Academic Journal
Enhancing Productivity in PCB Assembly through Low-Cost Automation: A Kaizen-Driven Case Study.
| Τίτλος: | Enhancing Productivity in PCB Assembly through Low-Cost Automation: A Kaizen-Driven Case Study. |
|---|---|
| Συγγραφείς: | Wonginta, Thitima1 t_wonginta@hotmail.com, Sae-Aung, Jenjira1 66920336@my.buu.ac.th, Pholsook, Thitinan2 thitinan.p@g.sut.ac.th |
| Πηγή: | Operations & Supply Chain Management : An International Journal. 2026, Vol. 19 Issue 3, p381-389. 9p. |
| Θεματικοί όροι: | *Automation, *Continuous improvement process, *Lean management, *Small business, *Labor productivity, *Printed circuits industry |
| Γεωγραφικοί όροι: | Thailand |
| Περίληψη: | In the highly competitive global electronics sector, manufacturing productivity is paramount. Manual processes within otherwise automated assembly lines frequently become critical bottlenecks, constraining throughput and hindering growth. This research presents a case study of a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) assembly facility in Thailand that faced a significant capacity shortfall. The primary objective is to analyze the implementation and impact of a Kaizen-driven, low-cost automation (LCA) solution designed to resolve a specific manual bottleneck in an adhesive application process. The methodology combines a detailed analysis of the industrial case study with established theoretical frameworks of lean manufacturing, including the Toyota Production System (TPS), time study, and the ECRS (Eliminate, Combine, Rearrange, Simplify) principles. The intervention, executed through three iterative Kaizen cycles, involved developing a custom automated dispensing machine using repurposed, on-site assets. The results demonstrate a profound improvement in operational performance: the bottleneck process cycle time was reduced by 73.6%, from 11 minutes 53 seconds to 3 minutes 8 seconds per unit. This directly enabled an increase in total production capacity to 245 units per week, exceeding the demand target and yielding an estimated annual cost saving of 98,700 THB. This study's principal contribution is its empirical demonstration of how a culture of continuous improvement, coupled with creative problem-solving, can leverage existing resources to achieve significant productivity gains without substantial capital investment, offering a viable and practical model for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and other resource-constrained manufacturers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Operations & Supply Chain Management : An International Journal is the property of OSCM Forum and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | Business Source Index |
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| Header | DbId: bsx DbLabel: Business Source Index An: 195324549 RelevancyScore: 1412 AccessLevel: 6 PubType: Academic Journal PubTypeId: academicJournal PreciseRelevancyScore: 1411.61413574219 |
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| Items | – Name: Title Label: Title Group: Ti Data: Enhancing Productivity in PCB Assembly through Low-Cost Automation: A Kaizen-Driven Case Study. – Name: Author Label: Authors Group: Au Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Wonginta%2C+Thitima%22">Wonginta, Thitima</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> t_wonginta@hotmail.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Sae-Aung%2C+Jenjira%22">Sae-Aung, Jenjira</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> 66920336@my.buu.ac.th</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Pholsook%2C+Thitinan%22">Pholsook, Thitinan</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo><i> thitinan.p@g.sut.ac.th</i> – Name: TitleSource Label: Source Group: Src Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Operations+%26+Supply+Chain+Management+%3A+An+International+Journal%22">Operations & Supply Chain Management : An International Journal</searchLink>. 2026, Vol. 19 Issue 3, p381-389. 9p. – Name: Subject Label: Subject Terms Group: Su Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Automation%22">Automation</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Continuous+improvement+process%22">Continuous improvement process</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Lean+management%22">Lean management</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Small+business%22">Small business</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Labor+productivity%22">Labor productivity</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Printed+circuits+industry%22">Printed circuits industry</searchLink> – Name: SubjectGeographic Label: Geographic Terms Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Thailand%22">Thailand</searchLink> – Name: Abstract Label: Abstract Group: Ab Data: In the highly competitive global electronics sector, manufacturing productivity is paramount. Manual processes within otherwise automated assembly lines frequently become critical bottlenecks, constraining throughput and hindering growth. This research presents a case study of a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) assembly facility in Thailand that faced a significant capacity shortfall. The primary objective is to analyze the implementation and impact of a Kaizen-driven, low-cost automation (LCA) solution designed to resolve a specific manual bottleneck in an adhesive application process. The methodology combines a detailed analysis of the industrial case study with established theoretical frameworks of lean manufacturing, including the Toyota Production System (TPS), time study, and the ECRS (Eliminate, Combine, Rearrange, Simplify) principles. The intervention, executed through three iterative Kaizen cycles, involved developing a custom automated dispensing machine using repurposed, on-site assets. The results demonstrate a profound improvement in operational performance: the bottleneck process cycle time was reduced by 73.6%, from 11 minutes 53 seconds to 3 minutes 8 seconds per unit. This directly enabled an increase in total production capacity to 245 units per week, exceeding the demand target and yielding an estimated annual cost saving of 98,700 THB. This study's principal contribution is its empirical demonstration of how a culture of continuous improvement, coupled with creative problem-solving, can leverage existing resources to achieve significant productivity gains without substantial capital investment, offering a viable and practical model for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and other resource-constrained manufacturers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] – Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright Label: Group: Ab Data: <i>Copyright of Operations & Supply Chain Management : An International Journal is the property of OSCM Forum and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) |
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| RecordInfo | BibRecord: BibEntity: Languages: – Code: eng Text: English PhysicalDescription: Pagination: PageCount: 9 StartPage: 381 Subjects: – SubjectFull: Automation Type: general – SubjectFull: Continuous improvement process Type: general – SubjectFull: Lean management Type: general – SubjectFull: Small business Type: general – SubjectFull: Labor productivity Type: general – SubjectFull: Printed circuits industry Type: general – SubjectFull: Thailand Type: general Titles: – TitleFull: Enhancing Productivity in PCB Assembly through Low-Cost Automation: A Kaizen-Driven Case Study. Type: main BibRelationships: HasContributorRelationships: – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Wonginta, Thitima – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Sae-Aung, Jenjira – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Pholsook, Thitinan IsPartOfRelationships: – BibEntity: Dates: – D: 01 M: 07 Text: 2026 Type: published Y: 2026 Identifiers: – Type: issn-print Value: 19793561 Numbering: – Type: volume Value: 19 – Type: issue Value: 3 Titles: – TitleFull: Operations & Supply Chain Management : An International Journal Type: main |
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