate the difficulty of the element, and then refer to the appropriate table of data to
obtain the time for that element.

 Compensation

Wages have always been the basic reward for labor. Over the years, two basic types of
wage payment plans are available to employees: Time-based Payment and Output-
based Payment. The former is known as time payment and the latter is known as
 incentive payment. It is important for organizations to develop suitable compensation
plans for their employees.

Compensation approaches

 Time-based systems

Time-based payment provides for compensation of employees according to the time

they devote to the organization. This system is widely used for office, administration,
R&D and other situations. Whenever worker is highly variable, creative or difficult to
measure, time-payment are favored.

 Output-based systems

Most employees are paid on the basis of time (hourly or monthly). Output-based
systems offer some sort of incentive either to an individual or to work group.
Compensation based on amount of output an employee produced during the pay
period.

 Incentive systems

Incentive payments are made to reward workers for their output. Some workers
produce more under incentive system than they might under a time-based system.
Workers may like incentive system since they expect a relationship between their
efforts and their earnings.

The desirable features of an incentive system are :

• Simplicity

•Ease of use

•Consistency

•Fairness

• Wide coverage

The two types of Incentive Plans:

• Individual incentive plans

The simplest form of individual incentive plan is the straight piece rate system, where a
worker’s wage is directly proportional to his output. Now-a-days the guaranteed base
wage is incorporated in the piece-rate system, which ensures a minimum or basic wage
to workers irrespective of output. They get incentive beyond a specified output norm.

• Group incentive plans

Group incentive systems are applicable where the output of individuals cannot be easily
identifiable. For example, group incentive is applicable to groups of workers engaged in
operation assembly lines, material handling etc. Although some plans reward the group on
the basis of output, others are rewarded for reduction of waste and costs increase in
equipment utilization.

• Knowledge-based systems

A pay system used by organizations to reward workers who undergo training that
increases their skills.
Three dimensions:

• Horizontal skills - Reflect the variety of tasks the worker is capable of performing

• Vertical skills - Reflect the managerial skills the worker is capable of

• Depth skills - Reflect quality and productivity results

 Management Compensation

The total amount of money and benefits paid to a company’s executives and managers.
It includes: salaries, bonuses, stock options, retirement plans, and other perks.