In many manufacturing companies, manpower is often cited as one of the main stumbling blocks to further expansion. Add-Plus Electronic Pte. Ltd, a provider of electronic manufacturing services for printed circuit board assembly (PCBA), is no stranger to such issues.
| Mr Jimmy Phee, Senior QA Engineer, and Mr Lee Hong Choon, |
“As a SME (Small Medium Enterprise), we need to constantly reduce operation cost and maintain profits to stay in the business,” Mr Johnny Mok, General Manager of Add-Plus explained.
“But at the same time, we face difficulties attracting locals to our company, and we cannot depend too heavily on foreign workers. Our tight labour situation means we cannot expand our business as fast and as much as we would like to.”
Thus when approached by the Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) to sign up for the SME QIANG Lean Six Sigma Programme, Mr Mok saw it as an excellent opportunity to upgrade the skill set of his team as well as re-look at the company’s work processes.
The Training Programme
Over a period of three months, Mr Jimmy Phee, Senior QA Engineer, and Mr Lee Hong Choon, Production Controller, from Add-Plus’ manufacturing team, joined staff from two other companies in the SME QIANG programme, which is supported by the Singapore Workforce Development Agency.
| An operator using a water spray gun to clean the circuit board surface |
The classroom sessions introduced them to different methods for data collection, identification and prioritisation of problems, as well as various problem-solving approaches.
These theoretical lessons were complemented with workshop sessions where two SMF Consultants visited Add-Plus’ manufacturing facilities to help the trainees identify issues, understand the problem, and mentor them in designing the solution.
With close guidance and after just two trial runs, Mr Phee and Mr Lee surprised even themselves when they managed to come up with more efficient ways to clean Add-Plus’ Burn-In Boards.
Their innovative solution saw them modify the washing method and install an air pump in the soaking process. As a result, the production floor experienced a 27% productivity improvement, which eliminated the need for overtime significantly.
The Fruits of Training
When asked what they thought about the SME QIANG programme, Mr Phee answered, “In the past, I believed our work was supposed to be done a certain way.”
“But through the programme, I saw that there are ways to improve productivity by eliminating unnecessary wastage. And I realized that Lean Six Sigma can benefit many of our daily work processes.”
Mr Johnny Mok added that the training also exposed the team to the benefits of working with a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). Using a SOP designed by Mr Phee and Mr Lee, the company can now track performance and productivity better, and reduce time wastage more effectively.
An Energised Team
The team on the production floor is giving the new methods the thumbs-up as well. “Initially, the operators were skeptical and a little resistant to the new methods. But after some hands-on, they saw how the revamped processes make their work easier and clean the boards more thoroughly, which helped to reduce their fatigue level” Mr Johnny Mok explained.
“With the streamlined work process, the management team can re-assign experienced operators to high-order tasks, and recruit junior operators for the simpler tasks.”
Building On Improvements Made
To sustain the company’s productivity gains, Add-Plus has now set a minimum of three improvement projects for the staff to work on and implement each year. This is on top of the 40 hours of internal and external training the company plans for each staff every year.
A technician taking out the circuit board from the wave soldering machine. |
“To do this, we need to continually upgrade our skills through internal skills cross-sharing and external professional skills enhancement programmes. It is only through these we can have a mindset that explores new ideas constantly and be more receptive to improvements that will grow the company as a whole.”
For more information on the SME QIANG Lean Six Sigma programme, click here.
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