Points to Judge Profitability ~Right Approach to Make Impacts~

A book named Toko-Ton Yasashii TPM-no-Hon (providing thorough and easy explanation of TPM) was authored by JIPM-Solutions (current JMAC TPM Consulting Division) and published by NIKKAN KOGYO SHIMBUN, LTD.　（株式会社日刊工業新聞社）. This book contains foundational and advanced knowledge of overall TPM and is currently only available as a Japanese language book. JMAC considers that releasing excerpts of Toko-Ton Yasashii TPM-no-Hon in English would benefit overall TPM knowledge & TPM practicing companies all over the world. JMAC wishes to thank NIKKAN KOGYO SHIMBUN, LTD. for approving the release of excerpts that contain TPM information.

Improvement/Kaizen effect that is not connected with profit

There are times when we see situations where implementation of improvements does not lead to increased profitability. As one of example: reduction of minor stops in non-bottleneck processes - this improvement usually doesn't lead to increased profits. If you want to make improvements that will generate "real profits," you must improve the minor stops in the bottle-neck process.

Furthermore, there are some prerequisites that are linked to better profitability through improving the bottleneck processes: a large amount of work activity and an understaffed production line. On the other hand, if you make a minor stop improvement in a bottleneck process when the workload is low and there is surplus manpower, the improvement effect will not directly lead to profits. 

If the amount of work is small and the amount of orders fluctuates greatly, rather than improving the bottleneck, reducing the number of fixed workers assigned to the process, or creating a non-fixed worker process will lead to increased profits for the company, 

TPM is an activity in which all employees participate to increase the company's profitability. Thus, TPM is an activity to create a profitable corporate structure by

identifying problems (losses) that impede "true profits" and having everyone in the company (from managers and supervisors to front-line employees) engage in loss reduction activities.

Recurring breakdowns and defects 

Another point that can cause surprise is that although countermeasures have been taken for breakdowns and defects, situations arise in which the breakdowns and defects recur. Recurrence of breakdowns and defects not only results in loss of profits, but also a loss of customer trust, which is a major negative point for business. 

In such cases, activities have not included a "sustaining mechanism" to keep and manage the "good condition" achieved, what we call "Maintenance." In other words, after a defect or breakdown occurs, the goal of the activity has to be to thoroughly investigate the cause of the problems, take countermeasures, make improvements, and maintain the results.

TPM's core activity is a combination of improvement and "maintenance." By utilizing TPM methodology to prevent deterioration of equipment, including molds, jigs, and related tools, as well as preventing variations in processing conditions, breakdowns and defects can be prevented. And so ultimately, recurrence can be avoided. Thus, it is possible to solidify the foundation of a company that will generate more profits.