Experience Crushology

Everything that does not match customer specifications. This includes factors such as oversized vs. fines, hardness, durability and cubicity. Late delivery is another form of defect! To eliminate defects, you have to eliminate variance – in raw materials, processing methods, equipment maintenance/setup, etc.

Yield should always be in line with demand. Overproduction happens when a process makes more than is required by the next process. And when you make it earlier or faster than needed. Excess stock is another issue – whether it relates to finished product, raw materials or spare parts.

Even short delays mount up and sap your productivity. Typical examples include waiting for equipment and parts, upstream process operations, unplanned maintenance, or people. Planning and coordinate carefully, and regularly review the way you do things. Keep a stock of key parts to avoid unneeded downtime, and time planned maintenance to coincide with periods of lower demand.

Are you putting time and resources into activities that add no value to the product or service from the customer’s point of view? Typical examples include multiple screenings, excessive conveyance, overwatering roads, making tidy piles or unnecessary data collection. Have a clear overview of the entire process and how activities coordinate.

Fuel prices make transportation increasingly expensive and therefore essential to minimize. As a quarry grows, so does the cost of transportation. Eliminate any movement of people or equipment that does not add value to the product or service. Consider solutions such as mobile primary crushers and using conveyors rather than trucks to transport material. Check your transport flow at least once a year!