Work study, Why is work study valuable? Total time of a job

Work study

“Work study is the systematic examination of the methods of carrying on activities so as to improve the effective use of resources and to set up standards of performance for the activities being carried out.”

• Examine the way an activity is being carried out.

• Simplifying or modifying the method of operation.

• Reduce unnecessary or excess work.

• Wasteful use of resources.

• Setting up a time standard for performing that activity.

Total time of a job

The time taken by a worker or a machine to carry out an operation.

Consist of “Basic work content” & “Total ineffective time”

• The basic work content of the product or operation.

• Amount of work "contained in" a given product or a process measured in "work hours" or "machine hours"

• A work-hour is the labor of one person for one hour.

• A machine-hour is the running of a machine or piece of plant for one hour.

“The basic work content is the irreducible minimum time theoretically required to produce one unit of output.”

Total ineffective time

• Work content added by poor design or specification.

• Poor design and frequent design changes (Product development) 

• Waste of materials (Proper materials utilization) 

• Incorrect quality standards (Quality control)

• Work content added by inefficient methods of manufacture or operation

• Poor layout and utilization of space (Better layout and process planning) 

• Inadequate materials handling (Materials handling) 

• Frequent stoppages as production changes from one to another (Production planning) 

• Ineffective method of work (Methods study of an activity) 

• Poor planning of inventory (Inventory control) 

• Frequent breakdown of machines and equipment (Preventive maintenance)

• Work content resulting mainly from the contribution of human resources

• Absenteeism and lateness (Proper management and personnel policy)

• Poor workmanship (Training)

• Accidents and occupational hazards (Better working conditions)

Why is work study valuable?

Carrying out systematic procedure, both in the investigation of the problem and in the development of its solution.

Continuous observation and study in the area where the activity is taking place.

• Raising the productivity of an operating unit by the reorganization of work

• Systematic (analyze all the facts about that operation are available)

• Most accurate setting standards of performance

• Improvement of safety and working conditions

• Savings (properly applied work study)

• A "tool" which can be applied everywhere

• Cheap and easy to apply

• Most penetrating tools of investigation

To achieve really important results, work study must be applied continuously, and throughout the organization.

The basis of successful work study: 

Intolerance of waste in any form, whether of material, time, fort or human ability; 

And the refusal to accept without question that things must be done in a certain way 

"Because that is the way they have always been done".