This week at Hyster-Yale has been pretty interesting! I started off the week by attending a Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) workshop. There were about 12 of us in the workshop and the purpose was to identify and reduce problems/issues. Basically, we discussed how to keep the organization flowing systematically and efficiently by using as few resources as possible, all while minimizing issues. This workshop took up most of the day because we started a “risk analysis” of the entire flow of the products from ordering all the way to the customer. Tuesday I spent the majority of the day shadowing and meeting with the manufacturing engineering team. I was able to see lots of different tools, computer programs, and other resources that the MEs design and implement on a daily basis.
Wednesday I began my personal project! There was a slight change in plans due to some miscommunication, but I’m really excited about what I will be doing for the remainder of my time here! For my project I will be designing lesson plans and curriculum for Demand Flow Technology (DFT) training. The DFT team currently has an outdated Powerpoint that they use for training (it’s super long and super boring). However, they recently purchased these Lego kits that allow you to assemble a lift truck! How cute! It even comes with a little pallet. My job is to to take the kits and OMSs that have been provided and design curriculum and lesson plans for the training so that anyone would be able to teach the course. We plan on creating an assembly line with various stations so that the employees can get a good grasp on what goes on when they are working on the line. I spent part of the day Wednesday attending a training (the old method) so that I could see what I liked and didn’t like about it. Thursday I began the project. I also spent time Thursday auditing stations to see if operators were using the OMS and MES properly. We also looked at the amount of time it took the operators to complete their tasks and compared them to the time listed in the MES. DFT is something that can be used pretty much everywhere! I’m excited to take what I learn from this project and apply it to my classroom instructional practices. I’m also excited to bring my students to HY on a field trip and let them sit through the interactive training that I helped design!