AutoMOTIVE 5 - (Page 10)
cowger.qxd 24/11/06 10:50 am Page 10 the GMS you can't compromise quality,
because our environment or a highly-manual environment, the Bill of system
is devised around an operator not letting a defect Process should never
change, says Cowger. pass his or her station. When you look at the
dramatic Another key enabler to GM's flexibility strategy is a
improvements in quality and productivity we've made common Bill of
Equipment. This is defined in terms of cells over the last ten years, not
only in North America, but that vary by labour rate and production rate.
The build globally, it's been driven by getting the waste out. Repair must
still take place in the sequence determined by the is waste, so any
manufacturer that tries to put in quality at Bill of Process, but the Bill
of Equipment takes it a step the end of the line through repair is wasting
resources and further by helping to determine the level of automation
jeopardising quality. The best quality is quality that's built needed in a
given plant, wherever it may be in the world. in the first time around.
Because we build in all countries and regions around the Support for the
operator is the essence of GMS. The world, we have labour rates that go
from five dollars an whole system and process is built around allowing
each hour to fifty dollars an hour, depending on what the and every
operator to do their job correctly every time competitive wage rate is in
that region, says Cowger. In they do it. That means everything from having
responders many cases this drives a significantly different Bill of to
having the right kinds of ergonomic help, depending Equipment, which needs
to be responsive to whatever the on what the operation may be. The degree
to which plants needs are at the time of launch, and as they change are
automated will vary. There will clearly be some through the life of the
product. operations that will never be Assembly is flexible if you a u t o
m a t e d, because they get the right material systems if a product gets
hot in one market need judgement and things and the right supplier and
you've got excess capacity in that only an operator can footprint to
deliver to the another, you can shift things provide, says Cowger. We had
plant, he continues. GM is around and move that product our share of
problems early on work ing towards flexible, Gary Cowger and we found that
the global facilities that meet our elec trical/mechanical interfaces and
the speed and requirement to respond to ever-changing consumer accuracy of
the computing just weren't there. Making demand. This will mean significant
savings for us because controls and robotics one of our main focus centres
in our it drives up capacity utilisation. We think that, over time,
manufacturing engineering group has shown us that, if we will be able to
have 25 percent less investment, drive you get the controls and the
interfaces right, the down required floor space 20 percent by implementing
technology will go a long, long way. We've had excellent the common
processes and continue to improve start-ups over the last three or four
years, particularly on manpower utilisation and productivity. We optimise
this controls and robotics. I believe it's a core competency that process
through flex valves, which just means that, if a really needs to be
understood. product gets hot in one market and you've got excess At the
heart of GM's manufacturing system is what the capacity in another, you
can shift things around and move company calls its Bill of Process. This
defines the sequence that product back and forth. in which all vehicles
are assembled, regardless of location, A lot has been written about
manufacturing flexibility and spells out a globally common, balanced and
and the definition often depends on who you talk to. documented approach
for manufacturing and assembly. Classically, however, it is the ability to
build multiple In order to execute this effectively, there must be one,
models in the same facility. Over the last ten years, our coordinated
engineering and manufacturing team that ability to build three, four or
five models in a plant has does not deviate from the agreed-upon
standards. grown and is growing dramatically because of the Whether you're
building in a highly-automated product enablers and the common process,
says Cowger. 10
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AutoMOTIVE 5
Editors Note
News
Here For The Long Haul
Halewood. Rebirth of a Car Plant
Safety First
Focus on Flexibility
A Prophet Without Honour?
Chrysler Cuts It Four Ways
A MINI For All Reasons
Porsche Plans Continuous Logistics Improvement
Flawless, Consistent Execution
Ford's European Supplier Parks Deliver Lean Manufacturing Efficiencies
Cheap and Cheerful
Onwards and Upwards
Schrader and Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems Take the Pressure
No Faults Forward
A Long Way From Wheelbarrows and Bath Tubs
A New Era in US/Japanese Cooperation
A Dialogue of the Deaf
AutoMOTIVE 5
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