OEE Performance

If you do not know the true production capability of a tool or press line (meaning the maximum number of parts it is capable of running in ideal conditions) how can you know if your performance is below average, average, above average, or World Class? The simple answer is that you can’t.

OEE is Relative....

There are (3) benchmarks companies commonly measure productivity. Production rate is one of these. Within this benchmark, the rate used to measure by is typically one of the following

1. Launch Rate:

Using the rate achieved during the initial launch and refinement of the tooling. The problem with this is it may be above or below the quoted rate and very few companies know if it is anywhere near the capable rate of the tool.

2. Quoted Rate:

Using the quoted rate as this benchmark is good to determine if the part is being produced fast enough to hit targeted profitability. The problem is that in many cases the quoted rate is determined by past projects (which may or may not be running efficiently), by gut (don’t get me wrong, experience matters but is only as good as the individual who has it), or with little thought of if it’s achievable in the equipment you have available.

3. Corporate set “minimum” rate:

Settings a minimum requirement of a certain SPM is not in itself a bad thing but, how can a "one size fits all" approach work when there are such a diversity of parts being stamped by most stampers. Larger parts made from thin material do not have the same potential as a small, thick material part would have.

The second benchmark we commonly see is Parts Per Shift (PPS) or Parts Per Day (PPD). This is simply the number of parts produced for a job or press line over a given period of time. This is a great measure to review at a glance and know if you are improving or declining in your daily production. This value can vary greatly depending on the type and size of parts being stamped so it, on its own, can’t tell you how well you are performing.

The last benchmark we see used is "Up-Time vs. Down-Time" While this is an important variable to track, you can see the flaw in relying too heavily on it by simply considering that you can run a project very slow and have no shutdowns but be extremely unprofitable in doing so. In this way you may have fantastic uptime and still end up out of business!

The only way you can make your OEE truly reflective of how well you are performing is to know definitively what each tool you run in production is capable of (T-SIM capable SPM based on equipment and tool capabilities…we can help you with this!), establishing that as the first benchmark (which can even be done during planning on new tools using T-SIM), compare your second benchmark (PPS or PPD) before and after optimization of a tools transfer recipe, and make sure your up-time / down-time measure accounts for preventative maintenance.

Lastly, remember, performance is about more than numbers… making great numbers while burning out your team members is destined to fail and unsustainable.

If you want to have a better understanding of what a T-SIM Customer's Plant looks like, click here to read more.