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Automotive News & Views United Automobile Workers of America (UAW)
16705 messages, Last post on Nov 25, 2009 at 6:56 PM
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Replying to: explorerx4 (Dec 31, 2008 8:04 pm) I saw you append about JIT, it will be interesting to see where that leads. You are correct in that JIT is part of LEAN but I do not beleive it is one of the "pillars" of the "house of lean". In fact much of the JIT philosiphy means DO NOT BUILD AHEAD. For example, instead of investing in a machine that can stamp out 50 fenders a minute which must be run 24X7 just to pay for itself.... instead purchase a cheaper machine that can also be converted to do other tasks and ONLY make the number of fenders you need to supply the next step of the fender process...then convert it to make bumpers (or whatever) and use it to supply the next step of the bumper process. (This is a VERY oversimplified LEAN concept.) The idea of OUTSIDE suppliers participating in the JIT process is not pure LEAN to start with. Other factors must be considerd and applied. I have heard the stories about deer breaking thu a glass wall and running thru the halls of the site. I have even seen a sign saying there was a SKUNK somewhere in the building... but I have not witnessed either. |
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Replying to: explorerx4 (Dec 31, 2008 7:55 pm) Are you saying that neither of the stadiums in Detroit were built with tax payer money? I know Qualcomm Stadium where the Chargers play has $70 million of tax payer dollars rotting in the seats. It cost us something like $18 million last year to pay for unsold tickets. Qualcomm put up a few million to get their name on the stadium. It was the tax payers that got screwed. Now our stadium that was upgraded so we could have a Super Bowl is out of date, and they want better boxes for the fat cats and millions more in wasted tax dollars. I say let the Chargers and the Padres can move to another city. Bunch of worthless losers. Sports teams are nothing but a drain on the tax payers. I would not waste my time to go see any pro sports game if someone gave me the tickets and took me to the game in a helicopter. Can a UAW member afford to go to a game at Comerica? Will his car still be in the parking lot when the game is over? And why did Comerica bail out of Detroit and move to a friendlier city? Could it be the Union entitlement mentality that is so pervasive in Michigan? |
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Replying to: bpeebles (Dec 31, 2008 8:18 pm)  i was tempted to google some of that info you posted, but just rolled the dice. anyways, it seems that maybe LEAN doesn't quite work in all circumstances. one thing i don't understand about your explanation of LEAN is why a multifunctional machine(fenders and bumpers) would cost less than than a single function machine(fenders only). HEY! Happy New Year Everyone! |
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| I am going to bed. Missed Bill and Hill dropping the ball, again, so it is time for bed. | |
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Replying to: explorerx4 (Dec 31, 2008 8:50 pm) Basicilly, a single-function machine which can only do one task efficently would have to sit idle once it has done its quota. (Remember... building ahead is considerd waste) It is far better to have a machine that may not be as fast at making fenders as one costing 3X... but the ability to convert it quickly to do other tasks is FAR more efficent use of the machine. Also, having a number of smaller-cheaper machines means some could be turned off when not needed. Traditional Indrustial-engineering concepts say that a single, hugely-expensive machine needs to be manned and run continously in order to pay for itsself. (which means build-ahead and thus WASTE) I know that many of the LEAN concepts are difficult to grasp. I had to attend hours of class with hands-on examples before I saw why this was better. One of the main things about LEAN is to not look at the effency of each "step" in a process. Instead focus on the entire process. This concept of looking at the ENTIRE process goes against many traditional Industrial-Engineering concepts which focus on optomizing each step in a process. Here is an example using a human as the machine... What if you had an employee that ONLY knew how to install lugnuts....and there were no lugnuts to install? 1)If this was a UAW worker, they could take a coffee-break until more lugnuts were available. 2)In a LEAN company, this worker would be trained and expected to find somthing else to do which is productive. (Grab a mop, grease somthing, shovel snow...whatever needs to be done)
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Replying to: gagrice (Dec 31, 2008 8:01 pm) People are the ones whom get vested. Most folks who work 30 years might be 100% vested. Therefore, they would get the full amount entitled. The question is if the pension is fully funded. As has been my experience, the way the stockmarket, so goes the pension fund. During good times they might be fully funded. That is a certain amount should be in the plan to be able to pay a certain amount of retirees for the duration of their retirement. Bottom line is that I suspect that the PBGC/taxpayers doesn't want an underfunded plan and if anything they will have to add to it above/beyond the rate of return. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. was already in the hole before the stock-market meltdown and the credit freeze shut down U.S. economic growth this fall. "It’s hard to imagine how the PBGC could get out of this in the long run without a taxpayer bailout," said Jeffrey Brown, finance professor at the University of Illinois. Brown estimates that an additional $50 billion to $100 billion or more of taxpayer money might be needed in the next decade or later to bail out the PBGC .He said that the PBGC could inherit more than $100 billion of pension obligations if Ford or GM filed for bankruptcy and the pension funds were turned over to the agency. No one knows what kind of liabilities the PBGC could — or even would — get in such a scenario. http://www.star-telegram.com/100/story/1113339.html |
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Replying to: bpeebles (Dec 31, 2008 7:54 pm) If you did twice as much, I doubt that they would pay you twice as much. I've seen green belts, black belts, and sigma six certified folks. Its a phase, prior it was TQM, and it passed too. If you read the book "lean way of thinking" you Pratt Whitney, Harley Davidson, big/small companies, union/non union companies and every kind of company you can imagine has had this lean ideology. I came away with some useful ideas, but then again I see companies stepping over a dollar to pick up a dime. I've been in keizen event too. In the end I respect the concept and would borrow from it, but I'm light years ahead and aim to stay that way. Don't get me wrong, I wish it were that easy. Processes have to be refined in some manner and it may as well be lean. Anything that innovates is fine by me. I'm sure your aware that for years Toyota and GM have been running an auto plant together. NUMMI builds cars/trucks and they are UAW represented. Fortunately I work for the most enterprising corporation on the planet and on the top ten of every list of business journals/magazines. I'm assuming your at GE. |
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NUMMI, set up as a joint venture in 1984, produces the Corolla subcompact, Tacoma pickup and Pontiac Vibe wagon. One of the plant’s purposes was to have American workers learn Toyota’s production methods. It has been the topic of numerous labor relations studies, and the company claims teamwork and safety among its “core values.” Quality problems have been creeping up at Toyota, which traditionally has a stellar reputation for reliability. Toyota’s recalls have ballooned over the last couple of years, and President Katsuaki Watanabe has promised to beef up quality control. Last month, Consumer Reports said Toyota “is showing cracks in its armor” and will no longer get automatic recommendations from the magazine when it releases new or redesigned vehicles. It also removed several Toyota vehicles from its recommended list because of quality issues. The “Toyota way” of manufacturing is emulated by manufacturers around the world not only because it eliminates waste but also because it empowers the individual worker. In principle, workers are encouraged to stop an entire assembly lines if a problem arises. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21905430/
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Replying to: bpeebles (Dec 31, 2008 9:05 pm) Waste = muda = fecal matter TAKT time = I don't drink coffee, but beer is fine. I suppose we would have to drink saki? Miller beer is UAW beer. Because we live the HIGH LIFE. |
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Replying to: dallasdude1 (Dec 31, 2008 6:49 pm) That is speculation and being promoted by the fear-mongers. There is just as strong an argument that Chapter 11 would allow a smaller more competitive US auto industry emerge. I'd sure like to run the experiment. Chrysler and GM anyone?
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