The document presented below consists of a company's material handling determination. It is intended to know the different ways in which the subject has been approached, specifically it is interesting to highlight the emphases and the priorities in which it has been treated. The importance of this knowledge can help to understand why efficient operation in the manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution branches.
The handling of materials can become the problem of production since it adds little value to the product, it consumes a part of the manufacturing budget.
This material handling includes considerations of:
- Movement Place Time Space Quantity.
Material handling must ensure that parts, raw materials, work-in-process, finished products, and supplies are periodically moved from one location to another.
Each process operation requires materials and supplies on time at a particular point, efficient material handling ensures that materials will be delivered at the right time and place, as well as the correct quantity.
Material handling should consider a space for storage.
In an age of high efficiency in industrial processes, materials handling technologies have become a new priority when it comes to material handling equipment and systems.
They can be used to increase productivity and achieve a competitive advantage in the market. Important aspect of planning, control and logistics as it encompasses the physical handling, transport, storage and location of materials.
Risks of inefficient material handling
- A. Oversight.
The demurrage is an amount of payment required for a delay, this demurrage is applied to companies if they do not load or unload their products within a certain period of time.
- B. Waste of machine time.
A machine earns money when it is producing, not when it is idle. If a machine remains idle due to lack of products and supplies, there will be inefficiency, that is, the objective is not met in a predetermined time. When they work, employees will produce money and if they meet the objective set in the predetermined time they will cease to be inefficient.
- C. Slow movement of materials through the plant.
If the materials in the company move slowly, or if they are temporarily stored for a long time, excessive inventories can accumulate and this leads to a slow movement of materials through the plant.
- D. Bad distribution of materials.
Everyone has lost something at one point or another. Many times in batch production systems, parts, products and even raw materials can be misplaced. If this happens, production will be frozen and even finished products cannot be found when the customer arrives to collect them.
- E. Bad Material Handling System.
A poor Material Handling system can be the cause of serious damage to parts and products.
Many of the materials need to be stored under specific conditions (paper in a warm place, milk and ice cream in a cool, humid place). The system should provide good conditions, if they were not like that and there is a bad handling of materials and there is no compliance with these standards, the result that will be given will be in great losses, as well as damage due to careless handling.
- F. Mishandling of Materials.
Poor materials handling can seriously disrupt production schedules.
In mass production systems, if a part of the assembly line lacks materials, the entire production line stops the mishandling of materials that leads us to hinder the production of the line, thus assuming the objective set it is not fulfilled by the incorrect handling of the materials.
- G. Dissatisfied customers.
From a marketing standpoint, poor material handling can mean dissatisfied customers.
Marketing is formed by a set of knowledge where the aspect of commercialization, social and administrative process is.
Every customer is different and in order to satisfy it, it depends on the perceived performance of a product to provide value in relation to consumer expectations.
Since the success of a business lies in meeting the needs of customers, it is essential that there is good handling of materials to avoid the causes of nonconformities.
- H. Insecurity.
Another problem concerns the safety of workers.
From the point of view of relations with workers, dangerous situations for the worker must be eliminated through good material handling, the employee's safety must be the most important thing for the company since they must feel a calm, safe and reliable work environment free from all hazards. Since if there is no security in the company, the workers would take risks for each operation to be carried out and a bad handling of materials could even cause death.
The handling of materials represents a cost that is not recoverable. If a product is damaged in production, some of its value can be recovered by redoing it.
But the money spent on material handling cannot be recovered.
Taking care of the proper use of materials so as not to have large capital losses.
1. Eliminate distances.
If this is not possible, transport distances should be kept as short as possible. Because shorter strokes require less time and money than long strokes and help us make production more efficient.
2. Keep moving.
If this is not possible, the time spent in the terminals of a route should be reduced as much as possible.
3. Use simple patterns.
Crossings and other patterns that lead to congestion should be reduced, since with the reduction of crossings, production becomes lighter, taking into account as the facilities allow.
4. Transport loads in both directions.
The time spent in (empty transport) must be minimized. Substantial savings can be achieved if material handling systems can be designed that solve the problem of going or coming back without a payload.
5. Carry full loads.
An increase in the magnitude of the unit loads should be considered, reducing the load capacity, reducing the speed or acquiring a more versatile equipment.
6. Avoid manual handling.
When mechanical means are available that can do the job more effectively.
7. Materials must be clearly marked or labeled.
It is easy to misplace or lose items so it is recommended to label the products.
Devices for handling materials.
The number of material handling devices currently available is too large, so only a few of them will be briefly described.
Equipment for horizontal or vertical transportation of mass materials can be classified into the following three categories.
Cranes
They handle material in the air, above ground level, to free the floor for other important handling devices. Heavy and troublesome objects are logical candidates for movement in the air. The main advantage of using cranes is the fact that they do not require floor space.
Conveyors
It is a relatively fixed apparatus designed to move materials, they can be in the form of moving belts: rollers operated externally or by means of gravity or the products used for the flow of liquids, gases or powder material under pressure: The products generally do not they interfere with production, as they are placed inside walls, or under the floor or in overhead lines.
Conveyors have several characteristics that affect their applications in industry. They are independent of the workers, that is, they can be placed between machines or between buildings and the material placed at one end will reach the other without human intervention.
Conveyors provide a method of material handling whereby materials are not easily misplaced.
Conveyors can be used to set the pace of work following fixed routes. This limits their flexibility and makes them suitable for mass production or continuous flow processes.
The cars.
Hand-operated carts, platforms, and dump trucks are suitable for light loads, short trips, and small places.
To move heavy and bulky objects, they are used between tractors. Safety, visibility and room for maneuver are the main limitations.
Machines were developed to move material in ways and under conditions never before possible. Sudden development made existing facilities almost incompetent overnight. In the rush to catch up, newer methods were developed.
Factors that affect decisions about the handling of materials.
There are four factors to material handling decisions:
- The type of production system The products to be handled The type of building within which the materials will be handled The cost of the devices for handling them.
There are very important aspects of material handling. These considerations include the movement of men, machines, tools, and information. The flow system must support the objectives of receipt, selection, inspection, inventory. Accounting, packaging, assembly and other production functions. A decision is needed to establish a materials movement plan that meets the needs of the service without compromising safety and economics.
