Kobetsukaizen

Kobetsukaizen, popularly known as Kaizen, means continuous improvement is effected by eliminating various losses that occur in the production and productivity due to human negligence or ignorance in maintaining equipment and machinery properly or maintaining quality of material, tools and other auxiliary items. A detailed discussion on various types of Kaizen is given at the end of this unit.

The objective of Kaizen can be stated concisely as

Objective

• To maximise the overall effectiveness of equipment, process, and the plant by elimination of all losses through small group activities.

The various losses are grouped below which need to be eliminated.

Group 1

• Energy loss.
• Yield loss.
• Losses due to improper design of die, jigs and fixture, etc. or their application.

Group 2

• These factors impede human work efficiency.
• Managerial inefficiency.
• Improper arrangement of materials, tools, machinery and instructions.
• Improper monitoring of work and workers.
• Lack of automation.

Group 3

• The factors affecting equipment efficiency and thus resulting in low utilisation and low production.
• Machine breakdowns.
• Failure of workers to arrive in time and collect instructions and materials and tools.
• Late starting.
• Reworking of defective elements.
• Setting of tool, work piece and inspections.
• Idling of the machine due to non-availability of material, tools or temporary absence of workmen.
• Losses due to non-optimal speed, feed, etc. because of poor knowledge of the operator or poor condition of the machinery.

Group 4         

• Losses due to scheduled down time.
• Restore basic conditions of equipment.
• Improve 'why-why' analysis system to get correct information about reasons of breakdown and poor performance.
• Failure analysis system.
• Training of all maintenance work personnel on basic modules of maintenance.
• Supporting machinery in workshops and handling equipment, operations for full implementation of the principle underlying in JISHU-HOZEN in inspection, lubrication, minor adjustments, cleaning, etc.