Are You Playing the Clean Manufacturing Game?
A 10 part blog series discussing important aspects of clean manufacturing technology and implementation strategy.
Thinking Clean – Part 10 of 10
Clean manufacturing is a change of mindset - changing the conventional production paradigm using non-traditional lean and green manufacturing game rules. This is thinking clean. A clean manufacturing strategy involves training in the relevant CleanTech, followed by proper planning, assessment, and analysis of the various manufacturing wastes produced. The new clean manufacturing game involves a skillful and diligent waste auditing process that overlays state-of-the-art CleanTech onto a conventional production model – line, tool and process – to produce a new clean-enabled line, tool and process. Winning the clean manufacturing game is experiencing improved productivity and profitability.
For example in manufacturing operations that produce high reliability hardware, a product may be cleaned several times through the production cycle (build-clean). Manufacturing and assembly operations requiring a product cleaning include cutting, drilling, trimming, micromachining, bonding, dicing, abrasive finishing, polishing, stamping, welding and inspection. Conventionally, precision cleaning is performed as an “island” operation using, for example, a stand-alone spray cleaner, vapor degreaser, ultrasonic cleaning system, rinsing and drying stations. Segregation of the cleaning process from the assembly tool has been a necessity due to the inherent chemical and physical (space) incompatibilities between conventional cleaning operations and most assembly processes and tools. CleanTech changes this conventional paradigm.
CO2, Robot and OSEE Inspection CleanTech can be integrated with virtually any production tool or process to produce numerous new and advanced clean-enabled tools; Clean-Assembly™ tools. Clean-Assembly tools are much more productive because two or more assembly processes are be performed simultaneously within the same work cell. Products don't have to be transported from, cleaned, inspected and transported back to the production line - resulting in reduced labor, higher throughput, increased quality and decreased production space. The Clean-Assembly CleanTech model changes the game rules by incorporating the non-value add (although necessary waste), processes with the value-add production operations. This significantly reduces manufacturing waste and improves both productivity and profitability.
Conclusion
In today’s manufacturing environment, there is a need to reduce waste and improve profitability. This is accomplished using flexible and adaptable production methodologies, cleaner, leaner and drier process chemistries, and an increasing use of clustered production processes (cells). Production steps previously performed as separate operations using separate tools, space, transport, time, and labor) may now be integrated into modular lean cells using CO2 technology. Space and time saving hybridized forms of assembly processes integrated with CO2 technology may be used. In-situ clean-assembly tools may be clustered with manufacturing operations in modular production cells in which two or more steps can be performed simultaneously, thereby increasing throughput and yield and reducing human interaction and cost of ownership.
The bottom line is that CleanTech, and CO2 CleanTech in particular, reduces manufacturing waste and reduces operational costs in a number of unique ways. It's worth the effort to employ CleanTech where possible to improve productivity and profitability.
David Jackson is President/CEO of Cleanlogix LLC and serves as the Chief Technology Officer for Cool Clean Technologies, Inc, based in Eagan, MN. He may be reached via e-mail at david.jackson@coolclean.com.
Select Clean Manufacturing References:
1. An Introduction to Environmental Accounting as a Business Management Tool, United States Environmental Protection Agency, EPA 742-R-95-001, June 1995.
2. Lean Manufacturing and the Environment: Research on Advanced Manufacturing Systems and the Environment and Recommendations for Leveraging better Environmental Performance, United States Environmental Protection Agency, EPA 100-R-03-005, October 2003.
3. The EPA Manual for Waste Minimization Opportunity Assessments, United States Environmental Protection Agency, EPA/600/2-88-025, April 1988.
4. How to Be Green and Stay in the Black, Department of Navy, NAVSO P-3680, October 1997.
5. Schwendeman, T., “Pollution Prevention Can Pay”, Industrial Heating, December 2003.
6. Jackson, D. et al, “Today’s Forecast – It Looks like Snow”, Precision Cleaning, Volume VII, Number 5, May 1999.
7. Darvin, C. et al, “ Demonstration of Liquid CO2 as an Alternative for Metal Parts Cleaning, Precision Cleaning, Volume IV, Number 9, September 1996.
8. Chittick, R.C., “Using CO2 Snow to Correct Drive Level Dependence in Quartz Crystal Resonators”, Precision Cleaning, Volume V, Number 6, June 1997.
9. Jackson, D., “Liquid CO2 Immersion Cleaning- The Users Point of View”, Parts Cleaning, pp 32-37, April 1999.
10. Jackson, D., “Making the Case for CO2”, CLEANTECH, February 2004.
11. Jackson, D., “CO2 in the Miniature Manufacturing Process”, MicroTEC, October 2004.
12. The Role of Robots in Lean Manufacturing, http://www.robotics.org.
13. Chawla, M., “Measuring Surface Cleanliness”, Precision Cleaning, June 1997.
14. Jackson, D, “Setting the Record Straight: CO2 Technology is Part of the Solution”, EHS Today, August 2009.
15. Jackson, D., “CO2 for Complex Cleaning”, Process Cleaning, July/August 2009.
16. Jackson, D. et al, "Advanced CO2 Cleaning and Machining Options for Rolling Element Bearings", ASTM Rolling Element Bearings Workshop, May12-14, 2009.
17. Jackson, D. et al, “Automated CO2 Composite Spray Cleaning System for HDD Rework Parts”, Journal of the IEST, V. 52, No. X, 2009.
18. Jackson, D. et al, “CO2 Cooling for Thermal Spray Advances”, SprayTime – Thermal Spray Association, First Quarter 2009.
19. Jackson, D., “A Versatile Manufacturing Technology for Thermal Spray Operations”, ASM/TSS Aerospace Coatings Symposium 2008.
20. Jackson, D., “Changing the Game Rules with CO2 – CO2 Machining Fluid Technology”, SME/IMTS September 2008.
21. Jackson, D., “CO2 Composite Spray Technology for Probe Card Cleaning”, SW Test Workshop, June 2008.
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