Department of Industrial Engineering and Management (IEM)

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A New Concept in Modern Industry Sector, “Virtual Industry Model”
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2018-12) Badiuzzaman, Md.; Rafiquzzaman, Dr. Md.
Virtual office has become a popular and desired office management system for technologybased low-cost office management system. This virtual management system is a new way of working that enables the virtual worker to work outside the walls of the traditional office. In this system, all the administrative functions of an organization are not necessarily geographically centered in one office. The process of designing and implement a low cost and effective "Virtual office management system" has been introduced in this work. The total system works using software which is named “Virtual Industry Model.” The software contains a secure database system and another computing method as required for industry. It is also interesting that using software and the total process will be automated and computerized what is a big deal in the industrial process. Finally, the system was applied to manufacturing, production and service operations. The results show that from the viewpoint of decision making, product design, production planning, production control to marketing, they were able to save their, time, their money and found the operation management easier.
A Study into the Use of the Dysfunction Mode and Effects Critical Analysis (DMECA) in a Power Plant
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2009-01) Rahman, Azizur; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Dysfunction Mode and Effect Critical Analysis (DMECA) is a well-established tool for assessing dysfunctions regarding the quality of maintenance and production processes. It is conceptually same as the Total Quality Management (TQM) tool of Failure Mode and Effect Critical Analysis (FMECA). It helps to focus on core challenges while still including a wide range of dysfunctions. Since the nature of dysfunctions and quality issues are very similar, the general idea and framework of a DMECA may be adapted successfully to remove dysfunctions in management process. The DMECA approach, to determine and analyze possible dysfunctions in complex management processes, was developed by Massimo Bertolini, et.al. [2]. They recommended that this method can be applied to various fields such as manufacturing industry, power plant, gas generating plant even where the measure of management process efficiency is more difficult. The analytical tool DMECA works according to the new ISO 9000:2000 standards and the Total Quality Management (TQM) principle concerning the 'process approach'. In this study, DMECA method is applied to determine and analyze the possible dysfunctions in complex management process of a power plant. According to the literature reviewed, probably this is the first to use the DMECA in a large power plant. DMECA is used to analyze each potential dysfunction mode for each elementary activity constituting the plant processes, to identify the subsequent effects. A list of priority interventions of the dysfunction modes then decided. The evaluation of the priorities are utilized to create a classification of the potential dysfunction modes according to a criticality parameter obtained by the combination of severity of the consequences, probability that the dysfunction occurs and chances that it can be detected. The process break-down structure defined during the process identification phase (reported in Figure 4.4 for the firms' processes) 09 sub-processes and 57 activities of job management process were identified. For each activity, possible dysfunctions had established and 175 potential causes have been identified for the whole process of 'job management'. A code number was assigned to each dysfunction with the same criteria as used to map the processes. In order to conduct a criticality analysis of dysfunction, the judgment criteria is defined, by which the unwanted event was assessed. The conversion tables (Table 4.2, 4.3, 4.4 & 4.5) were suggested to translate linguistic judgments into numerical values to obtain a Risk Priority Number (RPN). Thus, it will be possible to judge and evaluate the criticality of the dysfunction causes. Data for this study were collected from the respondents of the study area by using the questionnaire prepared (Appendix A). The interviews were made group wise in the power plant during their work and leisure time with the permission of interviewee as well as management. Each personnel completed the questionnaire independently, with the support of Table 4.5. Mean values (from all questionnaires) of the three parameters; occurrence dysfunctions (OD), Detectability dysfunctions (DD) and severity dysfunctions (SD) for each dysfunction were calculated. Finally, the respective RPNs were obtained as RPN = ODx DD x SD. The calculated RPN values are provided in table 4.6. These products may be viewed as a relative measure of the management dysfunctions. The RPN values can range from 1 to 1000, with 1 being the smallest management dysfunction possible and 1000 being the biggest management dysfunction possible. These values were then used to rank the various causes in the dysfunctions. In case of process with a relatively high RPN, the engineering team must make efforts to take corrective action to reduce the RPN. Likewise, because of a certain dysfunction has a relatively low RPN, the engineering teams should not overlook the causes and should not neglect an effort to reduce the RPN. This is especially true, when the severity of a cause is high. In this case, a low RPN may be extremely misleading, not placing enough importance on a cause where the level of severity may be disastrous. In general, the purpose of the RPN was to rank the various causes documented. The smaller the RPN the better - and - the larger the worse. Dysfunction causes and their relative weights were investigated for each activity in order to determine the most critical and to decide improvement actions. There are only 25 causes of dysfunctions those are critical amongst 175 cusses. The beauty of DMECA method is that it permits to identify and eliminate particular Dysfunctions and simultaneously it will correct or eliminate other problems or inefficiencies indirectly. Therefore, at the end of the DMECA structured process analysis, we obtained schemes where relatively few corrective actions can solve multiple dysfunctions (Table 5.2). This was possible because there were a strong interrelationship between management processes and activities. The main advantage of the methodology is its applicability to the managerial processes of each organization (i.e., firms, public services, local agency or government). In particular, DMECA is a valid technique to evaluate processes efficiency and effectiveness in the field of service sector where measuring, monitoring and correcting the possible dysfunctions in managerial processes are critical to improve the performances of production and maintenance. To analyze the managerial dysfunctions in any organization the DMECA approach is very effective and it involves low cost as it is found in this research work. So, it is a cost effective and can be applied to identify management personnel deficiencies which in turn will be helpful for uninterrupted production and/or maintenance. It identifies, access and ranks dysfunctions that are challenging to eliminate. Thus, the method prevents the consumption of time and cost of production and/or maintenance. In this study an application of the DMECA technique applied in an important power plant (maintenance and production for electricity) to analyze, to evaluate and to improve job management process efficiency. Finally a number of recommendations are made to the management to implement the research findings to the plants. At last but not least some recommendations are also made for further study.
Analysis of the Major Causes of Accident and Standardize the Safety Measures for the Electricity Distribution System.
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2009-03) Islam, Md. Siful; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub.
Electricity distribution is a vast sector and it is stretched out over the whole country. Huge quantity of distribution line, line equipment, workers and public are involved in the system. The activities of the distribution system are mainly risky. The possibility of safety breaks in this system is very much for it's complex and risks involved operation. Death due to electrical shock is as usual news published in most of the Daily Newspapers. For a country like Bangladesh due to economical and technological drawbacks and lack of giving proper importance of the sector, I lie management of distribution system in Bangladesh is still using very primitive methods with minimum or without using of personal protective devices (PPE) for completion of' distribution system activities. Non availability of safety measures posses a great challenge to the workers enhancing the uncertainties and risks, resulting injury and accident. In this research, it is tried to explore the occupational safety problems t hat exist in distribution system in Bangladesh. It is also investigated, the possible hazards available in distribution system and tried to find out the main causes and agents responsible for accidents. Keeping this view in mind, data for this project were collected from distribution systems as primary data through a prescribed questionnaire. 'Three sets of questionnaires were prepared; one for distribution system workers, one for managers and the another for public. Six distribution organizations were taken into consideration for data collection. During study, different categories of distribution system workers, managers and public were interviewed based on the level of technical knowledge, experience, intimacy with the accidents and also educational level. The sample was kept relevant considering the time and cost. Victim, witness, experienced workers and managers were included in the sample. The sample size was limited to 1 55 for distribution system workers, 20 for Managers and 175 for public. The different categories of workers were regrouped into tour categories for the study purpose, such as High- skilled, Skilled, Semi- skilled and Un -skilled. 19% 1-1gh-Skilled, 36% Skilled, 20% Semi-Skilled and 161X) tin-Skilled workers were selected as sample to reflect the staffing pattern of it distribution system (Appendix-A). About 91 of workers Experienced with accident during their work in distribution system. Personal negligence, lack of experience, not to use PPE, absence of good working environment, over confidence and finally excessive work loads were also identified unanimously by workers as causes of accident. Most of the managers were agree with the causes mentioned by workers. Both the managers and workers mentioned that illegal use of electricity, tree adjacent to distribution line, improper clearance of line is the main causes of accident for public. To prevent accident (in case of workers) 30.76% managers suggested to use PPE followed by 21. 15% suggested for continuous supervision, 1 7.3% for raising awareness, 13.46% for training, 9.6 % for ensure good work environment on distribution system works and 7.6% recommended fur justified work load. For public safety, both the workers and mangers provided some suggestion as- improving public awareness, operation to remove illegal connection and discourage public to plant trees near distribution line. As far as knowledge of rules and regulations is concerned about 7% workers know about Electricity Acts-i 910. But most of them do not have any idea about departments responsible for looking after the Electricity Acts-I 910. Moreover, the government workers right and occupational safety & health issues along with the working environment of distribution organization and surroundings were not active at all. At last, some recommendations are made for the betterment of distribution sector. The proper application of the recommendations will be helpful to reduce the frequency of accidents and there by will be possible a sound operation of the distribution organizations as a whole.
Application of Supply Chain Management in a Local Manufacturing Company and to Assess its Impacts On Performance of the Organization
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2008-01) Ali, Sk. Mohammad; Hasan, Sikder Mainul
A supply chain consists of all stages involved directly or indirectly, in fulfilling a customer request. The supply chain not only includes the manufacturer and suppliers but also transporters, warehouses, retailers, and customers. A supply chain is dynamic by nature and involves the constant flow of information, products, and funds between different stages. Each stage of the supply chain performs processes and interacts with other stages of the supply chain. A good design, planning, and operations of supply chain management (SCM) can be a competitive advantage for business organization. In contrast, a bad design, planning, and operations of supply chain hurts the performance of the SCM. The key drivers of supply chain performance are identified as facilities, inventory, transportation, and information. A recent study implied that in many organizations the purchase content accounts up to 70 percent of the total cost which is much higher than that of the manufactured accounts. Therefore, the strategic significance of SCM function has become a major determinant both for competitiveness in market and for corporate profitability. The present study focused on SCM of a cable manufacturing company which manufactures different types of telecommunication cables for local network, subscribers line etc. The company presently meets the entire demand of BTTB and other agencies and thereby playing a vital roll to the national economy. Besides meeting local demand, it is also exporting its cables to Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, Russia etc. The chief and most important raw material of the company is copper, which is imported from Australia, Korea etc. Here, we have shown a supply chain model for proper functioning of the supply chain. Among all drivers of supply chain model in BCSL, inventory decision is very important. Due to habitual and conventional inventory policy, BCSL is not much aware of supply chain management and maximum profitability. Situation could be improved further by applying proper supply chain management system and thereby implementing a proper decision in inventory policy or import policy for increase of profitability.
Application of Total Quality Management Principles in a Power Plant
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2009-08-21) Khan, Md. Arif Reza; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) is the most important and largest organization of Bangladesh in power sector. Once. total electricity generation, transmission and distribution was under control of BPDB. But presently. BPDB generates only 65.04% of the total electrical energy. The rest is generated by Private sector IPP (Independent Power Plant). BPDB distributes 25.47 % of the total energy in the consumer's premises whereas other companies distribute the rest 74.53%. In the present time, the largest organization could not run effectively with the fulfillment of consumer's demand and proper service (APPENDIX-A&13). As a result, DESA. DESCO. WZI'DCL etc. were separated from BPDB. REB captures a large portion of the distribution areas of BPDB for the reason of corruption, loss and overall mismanagement. Now. 34.96c/o of total energy are generated by Independent Power Plants (IPP). Independent Power Plants (IPP) started their mission from 1998 and are continuously increasing their strength in power sector. If such situation continues, once IPP will control our power sector. It is common thought that they will also control the economy of the country. Presently negotiating with IPP. Bangladesh Government fixes the purchasing rate of electricity from IPP. If BPDB fails and IPP becomes stronger. they may form a syndicate in power sector and can fix electricity rate according to their wish. This will cause a bad impact on our economy. This does not mean to avoid I PP. Power stations of B13 DI3 should increase with it's own strength and compete with IPP by fair-means because consumers always get the highest benefits from the competitive market. So for a safe competitive market, existence of power stations of BPDB is too much essential as a soldier of power sector of the country. It is sure that an organization needs proper management activity and vision to stabilize it's own strength. Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) has taken some managerial changes and reforms to increase its managerial strength in the light of TQM. But some problems have arisen that may terminate the FQM activities. So, it is essential to find out these problems and take some measures to solve these barriers considering the national interest. Keeping this view in mind, data for this project were collected from Khulna Power Station as primary data through a prescribed questionnaire. Two sets of questionnaires were prepared one for workers another one for managers. One power station named Khulna Power Station (KPS) was taken into consideration for data collection. During study, different categories of KPS's workers and managers were interviewed based on the level of technical knowledge, experience, intimacy with Total Quality Management program and also educational level. The sample was kept relevant considering the time and cost. Experienced workers and managers were included in the sample. The sample size was limited to 120 for workers and 20 for Managers. The different categories of workers were regrouped into four categories for the study purpose, such as High- skilled, Skilled. Semi- skilled and Un -skilled. 25% High-Skilled. 33% Skilled, 25% Semi-Skilled and 1 7% Un-Skilled workers were selected as sample to reflect the staffing pattern of Bangladesh Power Development Board (Appendix-C). Lack of commitment of higher authority. Insufficient knowledge of workers on TQM. Weak monitoring system, Negligence of field level workers, Lack or guidelines of TQM implementation. Adverse Culture were also identified unanimously by workers as causes of failure of TQM in power Stations of BPDB. Most of the managers were agree with the causes mentioned by workers. For successful implementation of TQM 30.76% managers suggested to ensure proper Monitoring from TQM promotion office, followed by 21.15% suggested for continuous Monitoring from higher authority. 17.3% for raising awareness, 13.46% for proper training, 9.61% for provision of reward or punishment. As far as knowledge of rules and regulations is concerned about 12.5% workers know about present service rules. But most of them do not have any idea about service rules. At last, some recommendations are made for successful implementation of TQM in power stations under BPDB. The proper application of the recommendations will be helpful to improve the present situation of Total Quality Management in power stations under BPDB and there by will be possible a sound operation of Bangladesh Power Development Board as per Total Quality Management.
Application of TQM Principles & Tools in a Carpet Backward linkage (carpet Backing Cloth, Abbreviated cbc) Industry and to Measure it's Impacts on Customer Satisfaction
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2008-01) Hadid, Md. Abu; Hasan, Sikder Mainul
Total Quality Management (TQM) is an enhancement to the traditional way of doing business. It is a proven technique to guarantee survival in world-class competition. TQM provides a quality product and/or service to customers. This will increase productivity and reduce cost. The improved quality, results in improvement in productivity, capacity and profit. With a higher quality product and lower price, competitive position in the market place will be ensured. Poor quality cost comprises significant percentage of gross sales for manufacturing organization and for service industries. One of the most significant planning tools of TQM is quality function Deployment (QFD). QFD planning tool incorporate customer voice in manufacturing process. QFD method achieves dramatic improvement in the design development process, including reductions of Engineering changes and design cycle time and start up costs. The organization, in which study was made mainly produces CBC and exports the same to different countries. Jute is the only raw material for CBC manufacturing. Different classes and grades with different ratios of Jute were used for manufacturing of thread for weaving CBC. Most of the Jute mills including the Jute mill under study are unaware of quality improvement tools and techniques. Both the customer and manufacturer don't have sufficient knowledge regarding the QFD planning tools. In the proposed thesis work QFD planning tool has been utilized in the CBC manufacturing Jute mill under study for enhancement of customer satisfaction and also to establish a house of quality matrix to show which proportion of materials and what types of weaving process is the best for desired customer satisfaction.
Development and Performance Evaluation of Storage Allocation Models in Warehouse
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2018-11) Islam, Md. Saiful; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Order picking is the most labor-intensive and costly operation in warehouse. Efficient storage assignment rules enormously affect the order picking efficiency. Warehouse managers are concerned about searching for the most effective way of managing order picking, minimizing the costs involved in terms of travel distance. The purpose of this research is to develop an efficient dedicated storage allocation method utilizing both the principle of group technology (GT) and the cube-per-order index (COI) storage policy in a maintenance environment warehouse. In this method, spare parts required for a particular maintenance work are grouped together on the basis of similarity of usages, even if they are dissimilar in size, shape etc. After that, the groups and parts within each group are assigned according to COI rule. The performance of the method is evaluated using simulation and compared with other sequence, frequency and group based dedicated storage methods. A genetic algorithm is embedded into the simulation program to determine the optimal traveling sequence that will minimize the travel distance. In the simulation study, it is found that the proposed method has the highest reduction in the distance travelled by the pickers.
Development of a Model to Optimize the Supply Chain Management and it's Application
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2019-12) Amin, Md. Al; Rahman, Dr. Azizur
The mam objective of this research is to develop a mathematical model for supply chain transportation costs. This model consider the real time data of the transportation cost incurring elements which helps in achieving optimization. Though it has been case studied for a particular company but it's been generalized for all aspects of supply chain network under some specific conditions. In this research Theory of Constraint (TOC) has been applied to identify the main constraints to its goal. The main constraint are found supply chain transportation cost which significantly impact on supply chain profit. Thinking process has been developed to propose a conceptual model regarding the constraints. The case study has been performed for 30 days and found 32.68% better results for one complete transportation cycle compared to existing transportation modes. The ways the model optimize the transportation cost by managing vehicle route, fleet size and number of moves throughout the transportation network. Finally, this model offering significant results in throughput accounting of supply chain transportation that leads to optimize overall supply chain costs.
Development of an Optimal Inventory Management System in Khulna Shipyard Limited- A Case Study
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2019-12) Uzzaman, Md. Safiq; Rahman, Dr. Azizur
Inventory, the key component of any organization is the stock of any goods or asset that are required for manufacturing or assembly of the product to maintain the plant. The fundamental function of an inventory system is to keep track of and maintain the inventory levels, determine both the order size and replenishing period. Inventory is directly related with the manufacturing cost. As a result, Inventories influence the most essential portion of current resources of a greater numbers of companies. Thus, sufficient amount of capital is tied up due to maintaining the inventories in bulk by the organization. Poor inventory management may cause under-stocking or over-stocking including higher operating cost of the items. Thus, a firm ignoring the control and monitoring of inventories might be at risk of its ultimate profitability and may collapse in the long run. As a result, it is clearly necessary to manage inventories effectively and properly for the avoidance of unnecessary investment. In the study it was found that Khulna Shipyard Limited frequently fails to maintain inventory level/ stock for the regular consumption of raw materials to meet the lead time of the demand. Demand for replenishment of inventory items are placed when it is required. The shipyard follows the traditional method of purchasing the raw materials and other items. As a result, the shipyard is unable to maintain delivery schedule of the project due to shortages of required materials and also due to the late delivery of proper materials from the suppliers. On the contrary, the plant also faces over stocking of materials in the warehouse. Both these situations act as a catalyst to increase the total inventory expenditure of the shipyard. Besides, the workers have to work in extra time (overtime) to finish the job quickly. Ultimately, the shipyard can not maintain the desire quality of the finished product and production cost also increases. As the ship cannot undock within the schedule time and the construction yard is engaged, the shipyard cannot dock the ship under pipeline within predetermined schedule. As a result, customer dissatisfaction may raise due to inferior quality, late delivery, failure to dock and high production cost of ships/ product. Moreover, this shipyard may lose their customer day by day. Thus the above discussion stated that, there is a room for improvement to identify the procedure of managing and maintaining inventory at khulna shipyard limited. One of the most important goals in inventory management decision is how much inventory should be made and when to submit an order. If a firm procures higher quantities of inventory, carrying cost also increases. On the other hand, if the firm purchases less quantities, more orders to be placed which increases ordering cost. Therefore, the order quantity at a particular time should be controlled by balancing the ordering and carrying cost. Considering both the costs, EOQ model is applied to decide the optimal order quantity to be replenished at a specific order time for the optimization of carrying and ordering cost and also confirming the availability of material when required. In addition, ROP model provides information when to order the item. Safety stock policy can be adopted for providing protection against the variation and uncertainty in both lead time and demand. It was observed that managing inventory at ship construction and repairs industry is more complicated due to the distinctive and uncertainty nature of demand. In this thesis, a sample for inventory items from a major workshop of khulna shipyard limited was identified and demand data for these items was collected. Accordingly, required data for cost calculation was gathered to implement EOQ, ROP and safety stock for the selected inventory items. Finally, the thesis work has been completed with several specific recommendations for the management of Khulna Shipyard Limited and suggestions for carrying out future research.
Development of Maintenance Plan (Case study : Eastern Jute mills Ltd, Khulna.)
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2012-06) Ghosh, Suvendra kumar; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Maintenance acts like the heart of the machine. Due to running, every machine Undergoes wear and tear due to friction. Maintenance of a machine consists of all the Various activities required to keep machine in standard working condition, so that, Production operations will not be interrupted by machine failure. In Eastern Jute mill, there are various types of maintenance such as break-down, Preventive and overhauling maintenance. Breakdown maintenance may be minor or Major. Preventive maintenances are routine and periodic. Routine maintenance means day to day cleaning and greasing. In the factory, periodic maintenance is done strictly in every week. As a result, all machines run smoothly for the rest six days. There are different types of machines. The breaker and finisher card machine play an Important role in the production system of the jute mill. The breaker and finisher card Machines consist of 7 and 13 repining rollers respectively. Among these, the cylinder roller is the biggest. At present, at every 3 months interval, the cylinder roller is repined by dismantling its 150 staves. At that time, the breaker card machine is stopped completely. The rest of Rollers are repined when they are broken. For this reason, the machine has to be Stopped frequently. The finisher card machine is stopped every 5 months; the cylinder roller is repined by dismantling its 189 staves. As a result, the machine becomes idle and the production system is hampered severely. About four and half lac taka is lost, if production is hampered for a single day. So, it is found that the jute mill has been facing a huge amount of loss, if machines are stopped for repair frequently. The objective of the present study is to investigate the possibility of repining all the rollers at a time. For this purpose, the break-down data of the above mentioned machines were collected from the log book from 2005 to 2010. Breakdown interval is obtained by deducting the two consecutive break-down. Frequency chart of 3-12 months were made for 1 month interval as shown in tables 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, 14, 16. Total maintenance cost was calculated for different time intervals. Total cost curve is shown in figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 which are U-shaped graphs. The lowest point of U-shaped graph gives breakdown interval at which the total maintenance cost is minimum. It is found that production loss can be minimized by repining all the rollers Including the cylinder at an interval of 6 months for breaker card and for finisher card machine, the same is 7 months. So, the develop model tells us that, if the maintenance of the breaker card and finisher card is done at an interval of 6 and 7 months respectively, the no. of sudden breakdown of machines will be reduced and at the same time production loss will also be minimum.
Development of Standard Operating Procedure for a Combined Cycle Power Plant: A Case Study
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2017-08) Rajib, K.M.M. Resalat; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
This study is carried out to understand the effect of Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in a Combined Cycle Power Plant (CCPP). We chose Khulna 225MW CCPP as the study field. The study is qualitative rather than quantitative in nature. Initially, operational system practiced in this power plant was observed closely by participating with the operation team. Afterwards, for some selective jobs SOP was developed, tested, corrected and released for practical implementation. Sufficient training was conducted to habituate the operator for using the SOP. Then a survey was carried out to understand the effect of SOP. In most of the cases outcomes of the study is in-line with the expected outcomes assumed initially during the study. That is, SOP is helpful to ease the operational process, to uniform the operational activities, to improve compliance related to organizational policy, HSE and Legal Issues, to reduced trouble in decision making and to increase plant availability factors in long run. However, some operators opined that in some cases SOP is not significantly helpful and some operators found SOP makes no difference on some points. Operators with more experience opined in every case that SOP is significantly helpful for reducing human error
Development of Storage Allocation Models in a Warehouse
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2011-12) Islam, Syed Ariful; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
The developments in warehouses have significantly influenced the existing paradigms in inventory research. Unfortunately, the attention paid by researchers in inventory theory to the management of storage systems such as warehouses has been relatively limited. Often, it was considered mainly to be a technical issue and therefore belong to a different area, i.e., material handling research. The warehouse problems can be classified mainly into two groups i.e., the design problem and the operational problem. The design problem deals with the issues such as over all structure, sizing and dimensioning, department layout, equipment selection, and operation strategy of the warehouse. On the other hand, the operational problems deal with receiving and shipping, and storage and retrieval (order picking). Chapter 2 provides a brief description of the literature related to operational problems. Maintenance environment warehouse is very similar to production warehouse where spare parts are stored and retrieved. In such an environment, allocation of space and assignment of spare-parts in a warehouse is a vital problem for sound operation of a warehouse. Miss-allocation of spare-parts takes huge time to find out parts. This problem causes extra time consumption and money expenditure for the involvement of labor for long time and creates risk of unavailability of spare parts that lead to improper maintenance or repair of machines. Generally, allocations of items are done in alphanumerical order without regard to issue frequency, size, weight or volume. As a result, it will be creates problems in issuing/retrieving the spare parts with minimum waste of time & effort. The objective of this research is to study the developments of operational problems related to production warehouse especially for maintenance environment. Chapter 3 is devoted to develop an efficient methodology to identify the similar parts i.e., sparepart_set (SPS) that can be grouped together and be kept in one place. Doing so, it may increase the efficiency of the storage and retrieval. The weight (popularity index) is used to identify the Spare_part_set as slow moving or fast. The weight of a spare_part_set is the summation of all item's frequency of usages in year. By considering weight, higher weight SPS (fast moving) should be kept near to issue counter and less weight (slow moving) SPS is to be placed far from counter. In chapter 4, the model is simulated for hypothetical warehouses. The objective of the experiment is to investigate the performance of the methodology described in the previous chapter in terms of travel distance to collect all the items of a demand. For this purpose, three hypothetical warehouses are considered. The first one, in which the spare parts are stored in alphanumerical order and the second one, in which the spare parts are stored according to the algorithm described in chapter 3 and in the third one, spare part are stored randomly. The details of the experiment and the results of the experiment are presented in chapter 4. The performance of the algorithm is evaluated in terms of the average travel distance needed to collect an order of SPS. It is found that the average travel distance is minimum (20%) less for our proposed methodology. Lastly, in chapter 5, conclusions and some recommendations are presented.
Development of Strategic Fit Model of Manufacturing Unit for Garments Industry
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2019-04) Rahman, Md. Habibur; Rahman, Dr. Azizur
Though Bangladesh is one of the largest garments manufacturing country in the world and there happened revolutionary changes more than four decades ago, they couldn’t achieve sustainable platform yet. The failure to achieve up to the requirement level for the competitive capabilities/manufacturing metrics is the common phenomenon for the manufacturers. Even there is an alarming issue that the manufactures yet don’t know how they are affected by these failures and also can’t measure how much they are statistically fit. The manufacturers fail to compete with their competitors, since they can’t achieve their manufacturing metrics up to the requirements. To proceed towards world class manufacturing and to create a sustainable platform considering highly competitive business market, the manufacturer should aware about their metrics capabilities, competitive capabilities and reasons of metrics failure. By being motivated from manufacturer’s failure, we worked on a manufacturing unit of a garments industry where we aggregated manufacturing metrics and determined how the manufacturers are affected by the failure of these metrics. This research work will conclude by proposing few models with their mathematical and graphical explanation. By using these models, the manufacturers will be able to determine their strategic fitness, security level and associated loss/penalty.
Modeling and Analysis of Labour Cost Estimation for Ship Repairing: A Case Study in Chittagong Dry Dock Limited
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2019-12) Karim, Mohammad Sajedul; Rahman, Dr. Azizur
With the increase of international trade activities through sea and resulting exponential growth of number of ships calling on coastal nations’ ports, ship repair is becoming an increasingly attractive opportunity for littoral countries. Being a coastal nation, there were rapid growth of number of local shipyards in Bangladesh for past couple of years. This factor put CDDL faced with tremendous competition in ship repair arena in the national market. Besides, docking of ships and ship repairing work, are, by nature labor intensive. Labour cost contributes significantly to total repair cost. Besides acquiring market information, CDDL must estimate labor cost accurately to give competitive quotations in order to obtain ship repair orders. Lower labour cost value allow shipyards and ship owners to get higher productivity and lower final invoice respectively. Forecasting estimated labor cost will allow CDDL to stay competitive among the ship repair industries. In this project paper, attempt has been made to identify the number of those independent variables that influence ship repairing labour (dependent variable) and their inter-relationship. Since labor cost for ship repair can be expressed as a function of ship’s age, deadweight, displacement, type of ship and various repair works, so a multiple linear regression model is developed to construct a labor cost estimation model. From 2002 to 2019, ship repairing labour (man-days) related information for 43 sets for fishing vessel, 30 sets for oil tanker, 51 sets for multipurpose cargo ship, 40 sets for warship, 11 sets for dredger/barge and 15 sets for tugboat of various ages, sizes and types were collected from data storage of CDDL to construct models for each ship group. Regression coefficients are found out by applying “Method of Least Squares” in regression analysis. CDDL can use this mathematical model as a guiding tool to forecast labour cost estimates more realistically for ships to be under repair.
Modeling to Integrate the International Standards with Total Quality Management Philosophy
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2021-01) Talapatra, Subrata; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Dr. Md. Kutub
The aim of the present study is to develop an Integrated Management System (IMS) and its implementation framework for RMG industries of Bangladesh. RMG industries are using several management standards in their organizations to increase the performance of a firm in different business dimensions such as quality, occupational health & safety, environment, and social responsibility management. They are also using other management standards depending upon the requirement of customers. As a result, the number of individual management system is increasing day by day as the requirements of customer varies from one to another. RMG industries of Bangladesh are also facing difficulties to implement and operate these individual management systems separately. The key challenge of running of multiple management systems is to split the total budget and human resource of an organization into the multiple management systems. Each management system will get a little amount of budget and human resource, which is not sufficient to implement a management system effectively and efficiently. Consequently, many of the objectives of individual management systems are often left unachievable due to its poor implementation. In addition, the performance of RMG industries in Bangladesh is declining in four disciplines of management. These are quality, environment, occupational health & safety, and social responsibility. Consequently, RMG industries of Bangladesh are losing their values to the customer and in the long run they may not be able to survive in the competitive market. In this context, RMG industries of Bangladesh are forced to adopt an integrated management system in their organizations. A small number of RMG industries of Bangladesh have come forward to develop an Integrated Management System (IMS) for their organizations. As they have no model for integration of management systems, they have built their own IMS based on common elements present in different management standards. The RMG industries of Bangladesh are not getting the desired benefit from their own developed IMS due to lack of developing organizational culture. For successful implementation of any IMS, it is essential to bring change in culture within an organization. In order to bring change in culture within the organization, multiple management systems are to be integrated under a holistic management system. It is evident from the literature that, TQM is a holistic management system. This manifests the demand of developing a model that will be holistic in nature and can accommodate various management standards. In the present work, we have developed an IMS by integrating different management systems under the philosophy of TQM. The IMS has developed in this study is named as Integrated Total Quality Management (ITQM) system. While integrating multiple management systems in this way, several issues come up. Some of the most important issues are: i) identifying the scope and impact of integration, ii) identifying the factors that lead to success or failure of TQM implementation, and iii) developing and validating an effective implementation framework for ITQM system. The following paragraphs will summarize how each of the above issues were addressed in the present study. To define the scope of integration, it is important to know which management standards are to be integrated to formulate an IMS so that every RMG industry of Bangladesh can use this IMS. To do so, we have conducted a survey in RMG industries of Bangladesh. We have found that, RMG sector of Bangladesh are widely using four management standards such as ISO 9001: 2015, ISO 14001: 2015, OHSAS 18001: 2007, and SA 8000: 2014. Most of the RMG industries of Bangladesh have adopted these standards separately while a small number of industries have adopted two or three of those management standards in an integrated way. However, no industry has integrated four management standards so far. It is important to mention that, the management standards that have not yet been integrated are operating separately in the respective industries. Each RMG industry of Bangladesh will be able to use an IMS if it is composed of commonly used management standards in this sector. In this context, the present study has integrated these four management standards under the holistic management philosophy of TQM. Integration of these four management systems creates a single comprehensive management system. This management system addresses a wide-ranging area encompassing the individual and overlapping areas of these four management systems. After defining the scope, it is important to evaluate the impact of integration. To evaluate the impact of management systems integration, it is important to assess the impact in terms of improving firm performance. An in-depth review of literature has been conducted to identify the areas where an IMS can improve firm performance. Several researchers pointed out that IMS may enhance the performance of a firm both in financial and operational areas of business. So far, our knowledge goes, very few empirical evidences have found in the literature in favor of this statement. IMS may increase the financial performance of a firm in many ways. Three most important ways of improving financial performance widely discussed in the literature are; improving cost efficiency, optimum use of resources, and increasing sales revenue. On the other hand, IMS may increase the operational performance of a firm in the field of quality, environment, occupational health & safety, and social responsibility. The most important ways to increase firm performance in these fields are; to reduce the production rate of defective product, air pollution level, number of occupational illness and to increase the employment opportunity for the community. The present study has conducted an empirical examination to confirm the impact of ITQM system on financial as well as operational performance of a firm. The outcome of empirical examination has showed that ITQM system can improve financial performance through increase of sales revenue. It can also improve operational performance by reducing the number of defective products, level of air pollution, number of occupational accident or illness, and by creating new job opportunities for local people. After delineating the scope and assessing the impact of integration, it is necessary to recognize the factors that are critical to the implementation of ITQM system. we are trying to implement ITQM system using TQM framework, it is important to identify those factors that are critical to TQM implementation in RMG sector. Critical factors are of two kinds. Some factors enable TQM implementation while some others hinder TQM implementation. An in-depth review of literature has been conducted to identify the factors which are helpful for successful implementation of TQM in RMG sector. These factors are known as TQM enabling factor. Twenty-five of such factors have been identified from TQM literature. As these enabling factors are contextual, it has been empirically examined which of these factors are significant for the RMG industries of Bangladesh. The empirical study of identifying significant TQM enabling factors has been carried out in four steps. At first step, a conceptual model which consists of measurement model and structural model has been developed. In second step, the hypotheses have been developed. In third step, the validation of the measurement and structural model have been performed. And finally, the testing of hypothesis has been conducted. More specifically, the conceptual model consists of six constructs. Five of them have been formulated with five groups of TQM enabling factors such as human resources, contextual, procedural, strategic, and structural while the rest has been formulated with implementation of TQM. In addition, the measurement model has two measuring scales. The first scale is concerned with measuring the five groups of TQM enabling factors while the other scale is concerned with measuring the success of TQM implementation. Five groups of TQM enabling factor are measured in terms of degree to which enabling factors are contributing to implement TQM principles in an organization. The success of TQM implementation is measured in terms of improving financial and operational performance of a firm. A questionnaire has been then developed based on previous questions in the literature and expert opinion. This questionnaire has been pilot tested before conducting the survey. The reliability of questionnaire has been tested by Cronbach alpha value. The accuracy of the measurement model has been verified through convergent as well as divergent validity test. The structural model represents the causal relationship of five groups of TQM enabling factors with implementation of TQM. Fitness and correctness of structural model have been checked through model fit index and causality index respectively. All tested values have been found satisfactory. Finally, the hypotheses have been tested using structural equation modelling. The test results have suggested that, five TQM enabling factors in procedural group such as benchmarking of current processes, knowledge about cost of quality, regular monitoring of processes improvement, and degree of simplicity of a process are not significant for RMG industries of Bangladesh. However, the enabling factors of the remaining four groups will assist in successful implementation of TQM in RMG sector. To identify the factors that hinder the successful implementation of TQM in RMG sector, an in-depth review of literature has also been conducted. These factors are known as TQM barrier. Twenty-five of such barriers have been identified from the literature. All of these twenty-five barriers do not hinder TQM implementation in the same way. Some of the barriers may be more critical to TQM implementation while some others are less critical. In other words, hindrance level of these TQM barriers varies with the economic condition and cultural values of a country. To identify the hindrance level of these twenty-five TQM barriers in the context of RMG industries of Bangladesh, these barriers have been prioritized using FAHP technique. This study of prioritization of TQM barriers has been carried out in five steps. At first step, a hierarchical structure of TQM barriers has been developed. In second step, a fuzzy scale has been designed for measuring the expert’s judgment. In third step, the consistency ratio has been estimated for checking the accuracy of expert opinion. In fourth step, the local and global weight of each barrier have been estimated. And finally, TQM barriers have been prioritized based on calculated global weights. Some of the important barriers identified by prioritizing of TQM barriers are; inappropriate planning for implementation, lack of financial support, lack of employee training, lack of empowerment of employees, lack of physical resources, lack of top management commitment, lack of practicing a quality management system, inappropriate organizational structure, lack of customer satisfaction, no benchmarking of current process, etc. Finally, a framework for implementation of the ITQM system has been developed. The implementation framework has been empirically tested in order to decide if this framework would work properly in the RMG sector of Bangladesh. This empirical study has four hypotheses. First hypothesis is “quality management sub-system of IMS has a positive relation with firm performance”. Second hypothesis is “environmental management sub-system of IMS has a positive relation with firm performance”. Third hypothesis is “occupational health & safety management sub-system of IMS has a positive relation with firm performance”. Fourth hypothesis is “Social responsibility management sub-system of IMS has a positive relation with firm performance”. All hypotheses have been found statistically significant. It indicates that all four management subsystems of ITQM system will help a firm to improve its performance. In other words, the proposed framework could be used to implement the ITQM system successfully in RMG sector of Bangladesh. The outcome of this research possesses some originality. First, it has empirically examined the combined effect of several individual management systems on firm performance. Second, all the IMS models that have been developed so far are only theoretical concepts, no information has been found in the literature on the practical use of these models. In this context, the present study has proposed a framework for implementation of ITQM system and at the same time, it has validated the proposed framework empirically. This study has also some theoretical implications. First, it has successfully identified the linkage between IMS and TQM which will enrich the existing literature. Second, it has outlined the way to develop an IMS under the philosophy of TQM in order to create a continuous improvement culture within the organization for its (IMS) successful adoption. Third, it offers an important insight into the development of an instrument (survey tool) for measuring several aspects of an integrated management system. Fourth, it has outlined the way to share common resources of an organization by combining the operational processes of different management sub-systems of ITQM system or its parts. This research outcome has some practical implications too. First, the outcome will help the manager to understand the combined role of four management standards on firm’s performance improvement. Second, managers will get an opportunity for better utilization of the limited resources of their organizations through successful implementation of ITQM system. Third, this research has outlined a mechanism for handling the overlapping areas of the different management disciplines. Finally, this research provides an immense scope to RMG industries of Bangladesh to directly adopt this ITQM system in their organizations without any customization or modification. At last but not least, this study has put forward some suggestions for future research. First, to generalize the findings of the present study, replication of this study is essential in different context, location, and culture. Second, this study could be replicated over longitudinal time frame to examine whether the finding of the current study change over time. Third, future study could identify the relationship among the management sub-system of ITQM system. Fourth, future study could incorporate different organizational theories in management system integration.
Optimal Planning of Store Allocation and Assignment of Spare Parts in a Warehouse
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2008-09-06) Sultana, Mosammat Ferdaushi; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Unscientific method of store allocation and assignment of spare parts in warehouse has been one of the major factors that have been causing loss in many companies. To keep pace with the competitors the modern managers are very much aggressive to attain a standard product or service in a minimum cost. The modern managers are very conscious to reduce cost by keeping standard in respect of all aspects which involve better management of workmen, raw materials, spare parts and production output etc. Organizing these functions will require proper guidance, regulation and control so that materials are arranged in such a manner as to enable easy storage, minimized pilferage, proper identification and quick retrievals with minimum waste of time and effort. For this purpose stores location and layout must be considered and the job analysis must be done for the personnel involved to discharge their duties in an effective manner. Management and allocation of spare-parts is a vital problem for sound operation of store. Miss-allocation of spare-parts takes huge time to find parts out. This problem causes extra time consumption and money expenditure for the involvement of labor for long time and also creates risk of unavailability which lead to improper maintenance or repair of machines. So, a standard model for allocation of spare parts in the store is developed in this research. This thesis is an outcome of scientific planning of store allocation and assignment policy for spare parts of the Barge Mounted Power Plant in Bangladesh. The existing policy of spare parts is taken into account for preparing the basis of this thesis. In the existing system scientific policy is not followed. As a result, the plant faces problems in arranging the spare parts in the shelf and also in quick issues/retrievals with minimum waste of time and effort. Materials enter into the Plant as spare parts or as consumable items and are kept in Plant Warehouse which is under Logistics Department. Finally, these are used to produce electricity for national grid. Spare parts and components are utilized for the smooth functioning of production machineries. Total spare parts stock on hand in the Plant is 4,000 approximately in number. Theoretically, the Plant uses the sequence system in arranging all the spare parts in the warehouse shelves i.e. the system calls for the location of items in alphabetical order and numerical order without regard to issue frequency, size, weight or volume (chapter 2). From the past demand, it is seen that the spare parts are required for a scheduled or unscheduled maintenance of a particular part of engine. To repair, to replace or to overhaul always contains a list of spare parts which is mostly similar each time (chapter 3). All these similar parts as required for a particular maintenance, is called family of spare parts (SPF). We have classified all the 4,000 approximately items in 56 SPF. So, if we keep a spare parts family(SPF) which is required as per work order in the same shelf in the warehouse then the issue/retrieve of spare parts will be more easy and less time consuming. In existing system spare parts are not arranged as per family of spare parts. So, the existing system takes much time to issue and retrieve the list of items as per work order (chapter 3) The weight is used to identify each SPF as slow or fast moving. The weight of a SPF is the summation of all item's frequency of usages in a year. By considering weight, higher weight SPF( fast moving) should be kept near to issue counter and less weight (slow moving) SPF is to be placed far from counter (chapter 2). By comparing total transport work and travel distance with the data of year 2007, it is found that for the existing system of 56 engine parts SPF total transport work is 704,097.77 pcs-ft and travel distance is 9,746.43 feet in the year 2007 but if we could arrange the warehouse according to the proposed allocation system total transport work would have been only 168,951.16 pcs-ft and travel distance 4,015.70 feet in year 2007. The net outcome would be the reduction of transport work by 535,146.61 pcs-ft and travel distance by half So, we can say that if we would implement this new system 76% less work per year with respect to present system (chapter 4) could be achieved. Scientific storage allocation system ensures the right material in the right place and serves the user in the most effective manner through the shortest possible distance in the least amount of time. It will increase efficiency and accuracy in receiving process, will increase storage capacity, reduce the level of safety stock by analyzing FSN method. All the data available in the Plant are deterministic. It may change due to the change of any planned and unplanned maintenance.
Optimization of Investment Casting Parameters to Improve the Mechanical Properties by Taguchi Method
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2019-12) Mondal, Nil Ratan; Rafiquzzaman, Dr. Md.
In this present study investment casting process parameter is optimized by using Taguchi approach to improve the mechanical properties of mild steel. A set of experiments were conducted as per Taguchi's L9 orthogonal array to determine the most influential control factors, which will provide better and consistent for optimization to the casting's process parameters regardless of the noise factors present. For test the performance characteristics, orthogonal range, signal to noise ratio and variance analysis were used. Data values are obtained under the constraint of different process parameters like preheat temperature, pouring temperature, preheat time to investigate their effects on the surface hardness, tensile strength of the final results. The variations in the trend of the mechanical properties were observed and it was deduced out that high mold preheat temperature, higher pouring temperature, maximum preheat time significantly reduce the mechanical properties of castings produced by Taguchi method.
Optimization of Multi-Item Inventory System
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2009-09) Talapatra, Subrata; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Inventory is the lifeblood of a business organization. Industry uses various types of materials for its smooth running. A significant amount of total assets is invested as inventory. In many companies, the management has the lack of control over quantity of material to order and their lead-time. As a result, it is not possible to maintain schedule. Hence management of inventory becomes primary concern everywhere. Khulna Shipyard Ltd follows the traditional method of purchasing multiple inventory items. Demand for replenishment of inventory items are placed when they are needed. Sufficient additional stock is not maintained to meet the lead time demand. Therefore, shortage of materials frequently occurs during production. So, appropriate method of inventory replenishment for the shipyard is developed in this research. The present study is all outcome of scientific planning of ordering right inventory items in the right quantity in right place at right time to facilitate uninterrupted production of Shipyard. To provide continuous supply of inventory during the production period a standard method for purchasing multiple inventory items for joint replenishment was developed. This method is consisting of some models and policies. EOQ model for single inventory system is used with necessary adjustment for multi-items. This model will provide optimal ordering quantity of each item. The ROP models will provide information when to order the items. The policies of grouping inventory items are based on the sequential need of the items in the assembly line of the end product. Safety stock policy can be adopted for providing protection against the variability in both demand and lead time. Continuous review type (R,Q) inventory replenishment policy is also introduced in the new procurement method. In (R,Q) policy, if the inventory position is reviewed quantity is placed immediately. Where R is the re-order point and Q continuously at a point, if the point is less than R, all order for Q is the order quantity. Material demand and replenishment policy is almost similar for all the shops of KSY. Machine shop is selected as representative of all the shops for applying the new purchased method in the procurement of three components of Gun Metal. Material demand and lead time Data of Material demand and lead time for last three years from 2006 to 2009 was collected from the three individual departments of the organization named Machine Shop Indoor, Costing Department and Main Store in this regard. Calculation for determining EOQ, ROP and safety stock for joint replenishment of inventory items is done according to the procedure mentioned in the chapter-4. It is observed from the Figurc-5.1 that, monthly demand for Gun Metal fluctuates. This is due to the fact that number of ships to be repair or renewed are not constant, this varies over time. Again, the requirement of Gun Metal is not same for the ships during their each schedule repair/maintenance. Monthly average consumption of Gun Metal in the shipyard is found 101 Kg. Again it is observed that, lead time for Gun Metal procurement also varies due to Unavailability of material in the market, transportation delays, complexities arise in procurement process and so on. Average lead time for the procurement of Gun Metal components is found 41 days. Fixed ordering cost for purchasing inventory items in KSY is calculated TK 21,100 according to the procedure mentioned in the chapter 4. Inventory carrying cost is found 25 % of the purchase price of items in the group. EOQ of each item is computed using the formula (4.3.1.3). Safety stock for Gun Metal is obtained 889.72 Kg by using the formula (4.3.4.1). Safety stock depends on the variability of the demand and lead time, desired service level, average demand rate and average lead time. This stock is also proportional to the supply disruption, demand forecast error, square root of the lead time. The order for replenishment of Gun Metal is triggered when the quantity level falls below the 1036.48Kg.This quantity is influenced by the demand rate, lead time and degree of stock out risk. The frequency distribution of monthly demand for Gun Metal and lead time for the procurement illustrated in the separate figure in chapter 5. The finding comes out from the analysis of EOQ model is presented in the figure 5.3. No scientific method was found for purchasing inventory items in the Khulna shipyard. So, it is to be recommended that, to use this new purchasing method, the shipyard needs to change their method of ordering, ordering cost and ordering cycle in the following ways: The method of grouping inventory items based on the type of production, inventory level, work load, customer service. In the study, company producing one unit of certain product may require a multiple units of different components in a sequence assembling procedure to fabricate the end product. So, grouping of items based on the sequence of assembly of the end product. Ordering cost of the multi-item inventory system has two components. One is fixed cost and another is variable or marginal cost which includes the cost of processing some specific purchase activities of an individual items. So, Marginal cost must be calculated for determining the economic order quantity of each item. When inventory item are ordered in a group, the number of order cycle is then fixed not for the individual items, but for the group items as a whole. Order cycle for each item can be calculated in terms of integral multiple of the shortest order cycle among the individual item. When the cycle length is a multiple of some basic cycle time, reduces the major ordering costs. If the developed purchase method is implemented for the inventory replenishment of the shipyard, then the company will be benefited in many ways. This method will ensure continuous supply of materials to facilitate uninterrupted production. Inventory level will be optimal. Holding cost of materials can be reduced. Even out the production load. Finally some recommendations are made based on the data and information collected from the shops. This model can be used in procurement process of other shops by collecting the data of the monthly demand, lead time and purchase price of different inventory items reverent to that purchase.
Optimization of Sand Casting Parameters for Reducing Casting Defects Using Taguchi Method and Casting Simulation Technique
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2017-03) Sultana, Mst. Nazma; Rafiquzzaman, Dr. Md.
The aim of the present work is to reduce the rejection rate of cast products in a foundry shop due to casting defects in sand casting process using a statistical tool namely Taguchi method and a computer aided simulation technique. Conventional techniques require a larger number of trials for checking outputs when the variety of input conditions increase and this problem can be reduced using this two techniques. In this investigation, the various casting process parameters such as moisture content (%), green compression strength (g/cm2) and permeability number are considered and organized according to Taguchi L18 orthogonal array. Taguchi approach is utilized to find out the most significant control factors which will reduce casting defects. Besides, the percentage contribution of process parameter has been determined using statistical Analysis of variance (ANOVA). Finally, the general regression equation is formulated and better cast product is obtained with less defects and it is validated by means of confirmation test. It is observed from experimental trials in foundry shop that average value of minimum casting defect is 3.1% for aluminum flywheel. Not only that in this thesis an attempt has been taken to redesign gating and feeding system for producing a casting free from defects. Defects such as shrinkage porosity, improper solidification, air entrapment, mold erosion are directly related with gating and feeding system design. Number of iterations using casting simulation software are performed for mold filling and solidification analysis to reduce the rejection level in cast component. With new gating and feeding system design improvement in casting yield (about 15%) is observed.
Optimization of Vehicle Routing in a Supply Chain
(Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, Bangladesh, 2009-09) Mondol, Md. Kburram Bin Abdul Kayum; Uddin, Prof. Dr. Md. Kutub
Supply chain is a sequence of organizations- their facilities, functions and activities that are involved in producing and delivering a product or service. The sequence begins with basic suppliers of' raw materials and extends all the way to the final customers. So product delivery to the final customer is the ultimate physical activity of a supply chain management. Human civilization has a long outstanding history for the efforts to optimize traveling routes or delivery routes. The first ever systematic initiative, so far known, is The travelling Salesman Problem. Fixed route transit schedule, Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP), Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (VRPTW). Pickup and Delivery Problem with Time Windows (Pl)PTW), Single Vehicle Routing Problem with Deliveries and Selective Pickups (SVRI'DSP). etc are the initiative for optimizing vehicle routing. The aims are to design a vehicle route of minimum net cost, visiting each customer, performing all deliveries, etc. 1-Icre, A study was accomplished in a systematic manner on the delivery system of a renowned Multinational organization, targeting to optimize their delivery system. They have twenty sales centers around the country. All of their products are sold through these sales centers. From these sales centers, they sold the goods to their dealers and some special customers. They provide transport for the delivery of goods. One of their sales centers was studied which involved one pickup for their delivery purpose to serve about forty eight regular customers. Vs/hen we studied their order pattern, we found that the vehicle is sometimes overloaded and some other times under loaded. We further drilled down the issue and found that they have no specific schedule for their deliveries. Our intention was to develop a model for optimizing such delivery schedule. First of all, we examined the order quantity and order interval of each delivered customer as the model must be capable to handle the demands of the sales center and individual customer also. Then we identify feasible routes based on geographical location. Then we try to attach customers with the route. Route wise demand forecasting was done to rationalize the model. Cumulative order frequency of each route was identified. The organization, we studied, was intended to maintain high standard of safety of the driver and the vehicle. They are also keen to maintain all the rules and regulations of the government. So, they have their own embargo on the daily duty hours of the drivers, their speed limit, rest period, rated vehicle capacity, etc. Considering all the factors, for generic approach, let there are in numbers of routes and n numbers of time periods (days). A single vehicle was considered to perform the whole distribution system ensuring all the embargo of safety and demand. An integer transportation model was considered to solve the problem. Time periods were plotted in the rows and Routes were plotted across the columns of the model. Two objective functions were formulated to solve the problem. First one was considering to minimize numbers of total trip of a time period. The constraint equations were formulated to represent total driving time of a day, total demand