TWI - Summary

Job Instruction Training

Job Instruction Training was designed to get a person to quickly remember how to do a job correctly, safely, and conscientiously. Because JIT is a “one on one” instruction, the trainee’s ability to brought up to equal that of the trainer’s as quickly as the trainee is capable of absorbing the material. The method has been proven over 60 years, is based in fundamental learning theory and, if followed, is a sure and reliable way to transfer knowledge from one person to another.

The effect on Standard Work – In order to instruct a person properly, the job must be organized in the trainer’s mind and it should be written down so that it can be delivered correctly. The trainer thus creates a Job Breakdown Sheet, which is used as a guide for instruction. Employees quickly see the advantages of using only one Job Breakdown Sheet for a given job. Thus, everyone is trained for a given job in the same way. The result is that everyone does the job the same way and that is one definition of Standard Work.

The effect on Communication/Teamwork/Knowledge – Although employees may quickly agree that a given job should be done one way, they may not always agree on what that one way is. What can happen is that various Job Breakdown Sheets are created for a given job and then a group of operators a meet to agree on one method. This process naturally encourages communication and helps to develop teamwork. Although method improvement can be done separately, this process may result in improvements. One aspect that can effectively change a culture is that one “expert” realizes what can be learned from another “expert”. Key Points make or break a job or make it easier to do because of a trick. People who consider themselves “expert” in a job learn from other “experts” and this exchange of information raises the total knowledge base.

The effect on knowledge transfer – The practice of correct instruction requires that a person first organize the steps in his/her mind. When this is done often enough, this process becomes habitual. As a result, thoughts will be organized not only during formal instruction, but also during informal discussions. Communication is thgus improved and is followed by increased productivity, less scrap, fewer errors, increased safety, etc.

Job Relations Training

It was recognized that a critical part of a supervisor’s job was to handle personnel situations. Anticipating and defusing personnel problems before they got ‘out of hand’ is important. If this does not happen, the least that would be expected would be for a supervisor to satisfactorily handle such a problem in a way that would improve cooperation and production. The Job Relations Training (JRT) Program offers a 4-step method supported by foundational concepts, which train a supervisor to do just that. The main idea of the program is to create strong relationships between supervisors and all of their contacts. The program was developed for supervisors because they are paid to handle personnel problems. However, since everyone encounters difficulties in relationships, this program is also applicable to all employees. It in turn leads to better communication, cooperation and understanding.

Job Methods Training

JM trains supervisors how to produce greater quantities of quality products in less time by making the best use of the people, machines, and materials now available to them. Supervisors are taught how to break down jobs into details, and then systematically question every detail to improve the method by eliminating, combining and rearranging the details of each job. Each participant is required to bring in a current job from their work place and demonstrate to the group how they used the 4-step method to breakdown and improve that job. Participants learn the value of getting input from operators and other departments before summarizing the proposed improvement in writing to prevent presenting a flawed or incomplete improvement to their boss.

Companies typically generate an immediate ROI for this JM training that is recognized as the foundation for Kaizen and the Kaizen Teian Suggestion System at Toyota. And, like at Toyota, the savings keep coming for companies that continue to use JM to improve job methods on a regular basis.