Chapter 8 Time and Motion

Intended Learning Outcomes: At the end of this chapter, the students are expected to:

1. Appraise the purpose of time and motion study.

2. Explain the relationship between time and motion.
3. Discuss micromotion study
4. State the conditions in time standard
5. Perform problem solving
6. List the importance of time standard

8.1 Purpose and Definition

Motion and time study can reduce and control costs, improve working conditions
and environment, and motivate people. The basic purpose is to improve the work and to
reduce waste.
1. Motion analysis techniques
2. Time and study techniques
3. Uses of time standards

Manufacturing management and engineering students are being prepared to

design work stations, develop efficient and effective work methods, establish time
standards, balance assembly lines, estimate labor costs, develop effective tooling, select
proper equipment and layout manufacturing facilities.
However, the most important is to learn how to train production workers in these
skills and techniques so they can become motion and time conscious.
Motion study offers a great potential for savings in any area of human effort. We
can reduce the cost by combining elements of one task with elements of another. It uses
the principles of motion economy to develop work stations that are friendly to the human
body and efficient in their operation. Motion study must consider the operator’s safety.
Time study can reduce cost significantly well. Time standards are goals to strive
for. In organizations that operate without time standards, 60% increase in performance
is typical. When time standards are set, performance improves to an average of 85%. This
is a 42% increase in performance:

85% − 60%
= 42%
60%

Incentive system can improve performance even further. Incentive system

performances average 120%, that is another 42% increase in performance:

120% − 85%
= 42%
85%

- Manufacturing plants with no standards average 60% performance.

- Manufacturing plant with time standards average 85% performance.
- Manufacturing plants with incentive systems average 120% performance.

If additional production output is required, don’t buy more machinery, don’t add
a second shift, and don’t build a new plant. Just establish a motion and time study
program.
 Motion and time study is considered to be the backbone of industrial engineering,
industrial technology, and industrial management programs because the information that
time studies generates so many other areas, including the following:
1. Cost estimating
2. Production and inventory control
3. Plan layout
4. Materials and processes
5. Quality
6. Safety

Motion study comes first before the setting of time standards. Motion study is a
detailed analysis of the work method in an effort to improve it. Motions studies are used
to:
1. Develop the best work method
2. Develop motion consciousness on the part of all employees.
3. Develop economical and efficient tools, fixtures, and production aids.
4. Assist in the selection of new machines and equipment.
5. Train new employees in the preferred method.
6. Reduce effort and cost.

Motion study is for cost reduction, and time study is for cost control. Motion study
is the creative activity of motion and time study. Motion study is design, while time study
is measurement.
Once the importance of motion and time study is understood and accepted, the
technique of motion and time study are introduced.
- Flow diagrams
- Multi-activity charts
- Operation charts
- Flow process charts
- Process charts
- Operations analysis chart
- Work station design
- Motion economy
- Flow patterns
- Predetermined time standards system (PTSS)

The techniques of time study start with the last motion study technique, which
shows the close relationship between motion study and time study. The technique of time
study are:
1. Predetermined time standards system (PTSS)
2. Stopwatch time study
3. Standard data formula time standards
4. Work sampling time standards
5. Expert opinion and historical data time standards

8.2 What is a Motion Study?

Motion studies are performed to eliminate waste. Before any improvement in
quality or quantity of output, any study of operations time, any scheduling of work or
balancing of workload or any calculation of standard time, a study of the current and
proposed method is required.

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 Studies of overall factory flow or process, called micromotion studies, and then
additional studies of detail or operations, called micromotion studies, should be
completed for a project.
Motion studies were conducted by Frank and Lilian Gilbreth about a century ago
in a serach for the “one best way.” It is important to note that such studies seek to
minimize and simplify manual efforts.

8.2.1 Macromotion Study

Any process can be studied by dividing it into process activity. Although each
activity is different, depending on the product, there are five classes of activities that are
included in all processes. Savings, may be found in the process by reorganizing activities.
These activities found in every sequence of processes are:
Operations Changes in the properties of the product
Transportations Changes in the location of the product
Inspection Confirmation that change fits to specification
Delay Wait for start of operation, transportation, or inspection
Storage Wait until needed

When the process is first studied, each activity is recorded and arranged into one
of the five classes. All observed activities are recorded, and activities not done are not
recorded. The purpose of each activity should be studied.

Typically, the questions Who? What? When? Why? And How? Must be answered.
Next, each event is observed in the following sequence:
- Can the activity be eliminated? If not,
- Can the activity be combined and done with another activity? If not,
- Can the activity be rearranged so occur in the sequence at an easier time? If
not.
- Can the activity be simplified with shorter distances, mechanical assist, or
reduced complexity?

Once these questions are asked and the improvement sequence is defined, it is
necessary to draw a chart or diagram that shows the motion improvements.
- Process Flow Plan A plan-view plant layout with activities overlaid
- Process Operations Chart The sequence of serial and parallel operations
- Process Chart All serial activities on a preprinted form
- Flow Process Chart All serial and parallel activities on a single page
- Work Cell Load Chart A plan view with repetitive operations
- Route Sheet A planning tool for scheduling operations

8.2.2 Micromotion Study

Considerable wasted motion and idle time can occur within an operation. This
time can’t be found with micromotion studies because is usually within one process
operation. The improvement is gained from reducing the operation cycle time.

8.3 What is a Time Standard

The definition of a time standard is “the time required to produce a product at a
work station with the following three conditions:
1. A qualified, well-trained operator
2. Working at a normal pace

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 3. Doing a specific task

These three conditions are essential to the understanding of time study. The
importance of time standards can be shown by the three statistics 60%, 85%, and 120%
performance. The time standard is one of the most important pieces of information
produced in the manufacturing department. It is used to develop answers for the
following problems:
▪ Determining the number of machine tools to buy
▪ Determining the number of production people to employ
▪ Determining manufacturing costs and selling prices
▪ Scheduling the machines, operations, and people to do the job and deliver
on time
▪ Determining the assembly line balance, determining the conveyor belt
speed, loading the work cells with the correct amount of work, and
balancing the work cells
▪ Determine individual worker performance and identifying operations that
are having problems so the problems can be corrected
▪ Paying incentive wages for outstanding team or individual performance
▪ Evaluating cost reduction ideas and picking the most economical method
based on cost analysis, not opinion
▪ Evaluating new equipment purchases to justify their expense
▪ Developing operation personnel budgets to measure management
performance.

8.3.1 How would you answer the following questions without time standards?

How Many Machines Do We Need?

One of the first questions rose when setting up a new operation or starting
production on a new product is “how many machines do we need?” The answer depends
on two pieces of information:

a. How many pieces do we need to manufacture per shift?

b. How much time does it take to make one part? (Time standard)

EXAMPLE
1. The marketing department wants us to make 2,000 wagons per 8-hour shift.
2. It takes us 0.400 minutes to form the wagon body on a press.
3. There are 480 minutes per shift (8 hours/shift x 60 minutes/hr).
4. - 50 minutes downtime per shift (breaks, clean-up, etc.)
5. There are 430 minutes per shift available @ 100%.
6. @ 75% performance (based on history) (0.75 x 430 = 322.5).
7. There are 322.5 effective minutes left to produce 2,000 units.
322.5
8. ---------------- = 0.161 minutes per unit, or 6.21 parts per minute.
2,000 units

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 The 0.161 minutes per unit is plant rate. Every operation in the plant must produce
a part every 0.161 minutes; therefore, how many machines do we need for this
operation?

Time standard = 0.400 minutes/unit

----------------------------------------------------- = 2.48 machines
Plant rate = 0.161 minutes/unit

This operation requires 2.48 machines. If other operations are required for this kind
of machine, we would add all the machine requirements together and round up to the
next whole number.
In this example, we would buy three machines. (Never round down on your own. You
will be building a bottleneck in your plant.)

How Many people should we hire?

Look at the operations chart shown in Figure 4-1. From a study of this chart, we find
the time standard (or every operation required to fabricate each part of the product and
each assembly operation required to assemble and pack the finished product.
In the operation shown here (casting the handle), the 05 indicates the operation
number. Usually, 05 is the first operation of each part. The 500 is the pieces per hour
standard. This operator should produce 500 pieces per hour. The 2.0 is the hours required
to produce 1,000 pieces. At 500 pieces per hour, it would take us 2 hours to make 1,000.
How many people would be required to cast 2,000 handles per shift?

Not many people, departments, or plants work at 100% performance. How many
hours would be required if we work at the rate of 60%, 85%, or 120%?

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 4 hours 4 hours 4 hours
----------- = 6.66 hours; ------------- = 4.7 hours; -------------- = 3.33 hours.
60% 85% 120%

Look again it use operations chart shown in Figure 4-1. Note the total 138.94 hours
at the bottom right side. The operations chart includes every operation required to
fabricate, paint, inspect, assemble, and pack out a product. The total hours is the total
time required to make 1,000 finished products.
In our water valve factory, we need 138.94 hours at 100% to produce 1,000 water
valves. If this is a new product, we could expect 75% performance during the first year of
production. Therefore,

138.94 hours per 1,000

---------------------------------- = 185 hours/1,000 where 75% = 0.75
75% performance

The marketing department has forecasted sales of 2,500 water valves per day.
How many people are needed to make water valves?

185 hours/1,000 X 2.5 (1,000) = 463 hours/day needed.

463 8 = 57.87 which is equal to 58 people.

Management will be judged by how well it performs to this goal. If less than 2,500
units are produced per day with the 58 people, management will be over budget, and
that is not good. If it produces more than 2,500 units per day, management is judged as
being good at managing, and the managers are promotable.

For example, how many direct labor employees do we need for a multi-product
plant? Per day, 1,132 hours of direct labor are needed. Each employee will work 8 hours;
therefore,

1,132 hours
----------------------- = 141.5 employees.
9 hours/employee

We will hire 142 employees, and management will be evaluated on the

performance of these 142 employees. Without time standards, how many employees
would you hire?

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 Module (IT 414) Name: ____________________________________________
Activity No. 1 Program/Year: ____________Date Submitted: ___________

1. Quiz. Study the previous topic. Prepare for a quiz which will be given to you
𝑐𝑢𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒

by your teacher through google form or VLE. Date will be announced prior to
your quiz. Be honest in answering the questions.