M4E #58: Line Balancing
Today I wanted to introduce Yamazumi diagrams but I didn’t find a good video that talked exclusively of it, but I found that this LeanVlog piece is quite need to introduce that concept and also link it to line balancing. Line balancing aims to optimize the allocation of tasks or workstations along an assembly line or production process. Before seeing the next video, you may want to refresh the concept of Takt time that was presented on M4E #22.
Time for Insights
As usual, the word "Yamazumi" is of Japanese origin and can be roughly translated to mean "stacking up" or "accumulation," which is reflective of its purpose in visually stacking or accumulating tasks to assess work balance.
As mentioned in the video, Yamazumi charts are typically used for line balancing taking into account workload distribution between stations. However it’s also quite useful for ergonomics task assessment and evaluation, taking into consideration physical demands of each task and how they affect the ergonomics of the work. Tasks that require heavy lifting, awkward postures, or repetitive motions can be allocated in a way that minimizes their impact on individual workers.
Kaizen (M4E #6) principles can be applied to the process of line balancing. When an organization embraces a Kaizen mindset, it encourages teams to continuously evaluate and improve the line balancing process. This means that even after achieving an initial balance, teams remain open to identifying further optimizations.