What Is Jidoka In Lean Manufacturing?

What is Jidoka?

The definition of jidoka when viewed from the point of view of the Toyota production system is a tool or system used to detect or detect process abnormalities and can be said to be an authorized tool to stop the production process if something abnormal occurs.

The purpose of this machine was not only to prevent the defects that would occur but It also meant that an operator could look after more than one machine.

Example 1

On machines that are able to detect the magnitude of the resistance value of a product, if the machine records a value that is outside the standardized specifications, the machine will automatically stop.

Example 2

On conveyor machines, material handling equipment, if there are consecutive errors up to the allowable amount limit, then the operator is given the authority to press the “stop button” to stop the machine.

Jidoka’s Origin

Jidoka was designed in 1896 as a simple device that would stop the shuttle of the loom on an automatic loom when the thread was broken. Jidoka was designed by Sakichi Toyoda.

The loom that stops itself when there is a problem. Sakichi realized that once the loom was reasonably automatic and started to run at a relatively high speed, the fabric would be defective if a single thread in the weft was broken. To prevent this, one person had to stand, observe the counter, and stop the system when necessary. Thinking of this as a tremendous waste of human talent, Sakichi solved the problem with an invention that uses gravity. And as a solution, he added a spring to each yarn and a metal weight at the end, and when the rope broke, this weight would squeeze the yarns and stop the loom. And he named the stopping system JİDOKA.

Basic Principles of Jidoka

The Jidoka principle can be broken down into a few simple steps.

Detecting the strangeness or abnormality
Stop the system
Immediate solution of the problem
Investigating the root cause and fixing it quickly

This principle is not limited to being used within the machine only through automation. Jidoka can be seen in almost all areas of lean production that has been started to be studied. This principle is about building quality within the process rather than controlling it at the end of the process. This principle still has a place in Toyota today. Despite what people think It can be considered as a powerful method that tries to prevent defects from reaching the customer.

How does the Jidoka system work on today’s looms?

By giving the operators or machines the authority to stop / stop by themselves in case of a problem, Jidoka is provided when the transition of the problematic products to the next station / stage is stopped in place. In this way, operators do not have to accompany the machines constantly and can deal with more than one machine simultaneously.

Objectives and Benefits of Jidoka

The following are the objectives of implementing Jidoka in an industry, namely:

Guaranteeing production results to achieve the best quality
Simplify man power in the production process
Prevent the occurrence of down time (loss of productivity) due to abnormalities in the production process.

Here are the benefits of implementing Jidoka:

Establish mechanisms to prevent mass production of defective work.
Autonomous examination for abnormalities in a process.
Machines with the ability to detect defects and respond appropriately.
Transferring human intelligence to automated machines/systems.
Not limited to machine processes, can also be used with manual operations.
Human support system for continuous improvement through prevention activities.
Illuminates the cause of the problem by stopping the process exactly as it was when a defect or abnormality was detected.

Jidoka is also able to prevent the escape of defective goods or products:

Detect abnormalities.
Respond promptly (quickly).
Eliminate the cause of the problem.

How does Jidoka system help in the production system?

Let’s say that a faulty material is allowed to pass in the production process and we continue to use faulty material in the next step, and this process continues until the product emerges. As a result, we only have a product that is thrown away even though one of the materials is faulty, and the machine and labor power are wasted. With the Jidoka system, this waste is prevented and workers and machines are made more efficient.

Jidoka is the forgotten principle of Toyota and lean manufacturing, but jidoka is one of the most important lean manufacturing principles to help us achieve excellence. Companies in the market cannot survive without product or service quality. Jidoka is one of the viable ways to achieve this.

What Is Jidoka In Lean Manufacturing?