POKAYOKE

Poka-Yoke is fool proofing, which is the basis of the Zero Quality Control (ZQC) approach, which is a technique for avoiding and eliminating mistakes. Generally this technique is used in manufacturing process but has much wider uses, such as; offices - order and invoice processing, hospitals - drug dispensing, aircraft maintenance - particularly with processes having the potential of inducing catastrophic in-service failures.

Example:

The term Poka-Yoke is Japanese and can roughly be translated as mistake or fool proofing. It is derived from ‘Poka’ - inadvertent mistake and ‘yoke’ - avoid. Of course, the concept of fool proofing processes and mechanical devises has been around for many years (e.g. see photographs of floppy disk drive and electrical plugs) but is was the Japanese Matsushita Industrial Engineer Dr. Shigeo Shingo who was probably most prominent and influential in developing it into a technique. He turned the idea into a powerful approach for eliminating mistakes and achieving zero defects. Dr. Shingo used the phrase "error avoidance", as he recognised that people, or more specifically Japanese workers, may take offence at the term fool, particularly when associated with mistakes. This is especially important when considering the technique and approach requires the workers active participation in the error cause removal programme.   Note,  error cause removal and zero defects are phases first used by Philip Crosby but the approach is very different and should not be confused.

Refference: http://www.poka-yoke.org.uk/ 

Toyota Ways

14 Principles of The Toyota Way is a management philosophy used by the Toyota corporation, which includes the Toyota Production System. The main ideas are to base management decisions on a "philosophical understanding of the purpose (company)", think long term, have a process to solve problems, adding value to the organization by developing its people, and realize that solving problems on an ongoing menurus encourage organizational learning.
Since the 1980s, Toyota and Lexus has gained recognition for the quality of their vehicles and consistently get a higher ranking than the other car manufacturers in the vehicle owner satisfaction survey. This is according to Jeffrey Liker, a professor of industrial engineering University of Michigan, is largely due to a business philosophy that underlies their production systems.

Principle 1: Base your management decisions on long-term philosophy, even when having to sacrifice short-term financial goals

Principle 2: Create continuous process flow to bring problems to the surface.

Principle 3: Use "pull" systems (pull) to avoid excessive production.

Principle 4: Level out the workload (heijunka). (Work like the tortoise, not like a rabbit).

Principle 5: Build a culture that stops to fix the problem, so that the appropriate quality obtained from the 

                    first.

Principle 6: Standardized tasks and processes that are the basis for continuous improvement and employee 

                    empowerment.

Principle 7: Use visual control so no problems are hidden.

Principle 8: Use only technology that can be trusted and thoroughly tested to serve the people and 

                    processes.

Principle 9: Grow leaders who thoroughly understand the work, live the philosophy and teach it to others.

Principle 10: Develop the people and an outstanding team, who are willing to follow your company's 

                      philosophy.

Principle 11: Respect your extended network of partners and suppliers by continuing to challenge them and 

                      help them improve themselves.

Principle 12: Go and see for yourself to truly understand the situation (genchi genbutsu).

Principle 13: Take decisions slowly by consensus, thoroughly considering all the options; implement 

                      decisions quickly (nemawashi).

Principle 14: Become a learning organization through continuous reflection (hansei) and continuous 

                      improvement (kaizen).

Refference: Liker, Jefrey(2004)
 

6S Workplace

What we call "6S" comes from the method 5S workplace organization and visual controls popularized by Hiroyuki Hirano (1990) are rooted in the works of two American pioneers who carefully studied by Japanese managers. It was Frederick W. Taylor 's (1911) and Henry Ford (1922). 5S is a method of structuring and maintenance of intensive work areas originating from Japan which is used by management in an effort to maintain order, efficiency, and discipline at work sites as well as improve overall company performance. Implementation of 5S is generally applied in conjunction with the application of kaizen in order to encourage the effective implementation of 5S. Part of the 5S, namely:

SEIRI:

An activity to get rid of items that are not needed so that all the items in the work site only stuff that really needed in work activities. 

SEITON: 

Everything must be placed according to the set position ready for use when needed. 

SEISO: 

Represents activities mempersihkan equipment and work areas so that all work equipment is maintained in good condition. 

SEIKETSU:

This is the personal hygiene activities while complying with the three previous stages.   

SHITSUKE:

It is the maintenance of personal discipline of each worker in carrying out all stages of 5S.

Similarly, 5S, 6S is the culture of how one treats their workplace properly and maintaining order and keeping the workplace neat, clean and orderly so that it can be created ease in working. Railroads were the same, only using the term from English rather than Japanese language as described above. But there are additional words "safety" which became part of the 6S, with the aim of working efficiency, labor productivity, work quality, work safety, increase capital and labor discipline, and Convenience of work. Sections are:
1. Sort
2. Set in Order
3. Shine
4. Standardize
5. Sustain
6. Safety

About Ergoomics

Ergonomics is the study of designing equipment and devices that fit the human body, its movements, and its cognitive abilities.

The International Ergonomics Association defines ergonomics as follows:

Ergonomics (or human factors) is the scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system, and the profession that applies theory, principles, data and methods to design in order to optimize human well-being and overall system performance.

Ergonomics is employed to fulfill the two goals of health and productivity. It is relevant in the design of such things as safe furniture and easy-to-use interfaces to machines. Proper ergonomic design is necessary to prevent repetitive strain injuries, which can develop over time and can lead to long-term disability

What Industrial Engineers do?

So what do industrial engineers do to increase productivity and assure quality?

An Industrial Engineer can perform several activities to fulfil its task:
 

Processes and Procedures of manufacturing or service activites can be examined through Process Analysis. He can Use Work Study comprehending Method Study and Time Study. Method Study is the Study of How a job is performed examining and recording the activities, operators, equipment and materials involved in the process. Time Study records and rates the times of jobs being performed. The mentioned activities are also called operations Management. Furthermore can Industrial Engineering involve inventory management to make a manufacturing process more feasible and efficient. Industrial Engineers are also involved in design activities for Products, Equipment, Plants an Workstations. Here ergonomics and motion economy play a role. Last but not least is the Industrial Engineer playing an important role in developing Quality Management Systems (as they i.e. should comply with the ISO 9000 Standards). Here they often have job titles like Quality Engineer or Quality Manager.

Industrial Engineering

Industrial engineering is a branch of engineering dealing with the optimization of complex processes or systems. It is concerned with the development, improvement, implementation and evaluation of integrated systems of people, money, knowledge, information, equipment, energy, materials, analysis and synthesis, as well as the mathematical, physical and social sciences together with the principles and methods of engineering design to specify, predict, and evaluate the results to be obtained from such systems or processes. Its underlying concepts overlap considerably with certain business-oriented disciplines such as Operations Management, but the engineering side tends to emphasize extensive mathematical proficiency and usage of quantitative methods.