Safety,a Strategic Tool for Improving Manufacturing Systems

Abstract

Often, manufacturing systems operate under the common perception that safety projects are generally detrimental to successful manufacturing operations. On the contrary, emphasizing safety on all levels of a corporation can not only create an overall more positive attitude in the workplace while reducing worker's compensation and insurance costs, but it can also improve the manufacturing capabilities of an organization

Within this paper, a model is presented which can prove safety-related ventures can be lucrative in measurable manufacturing terms. The model shows that accepting safety-related projects and approaching safety standards more positively will actually improve manufacturing strategy components such as quality, productivity, utilization, and reliability. It also includes redefining the mission statement of the corporation, developing a manufacturing strategy emphasizing safety, and implementing safety measures in all aspects of the corporation. Such evaluations in measurable terms will result in greater percentages of safety projects being accepted because relevant information will be communicated to managers in terms they can easily understand.

Results indicate that there is a correlation between implementing safety projects and the improvement of manufacturing capabilities. Therefore, one can infer that safety, like quality, cost, and time, is a strategic tool to be used for improving manufacturing, and not merely a tangential issue.