TPM (Total Productive Management)

Original: https://cli.im/article/detail/1845

Origin of TPM

TPM originated from PM (Preventive Maintenance) in the United States during the 1960s. After expansion and innovation by the Japanese, it evolved into company-wide TPM (Total Productive Management) by 1981, achieving great success in Japan. Subsequently, it was implemented worldwide. The first TPM World Congress was held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1991, attended by over 700 people from 23 countries. Sweden's VOLVO and Singapore's NACHI INDUSTRIES PTE.LTD. became the first two companies outside Japan to obtain TPM certification.

In Asia: South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia; in Europe: Sweden, France, Italy, Finland, Norway; in the United States: Ford, P&G, and hundreds of others; in South America: Brazil, Colombia. Thousands of enterprises worldwide have adopted TPM and achieved astonishing results.

In Shenzhen and coastal areas of China, some foreign-funded and private enterprises are already implementing TPM activities.

Expected Effects of Implementing TPM

I. Expected Effects of Implementing TPM

1. Tangible Effects

• Improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness
• Enhance Labor Productivity
• Reduce Market Complaints
• Decrease Various Losses
• Shorten Production Cycles
• Improve Efficiency of Indirect Departments

2. Intangible Effects

• Reform of Corporate Constitution
• Renewal of Employee Awareness
• A Vibrant Enterprise
• An enterprise with a sense of achievement, satisfaction, and self-actualization
• A confident and trustworthy enterprise for customers

Category	Item	Effect
P (Productivity)	Value-Added Productivity	Increase to 1.5~2 times
	Overall Equipment Effectiveness	Increase to 1.5~2 times
	Number of Sudden Failures	Reduce to 1/10~1/250
Q (Quality)	In-Process Defect Rate	Reduce to 1/10
	Number of Market Complaints	Reduce to 1/4
C (Cost)	Manufacturing Cost	Reduce 30%
D (Delivery)	Finished Goods and Intermediate Inventory	Reduce 50%
S (Safety)	Zero Work Stoppages Due to Disasters, Zero Pollution	Zero Work Stoppages Due to Disasters, Zero Pollution
M (Morale)	Number of Improvement Proposals	Increase 5~10 times

Table: Overall Tangible Effects of Enterprises that have Obtained TPM Certification

Definition of TPM

(TPM = Total Productive Management)

• Aims for the ultimate limit of production system efficiency (Overall Efficiency)
• From changing mindsets to using various effective means, builds a system that prevents all disasters, defects, and waste beforehand (Ultimate goal: A system achieving "Zero" disasters, "Zero" defects, "Zero" waste)
• Starts from the production department and extends to all departments including development, sales, and management
• Involves all employees, from top leadership to frontline operators

From the definition, it can be seen that TPM pursues the ultimate limit of the overall efficiency of the entire production system, challenging the limits through corporate innovation activities that eliminate all disasters, defects, and waste. "Eliminate all disasters, defects, and waste?" Some might think this is just a slogan, or even find TPM incredible and doubt its results. These doubts are entirely understandable, because the effects generated by TPM as a corporate innovation activity far exceed the imagination of many of us. However, if you have the opportunity to visit and learn from enterprises that have passed TPM certification, all doubts will disappear.

TPM activities consist of six pillars: "Equipment Maintenance," "Quality Maintenance," "Focused Improvement (Kobetsu Kaizen)," "Administrative & Office Improvement," "Environmental Maintenance," and "Education & Training." Each pillar has a complete set of implementation methods for comprehensive improvement of the enterprise. Depending on the specific situation of the enterprise, significant success can also be achieved by selecting only a few pillars to promote.

Industries Suitable for TPM

Starting from the 1980s, TPM has been implemented in Japan in assembly industries such as automobiles, semiconductors, home appliances, woodworking, and machinery, as well as process industries such as steel, chemicals, food, pharmaceuticals, paper, printing, petroleum, and gas. It covers almost all manufacturing industries and has achieved significant results.

Conditions Required for Implementing TPM

Company leadership fully recognizes the importance of management, has a sense of urgency for constitutional reform, and a strong desire to pursue perfection to adapt to the survival-of-the-fittest market economy.

TPM Implementation Results in Some Foreign Enterprises

• Hokkaido Refinery: Labor productivity increased by 58%, number of failures reduced by 81%
• Ricoh (Numazu): Labor productivity increased by 130%, production cycle shortened by 77%, development cycle shortened by 35%, number of market complaints reduced by 88%
• Dai Nippon Printing, Akabane Plant: Labor productivity increased by 80%; Body Plant: Labor productivity increased by 90%
• Shin Nippon Light Metals, Hokuriku Office: Labor productivity increased by 120%
• Onoda: Cost reduced by 30%, number of failures reduced by 98%
• VOLVO: Labor productivity increased by 30%, equipment maintenance costs reduced by 50%
• French Steel: Equipment efficiency increased by 50%
• US Yamaha: Equipment efficiency increased by 28%, in-process defect rate reduced by 80%
• Hyundai Motor (Korea): Equipment efficiency increased by 25%, manufacturing hours per vehicle reduced by 28%, in-process defect rate reduced by 44%
• Kia Special Steel (Korea): Equipment efficiency increased by 50%

Brief Introduction to TPM Implementation Results at Ricoh Shenzhen

In the two years since TPM implementation at Ricoh Shenzhen, the total number of improvement proposals company-wide reached 37,354. In the latter half of 1999, the average number of proposals per person per month was over 3, which is 40 times higher than before implementation. The company is filled with a strong culture of improvement and vitality.

The cumulative improvement amount (1997-1999) was 18 million RMB.

The improvement effects of four representative cases are as follows:

1. Efficiency Improvement of Production Line A Effect: Efficiency increased by 40%, headcount reduced by 70 people
2. Reduction in Number of Powered Forklifts in Warehouse Effect: Logistics volume increased by 30%, while the number of powered forklifts decreased from 33 to 22
3. Reduction of In-Process Defect Loss Amount in Manufacturing Department Effect: Defect loss amount reduced by 96.6% within one year
4. Quality Defect Prediction Activities Effect: Time for new product varieties to achieve quality stability shortened from 6 months to 2 months