Time and Method Study Analysis to Improve Productivity of Shirt Manufacturing for Case of JP Garment

Kefitaw Kebede, Fentahun Moges Kasie*, Sahle Mekta

Abstract

Abstract: Productivity is crucial for global market competitiveness, requiring higher labor and machine efficiency. In the case company, the line efficiency of the shirt sewing line is below the target, and this was due to the unbalanced workload distribution and inappropriate working methods. This paper focused on integrating line balancing techniques and method study to improve the efficiency of shirt sewing lines. Method analysis was applied to bottleneck operations to minimize non-value-adding activities performed by operators. Cycle time for all operations was computed after performing adequacy and uniformity tests for time study data. Next, the researcher performed method analysis on four operations, which have a bottlenecking behavior using video analysis. A flow process chart and precedence diagram were developed. A flow process chart was used to analyze which event is value-adding, or non-value-adding. The stopwatch time for sleeve attaching operation shows 62 seconds but the Garment Sewing Data is 46 seconds and the delay time is 16 seconds. This can be improved by revising the working method and this study achieved savings of 13 seconds by eliminating non-value-adding activities. The second sewing operation analyzed was an armhole outline, and savings of 14 seconds were gained. The third operation that was analyzed was cuff attach and a saving of 14 seconds was gained and the last was bottom hem outline to gain a saving of 12 seconds.