Development of autonomous maintenance implementation framework for semiconductor industries

Transcription

1 268 Int. J. Industrial and Systems Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 3, 2011 Development of autonomous maintenance implementation framework for semiconductor industries Chen Shin Min, Rosmaini Ahmad*, Shahrul Kamaruddin and Ishak Abdul Azid School of Mechanical Engineering, Engineering Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Seri Ampangan, Nibong Tebal 14300, Penang, Malaysia Fax: *Corresponding author Abstract: Total productive maintenance (TPM) is one of the maintenance strategies that aim to increase availability and reliability of production machines/equipment. The key to TPM success is the development of autonomous maintenance (AM) practice. The AM refers to human capital development among operators supported by technicians and engineers to perform easy daily maintenance activities aside from planned maintenance. This paper presents the implementation process of AM in a semiconductor company in Malaysia. An AM implementation framework is developed based on four systematic stages: AM initial preparation, AM training and motivation, AM five-step execution and AM audit. The framework is implemented in one of the production lines identified as the most critical area in the company chosen as the case study. The findings based on the developed AM framework are reported in this paper. Keywords: TPM; total productive maintenance; implementation framework; AM; autonomous maintenance; semiconductor industry. Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Min, C.S., Ahmad, R., Kamaruddin, S. and Azid, I.A. (2011) Development of autonomous maintenance implementation framework for semiconductor industries, Int. J. Industrial and Systems Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 3, pp Biographical notes: Chen Shin Min received the BEng (Hons) degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Universiti Sains Malaysia in 2007, and is currently working in one of the multinational companies in Malaysia. Rosmaini Ahmad received the BTech (Hons) in Industrial Technology and MSc in Mechanical Engineering from the Universiti Sains Malaysia in 2003 and 2007, respectively, and is currently pursuing the PhD in Mechanical Engineering at Universiti Sains Malaysia. His research interests include Copyright 2011 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

2 Development of AM implementation framework 269 maintenance management and decision-making, reliability, availability and maintainability. Shahrul Kamaruddin received the BEng (Hons) from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland in 1996; the MSc from the University of Birmingham, UK in 1998 and the PhD from the University of Birmingham in Currently, he is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Mechanical Engineering (under the manufacturing engineering with management programme), Universiti Sains Malaysia. He has various past experiences with the manufacturing industries from heavy to electronics industries. His major research interests are on the field of production planning and control; maintenance engineering and management and manufacturing process in semiconductor packaging and processing industries. He has published 40 papers in journals and conferences, and so far he has supervised more than seven graduate students. Ishak Abdul Azid received the BSc from Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY in 1992; the MSc from the University of Wales, Swansea, UK in 1995 and the PhD from the University of Wales, Cardiff, UK in He is currently an Associate Professor at the School of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia. He has published 43 papers in journals and conferences, and so far he has supervised more than ten graduate students. His research interests include application of GAs to the engineering problems. He is actively engaged in thermal and thermal mechanical aspects of electronic packaging, including microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). 1 Introduction In the last decade, the semiconductor industry has gone through significant changes because of dramatic competition and customer preference. Semiconductor companies not only compete in the marketing strategy but also in the system or policies used in the production process. To date, customers not only focus on product quality but also on the product cost and time delivery. Therefore, cost control, equipment lifespans and productivity are the main concerns of all semiconductor manufacturers. Cost-effective manufacturing has also become a necessity to remain competitive. In other words, competition among semiconductor manufacturers is geared towards upgrading their plants to world class status. Labib (1998) defined world class as a tool used to search for and allow a company to perform at a best-on-class level. In essence, being world class means being capable of bringing products that offer better value than the competition to the market place without incurring loss of profit (Chand and Shirvani, 2000). Inadequate and inefficient maintenance can affect the profitability, product quality and the survival of the company. Mobley (1990) reported that maintenance cost can be from 15% to 40% of the total production cost. Hence, with a good maintenance policy, maintenance cost can be minimised and productivity can be increased. One of the maintenance policies that can be used is total productive maintenance (TPM). According to Lavallart (1997), TPM has emerged as an integral part of the success of world-class manufacturing that can lead to world-class levels of equipment performance and reliability at the lowest possible operating costs. Nakajima (1998) stated that TPM is a proactive and cost-effective policy of equipment maintenance, widely adopted in

3 270 C.S. Min et al. Japanese industries with successful results. The goal of TPM is to maximise equipment effectiveness. Therefore, the success of TPM implementation is measured based on equipment effectiveness or overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). The measurement of OEE is structured based on three elements: availability, performance efficiency and quality rate. Through TPM, the involvement of non-technical staff, especially production operators, is required to perform simple maintenance activities. This practice can indirectly prevent unexpected breakdown, which can reduce the maintenance cost that may amount to millions a year. The practice known as autonomous maintenance (AM), which is also called Jitshu-Hosen in Japanese, is the key to TPM success. Through AM practice, operators can inspect, clean, lubricate, adjust and even perform simple countermeasures in their respective equipment to prevent unplanned machine downtime. AM ascertains the roles and tasks of production operators so they can perform easy daily maintenance activities aside planned maintenance. In other words, AM is designed to oblige production operators to maintain their own equipment independently without notice or instruction from the maintenance department. Eti et al. (2004) stated that the goal of AM is to achieve a high degree of cleanliness, excellent lubrication and proper fastening to inhibit deterioration and prevent machine breakdown. Generally, the AM practice consists of seven steps as the following: 1 initial cleaning 2 elimination of sources of contamination and hard-to-access areas 3 preparation of tentative AM standards 4 general inspection 5 autonomous standards 6 workplace organisation 7 all-out AM. Steps 1 5 of AM deal with equipment improvement; these steps aim to reduce variability of equipment life and extend the average lifespan of the equipment. Steps 6 7 deal with the process improvement; these steps aim to improve product lifespan and design lifespan (Mckone and Weiss, 1998). However, Tsang and Chan (2000) and Ireland and Dale (2001) defined AM activities in a different way; they classified establishing cleaning and lubricating standards as Step 3 and process quality assurance as Step 6. This paper is motivated by the fact that most research only reports the implementation of the TPM programme based on the general process of AM practice. However, these studies rarely emphasise in detail how AM practice should be applied and implemented. In this paper, the development of the AM implementation framework is proposed as a starting point towards TPM success in which a semiconductor industry is used as a case study company. The objective of this framework is twofold. Firstly, this framework aims to provide a clear step-by-step and detailed guideline on how AM practice can be implemented smoothly and effectively in the semiconductor company. Secondly, this framework seeks to improve equipment performance and stop the deterioration rate through AM practice. Thus, the proposed framework is structured based on the following five steps: initial cleaning, eliminating sources of contamination, establishing cleaning and lubricating standards, general inspection and establishing AM standards.

4 Development of AM implementation framework Literature review In the literature, many reported studies on TPM focus on various angles of the topic, such as studies on TPM development, TPM implementation and evaluation of the TPM practice. One of the typical issues highlighted is the success of TPM practice in enhancing productivity with minimum maintenance cost. For instance, Tsang and Chan (2000) presented a case of TPM implementation in a high-precision machining factory in Mainland China. Although the implementation of TPM has gone through the early stage, the production performance shows significant improvement. Chand and Shirvani (2000) presented the pilot study results of TPM implementation in an assembly cell in the cellular industry. Based on the results, some production output measures were improved, including product quality, where it represents 97% good components, 0.33% scrap and 2.67% rework. Meanwhile, the number of stoppages recorded was 156 and the 10 most common causes of stoppages were identified. The OEE was 62% and the six big losses represented 38% loss of the productive time. Their study recommends that the TPM programme must be expanded to other cells in the factory. Ireland and Dale (2001) reported successful TPM implementation in three companies: companies A, B and C, which attained the Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance award in 1995, 1998 and 1994, respectively. van der Wal and Lynn (2002) conducted a survey at a pulp and paper company in South Africa to establish whether the implementation of TPM results in change within the company. The result shows that the productivity and quality increase, and the production cost is reduced. Chan et al. (2005) reported that the productivity of an electronic company increased up to 83% after the TPM programme was implemented; the equipment stoppage rate was also reduced from 517 to 89 times. Sharma et al. (2006) presented the success of TPM implementation in a semi-automated cell of a company, where availability improved by 17%, performance efficiency improved by 8%, quality rate improved by approximately 20% and OEE increased from 39% to 69%. Tsarouhas (2007) reported the results of TPM implementation in a pizza production line for a period of five years. Results show that the efficiency of production machine, quality rate and OEE significantly improves. Khanna (2008) shared some of the experiences of TPM implementation in Mayur Uniquoters, India, and the achievements made while adopting and implementing TPM. This paper also identified some of the difficulties faced during implementation, which is related to the concept of TPM, and proposed some solutions to eliminate them. Ahuja and Khamba (2008a) reported the endeavour of Indian manufacturing organisations in making significant organisational transformation from breakdown or reaction maintenance regimes to proactive TPM initiatives geared towards organisational performance improvements. Ahuja and Kumar (2009) reported the successful TPM implementation at a precision tube mill in India. The study concludes that the strategic TPM initiatives can significantly contribute to the improvement of manufacturing performance in an organisation, leading to the realisation of core competencies geared towards meeting global challenges. Ahuja and Khamba (2009) reported the achievements of the manufacturing performance through strategic TPM initiatives in the Indian manufacturing industry. Empirical evidence was presented to support the relationship between critical TPM pillar initiatives and strategic manufacturing performance achievement parameters. The evaluation of the TPM performance and the factors influencing the success of TPM programme are the other issues widely reported in the literature. For instance,

5 272 C.S. Min et al. Wang (2006) proposed a method to evaluate the efficiency of implementing TPM by using data envelopment analysis (DEA). The regression equation was used to obtain the expected efficiency score required to check the performance of TPM implementation. Oke et al. (2008) proposed a new approach in evaluating the sensitivity analysis of TPM scheduling cost using the optimal Gantt Charting principles as a framework. The approach was tested in a shipping company. Badiger et al. (2008) proposed a method of evaluating TPM performance based on OEE measure. This is accomplished by including a factor known as usability; a relation is developed to evaluate the earning capacity of six big losses with incremental improvement in OEE as an extension to the maturity of OEE. Eti et al. (2004) explored TPM implementation methods in Nigerian manufacturing industries as a strategy and culture to improve their performance. This paper also suggested self-auditing and benchmarking as desirable prerequisites before TPM implementation. Thun (2006) analysed the fundamental structures and the identification of a strategy for the implementation of TPM using a system dynamics model. A system dynamics model gives valuable clues for successful TPM implementation. The model takes into account the varied influences of maintenance prevention and preventive maintenance on the OEE, which act as central performance measures of a maintenance system. Ireland and Dale (2006) studied the criteria necessary for the successful implementation of TPM. The study was conducted in four business units of two plants involved in the processing of high-integrity products. The study concluded that the level of management commitment is critical to the success of TPM, and that the TPM facilitator must be motivated and proactive to maximise meetings with the management, promote TPM and implement the training received. Ahuja and Khamba (2008b) studied the factors influencing the implementation of TPM practices in the Indian manufacturing industry. The authors concluded that the success of TPM implementation highly depends on organisational, cultural, behavioural, technological, operational, financial and departmental barriers. In another paper, Ahuja and Khamba (2008c) evaluated the challenges before implementing TPM in the Indian manufacturing industry, as well as devised an overall maintenance strategy to overcome the obstacles to successful TPM implementation. Mishra et al. (2008) applied the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats analysis to consolidate a list of critical success factors for TPM aside from identifying potential weaknesses and threats. Pramod et al. (2006) conducted another TPM-related study that tested the integration of TPM and quality function deployment (QFD) by proposing a maintenance engineering model called maintenance quality function deployment (MQFD) to enhance the maintenance quality of products and equipment. The practical implementation feasibility of the MQFD model was tested in an automobile service station. Pramod et al. (2007) then proposed an application of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) technique to evaluate the successful implementation of MQFD. This was accomplished by comparing critical factors, such as customers, technology, competitors, etc. An application study of AHP in the MQFD programme in a maintenance-intensive Indian automobile service station was carried out. In another paper, Pramod et al. (2008) reported the implementation process of MQFD in an Indian electronic switches manufacturing company using the questionnaire-supported feedback collection approach. The results of this study provided very important findings that direct future researchers towards the successful implementation of MQFD and reaping the synergic effect of TPM and QFD. Hansson et al. (2003) presented a comparative study between total quality management (TQM) and maintenance management practices such as TPM and reliability-centred

6 Development of AM implementation framework 273 maintenance to identify common categories on commitment crucial for successful implementation. The study found several common categories of activities when implementing TQM and maintenance practices. These categories can be considered crucial in obtaining management and employee commitment. Thun (2008) discussed the support of TPM implementation using mobile devices. The five pillars of TPM were used as the basis for the application areas of mobile devices. The study concluded that mobile devices could be used to improve TPM in different ways to increase the OEE. Mishra et al. (2007) demonstrated the application of AHP for the quantification of benefits of world-class manufacturing system based on TPM practice. This model shows that implementing WMS through proper TPM can result in overall improvement in the performance of an organisation. Ahmed et al. (2004) conducted a survey to determine the state of implementation of TPM in Malaysian SMIs and the effects of the lack of productive maintenance. The survey results showed that the implementation of TPM or preventive maintenance in SMIs is still low, and suggested that more effort should be given to develop a better understanding, motivation and participation for the implementation of productive maintenance systems. Rashid and Ismail (2008) designed and developed a TPM programme based on the generic method best suited to the needs of an organisation. A case study was carried out at the plant level to validate the proposed model and methodology, as well as demonstrate its usability and application. The recent literature review on TPM given by Ahuja and Khamba (2008d) provided an overview of TPM implementation practices adopted by manufacturing organisations. They also highlighted the appropriate enablers and the success factors in eliminating barriers to successful TPM implementation. 3 Research methodology The methodology used in this research is the case study basis. The case study was carried out at a high-precision semiconductor company located in the northern part of Malaysia. The methodology steps employed in this study are shown in Figure 1. Figure 1 Methodology of the study

7 274 C.S. Min et al. Referring to Figure 1, the first step begins by conducting a literature review on the needs and benefits of TPM practice as well as on the limitations of the current TPM implementation. Based on the literature review findings (refer to Sections 1 and 2), the TPM master plan for the short and long term of TPM programme is performed in Step 2. A detailed description of the TPM master plan is given in Section 4. The next step is the development of the AM framework of the TPM programme, which is the main part of this paper. The AM framework is generally focused on technical skills, attitude and working culture and it is structured with four stages. The details of the AM framework development are presented in Section 5. The final step of the research methodology is the implementation of the AM framework. The framework was implemented in one of the production departments of the company, specifically the end-of-line (EOL) department. There are five types of machines used in the EOL department as follows: moulding, de-junk, marking, plating and trim form. The workforce in the EOL department was composed of 214 employees in which 191 worked in the production line and the rest supported the department in terms of maintenance, quality control and material support, among others. The detailed implementation results are reported in Section 6. 4 TPM master plan of case study company Being aware of the methods of how the case study company increased productivity and optimised delivery time and quality at the minimum possible cost to stay competitive in future business endeavours, the top management of the company has decided to implement a TPM programme. The company master plan for the TPM programme is divided into long- and short-term targets as shown in Figure 2. The target of a long-term TPM programme is to obtain continuous improvement on the production process and overall TPM programmes. The target includes the implementation of the TPM programme to all the production departments of the company, such as front of line (FOL), testing and others. A long-term TPM programme focuses on new equipment setup or design to improve the techniques in eliminating the sources of lost equipment and investment in higher education. In contrast, the short-term TPM target deals with the development of human capital for the production floor, which includes operators and technicians. The focus on this development is geared towards the improvement of technical skills, attitude and working culture among operators and technicians. In other words, the short-term TPM programme refers to the development of AM practice. In this research, emphasis is given to the short-term TPM programme, where attention is given to the AM practice for the production department and skills development for operators and maintenance personnel (technicians). The goal of this phase (i.e. short-term TPM programme) is to develop the awareness on the importance of production operators and technicians in preventing equipment from breaking down through the teamwork approach.

8 Development of AM implementation framework 275 Figure 2 The master plan of the TPM programme One of the focal problems in the EOL department is that the output of most machines does not meet the production target. The main reason is the minor machine breakdowns that occur at a high frequency. Initial investigation performed by the engineers found that some defects (machine breakdown) that occur repeatedly affected the quality of the product. Therefore, as mentioned in Section 3, the AM activities need to be implemented to increase awareness among production operators and technicians. This is performed to prevent breakdowns, resulting in increased machine efficiency and utilisation. The details of development processes of the framework are presented in Section 5. 5 Development of AM framework The proposed AM framework is designed by involving the production operators in the maintenance of their own equipment. The framework focuses on three improvement areas: technical skills, attitude and working culture. Thus, this framework is developed as a part of skill-improvement programme that provides step-by-step guidelines on how to train operators to maintain their own equipment. The AM framework is structured with four stages and ten sub-steps as tabulated in Table 1. As outlined in Table 1, Stage 1 is the initial phase of the framework that consists of the AM team formation, AM activities time frame and machine selection steps. Stage 2 is the AM preparation phase that focuses on a training and motivation programme based on the AM five-step activities. Stage 3 consists of the five steps of the AM execution programme, namely initial cleaning, countermeasure to sources of contamination, inspection, visual display and control, cleaning and lubrication standards and AM standards. Finally, Stage 4 is the AM audit phase, which serves as an important benchmark to identify discrepancies and to improve the previous stage. The overall relationship of the AM framework is illustrated in Figure 3. The details of each stage and sub-step are described in Section Stage 1: AM initial preparation The first stage of the AM framework has three sub-steps: AM team formation, AM activity time frame and machine selection. The details of each sub-step are as follows.

9 276 C.S. Min et al. Table 1 Stages and sub-steps of the AM framework Stage of the AM framework Stage 1: AM initial preparation Stage 2: AM preparation (training and motivation) phase Stage 3: AM 5-steps execution phase Stage 4: AM audit phase Sub-step of the stage AM team formation AM activities time frame Machine selection Training for knowledge and skills improvements of AM-5 activities by using Plan-Do-Act-Check (PDAC) cycle Initial cleaning Countermeasure to sources of contamination Inspection, Visual Display and Control Cleaning and lubrication standards Autonomous maintenance standards AM audit Figure 3 AM framework AM team formation The most vital step of the AM practice begins with the formation the AM team. According to Chan et al. (2005), the aim of the AM team is to charter and coordinate the

10 Development of AM implementation framework 277 activities from the preparation to the execution stages. The organisation of the AM team consists of small overlapping groups formed across each department in the company as illustrated in Figure 4. The AM team is headed by a senior executive (plant/section manager) that defines the policies/set targets and coordinates the entire AM process. The body of the AM team is categorised into two levels: the management level and the execution level. The management level involves engineers and production supervisors who monitor the progress of AM activities. The execution level is made up of operators and maintenance technicians. At the beginning of the AM programme, maintenance technicians are required to assist operators in implementing the AM activities properly. To achieve the best AM practice, both execution and management levels have individual tasks to focus on. The focus of the execution-level personnel is on the maintenance of the equipment based on AM activities, whereas that of the management level is on the improvement process in terms of technology or techniques used in maintaining the equipment AM activity time frame The arrangement of the time frame of AM activities is under the responsibility of the AM team leader (i.e. plant/section manager) and is supported by the management level (i.e. engineers and supervisors). One of the techniques that can be used in the arrangement of the AM activities time frame is the development of a Gantt chart. Through the Gantt chart, the team leader is able to monitor the progress of the AM implementation if it is within the target period. Matthew (2004) listed the steps in the development of the Gantt chart: 1 clearly defines the project scope, specifications and deliverables 2 identifies all activities in the project 3 creates available time for each activity 4 identifies any precedent relationships for the tasks. According the above-mentioned steps given by Matthew (2004), the AM team leader should define the programme scope by identifying the details of the activities involved, how long the programme will take and what the expected outcome at the end of the programme is. The brainstorming approach among the management personnel is used to identify all the specific activities needed to be completed during the programme. Using the work breakdown structure, the schedule (Gantt chart) can be built with the major phases of the programme, and then several sub-activities within each major phase can be listed. Successful project management depends on proper time estimates. Proper time estimation ensures that the AM programme runs smoothly; as a result, the goals can be achieved. The team leader must update the schedule from time to time to monitor the progress and make necessary changes Machine selection Machine or equipment selection is carried out to implement AM activities that have been planned. At this stage (the first phase of implementing AM activities), implementing the AM programme in all the shop floor machines or equipment at once requires much

11 278 C.S. Min et al. workforce and equipment change. Therefore, starting the AM programme with one or two critical machines or equipment is prudent. The main criterion of the machine or equipment selection is based on the criticality level. Labib (1998) measured the critical level of the machine or equipment based on the breakdown time and its frequency. Therefore, using simple statistical techniques, such as a histogram or a Pareto diagram, the critical machine or equipment can be identified. Selection of the right equipment during the initial stages of implementation of AM can produce excellent results; thus, sufficient momentum to the entire AM programme is provided. This is also accomplished to ensure that the AM programme is able to achieve the established goals before being implemented to another machine or equipment, and consequently to the entire shop floor. 5.2 Stage 2: AM training and motivation The second stage of the AM framework deals with AM training and motivation. At this stage, a series of skill-improvement training programmes is conducted. The objective of the training programme is to introduce AM to train the execution-level personnel (i.e. operators and technicians) in the AM-5 activities (listed below). The AM-5 activities are as follows: initial cleaning elimination of sources of contaminations establishment of inspection, visual display and control establishment of cleaning and lubricating standards establishment of AM standards. Figure 4 An overlapping small group organisation

12 Development of AM implementation framework 279 The training programmes are divided into two phases. The first phase is the introduction of AM in terms of the general idea, concepts, elements and benefits to all the employees within the department. The second phase is the development of the training programme based on plan-do-act-check (PDAC) cycle to improve skills and knowledge using simple analysis techniques of AM-5 activities. The process of development of the AM training programme is presented in Figure 5. Referring to Figure 5, at the first phase of the AM training programme, the introduction of AM to the organisation is conducted by the AM leader (plant/section manager). The participants during this first phase of the AM training programme include management- and execution-level personnel (AM team members) and representatives from the quality and administration departments. The main objective of this phase is to announce the implementation of AM on the shop floor and create awareness about the AM activities. The second phase of the AM training programme is to upgrade the skills of the operators and maintenance technicians based on the AM-5 activities. The process of AM-5 step activity training is conducted based on the PDAC cycle. A detailed guide of the AM-5 activity training is presented in Table 2. Figure 5 AM (training and motivation) process

13 280 C.S. Min et al. Table 2 AM-5 activity training guide PDAC cycle Cycle action Remarks Plan Do Act (AM activities training) Determine training scope Determine training techniques Determine training materials Determine training schedule Determine trainer schedule Initial cleaning methods Elimination to sources of contaminations techniques and analysis Establish Inspection, Visual Display and Control methods Establish cleaning and lubricating standards Establish Autonomous maintenance standards Training for operators and technicians on-job, classes lecture, and one-point lesson Time and place Trainer turn and responsibility Definition and explanation what are all about, the important of it. Check Evaluation Pilot test What to do? When to do? How to do? The plan cycle involves the preparation of training techniques, scope and materials. Training techniques, such as on-the-job training, class lecture and one-point lesson are decided by the manager and the management-level personnel to ensure that the training is effective and practical. With regard to the training scope for the operators and technicians, the operators only have to learn where, how and when to clean, whereas the technicians are required to learn simple analysis techniques for cleaning process improvement. The training materials include handouts and a stationary set to support the training session. It follows the do cycle that involves the arrangement of training schedules and the selection of a trainer from among the engineers or experts. The training schedule includes the time and place of the training. The training personnel are determined from among the management-level personnel (i.e. engineers), for instance, who and how many engineers or experts should cover a certain lesson for the operators and technicians. The act cycle is an important training process that introduces the AM-5 step activities to the operators and technicians. In this cycle, the general process and critical parts of the selected machine (obtained during the previous stage) are elucidated. The trainer plays a vital role during the training session, ensuring that the trainees (i.e. operators and technicians) understand their job scope and responsibilities. For example, technicians learn some simple analysis and solving techniques, such as root cause analysis, fishbone diagram, why why analysis and brainstorming, etc. Meanwhile, operators learn how to support the technicians by providing data or machine/equipment symptoms for conducting the analysis. To attain the objectives of the training programme, trainers should conduct the training session based on the questions what, when, how, where to do and who should do. Finally, the check cycle is the evaluation process of the training programme. It measures the level of knowledge and skill improvement among operators and technicians by conducting a pilot test or a simple exam.

14 Development of AM implementation framework Stage 3: AM execution The development of AM practice through the proposed framework is based on five core AM activities. At this stage (AM execution), the emphasis is given on how these AM-5 activities are carried out. The AM-5 activities are as follows: 1 initial cleaning 2 elimination of sources of contaminations 3 establishment of inspection, visual display and control 4 establishment of cleaning and lubricating standards 5 establishment of AM standards. These five activities are essential to maintain the basic equipment conditions through cleaning, lubrication and tightening; observe the usage conditions of the equipment, and restore deteriorated parts through overall inspection. The activities and processes involved are discussed in detail in the following sections Initial cleaning Initial cleaning is the first AM activity. Its main goal is to maintain equipment cleanliness. Another goal is to detect hidden defects by removing contaminants and restore the defective areas of the equipment. Sharma et al. (2006) stated that the cleaning activity is not just to clean for the sake of cleaning, but to clean to inspect by practising cleaning is inspection. In other words, operators inspect, and thus are able to identify any defect and check for any irregularities, such as slight defects, contamination sources, inaccessible places and sources of quality defects. Through such activities, potential defects of the equipment can be uncovered. The initial cleaning activity is carried out by the operator. However, at the beginning, support from the other team members (i.e. technicians, engineers and supervisors) is also required. With the skills and knowledge gathered from the training stage, the operators are able to carry-out the cleaning activity properly. They can conduct the cleaning activity based on the questions where, how and when to clean. At the early period, the cleaning activity is monitored by technicians or engineers to ensure that the operators perform it correctly Elimination of sources of contaminations The goal of this activity is to maintain the state of cleanliness achieved in the previous activity (initial cleaning) by eliminating the sources of contamination. There are two objectives that need to be achieved: to identify the sources of contamination and provide the solutions to control or eliminate the sources, and to identify the hard-to-access areas and improve the cleaning method.

15 282 C.S. Min et al. Countermeasures should be established to eliminate these sources permanently and to improve the work method in difficult-to-clean places. The operators are able to identify and document the sources or the root cause of the problem, whereas the technicians perform a simple analysis to determine the solution. The why why analysis can be used as a problem-solving tool to determine the root cause and determine the countermeasures to remedy the sources of contamination. The steps in conducting the why why analysis are shown in Figure 6. As shown in Figure 6, the why why analysis starts by facing a current problem and going through each level of analysis with a why question. Subsequently, all answers are treated with a why question again. The series of whys helps in identifying the root cause of the contamination. Once the root causes are identified, the best solution is obtained using the brainstorming approach by the technicians and engineers Inspection, visual display and control Inspection is part of the maintenance routine carried out by operators in parallel with the cleaning activity. The goal of inspection is to monitor and check the current condition of certain parts of the machine/equipment, such as the level of temperature, moisture or pressure through meter reading. For any abnormality, operators take action quickly by adjusting the conditions to the normal level. However, if the adjustment involves further technical engagement, operators need to inform the technicians as soon as possible. The visual display and control approach are used to simplify the inspection tasks. Visual display and control are applied by the engineers or technicians by placing appropriate signs, tags, labels and colour coding in suitable locations of the selected machines. Colour coding can be used to match parts together or group parts with the same functions. Tagging is used to sort out the problems. Labelling is used to provide the instructions for a task. Sign uses symbols to represent conditions. Visual control is applied in a proper location that will not disrupt the equipment function. The application of the visual-control approach should be as simple as possible for the operators to carry-out the inspection. The signs, tags, labels and colour coding should clearly distinguish between what is normal and what is not. For example, if the temperature meter shows a red area, it indicates a dangerous condition, and quick action should be taken Cleaning, tightening and lubricating standards Cleaning, tightening and lubricating tasks are under the inspection activity, where the aim is to prevent any malfunction by monitoring the lubrication system and tightening the points of the machine/equipment. The tasks of cleaning, tightening and lubricating are carried out based on the obtained standard. In addition, the cleaning, tightening and lubricating standard are determined with the aid of the visual display and control approach. The development of this standard is carried out by engineers and technicians.

16 Development of AM implementation framework 283 Figure 6 Step in conducting why why analysis to determine the root cause of the problems Source: Tajiri and Gotoh (1992). The process for developing the cleaning, tightening and lubricating standard is carried out based on the PDCA cycle as shown in Figure 7. The first cycle (plan) standardises and simplifies the cleaning, tightening and lubrication processes. Engineers and/or technicians are responsible for studying in detail the cleaning techniques, lubrication systems and tightening points. In the second cycle (do), operators identify the cleaning, lubricating and tightening problems that are possible to be solved. The communication between technicians and operators plays an important part in this cycle to solve the related problems with the right techniques at the right time. In the third cycle (check), operators implement the solution or new techniques to improve the cleaning, tightening and lubrication process. The solution is also evaluated. The final cycle (act) standardises the process of cleaning, tightening and lubrication AM standards The final AM activity is to develop the AM standard, which is the combination of AM activities 3 (i.e. inspection, visual display and control) and 4 (i.e. cleaning, tightening and lubricating standard). The combination of these activities is the total standard called AM standards, which prescribe the necessary routine tasks of cleaning, lubricating and inspecting. Following this standard, operators are able to clean, lubricate and inspect all equipment installed in a systematic process. The procedure of preparing the AM standards is divided into four sub-steps as shown in Table 3.

17 284 C.S. Min et al. Table 3 Procedure of the preparation of AM standards 5.4 Stage 4: AM audit and continuous improvement The final stage of the AM framework is AM audit and continuous improvement. The main objective of this stage is to enhance the AM practice. Auditors are divided into two groups. The first group consists of the personnel from the AM group itself, and the second group consists of the members outside the AM group. The best person to be appointed as an auditor from the AM group is the AM team leader (i.e. operation or plant manager), whereas the second type of auditors can be the engineers from others production lines or departments. Top management should consider any comment and recommendation given by the auditors once they have completed the auditing process to initiate the continuous improvement of tasks. The details of the audit process will be given in the following sections. 6 Implementation of AM framework As mentioned in the preceding sections, the EOL department is selected for the implementation of the developed framework. The implementation process is reported as follows. 6.1 Initial AM preparation As shown in the framework (Figure 3), the first vital process of the AM programme is to form the AM team. In the case study company, two groups are formed, namely the management and the execution groups, where the operations manager is appointed the AM team leader. This AM team is a pioneering team for the AM programme. It is made up of five engineers selected for the management group and five technicians and

18 Development of AM implementation framework 285 ten operators (including two supervisors) for the execution group. The responsibilities of the AM members of each group are listed in Table 4. The AM time frame using the Gantt chart is developed by the management group as shown in Figure 8. In Figure 8, the total days of the AM time frame are 102 days with the AM programme starting from 1 April 2007 until 17 August The time frame for the first stage is 16 days, the second stage is 21 days, the third stage is 56 days and the final stage is seven days. Table 4 Roles and responsibilities of AM team members in the organisation Level Members Roles and responsibility Leader Operation Manager 1 Promote AM culture in the organisation 2 Audit AM work to evaluate autonomous maintenance performance level through AM audit benchmarking sheet establish in section 4.7 Manager should promote operator involvement in maintenance task Management group Maintenance and Production Engineers 1 Monitor AM work progress carry out by the executive level 2 Solve for maintenance critical problems 3 Provide technical knowledge and support execution level 4 Develop AM standards, check sheets, and define maintenance task between operator and technician 5 Control and solve problems regarding production issues in the shop floor For example inaccurate number of lot, mismatch production lot, inaccurate lot size etc 6 Transfer equipment knowledge to operator 7 Provide safety guidelines 8 Class room lecturer on AM 5 steps activities and problem solving skills Execution group Maintenance Technician 1 Teach operator the correct way to perform basic maintenance task according to the AM 5 steps activities establish in this case study 2 Provide technical support to operator regarding simple maintenance problems 3 Transfer equipment knowledge to the operator

19 286 C.S. Min et al. Table 4 Roles and responsibilities of AM team members in the organisation (continued) Level Members Roles and responsibility Operator 1 Learn to carry out basic maintenance 2 Obtain knowledge about equipment 3 Perform AM 5 activities establish in this case study 4 Learnt problem solving skills such as fish bone diagram and why-why analysis to solve simple equipment problems 5 Learn to fill various AM check sheet, tag card, form etc The critical machine at the EOL department is identified for the AM programme implementation and is based on the yield loss analysis. This identification task is carried out by the management level (i.e. engineers and technicians). A series of historical data containing monthly yield loss of each machine operation from January to October 2006 (10 months) is collected from the production record. A Pareto chart is created (Figure 9) to identify the distribution of yield loss of each machine operation. Based on the result of the Pareto chart (Figure 9), the trim form machine is identified as the critical machine in the past ten months. Therefore, it is selected as the first machine to adopt the AM programme. A failure analysis of the trim form machine is also conducted. Historical data of the type of failure and yield loss of the trim form machine beginning January 2006 to October 2006 are created from the maintenance and production records. The distribution of the failure types is presented using a Pareto chart as shown in Figure 10. In Figure 10, 17 defects are identified. The top five (most significant) failure-type defects are damaged lead, missing units, package chip, damaged package and package crack. They are followed by bend lead, scratches, missing lead, incomplete form, lead co-planarity, missing strip, lead contamination, lead pitch failure, lead tip burr, smashed lead, stand-off/pkg height and terminal dimension. Based on the type of defects found in the trim form machine operation, an Ishikawa diagram is developed to identify the problem areas that contribute to the yield loss. Six sections (i.e. camera, die set, loader/offloader, track, vacuum box and ioniser) of the trim form machine are used to analyse the cause and effect during the trim form operation based on the first 12 failures. The result of the cause-and-effect analysis is illustrated in Figure 9. Referring to the Ishikawa diagram (Figure 10), the most frequent failures that occur are from the die set section. However, based on the failure analysis of the trim form machine (Figure 10), the top four failure types also come from loader/offloader, ioniser, track and vacuum box sections. Therefore, the AM programme concentrates on the die set, loader/offloader, ioniser, track and vacuum box areas. The results from the cause-and-effect diagram are vital in the AM training session. 6.2 AM training and motivation Training is conducted following the AM time frame drawn. Generally, the AM training and motivation process follow the steps illustrated in Figure 5. Referring to the AM time

20 Development of AM implementation framework 287 frame (Figure 7), 23 days are spent by the trainers (management group) to prepare the training scope and materials. All information from the failure-type defect analysis and cause-and-effect diagram is taken into account, and used during the training session as real practical examples. The training sessions are conducted for ten days; they involve classroom lectures, on-the-job training and one-point lesson. Table 5 presents the detailed training guideline of the AM programme developed for the case study company. This training guideline is used to identify, clarify and classify the training types, trainers, trainees and training objectives. As presented in Table 5, the first training form conducted is a classroom lecture. An engineer is selected as the trainer, whereas the technicians and supervisors from the EOL department (those who use the trim form machine) are the trainees. Technicians and supervisors are informed about the AM programme on the trim form machine, and the results of the related analyses (failure analysis and cause-and-effect analysis) are conveyed to achieve the objectives of the training sessions (Table 5). Two-way communication (questions and answers) between the trainer and trainees is applied. The second training conducted by the AM group is on-the-job training. Similar to the classroom lecture, an engineer is selected as the trainer, and the technicians, supervisors and operators are the trainees. The training is performed on the shop floor (trim form machine). Direct explanations are given using the machines as a teaching aid. The main objective of this training session is to teach the operators about the what, where and how of achieving the AM objective (details given in Table 5). The final training conducted is a one-point lesson (pilot training). In this training, the engineers and technicians become the trainer, whereas the operators using the trim form machine are the trainees. This type of training can be considered the rehearsal before kick-starting the actual AM programme. Technicians are required to ensure that the operators are performing the tasks of the AM activities correctly (e.g. cleaning and inspecting). Once the training session is completed and the objectives are accomplished, the AM programme can now be executed. Figure 7 PDCA cycle used to determine cleaning, tightening and lubrication standards

21 288 C.S. Min et al. Figure 8 Gantt chart of the AM programme time frame for each step Figure 9 Pareto chart of the types of machine vs. yield loss