Visteon Creates Lean, Customer-Focused Manufacturing System DEARBORN, Mich., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Visteon is undergoing an evolution toward "lean" production areas. Many of these cells feature extensive input from the hourly workers who build the products. The Engine Induction System (EIS) line for the Ford F-150 at Visteon's Rawsonville Plant in Ypsilanti, Mich., USA, is one of Visteon's shining examples of this change. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20001201/DEF008LOGO ) The F-150 EIS, also called the Integrated Air/Fuel Module, necessitated a brand-new line for the plant. So, five years ago, planners started from scratch and designed one of the most flexible, efficient and highest quality assembly lines in Visteon. The line is designed with two main concepts at the forefront: supporting the operator and matching the production process to customer requirements. Neither concept is revolutionary at Visteon, but the team was committed to perfecting both concepts, and spreading the transformation to older lines at the plant. Supporting the operator Hourly operators were heavily involved in the early stages of planning the new line. One assembly technician was taught the lean principle of Standardized Work and assembled and disassembled a prototype of the F-150 EIS more than 50 times. He documented each motion to determine the optimum assembly process. From that process, engineers and operators were able to sketch out an operation-by-operation work flow chart. Operators also sketched out how the parts should be oriented as they entered and exited each operation. A flow rack supplier worked closely with the production operators, using the sketches to provide all of the part presentation racks. This shortened the development time by eliminating an engineering liaison. "We brought in the operators much earlier in the process than we've done in the past," says Jeff Riedel, Lean Manufacturing manager and Engine Induction System launch manager. "This not only involved safety and ergonomic issues, but also the assembly process itself." For ergonomic purposes, operators rotate jobs every two hours. The line has been designed to exercise different areas of the body at each station, so rotating will help cut the fatigue factor on any one part of the body. Working at customer speed Most lines in the past were designed to work at 100 percent speed with a fixed number of operators. The new EIS line was designed to run at whatever production rate, or takt, the engine plant customer requires. To quickly change the rate of production, the line was built to be flexible in the number of operators it takes to produce a complete system. If the customer engine plant is running at full capacity, the line is staffed with nine operators, each with a balanced workload. If the customer cuts demand, the line is flexible enough to reduce the number of operators required for the reduced levels. To truly run at the customer takt time, the line must be successful in its cornerstone "live load" strategy. Less than 50 yards away from the final operation is Rawsonville's new East Dock. Full pallets are taken off the line by a lift truck at specific intervals and loaded directly onto a waiting truck. When the truck is full, it drives off to deliver the products to either the Windsor or Essex Engine Plants, both in nearby Ontario, Canada. Pallets never sit for long periods in a warehouse or staging area, decreasing the probability of incidental damage or late shipments. While pallets are being loaded onto waiting trucks, empty dunnage is coming back from the customer, unloaded at the East Dock and loaded right onto the line in a proprietary material handling station that automatically stacks and destacks the pallets for loading. Smart machines Many of the individual stations on the Visteon Rawsonville assembly line are unique in that they send information to a data file, which future technicians can reference by scanning a bar code on each Engine Induction System (read about this "genetic code" in an accompanying release). The stations were also designed with built-in "fail-safe" mechanisms, or poke yokes. If a part is defective, or an operation is not done correctly, the next station will not accept it. This is one reason the quality on this launch was very high. One of the big attractions to the line is the unique ergonomic lift assist, which operators helped design. The easy-to-operate lift allows operators to transfer the completely assembled system, which weighs in excess of 30 pounds, correctly oriented onto the pallet without straining. Visteon Corporation is a leading full-service supplier that delivers consumer-driven technology solutions to automotive manufacturers worldwide and through multiple channels within the global automotive aftermarket. Visteon has approximately 75,000 employees and a global delivery system of more than 180 technical, manufacturing, sales and service facilities located in 25 countries. Web site: http://www.visteon.com http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20001201/DEF008LOGO DATASOURCE: Visteon Corporation CONTACT: Robin Pannecouk, +1-313-755-9121, or Jim Fisher, +1-313-755-0635, both of Visteon Corporation

Copyright