Redução da taxa de falhas no processo de colagem de bordas de uma indústria moveleira utilizando o método DMAIC

Abstract

The manufacture of furniture, in the current context of Brazil, has become a very fierce market. Companies, therefore, need to improve their performance to win the competition and remain in the market. The main challenges of the organization should be increasing productivity and reducing waste. The objective of this study is to improve quality performance through defect reduction using Lean Six Sigma method. The Lean-Six-Sigma was used to show how potential to apprehend and quantify an embroiderer manufacturing process. The work was carried out by means of the DMAIC cycle, which stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. In the definition phase, information from a database of customer complaints and information obtained from a brainstorming with the factory operation were used. Subsequently, a failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) was carried out to identify the major production difficulties. In the measurement phase, the current Sigma level was evaluated from the collection of defect data that occurred for nine weeks, in the time interval corresponding to September to November 2021. In this period, 236 failures of detachment of edge tape, 216 failures of lifting of edge tape and four failures of use of incorrect tape were evidenced and counted, reaching 12.25% of defective parts of a total of 4032 processed pieces. Most defects could have been avoided from an effective quality control carried out by the operators themselves during the production process and from the standardization of activities. Then, tools such as Pareto chart and the FMEA method were used in the analysis phase to determine levels of prioritization of the faults to be attacked. The project goal, defined in this phase, was to achieve stabilization of the percentage of failures below 2%, with a Sigma level above four. In the improvement phase, actions such as process standardization and automation were implemented, ensuring significant results in terms of waste reduction and process optimization. The control phase was based on metrics established in the project scope, to ensure a control of losses below 2%. From the tenth week, after the beginning of the execution of the actions, it was possible to observe the reduction of the number of failures, however, the goal of 2% was only achieved in the seventeenth week of the project, when the automation of the conveyor belt was reactivated. The techniques used in the Lean Six Sigma DMAIC method have proved to be effective for reducing failures in small industrial plants and the methodology of this work can be used as a guide for future projects in other companies.