A Step in Time Saves Nine

Transcript (Download)

You You You This is a bonds Great Lakes branch in Morton Grove, Illinois I am Charles Nelson I would like to take you behind the scenes of the shipping department and show you how with a methods improvement We realized outstanding gains in productivity with a minimum of employee fatigue You The main responsibility of the operational group had our Morton Grove laboratory is Service to its thousands of field representatives in a six -state area Avon calling As you see here Avon has had a tremendous growth in the past 12 years To compensate for this growth Avon management and supervisory personnel is Constantly on the alert for new methods and procedures so that a high level of service can be provided to the representatives Methods in the order processing department were recently reviewed to determine whether the maximum number of orders were being Processed in line with the effort being put forth by the assemblers and checkers in this area Here assemblers and checkers process approximately 2 ,000 representatives orders daily As you can see the orders consist of pieces in less than case quantities So in actuality all pieces must be hand -picked and checked It was agreed upon that a system could be developed Where and more orders could be processed within an eight hour day with normal effort on the part of order processing personnel Still maintaining a high degree of order accuracy This new system would eliminate these three non -productive orders In the next few days we will be reviewing the effective elements walking pushing orders waiting for work Let's review these factors first too much time is spent in walking assigned sections extend from 20 to 40 feet Second time is lost in pushing orders along the conveyor Third assemblers presently lose time waiting for work present method does not provide adequate surge space With these points in mind assigned personnel started to design and develop a new type of line That would eliminate the three major non -productive factors that we have observed To eliminate walking, the assembly would have to be a single -use assembly Various types of stock bins were reviewed to find one that would provide narrow bin frontage So that the items in an assigned section could be grouped around an assembler enabling her to reach them without walking A basic piece of equipment with a few modifications in design was purchased and assembled Here we see the new type bin filled with merchandise and arranged in the new workstation position Notice how all the merchandise in the assembler section is at her fingertips By means of gravity feed a continued supply of merchandise is always available To eliminate the pushing of orders a centerline power conveyor was selected to bring the orders to the assembler and take them away Through the use of a manual stop the assembler has full control over the positioning of the orders at her station The third and final factor we wanted to eliminate was time lost waiting for orders One girl waiting on the other The availability of surge space would provide us with the means so that enough orders could be stored on the conveyor to provide a backlog of orders for each girl Work could be brought to a girl just as rapidly as she is able to take it and then promptly taken from her when she is finished Additional surge space was also created by having the girls on the new line insert additional trays as they are needed In the old system all trays were placed on the line in the beginning by a starter The installation of the new type assembly bins and the grouping of workstations automatically created surge space between stations The application of a double width conveyor also provided the means for storage space for trays that were filled with merchandise A simple marrying process at the end of the line regroups the trays by order The new line layout was put into operation and the assemblers and checkers were given the opportunity to work on it Without exception, the girls preferred the new type line The new system fully employed would result in a 30 % increase in departmental output In addition to the increased output, the new line layout resulted in the processing of a more accurate order Many of the work distractions that were existent on the old line were eliminated with the creation of the individual workstation It was tried and accepted The Avon representative would continue to receive the scheduled service that she had enjoyed in the past Plus the fact that the accuracy as to the completeness of her order would be increased The fatiguing non -productive elements had been eliminated We were assembling more pieces and processing more orders with a new line layout However, the girls were not as tired at the end of the day The immediate need for increased space to compensate for the high percentage increase in business was also eliminated There is always a better way to do a job.

However, you must step in time to save nine The Avon representative would continue to receive the scheduled service that she had enjoyed in the past

Date Of Production

circa 1959

Abstract

Industrial film detailing how Avon Cosmetics factory workers can be more productive.

Description

Narrator Charles Nelson takes the viewer behind the scenes of the shipping department at Avon's Great Lakes branch in Morton Grove, Illinois. Nelson describes (and a chart illustrates) the “tremendous growth” the cosmetics company has experienced in the past twelve years as jaunty orchestral music plays. Due to this growth, Nelson explains, methods in the order processing unit were recently reviewed.

Footage of assemblers and checkers processing orders for Avon representatives in a warehouse is intercut with scenes of men in suits talking in an office. The narrator explains that these executives have been working to design and implement a new type of assembly line to eliminate the "non-productive elements" of the process — walking, pushing orders along the conveyor, and waiting for work. The narrator describes the changes that were made, illustrated by footage of women in blue dresses packing products into boxes to be shipped. A woman in a uniform poses next to an easel with signs reading “30% increase in department output,” “More accurate order, less distraction,” “Tried and accepted!” and “Everyone benefited.” The film ends with a triumphant scene of a UPS truck delivering an Avon box to a home, followed by footage of workers leaving the factory. The narrator declares, “The girls were not as tired at the end of the day” after the new process was implemented.

Run Time

0:13:19

Format

16mm

Extent

450 feet

Color

Sound

Mag Stripe

Reel/Tape Number

1/1

Has Been Digitized?

Yes

Language Of Materials

English

Element

Answer Print

Genre

Industrial

Form

Short

Subject

Laborers
Cosmetics
Factories
Packaging
Processes and techniques

Related Collections

Perser Family Collection

Related Places

North America ➜ United States ➜ Illinois ➜ Morton Grove

Sponsor/client

Avon Cosmetics

Main Credits

Perser, Donald (is director)

Additional Credits

Perser, Donald (sound)

Perser, Donald (camera)

Participants And Performers

Nelson, Charles (is narrator)

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