SHOP METHODS AND RECORDS
From the principles that have been advanced in connection with the subjects of Manufacturing and Shop Management, it will be readily seen that the work of the manufacturing plant of the present day is a very complex matter, and there must necessarily be very complete and carefully formulated plans and systems by which all its operations are regulated, and a somewhat elaborate plan of records by which these operations and their results are recorded and filed.
In formulating the necessary plans for the methods and records of a manufacturing establishment, we must first determine the requirements of the work and decide definitely on what we wish to accomplish. In other words, the conditions must be first examined and analyzed, their various factors studied at their true value, and the requirements determined, so that a general plan of operations may be followed.
These methods shall cover the following subjects:
1. The selection and employment of workmen.
2. The methods of keeping the time of all employees.
3. The manner of paying workmen.
4. The ordering of work into the shops.
5. The routine of passing work through the shops.
6. The method of drawing stock and materials.
7. The ways of keeping and issuing tools.
Importance of Records. Each of these methods will become a part of the routine of the establishment, and the operations carried on under it will be proper matters for regular records made from day to day.
Such records are exceedingly valuable as current information, and, when properly filed, become quite as valuable for reference in the future as for use in current operations.
In all improvements in the working routine of manufacturing operations, there should be previous records by which the present performances may be checked and compared. By this arrangement, it is comparatively easy to ascertain whether or not any improvement is being made, and in what direction it is being made. This knowledge will suggest further plans and betterments. Should the records prove that there are losses rather than gains being made, the warning is equally valuable, and we make haste to better results and greater efficiency in the work.
Thus, whether the plans and methods in use are really successful, or quite the reverse, it is of the utmost importance that we should know by prompt and accurate records just what the results are, in order to keep in close touch with the progress of events, and that, when plans do not produce the favorable results expected and desired, the information may be promptly available, the warning be heard, and plans altered or amended until they bring about a successful routine in the manufacturing operations.
Selection and Employment of Workmen. This is an important matter, since it costs money to introduce new men in any business, and requires from a day or two to several weeks for the new man to become sufficiently accustomed to his work and surroundings to be of the same value as the man who is perfectly familiar with the shop, the routine and methods of work, and the foreman under whom he works.
Fig. 5. Application Card.
It is therefore necessary to go about this matter in a methodical manner, and to keep records of:
(a) All persons making application for employment.
(b) All persons regularly accepted as employees.
(c) Individual records of all regular workmen.
(d) All employees who leave the employment of the company.
To accomplish these results, the official whose duty it is to employ men will fill out, or will have a clerk fill out, an Application Card of the form shown in Fig. 5, for each person applying for a position. It will be noticed that it is important to know whether the applicant has ever been employed in this establishment previous to the present application. If so, his record can be readily referred to for information as to the desirability of employing him again. It is also necessary that the record of his last employer be known, and frequently of the employer previous to the last, as these matters will also be taken into consideration in determining his fitness for the position for which he applies. It is also necessary to know how many years he has been employed in manufacturing establishments, as this fact, taken in consideration with his age, will frequently furnish information upon which to base judgment as to his fitness.
Fig. 6. Employment Card.
The Application Card, being on file, is available for the use of such foremen or other officials as may be in need of workmen. Should the applicant be decided to be available, after consultation between the official to whom application was made and the foreman desiring to increase his force, the applicant will be sent for, and employed at a rate mutually satisfactory, and an Employment Card of the form shown in Fig. 6 filled out. This will repeat some of the information contained on the Application Card; but it is necessary to have two cards in any event, as the information must be filed in separate drawers.
The Employment Card will also give the name of the official employing the man, as well as that of the foreman under whom he is to work, the kind of work he is to perform, and when he is to commence work. It will also require the approval of the Superintendent or Factory Manager, as the case may be, to make it valid and operative.
The applicant having become one of the regular employees of the concern, a third card is made out for filing in the List of Employees drawer. This will be upon the form shown in Fig. 7, and is called a Service Card. It will be noticed that each of these three cards is headed with the name and address of the person whom it represents.
The Service Card gives the department in which the employee is to work, the kind of work which he is to do, the date he begins work, and his rate of pay. Spaces are also provided for noting the amount and date of any increases in his rate, and for the record of a transfer to another department should he be moved, as is frequently the case with new men who may not be quite adaptable to the kind of work first attempted, but entirely satisfactory at some other class of work.
Fig. 7. Service Card.
A space is also provided for noting the date of the workman's leaving the employ of the company, and also for giving the reason for it. This will be valuable information in case the workman should subsequently apply for employment. When an employee leaves the service of the company, his Service Card is removed from the List of Employees drawer, and placed in a fourth drawer labeled Discharged or Quit, being held there for future reference.
Individual Record of Standing. In many well-conducted manufacturing establishments, it is customary to keep a record of the standing of the men as rated each month, as a valuable reference in cases of proposed promotion, increases in pay, reliability for special work and positions of responsibility. Various methods of marking the records of the men each month have been tried, but the simplest method is to use the number 100 for perfect, and to divide it as follows:
| Good workmanship | 50 |
| Punctuality in reporting for work | 30 |
| Deportment during working hours | 20 |
| —— | |
| Total | 100 |
Fig. 8. Individual Record Card.
Demerits are marked off as to workmanship, by the foreman, according to his judgment aided by the Inspector's reports of the work done by the man.
Punctuality is judged by the number of times late, each instance reducing the mark by one unit. As the workman enters the shop twice a day, morning and afternoon, assuming 26 working days in the month, a practical disregard of punctuality soon reduces his record in this respect to zero.
Deportment is judged by the Foreman, who also takes into account occasions on which the workman may have been reported for violating the regulations in this respect.
A Record Card is shown in Fig. 8, upon which monthly records are kept. The total for any period, divided by the number of months covered by the record, will give the percentage of a perfect record. This card provides for a record for two years.
If it seems advisable to do so for special reasons, a similar card may be formulated covering the six working days of the week. A year's record in this form may be entered on a card 4 by 6 inches, by arranging the horizontal and vertical ruling for that purpose.
Such a record may be profitably kept of the work of the office force, as well as of the men in the shops. It will be valuable in many ways in judging of the availability of the men for special work, as well as for promotion.
Necessarily such records should be very carefully kept; otherwise there is liable to be serious injury done to the working reputation and integrity, as well as reliability, of the men.
The Employment Agent. In large concerns, an official is regularly appointed as an Employment Agent, and it is his duty to keep the office and the shops supplied with competent men engaged at reasonable wages. He must therefore keep in close and accurate touch with the labor market, for the same reasons that the purchasing agent must know the state of the market for material and supplies. He must know how and where to reach workmen of the different classes whenever he is called upon to furnish them.
While ordinary laborers may nearly always be obtained from the daily applications made at the office, skilled men must be hunted up; and it is not usually easy to find just the man with the qualifications desired.
When men are wanted for positions above the average skilled workmen, the best and most promising will be nearly always distributed among the present employees who are deserving of advancement. To promote one of them, rather than hire some man from outside the organization, is usually good business policy. The man and his abilities are generally well known, while a stranger is always an unknown quantity. The men, being acquainted with the man, will be pleased to see him get the deserved promotion; and it is always wise to consider the popularity of proposed orders affecting the working force. The man himself will feel his added responsibilities much more than an outside man will, and will generally work harder to succeed in his new position. Therefore it is always best to give the first chance to present employees who have been faithful to the responsibilities thus far placed upon them.
It will be found that in most of the departments there are employees who from one reason or another are doing work quite below their real capacity, hoping that later on there may be better opportunities for the coveted position. The Employment Agent should know the men of the force, and their abilities, so as to take advantage of these conditions. A man may be needed by a foreman in one department who is not aware that in a neighboring department may be just the kind of man he wants. The Employment Agent should know where to find the man at once.
Again, one department may, from the condition of the work, be short of help, and may request the Employment Agent to hire a certain number of men of certain qualifications and abilities. At the same time, there may be another department in which there are more men than can be used to advantage. An arrangement for the temporary or permanent transfer of some of these men will be a great help to both departments, and will have the added advantage of keeping good men permanently employed.
If a workman feels that his employment is permanent, and that there are fair opportunities for advancement, this will be the surest way to hold him faithful and loyal to the interests of the establishment; and the conditions that bring about this condition of mind in him will also draw other good men who will be glad to be counted as among those faithful to a company which appreciates their services and which will look to their interests as they consider those of their employers. The result will be that these men will give their best services, and even be on the alert to further the interests of the employer who has favored them. Thus a strong working organization is built up, which becomes one of the best and most valuable assets of the company.
Time Keeping. As cost of labor is usually greater than any other in the manufacturing plant, and frequently greater than all other factors in the cost of manufacturing, it is very important that the records pertaining to this expense be properly planned and accurately kept.
Various methods have been adopted and used for this purpose. Some of the more prominent plans will be given. They are each adapted to some certain kind or class of work, and it will often be found that in practice still different forms must be devised in order to meet the existing conditions.
There are three methods of recording the time of employees—namely:
1. By entering the time in a book or upon cards, by a Time-Keeper.
2. By entering the time upon cards by the workman himself.
3. By stamping the time upon cards by the workman in a time-recording clock.
The first of these methods is the oldest form, and has now to a great extent gone out of use.
Fig. 9. Pattern Shop Time Card.
A large majority of the work of a manufacturing plant requires that the time worked by the employees shall be registered twice. That is, one entry shall be of the day time (time paid for by the day), which necessitates the recording of the total number of hours worked each day; the second entry shall record the job time (the time worked upon the different jobs during the day). This second entry is sometimes called Time Distribution, since the employee's time is distributed over the different jobs upon which he has worked.
Time-Card Forms. This work is sometimes done by means of time cards as shown in Figs. 9, 10, 11, and 12, which are given as characteristic examples of these methods. These cards are of different tints as a convenient method of recognizing them.
Fig. 9 is yellow, and is used in the Pattern Shop.
Fig. 10 is chocolate-colored, and is used in the Forge Shop.
Fig. 11 is blue, and is used by the Carpenters and Flask Makers.
Fig. 12 is white, and is used in the Machine Shop.
Fig. 10. Forge Shop Time Card.
Fig. 11. Time Card for Carpenters and Flask Makers.
Similar card forms may be devised for any other department of a plant, or for the departments of plants doing entirely different work.
When these cards are used as a means of distributing the time to the various jobs or orders in force in the shop, the day time, from which the pay-roll is made up, is usually recorded on a strip of paper in a time clock, the operation being performed by each employee as he passes into the shop morning and afternoon, and when leaving at noon and night. Passing to the clock, the workman swings a lever to his individual number, and presses in a knob, whereby the exact time of the operation is recorded upon a slip of paper, a ribbon, or a disc within the clock.
Fig. 12. Machine Shop Time Card.
In other forms of time clock, an individually numbered key is inserted in one of the individually numbered holes, turned around, and withdrawn. The time is recorded in a manner quite similar to that used in the case just described above.
The four forms for time cards shown are quite similar, the difference being in the list of operations given at the right-hand end of the card.
At the top of the card are spaces for the date, order number, workman's number, and the number of the machine upon which he works (provided the work is done on a machine). In the next space, the name of the department is given. This is followed by spaces for the quantity—that is, the number of pieces, feet, or inches of such material as is designated in this way, or the number of pounds in weight of the material. Then comes a brief description of the work.
Opposite each of these is a square in which the workman can indicate the particular kind of work he has been doing, by marking an X. Thus the form shown in Fig. 9 contains the following classes of work—namely, Pattern Making, meaning new pattern work; Pattern Repairs, referring to repairs charged to the job; Foundry Repairs, or repairs to patterns or fixtures the expense of which is to be charged to the Foundry Department; Equipment Repairs, referring to pattern shop equipment; General Office, consisting of small jobs of equipment and maintenance that are better done by a pattern maker than by a carpenter; Drafting Room, similar new work and repairs, such as drafting boards, angles, etc.; Tool Room, similar work chargeable to this department, such as boxes or cases for special tools, and work not entrusted to a carpenter.
Whatever may be the kind of work the employee is engaged upon, he checks it as described; and after the words "Time Started," he notes the hour and minute he begins work. When the job is completed, he notes the time after the words "Time Stopped," The elapsed time, the rate, and the value are filled in by the time clerk.
This card is turned in to the foreman or dropped in a box provided for that purpose, it having been approved by the foreman of the department in which the work is done. It then goes to the time clerk.
As each workman has a card for each different job and for each day, it follows that all the job cards for a single day must aggregate the same amount of time as that indicated on the stamped record within the recording time clock. Discrepancies of this kind are investigated, and the time distribution readjusted until satisfactory, the foreman of the department usually being consulted in the case.
Recording-Clock Time-Cards. Recording time clocks are also made which operate automatically to produce changes in the position of the card dropped into a receptacle provided for the purpose, such, that when a lever is manipulated, not only is the exact hour and minute stamped upon the card, but it is stamped in its proper place upon the card so as to correspond with the proper day of the week and also indicate whether forenoon or afternoon. The horizontal changes of position are made by hand, previous to manipulating the operating lever.
Fig. 13. Day Time Card.
Fig. 14. Back of Day Time Card.
Fig. 15. Job Time Card.
A form for a regular Day Time card is shown in Fig. 13. The days of the week are given, and each divided by horizontal lines into spaces for forenoon and afternoon. Vertically the dividing lines divide spaces for the time the workman comes IN, goes OUT, and for similar records for lost time or overtime, as the case may be.
At the top of the card is the date, generally given as the last day of the week for which time is made up. This is followed by the number and name of the employee. Following the table prepared for the time stampings, is a space for the total time, the rate, and the amount due for the week.
The back of the card is shown in Fig. 14, and is plain except at the top, which is printed in large and plain type "This Side Out," as employees are liable to introduce the card with its face outward. For convenience the employee's number and name are given on this side as well as on the face.
By the above method of time recording, all employees will use the regular Day Time card. Such employees as work on the regular production orders, and on work properly chargeable to them, will in addition to the Day Time card use a Job Time card, of the form shown in Fig. 15. This card is provided with spaces at the top for the order number, date, employee's number, machine number, article or piece upon which the work is being done, and the name of the operation that is being performed. The body of the card has the same spaces for the recording stampings. It will be noticed that the card shown in Fig. 13 runs from Monday to Sunday, inclusive. This is the usual form, but in some shops the fiscal week ends on different days of the week. In the job card shown in Fig. 15, it ends on Thursday.
In the use of these job cards, a card is made out for each job or order, without regard to the number of different jobs an employee may have in a day. The aggregate of the time shown on all these cards for a day must aggregate the amount shown on the day time card from which the pay-roll is made up. Thus each card acts as a check on the other, and accuracy is insured to a considerable degree.
When the work for which the job time is issued has been completed, and the card receives its final stamping, it may be turned over to the foreman, who will send it to the Time Clerk. This gives the foreman an opportunity to look it over and correct any mistakes that may have been made. In some shops the card is dropped into a box marked Job Time Cards—Completed, whence it is gathered up with others, by the Time Clerk. Coming into the possession of the Time Clerk, he will check it up, together with such others as the workman may have used on the same day, in order to ascertain if the total time on the job cards for the day equals that shown on the day time card.
When the Time Clerk has compared the cards, he will send the job cards to the Cost Clerk, who will enter the amounts in a Job Time Summary book of the form shown in Fig. 16. On this blank, the number, name, and rate of each man are written. The succeeding columns are headed with the various current order numbers. Entries are made opposite the man's name, of the pay-roll value of the time he has worked on the various orders or jobs for the day. The total, carried out in the extreme right-hand column, represents his pay for the day. The totals at the bottom of the job columns represent the value of the time spent on each order, for the day. The work is checked as correct when the sum of all the totals of the right-hand column is exactly equal to the sum of all the totals at the foot of the columns.
Fig. 16. Job Time Summary.
SOUTH END OF ERECTING SHOP, WEST ALLIS WORKS
Allis-Chalmers Company, Milwaukee, Wis.
The entries in this book are made by quite young clerks, who handle only these job cards and books as their daily tasks, and who become very expert, accurate, and rapid at this work. The totals are carried by the Cost Clerk or one of his assistants to the cost ledger, in which the costs of both labor and material, as well as all expense charges, are brought together. Sometimes this work is done upon cards, each one representing an order and containing in brief and condensed form all the charges of whatever kind made against the order.
Methods of Paying Employees. The methods by which pay-rolls are made up and the employees paid, are important; and whatever plans are adopted, they should realize the following desirable requirements:
1. The record of amounts due the men should be absolutely accurate and in accordance with the rates at which the men were employed, subject (a) to such modifications as may be made by reason of properly authorized changes in rate; (b) to such modifications as may be made from week to week by overtime work, or by the operation of methods of "piece work," "premium work," or any of the several plans for rewarding exceptionally efficient work; (c) to such deductions as may properly be made on account of advance payments that have been made upon due authority.
2. The methods of making up the pay-roll and paying the men should secure promptness in this work, so that the pay of the employees may not be held back for an unreasonable length of time pending the necessary clerical work.
3. The methods of payment should be such that no workman can know the amount paid to any other workman.
To accomplish the results desired in the first requirement, if the amounts due the men are made up from the time recorded by the men themselves—that is, in a recording clock—is a comparatively easy task, since it is principally a matter of mathematics, with a strict attention to details.
Changes in rate of pay do not usually take effect until the week following that in which the order is given. This order will be in the form of a request by the foreman of the department in which the workman is employed, stating the reasons for the increase. This is sent to the Superintendent or Factory Manager for approval. If approved it is then sent to the Pay Clerk, who files the notice for future reference and makes the required change on his pay-roll.
Premium work rates will be made up by the foremen of the departments, and approved by the Superintendent, in smaller shops. In large plants the rates will be made up by a clerk in the Production Department, and approved by the Production Engineer. In either case they will be sent directly to the Pay Clerk.
Advances to men will be made only in special cases, upon a written request from the foreman, stating the reasons and approved by the Superintendent.
The second requirement can be met by having the time cards of the style used in recording clocks (as shown in Figs. 13,14, and 15). The convenience and rapidity of making up the time of these cards is apparent from the fact that the record of the entire week is contained upon the face of one day time card, lost time being checked only in red ink in the total column at the right, and the sum of the amounts of lost time being subtracted from the regular working time for the week Thus, if the working time is 55 hours per week, and the lost time was ½ hour one day and ¼ hour another, making ¾ hour, we subtract that from 55, leaving 54¼ hours as the time for the week. This is much more rapidly done than to carry out the total time for each day and add up these totals for the six days of the week.
The Pay-Roll Sheet or Pay-Roll Book is shown in Fig. 17. This is now frequently made as a loose sheet or such number of sheets as may be necessary to contain all the names, frequently as many as 50 names on the sheet. Upon examination of this printed form, it will be seen that the regular time is divided into productive and non-productive labor. This is for the purpose of ascertaining what portion of the labor is applied directly upon the product, and what portion is applied indirectly, such as foreman, clerks, general laborers, etc., whose work is classed as non-productive.
The amount of the regular time is computed, and entered in the column headed Amount. If there is an amount due in premiums, it is entered in the next column, and the two amounts added in the column headed Total Amount. In the next column is entered the amount of any advances that may have been made, which is deducted from the total amount, leaving the net Amount Due, which is entered in the next column. This amount is paid over to the employee, who signs his name in the space under By whom received, and the operation is complete. The men's numbers are placed at the extreme left hand and right hand of the form as a matter of convenience in rapidly handling the work of paying off.
Fig. 17. Pay-Roll Sheet.
When the pay-roll has been completely made up, it is submitted to the Superintendent, who certifies as to its being a correct list of men actually employed, and to the rates of the different men. It is then submitted to the Factory Manager for approval. After the amounts due the men are actually paid and receipted for, the Treasurer certifies the fact, and the pay-roll becomes a voucher for the amount represented on the roll.
Giving Orders for Manufacturing Work. As ordinarily considered, orders are of two general classes, namely:
1. Production Orders, by which the production departments are set to work manufacturing some regular or special product which is to be sold to customers.
2. Plant Orders. These orders relate to the repairs and maintenance of the grounds, buildings, and equipment of the plant, and to new additions to and alterations of the same.
Both of these classes originate with the Factory Manager, who receives instructions as to all important orders from the General Manager of the company, who will authorize and keep in touch, not only with the production of the plant, but in a general way with all changes, improvements, and maintenance expenses of the establishment.
Fig. 18. Production Order.
Production Orders. Fig. 18 shows the form of a regular production order. This card or blank is made of such dimensions as the kind of manufacturing business to which it pertains may require. It is customary to use a card 4 by 6 inches; but if such is to be written upon the central space in order to describe the work properly, it should be somewhat larger. The principal features of this form are spaces for the title of the card, the order number, and date. At the bottom is given the date when the work is expected to be completed, and the date of its actual completion. These dates are important as a matter of reference in considering the promptness and efficiency of the departments where the work has been done.
The work to be done is briefly described in the central portion, together with such references to sets of drawings, etc., as may be necessary to render the terms of the order indisputably certain. This order is signed by the Factory Manager and sent to the Superintendent. In a large concern it is sent to the Superintendent of Production or the Production Engineer, according to the particular manner of the organization of the official force.
Fig. 19. Sub-Production Order.
In any event the order is turned over to the official having charge of production, who will make out Sub-Production orders (Fig. 19) for each department in which the particular work described upon the orders is to be done. A time limit is given for the completion of the work, and a space provided for the actual date of completion. They are not signed when issued, but are dated and signed by the foreman when the work is completed.
Plant Orders. As has been described, plant orders are those necessary for the changes, improvements, and maintenance of the plant and equipment. In some establishments there are two series of orders, namely: (a) those for improvements and maintenance of the plant proper—that is, grounds and buildings; and (b) improvements and maintenance of equipment. This is a very proper and natural division. These accounts may be subdivided to a very great extent, but not with corresponding value.
Fig. 20. Plant Order.
Plant orders are usually issued by the Superintendent (or General Superintendent, in a large plant), and are returnable to him, as will be seen upon reference to the form shown in Fig. 20. This order is usually directed to a certain department. If more than one department is involved in the work, a separate order is issued to each. The general form of the order is the same as in the two preceding ones, the instructions being changed to suit the nature of the case.
On the back of this order is a form for entering the cost of material and labor, as shown in Fig. 21. The dates upon which each item (or group of items) of material is furnished, are given, as are also the dates for the various items of labor, although the work of an entire week may be entered upon a single line. On the second half of the card, space is provided for the totals of both material and labor cost; also such general expenses in the form of a percentage or such other apportionment as may be authorized, are entered.
Fig. 21. Back of Plant Order Shown in Fig. 20. For entering cost of material and labor.
By this method the order for the work, and a summary of the expense of executing the order, are contained upon the same card, which is very convenient for future reference and comparison.
Storing and Issuing Stock and Materials. The orders having been put in force in the shop, the next step is to obtain the necessary material or stock with which to do the work.
All purchased stock, material, and stores are turned over to the General Storekeeper, whose duty it is to classify them, store them properly, and issue them only on properly authorized requisitions. A large portion of his stock he obtains by making requisitions upon the Purchasing Agent.
To account properly for the receipts and issues of this stock so as always to have on hand what is wanted, and at the same time to avoid carrying an unnecessarily large stock of any of the articles in store, he uses a Stock Ledger Card of the form shown in Fig. 22. This gives the name of the article listed, and its dimensions, weight, etc. At the right of this are entered the maximum and the minimum quantities to be kept in stock. Whenever the stock on hand is reduced to near the minimum quantity, the Purchasing Agent is requested to order enough more to bring the quantity up to the maximum.
Fig. 22. Stock Ledger Card. Same form is printed also on back of card.
Fig. 23. Form of Requisition.
Carbon copies of the entries are made on the Invoice form, Fig. 24.
In making requisitions upon the Purchasing Agent, the Storekeeper must take into consideration the length of time necessary to obtain the article wanted. Wire nails, wood screws, and such articles can usually be obtained in 24 hours, while brass tubing may take three weeks. Iron castings can be had in two days, while steel castings will frequently require six weeks.
When articles are received in stores, the date and quantity will be entered under the heading Received, and other quantities added to these as received. Articles issued will be charged under the heading Issued, giving the date and amount. The quantity on hand may be quickly ascertained by adding the quantities received and the quantities issued, and subtracting the sum of the issues from the sum of the receipts.
Fig. 24. Form of Invoice.
Entries are made by means of carbon paper, duplicating those made on the Requisition form, Fig. 23.
As most articles are purchased in considerable quantities and issued in small lots, there will be few entries of receipts and a large number of entries of issues; therefore the greater portion of the card is devoted to records of issues. The card is printed with the same form on both sides; and when the spaces on the first side are filled, the account is balanced, and the results carried to the opposite side.
These cards are kept in filing drawers, where they are located in alphabetical order by the names of the articles they represent.
A foreman, on receipt of a regularly numbered and authorized production order or sub-production order, is thereby authorized to make requisition for such stock and material as may be necessary to use in the execution of the order. This he will do by the use of the Requisition shown in Fig. 23, entering the order number and date, and specifying the quantities and descriptions of the articles required. Ordinarily each requisition will contain but one article or class of articles. At the bottom of the requisition, the foreman will enter the name of his department and his own signature.
These requisition blanks are made up in pads (the form shown in Fig. 23), of white paper alternating with tinted paper on which is the Invoice form shown in Fig. 24. This latter form has its ruling and other principal features identical with the form of the requisition, so that by the use of carbon paper the foreman makes a duplicate on the Invoice blank, of the order number and date, the articles required, the name of his department, and his own signature.
Fig. 25. Returned Material Card.
When the Storekeeper issues the articles, he first enters upon the requisition blank the date issued, and then passes it to his assistant, who notes the issue on the Stock Ledger Card, and then places it on file. The Storekeeper will enter on the invoice the rate and value of the articles issued, and the date of issue, and will sign it under the foreman's signature. He will send it, with the articles issued, to the foreman, who will in turn make it a part of his report of material used.
When the work on an order is completed, such serviceable stock and material as may remain will be returned to the Storekeeper, together with a Returned Material Card of the form shown in Fig. 25. The Storekeeper will enter upon it the value of the material returned, credit it to the department from which it came, and sign the receipt in the lower left-hand corner. The card will then be returned to the foreman as his authority for deducting the amount from the material account in the order in question.
Follow-Up Methods for Tracing Orders in the Shop. The Sub-Production orders having been put into the departments, the first one will order the material for starting the work. For instance, the first step may be upon iron castings. Theoretically all stock and material come from the Store-Room. Therefore we might say that upon a strict construction of this general rule the castings should be furnished by the Foundry and sent to the Store-Room, from which they might be drawn upon requisitions the same as any other material. Practically this would be not only a troublesome but an expensive method, requiring a great deal of unnecessary handling and transportation. The problem is much more practically solved by considering the Foundry as one of the manufacturing departments receiving its raw material (namely, pig iron) through storeroom accounts, and thus "constructively" from the storeroom, while physically it is in the foundry yard. This answers the demands of a theoretical as well as a practical view of the case.
Therefore the first sub-production order will go to the iron foundry, which will make the castings and deliver them to such departments as are required to do the first work upon them, as directed upon the order. The sub-production order which this department has received, directs to what department they shall be sent when completed; and so on, until they have gone through the last department and are sent to the Finished Parts Store-Room.
This arrangement is all right as far as it goes. If every man attended strictly to his business and pushed work along as rapidly as possible, and every foreman sent his work along to the next department as soon as his department had completed its work, this plan might work fairly well. Unfortunately, however, these conditions seldom or never exist; and there must be ways and means devised to keep the work moving and to be able to trace and locate the work upon any order at any time when information is desired upon it or its state of progress.
To accomplish this, there is a Transfer Office, located as conveniently as may be for all departments, and serving as a sort of "clearing house" for all departments in transacting inter-departmental business so far as it relates to the transfer of the work in progress. By this method, departments send all their work by way of the Transfer Office, where proper records are kept of all such transfers, so that at any moment the Transfer Clerk can locate any piece of work in progress in the plant.
Fig. 26. Transfer Card.
The operation of this method is as follows: The sub-production orders are sent to the Transfer Clerk, who fills out two Transfer Cards, as shown in Fig. 26, one of which he sends with the order to the first department that is to do work on the order, and the other he retains. This card provides spaces for the various departments, which are designated by numbers. Following these are spaces for entering the dates of transfers, the entries being made with a rubber stamp. After these spaces are columns for the number of pieces of work received and the number of pieces delivered.
When the first department has finished its work, the number of pieces is entered in the column headed Pieces Delivered, and the work and the card sent to the Transfer Office. The duplicate transfer card that was retained by the Transfer Clerk was filed in a compartment in a Transfer Case corresponding to the department where the work began. He stamps the date of transfer on both cards, entering the number of pieces on his own, and sends the work on its way to the next department, together with the transfer card. His own card he removes from the compartment representing the first department, and places it in a compartment representing the department to which he has now sent the work.
Subsequent transfers are made in the same manner, small lots of work actually being sent to the Transfer Office, but large lots or heavy and bulky work being sent directly from one department to the next, but under the personal direction of the Transfer Clerk or his assistant.
When the parts are completed and ready for inspection, the Inspector is notified; and upon inspecting the parts previous to their being sent to the Finished Parts Store-Room, he enters the results of his work in the space at the bottom of the card that has accompanied the work in its progress through the departments.
Fig. 27. Transfer Clerk's Card Tray.
The Transfer Clerk's card tray is shown in Fig. 27, and is made with compartments of sufficient dimensions to hold the number of cards expected to be on file in any one department at the same time. The cards are filed in numerical order. In a large concern the usual card-index method of guide cards is used, so as to render the work of finding the right card when wanted, easy and expeditious.
Tool-Room Methods. A large number of small tools such as drills, taps, reamers, and the like, and also numerous jigs and fixtures of various kinds, are drawn daily from the Tool Room and returned there after being used. The problem of keeping track of these valuable tools, of knowing where to locate every tool that has been issued, and getting them back promptly after they have been used, is an important one.
The simplest method of doing this is by the use of small brass checks bearing the individual numbers of the men. For this purpose a Tool Check Board, as shown in Fig. 28, is provided. This is lined off in small square or oblong spaces, the number of spaces equaling or somewhat exceeding the number of men employed in the departments served by the Tool Room. At the top of each of these spaces is the name of one of the men; and beneath the name two pins project about an inch from the face of the board. Under each pin is the man's individual number. Two forms of brass checks are used, a circular disc of ⅞ inch diameter, and a rectangular one ½ inch by 1¼ inches. Each check has a hole by which it may be hung on the pins, and each bears the individual number of the man, the checks being used in pairs of one circular and one rectangular check.
Fig. 28. Tool Check Board.
All tools are kept upon shelves, divided for individual tools or, in some similar manner; and in front of each tool is a pin similar to those on the board, upon which checks may be hung.
The operation of this method is as follows: the circular checks (there are usually twelve of them) are issued to the men of corresponding numbers. The rectangular checks are held upon the left-hand pins under the men's names. When a man goes to the Tool Room for a tool, or sends a boy for one, he presents one of his circular checks. This the Tool Keeper hangs on the right-hand pin under the man's name. He also removes one of the twelve rectangular checks, and hangs it on the pin in front of the space from which the tool was taken. If the workman sends for another tool, another circular check is added to the first one, and another rectangular check removed from the board.
It will be seen that there must always be twelve checks on the board under each name, counting both rectangular and circular ones. The absence of a tool from a shelf is accounted for by the rectangular check hung on the pin in place of it, and the number of this check shows what man has the tool. The number of circular checks on the board shows how many tools each man has in his possession.
The result of this method is that tools can be issued and taken back very rapidly; and accurate and positive records are very quickly made, without the use of a book, card, slip, or writing of any kind.
At the end of the week, all tools are turned in to the Tool Room, thus enabling the Tool Keeper to check them up and rectify any possible errors that may have been made during the preceding week. On Monday morning, such tools as are needed are re-issued.
ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, DOBIE FOUNDRY & MACHINE CO., NIAGARA FALLS, N. Y.