In the context of a planned economic system and the impact of resource shortages, the heavy machinery industry has developed a unique "step-by-step" serial management approach, along with production and technology preparation based on traditional Taiwanese products. This has significantly hindered enterprises' ability to respond quickly to market demands and implement parallel project execution. However, the principles of group technology and concurrent engineering can effectively address these challenges.
Group technology focuses on classifying parts based on similarity criteria, enabling more efficient technical preparation and production. Concurrent engineering emphasizes the integration and overlap of multiple tasks across different departments. Combining these two concepts leads to the concept of group concurrent engineering, which is particularly useful in managing complex and large-scale projects.
The process stage serves as a bridge between design and manufacturing, playing a crucial role throughout the entire product lifecycle and guiding production activities. For large-scale equipment consisting of tens of thousands of components, it is essential to work in groups and in parallel to meet tight deadlines. The design information first flows into the process department, where it is processed, and specifications are created, including labor quotas and logistics directions.
For such large-scale systems, a group-parallel engineering principle is applied to establish a process project responsibility system. Project managers are assigned based on similar product classifications, participating in early design stages and continuing through manufacturing and on-site installation. This approach represents a new challenge for the traditionally single-piece production-heavy machinery industry.
Currently, the technical preparations in state-owned heavy machinery enterprises—such as concept design, component design, process design, and assembly design—are largely carried out in a serial manner. After an order is placed, the design is completed, followed by process development, production, packaging, and shipping. Then, the design and process teams are sent to the customer site for installation and commissioning. Within the process department, the work is also organized in a narrow, scattered, and serial way, limiting the depth and breadth of technical efforts.
At the manufacturing stage, both the process department and the production workshop often perform similar functions, leading to inefficiencies. This results in unverified process documentation, limited development of key technologies, and difficulties in forming independent industrial property rights. It also hinders effective on-site installation and commissioning support.
To address these issues, the construction of a product team and a process project responsibility system is essential. Heavy machinery covers a wide range of products, including metallurgy, mining, lifting, and chemical equipment. Each category consists of dozens or even hundreds of individual devices. By grouping similar units and assigning one or more process managers, teams can operate under group-parallel principles, participating in design, process preparation, manufacturing, and on-site services.
The person in charge of a process project is typically a highly skilled and knowledgeable technical professional with strong business and coordination abilities. When implementing the process project responsibility system, the management team should follow several key principles: authoritative decision-making, clear goals, coordination mechanisms, and a balance of responsibilities and rights.
By applying group and concurrent engineering, many shortcomings of state-owned enterprises can be addressed. It avoids the serial operation of design and process departments, streamlines the technical service flow, reduces overlapping roles, and improves clarity in responsibilities. It also helps process technicians gain a better understanding of the overall product, ensuring that process documents maintain their three key properties—repeatability, traceability, and consistency.
This approach allows for more centralized operations, better control over the economic rationality of product design, and earlier consideration of important process plans. It prevents confusion caused by long service cycles and facilitates the summarization of process technologies and improvements, ultimately supporting the formation of proprietary industrial knowledge and expertise.
An example of this system's application can be seen in the Western Heavy Industries Group. During the design phase, the process project leader participates in design reviews, considering factors like processing, manufacturing, assembly, cost, quality, and on-site installation. At the process technology stage, group technology is used to classify similar parts, and existing process documents are reviewed, modified, or reused as needed.
During the production service stage, the process project leader manages all manufacturing-related technical issues, collects critical process content, and ensures verification in subsequent steps. In the installation and commissioning phase, the special installation department works closely with the process project leader to prepare for on-site activities.
Finally, during the technical summary and improvement phase, the process project leader organizes the completion of process summaries, incorporates proven methods into standard processes, and documents technological innovations. This helps build corporate intellectual property.
The group company implemented the group-parallel engineering principle and the project responsibility system, achieving positive results on the WISCO 2250 and TISCO 1549 hot strip rolling mill projects within six months.
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