A Thesis entitled Optimization of Operating Parameters of a Material Recovery Facility using Lean Six Sigma Techniques by Pukhraj Barnala Submitted to the Graduate Faculty as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering Dr. Matthew J. Franchetti, Committee Chair Dr. Yong X. Gan, Committee Member Dr. Ashok Kumar, Committee Member Dr. Patricia Komuniecki, Dean College of Graduate Studies The University of Toledo December 2011 Copyright 2011, Pukhraj Barnala This document is copyrighted material. Under copyright law, no parts of this document may be reproduced without the expressed permission of the author. An Abstract of Optimization of Operating Parameters of a Material Recovery Facility using Lean Six Sigma Techniques By Pukhraj Barnala Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering The University of Toledo December 2011 Lean six sigma is a business improvement methodology which combines tools from both lean manufacturing and six sigma. Lean manufacturing focuses on elimination of waste and thus increases overall speed of the process/operations. Six sigma focuses on quality. By combining the two, the result is better quality, cost efficient, faster and optimized process. Lean six sigma has not been used in recycling to the extent it has been in manufacturing. The objective of this research is to investigate the application and benefits of lean six sigma in the recycling industry. Specifically, the objective of the project is to improve the process for material recovery facility at Toledo, Ohio. This includes aligning and optimizing processes and the removal of process generated defects and errors. iii This thesis revealed the current sigma level, defects per million opportunity and performance at Material Recovery Facility (MRF), Toledo. The case study of material recovery facility at Toledo is discussed. Defects per million opportunities are calculated from the on-site data collection. Using six sigma and statistical quality tools total tons processed per year, standard processing time, current sigma level, and total tons defective and financial aspect are discussed in the thesis. iv Acknowledgements I would like to give special thanks to my advisor, Dr. Matthew J Franchetti, for giving me the opportunity to be involved in his research team. He has offered continuous guidance, support, encouragement, and his patience throughout the preparation of this thesis and my stay at University of Toledo. It has been a pleasure to work under him and his research team. I would also like to thank Dr. Ashok Kumar and Dr.Yong X. Gan for serving on my thesis committee. In addition, I wish to acknowledge Mr. Christopher Pizza, Manager of the Lucas County SWMD and Mr. Kevin Burke for their invaluable contributions to this research. I would like to acknowledge Nicholas Roth, Prabhu Kiran, Kristyn Shuster and Alex Spivak. Their expertise on the subjects of waste management and data collection was critical to the completion of this thesis. Finally, I would like to acknowledge and thank all of my fellow students at the University of Toledo’s ECML for their input and support. I would like to specially thank Sakina Junagadhwalla, Shantanu Rao, Srinivas Kottala and Dr. Amarjit Luniwal for their help and support at graduate school. And a big thanks to my parents without whom it was impossible to study at such an esteemed University. v Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................. iii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................v Contents ............................................................................................................................ vi List of Tables .................................................................................................................... ix List of Figures ................................................................................................................... xi Abbreviations ................................................................................................................. xiii 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................1 1.1 Research Objective ........................................................................................1 1.2 Background of Environmentally Conscious Design and Manufacturing Laboratory (ECML) .................................................................................................2 1.3 Results Expected ............................................................................................6 2 Literature Review ..................................................................................................7 2.1 Definition and Composition of Municipal Solid Waste ...............................7 2.2 US EPA MSW Hierarchy Model ................................................................10 2.3 Overview of Material Recovery Facility .....................................................14 2.4 Lean Six Sigma ............................................................................................16 2.4.1 Overview ................................................................................................. 16 vi 2.4.2 Definition ................................................................................................ 17 2.4.3 Measure ................................................................................................... 18 2.4.4 Analyze.................................................................................................... 18 2.4.5 Improve ................................................................................................... 19 2.4.6 Control ..................................................................................................... 20 3 Overview of Case Study.......................................................................................22 3.1 Definition ....................................................................................................23 3.1.1 Project team, selection and goals ............................................................ 23 3.1.2 Gantt Chart ............................................................................................. 24 3.1.3 Process Overview ................................................................................... 26 3.2 Measurement ................................................................................................28 3.2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................. 28 3.2.2 Pareto Chart ............................................................................................. 28 3.2.3 Time Studies ............................................................................................ 30 4 Overall Analysis ...................................................................................................33 4.1 Analysis.......................................................................................................33 4.1.1 Fish bone diagram ................................................................................... 33 4.1.2 Method ................................................................................................... 34 4.1.3 Staff ......................................................................................................... 34 4.1.4 Material ................................................................................................... 35 4.1.5 Machinery................................................................................................ 35 4.2 Defects per Million Opportunities - DPMO ................................................37 vii 4.3 Cost and revenue analysis ...........................................................................39 4.4 Improve ........................................................................................................41 4.4.1 Value Added vs. Non Value Added Analysis. ....................................... 42 4.5. Capacity .......................................................................................................45 4.7. Control .........................................................................................................47 4.7.1 Process capability .................................................................................... 50 5 Conclusions ...........................................................................................................52 5.1 Future Research ..........................................................................................54 References .........................................................................................................................55 Appendix ...........................................................................................................................57 A Yellow sheet for May 2010 ..................................................................................57 B Defects per million opportunity chart ................................................................59 C Recycling prices for materials.............................................................................61 viii List of Tables 2.1: Generation & recovery of MSW