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Eindhoven University of Technology

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Testing a technology audit methodology : a rapid assessment of six small and medium scaleenterprises in Tanzania

Zijl, Gertrude; Lassche, R.

Award date:1997

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Testing a Technology Audit Methodology A rapid assessment of six Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Tanzania Volume 2

Gertrude Zijl & Robert Lassche

July, 1997

Technology and Development Studies Faculty ofTechnology Management Eindhoven University ofTechnology

M. Sc. Theses Series TDS 1997.13

Testing a Technology Audit Methodology A Ra(Jid assessment of six Small and Medium

Scale Entcq1rises in Tanzania

Volume 2

Gertrude Zijl & Robert Lassche

July, 1997

Testinga Technology Audit Methodology

A Rapid Assessment of Six Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Tanzania

Master of Science thesis

Gertrude Zijl Robert Lassche

Eindhoven University of Technolo!,'Y (EUT) Faculty of Teclmology Management

G.J.J. Zijl

Department of Technological Development Studies (TOS)

Supervisors: Dr. ir. P.E. Lapperre Dr. ir.H.H.van Mal

Drs. H.C.J.J. Gaillard

July, 1997

R. Lassche

Department of Technology and Policy

Supervisors: Dr. M.J. de Vries

Dr. ir. H.H. van Mal Dr. ir. P.E. La1>1>erre

Contents

Contents

Volume 2

Introduetion ................................................................................................................................. 1

Appendix At TAMECO questionnaire ......................................................................................... 3

Appendix A2 Tamelt questionnaire ............................................................................................... 7

Appendix A3 Sim ba Plastic questionnaire .................................................................................. 11

Appendix A4 Mansoor Daya Chemieals questionnaire ............................................................... 15

Appendix AS Tanzania Cables questionnaire ............................................................................. 19

Appendix A6 Carnaud Metalbox questionnaire .......................................................................... 24

Appendix 81 Letter with recommendations for TAMECO ....................................................... 28

Appendix 82 Letter with recommendations for Tamelt ............................................................. 31

Appendix 83 Letter with recommendations for Sim ba Plastics ................................................. 34

Appendix 84 Letter with recommendations forMansoor Daya Chemieals ............................... 37

Appendix 85 Letter with recommendations for Tanzania Cables Ltd ....................................... 39

Appendix Ct Technology Audit report of TAMECO ................................................................ 41

Appendix C2 Technology Audit report of Tamelt ...................................................................... 55

Appendix C3 Technology Audit report of Sim ba Plastics .......................................................... 67

Appendix C4 Technology Audit report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals ........................................ 81

Appendix CS Technology Audit report of Tanzania Cables Ltd ................................................ 95

Appendix C6 Technology Audit report of Carnaud Metalbox ................................................. 111

Introduetion

Introduetion

Th is separate appendix contains a number of appendixes. Appendixes A I to A6 contain the questi01maires ofthe six audited companies. These questionnaires served to obtain infom1ation about the companies in a fa st and stmctured manner. Appendixes BI to B5 contain the letters with teclmical remedies and fi.trther reconm1endations presented to the management ofthe six audited companies. Finally appendixes C 1 to C6 contain the complete technology audit reports ofthe six audited companies

Appendix Al: T AMECO Questionnaire

TANZANIA MECHANICAL ENGINEERS COOP. SOC. LTD. (TAMECO)

Questions related to step 1 of the Technology Audit Methodology (product)

1- Wh at is the name of the product The name ofthe product is: Multi purpose kitchen knife

2- What is thefimction ofthe product The product is mostly used for harvests, kitchen purposes and on the streets for opening cocon uts.

3- Who are your competitors (local and/or foreign)?

3

T AMECO is the only knife producer in Tanzania, however people do make knives themselves. Foreign competitors are many and from many different countries. For example: China, Japan, India, Pakistan, etc.

4- Who is the market leader (local orfóreign)? According to T AMECO and some shopkeepers in Dar es Salaam, the best selling knife is a stainless steel knife of Chinese origin. The name ofthe manufacturer in China is not known. The reasons for its success are the low costs and the stainless steel blade. All the other knives similar to the TAMECO knives are more expensive and probably aimed at a different market segment.

5- Are the customers satisfied with the product? The customers whowant a sharp knife and don't care a bout corrosion are satisfied by the T AMECO knife.

6- Are complains being received. and ~fso what kind? Complains are being received about the tendency ofthe knives to corrode. However this grade of steel is used because it is very strong and can be sharpened easily by the customers. Stainless steel blades would be more expensive and more difficult to sharpen.

7- Is the standard design changed ~fthe market desires if? No, this is to expensive.

8- Do you give a warranty on your product? No, according to the production manager are the customers living to far from Dar es Salaam to claim a new knife.

9- How long does the knijè remain stainless? As long as the blades are covered with oil.

10- What kind of requirements do you think are necessary fora good knife? The knives need to be strong and sharp.

11- Do you have any ideas for improving your products? According to the production manager two models of each type of knife need to be produced. The current type for people whowant the knives to be sharp, and a stainless steel type for people who don't want knives to corrode.

Testing a Technology Audit Methodology

Questions related to step 2 ofthe Technology Audit Methodology (production process)

12- How many produels do you produce each month each year? At full capacity T AMECO can produce 2000 knives each day, depending on the electricity supply, available raw materials, and condition ofthe machines.

13- Do you produce knives to order or to stock? T AMECO produces knives to stock.

14- Do you onl_v produce standard knives or also specUîc knives on a specifzc order? T AMECO does produce specific knives, however these are made by hand because only two types ofknives can be produced by machine (sisal knife and kitchen knife).

15- How many standard types of product are currently in product ion.? There are two types ofknives in production, however these are available in two different colours ofthe grip: black and brown. The only reason for this is that people can choose between two colours (note: black sells best)

16- What happens with a spec~fic order? The elient supplies the design, T AMECO produces this manually. The reason for this is that only two types of blades can be punched by the punching machine. The punch shape is very expens1ve.

17- Whoare your suppliers, foreign and1or local? Raw materia Is are supplied from Gem1any through the EUT and the university of DES, which both examine the quality ofthe materials.

18- ffforeign, why? The raw material used cannot be obtained in Tanzania.

19- Are the raw matcrials always available and how frequently are they ordered? Raw materials are not always available, and they are ordered when sufficient funds are available. At the moment no raw materials are available because oflack of funds.

20- What is the set-up time ofthe machines? The set-up times ofthe machines are approximately 1 hour.

21- How many persons are capable to do if? The operators ofthe machines are all capable to change the machine set-up.

22- Which machine is the bottie neck in termsof output? The grillding machil1es and the moutding machme are the bottie necks m tenns of capacity.

23- What kind ofmaintenance do you perfarm on the machines, prevenlive or curative? Preventive mamtenance is carried out. The production manager leamed this from the MEIDA mstitute.

24- What is the average stand still time ij·a problem occurs? Depends on the problem, but could be as much as a week. From the grillders, which are the oldest machmes m the factory, two production lilles are available. If one line fails the other can still produce.

Appendix Al: T AMECO Questionnaire 5

25- Jç the quality ofthe product checked anywhere in the process? After tempering the blades are tested by bending them. Ifthe blade fails the quality was obviously not good enough. The production manager would like to see that aftereach production phase an appearance check is performed by the machine operator. According to him, however, this is not always clone. The operators need to be often reminded ofthis fact.

26- When are produels considered useless? If deficiencies can not be easily manually corrected.

27- Do you have any ideas for improving your process? The production manager would like to have an electra plating machine in order to produce knives with an outs i de layer of stainless steel.

Questions related to step 3 of the Technology Audit Methodology (enterprise)

28- TVlwt is the cost price ofthe product? The cost price is 607 tsh (according toT AMECO calculations).

29- What is the market price ofthe product? TAMECO sells the knives for 642 tsh a piece, depending on the amount being ordered (5.8% profit).

30- !\' the price set or can it he determined by the shopkeeper.? Shopkeepers can detem1ine their own price, usually between 800 and 1000 tsh a piece. At one shop the price per dozen was 8400 Shilling, or 700 a piece.

31- Do you se!! to the customers directly or toshopkeepers only? T AMECO se !Is mostly to shop keepers, but if local neighbours want to buy knives they can buy them directly from T AMECO.

32- Do you deliver each weekor month a certain quantity ofproducts or do shopkeepers order when necessary? The shopkeepers order when necessary, when their stocks run out.

33- What market segment is your product aimed at? The TAMECO knives are mainly aimed at farmers and villagers. The people with not a lot of money and who need a sharp knife which can be used and sharpened for a long time.

34- Do you supply the local market only or the international as wel!? T AMECO only supplies the local market, however their product can be found in neighbouring countries because traders are crossing borders with their merchandise.

35- What is your yearly sa/es turnover?

Knives manufacturim!

Milling

Machine tools project

1993

88.802.792

3.585.234

1.327.780

(tsh)

1994

112.300.711

3.422.938

12.230.360

1995

73.677.462

5.166.285

6 Testing a Technology Audit Methodology

36- How many employees are currently heing employed at TAMECO? Currently 42 people are being employed, ofwhich 14 are staffpersonnel. A division is made between memhers and non-members. Because presently production is low the non-memhers have been send home. To become a memher the other memhers have to agree on a probation period of one year, after which is voted to grand memhership to that person. A certain amount of money has to be paid to become a full member.

37- How man_v employees have afixed contract and how many a temporary? There are memhers and non-memhers (See 18).

38- What are the working hours and how many shifts? The normal working hours are from 7:30 until 16:30 hours English time. If demand is high more shifts are used.

39- How many skilied people are employed and what kind of skilis do they have? Most employees have completed primary and some secondary school.

40- Do you provide trainingfor your employees? On the job training is provided to the employees.

41- How does TAMECD make the product known to the pub/ie? The public is made a ware of T AMECO products by means of advertisements in magazines and newspapers, and commercials on the radio. The latter was done for two years in which each week a commercial was broadcasted.

42- How do the customers sharpen the knives and how o.ften? The knives can be sharpened easily by means of stones, sand or other knives. The frequency depends on the application ofthe knife.

Appendix A2: Tamelt Questionnaire 7

TAMELT SKANDIA TILES


1- What is the name ofthe product? The name ofthe product is: Double Roman roofmg tile.

2- What is the function of the product? The function of the product is covering roofs, and thus proteetion against environmental influences (rain).

3- What is the tradition method of covering rooft? The traditional metbod of covering roofsis by means of coconut tree leaves.

4- Who are your competitors (local and/orforeign)? The direct local competitors of Tamelt are Dodoma Til es, Mbezi Tiles, Mbeya Tiles, and Femara Tiles. Foreign tiles are being imported from South Africa and India. These imported tiles are considerably more expensive and thus not really competitors.

5- Who is the market leader (local or foreign)? According to the Tamelt production manager, Mbezi Tiles is the market leader because they produce already forten years and are better known to the pub lic.

6- Are the customers satis.fied with the product? The customers are satisfied with the Tamelt tiles. Tamelt bas a reputation for good quality and service. Good service consists of fast and on the spot delivery, giving building advise ofhow to construct tile roofs, and warranty of transport damage.

7- Are complains being received, and ifso what kind? Not many complains are being received, the few complains are mainly about the weight of the til es and the delivery time. Some customers fmd the til es to heavy to handle with ease. Tamelt bas only one truck todeliver the tiles to the customers. If demand is high the customers have to wait before the tiles can be delivered.

8- Do you give a warranty on your product? No warranty is given except the warranty of transport damage, because the transport is the responsibility ofTamelt.

9- What is the durability of roofing ti/es? The durability of roofing tiles is very high; according to the production manager they can lastfora hundred years.

10- Whichfactors injluence the durability? Factors which influence the durability are sun, rain, dust and dirt. Severe tropical storms are not common in Tanzania and therefore not considered an issue. The colour ofthe tile will fade after a number of years (according to the production manager after about ten years).

11- What are the minimum and maximum angles of the roof, by which the ti les can still be used? The minimum angle is approximately 20 degrees and the maximum about 35 degrees. According to the production manager an angle of a bout 30 degrees is best.

12- What is the most vulnerable part ofthe tile? The most vulnerable part of the tile is the left side of the tile, the part which overlaps other tiles. This area is the thinnest part ofthe tile and thus prone to damage.


13- What kind ofrequirements do you think are necessary fora good tile? The tile has to be smooth, not cracked, and contain no foreign objects.

14- Do you have any ideas for improving your produels? The production loss could be reduced by packaging the tiles to prevent damage during transportandreduce the manual handling ofthe product. Using a different oil to make the separation of mould and tile easier. Currently a local brand of oil is used to oil the moulds. This oil is not performing adequately; the separation machine can't be used any more. The tiles have to be separated manually thus increasing the production loss.

Questions related to step 2 of the Technology Audit Methodology (production process)

15- How many produels do you produce each dayl each year? For the past three years an average of 1400 tiles are produced each day. The maximum capacity is about 14400 tiles each day, in one shift lasting 8 hours. The maximum capacity is not reached because insuflicient working capital to buy a stock of raw materials. Electricity interruptions are an other cause for the low production rate.

16- Do you produce ti/es to order or to stock? Tiles are produced to stock, in order to provide customers with tiles even if there is no production.

17- Do you only produce standard ti/es or also spec~fic tiles? Only standard tiles are ptoduced in large quantities, there are a few specific tiles being produced but in very small numbers only. Specific tiles being produced are tiles needed to cover intersections of roofs.

18- How many standard types ofproducts are currently in production? Two standard types are in production. The double Roman tile is produced by machine and the edge tiles manually, although in smaller numbers.

19- Who are your suppliers, foreign andlor local? The sand and cement are bought from Tanzanian companies. The pigment used to colour the tiles is bought in the United Kingdom, because it can't be bought on the local market

20- lf foreign, why? The pigment is not available on the local market and needs to be imported. Tamelt is satisfied with the quality of the English supplier. They fear a decrease of quality if an other supplier is used.

21- Are the raw matenals always available and how frequently are they ordered? The raw matenals are not difficult to obtain. If Tamelt has sufficient money they order new raw materials. The only difficult to obtain raw material is the oil used to oil the moulds.

22- What mixture ofraw matcrials is being used to manufacture the tiles? The contents ofone batch ofmixture are: 300 Kg. sand, 150 Kg. cement, 3 Kg. pigment, and about 60 litres ofwater (depending on the dryness ofthe sand).

23- What is the set-up time ofthe machines? Only one type of tile is produced by machine resulting in no need for changing the machine set-up.

24- Which machine is the bottie neck in terms of output? The machines being used are not the bottleneck in terms of output. The installed capacity is sufficient to provide for the market demand. The bottie neck of the organi~tion is lack ofworking capital to buy enough raw matenals to increase the production.

Appendix Al: Tamelt Questionnaire 9

25- What kind ofmaintenance do you perfarm on the machines, prevenlive or curative? Both types of maintenance are being performed.

26- What is the average stand still time if a problem occurs? The most common problem which occurs is wear of the guide rails in the tile moulding machine. The average time neerled to replace or repair the rails is 30 minutes.

27- Is the quality ofthe product checked anywhere in the process? The quality of the tiles is checked by testing a sample tile of each mixture of cement, sand, water, and pigment being produced. The features of the tiles tested are: weight, strength and water permeability.

28- What are the main reasans a tile can leak? The main reasons for leakage are inclusions, like stones or wood, in the tile and the use of the wrong type of sand. Ifthe sand grains are to large the tileis susceptible to leakage.

29- Is there an industrial standard for roofing ti les, because the Mbezi ti les have the exact same dimensions? There is no standard for roofmg tiles. The Mbezi dimensions were copied by Tamelt for marketing reasons. Mbezi Tiles was already producing Double Roman tiles before Tamelt, it was not considered smart to change the dimensions because the customers had already experience with the Mbezi tiles. The only difference between Mbezi and Tamelt tiles is that Mbezi tiles are about one kilogram heavier.

30- When are products considered useless? The tiles are considered useless if the surface is not smooth or the til es are cracked. Til es which are to thick or contain visible objects (stones, wood) are rejected as well.

31- Do you have any ideas for improving your process? The filtering of sand used in the tiles could he improved by using a filtering machine instead of the manual filtering process now being used. The packaging of the tiles could he improved by using pallets and a packaging machine. An automatic detection system for checking tile quality would improve the product, because the human detection system now used can get tired.


32- What is the cost price ofthe product? The cost price of one tile is 270 shilling a piece.

33 What is the market price ofthe product? The market price of one tile is 302 Shilling without sales taxes and 330 Shilling including sales taxes. The market price is including transport costs to the customer (in Dar es Salaam only).

34- Do you sell to the customers directly or through intermediaries? The tiles are sold to the customers directly. Tamelt has a second selling point at Bagamoyo road in Dar es Salaam.

35- What market segment is your product aimed at? The tiles are aimed at individuals and ihstitutions which can afford the relatively high price of tiles to cover roofs, mainly businessmen, senior employees, contractors, and govemment institutions.

36- Do you supply the local market only or the international as well? Tamelt tiles are only sold in Tanzania, most öfthem even in Dar es Salaam.

10 Tcsting a Technology Audit Methodology

37- What is your yearly safes turnover? The yearly tumaround is the price, times production each day, times number of working days a month, times number of month a year, 302 x 1400 x 24 x 12 = 121.770.000 Shilling.

38- How many employees are currentl_v being employed at Tameft? At the moment 25 pen11anent employees and 15 daily paid workers are being employed.

39- What are the working hours and how many shifts? The working hours are from 8:00 till 16:30 hours. One shift is enough consiclering the machine capacity and the number oftiles being produced each day.

40- How many skilied people are employed and what kind of skilis do they have? About 90 percent ofthe employees have primary school training.

41- Do you provide trainingfor your employees? Some employees are being provided with training, mainly the machine operators and administrative persom1el. The Swedish manufacturer ofthe tile making machine provided the initial training ofthe machine operators.

42- How does Tamelf make the product known to the pub/ie? Various methods of advertisement are used: billboards, radio, ncwspaper advertisements and once a television conunercial.

43- How dotheti/es reach the customer? In Dar es Salaam the tiles are delivered to the customers. Tamelt rents a tmck to deliver them. Customers outside Dar es Salaam are expected to provide their own transport.

Appendix A3: Simba Plastics Questionnaire 11

SIMBA PLASTICS Company Limited, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania


I- What is the name of the product The name ofthe product is I inch HOPE (High Density Poly-Ethylene) Pipe of32 mm. outs i de diameter and a wall thickness of 2 mm. Although the name would suggest a diameter of 1 inch (25,4 mm.), this is not the case. The name I inch is used for marketing reasons. Many people still use the English measurement system.

2- Wh at is the fitnetion of the product The main function ofthe product is the transport of water under high or low pressure. The maximum pressure allowed is 6 Kg/cm2

.

3- Whoare your campelitors (local andlor foreign)? The main local competitors of Simba plastics in the pipe market are: Plasco, Banco, and Tegry plastics.

4- Who is the market leader (local or foreign)? In the pipe business Plasco and Simba plastics are of equal size according to the production manager. Plasco is specialized in producing pipes and does not produce other products. Simba on the other hand has a wide range of plastic products and can be considered market leader in this field.

5- Are the customers sati.~fied with the product? The costomers are satisfied with the product.

6- ü the standard design changed ifthe market desires it? At special requestordemand ofthe customer Simba plastics will consider changing the product.

7- Are complains being received, and ifso what kind? Not many complains are being received, although sametimes the time between orderand delivery of a bout 2 weeks is being complained a bout.

8- Do you give a warranty on your product? Simba gives a warranty on their products, if a pipe fails due to production error.

9- What is the life-expectancy ofthe product? The life expectancy ofthe pipe is very long. According to the production manager at least 40 years, depending on the handling ofthe product.

10- What kind ofrequirements do you think are necessary fora good product? The products should comply to the specific standards.

11- Do you have any ideas for improving your produels? The quality awareness ofthe employees can use improvement. This would improve the overall quality ofthe products considerably.

12 Testinga TechnolOf,'Y Audit Mcthodology


12- How much do you produce each monthl each year? About 80- 90 tons ofpipe are produced each month. According to DIN 8074 the weight ofHDPE pipe, with an outside diameter of32 mm. and a wall thickness of 2,0 mm., is 0,196 kg/m. Thus the monthly produced length ofthis pipe varies from 408.163 to 459.184 m., when the before mentioned DIN requirements are exactly met.

13- Do you produce to order or to stock? Most ofthe products, including the 32 mm. diameter pipe, are produced to order, only a limited amount is produced to stock.

14- Do you on~v produce standard produels or also specUic produels on a spec~fic order? Both standard products and specific products are produced. Ifthe customer asks fora specific product it usually takes a bout 3 to 4 weeks before it can be produced. The mould has to be designed and fabricated.

15- How many standard f)pes ofproducl are currently in produclion? Manytypes ofproducts are currently being produced. The standard types ofHDPE pipe in production are pipes with outside diameters ranging from 25 to 90 mm, according to the requirements of DIN 8074. Each diameterpipeis produced with varying wall thicknesses, a lso according to DIN 8074.

16- What happens with a specific order? For each specific order, a die needs to be designed or modified. This is expensive and requires approximately 3 to 4 weeks.

17- Whoare your suppliers, foreign and/or local? Suppliers of Simbe are Sabie, Borgalis, Baroleher, and others.

18- Ijforeign. why? The suppliers are mostly from Germany and India, because no local suppliers are available.

19- Are the raw materials always available and how frequently are they orde red? The raw material supp1y is a problem because it takes approximately 3 month to deliver the supplies by ship. The scheduling of raw material supply is difficult because market demand is not constant.

20- What is the set-up time ofthe machines? The average set-up time ofthe machines is a bout 3 to 4 hours. If a die is replaced the machine needs a cool down period before the die can be removed. After instaHing a new die the machine requires a heating period before it can be used.

21- How many persons are capable to do it? The machine operators are capable ofchanging the set-up ofthe machines. This means about I to 3 people per machine depending on the machine. The double die machines have 2 to 3 operators, the single die machines 1.

22- Which machine is the battle neck in terms of output? The mixers, which mixes the raw materia1s for all pipe extrusion machines can be considered the bottle-neck. If one of these machines fails some extrusion machines have

Appendix A3: Simba Plastics Questionnaire 13

to stop producing as well.

23- What kind ofmaintenance do you perfarm on the machines. prevenlive or curative? During low production periods preventive maintenance is performed on the machines. If a problem occurs curative maintenance is performed.

24- What is the average stand still time if a problem occurs? The average stand still time depends on the availability of spare parts. The average downtime per machine per month is a bout 30 hours.

25- Is the quality ofthe product checked anywhere in the process? An on line check of certain parameters such as diameter and wall thickness is being performed. After producing 150 meter of pipe, the diameter and wall thickness of both endsis measured. A batch wise check ofthe productsis performed in the laboratoryto check the mechanica! properties. This is done once for each shift and aftera production stop.

26- When are produels considered useless? The products are tested in the laboratory. Ifthe products do notmeet the required mechanica! properties as stipulated by the DIN requirements, they are rejected.

27- Do you have any ideasfor improvingyour process.? Simba plastics is currently restructuring the production process. All the injection and blow moulding machines are moved to a 'new' production hall to improve the layout of the production process. Simba was not happy with the current 1ayout and decided to invest in the new plantand some new machines. Simba also plans to restmeture the layout ofthe pipe division, to reduce handling.

Questions re1ated to step 3 ofthe Technology Audit Methodology (enterprise)

28- What is the cost price (?lthe product? The cost price ofthe product is approximately 37.150 Shilling per 150 meter pipe.

29- What is the market price ofthe product? The market price of 150 meter HOPEpipeis 45.900 Shilling. Ifa large amount ofpipe is ordered, more than 25 rolls of 150 meter, a discount of a bout 15 percent is offered. The market price for 150 meterpipeis then 38,900 Shilling. The percentage of profit used to calculate the market price is 4 to 5 percent.

30- Is the price set or can it be determined by the shopkeeper? The price ofthe product can be determined bythe shopkeeper.

31- Do you se!! to the customers directly or toshopkeepers only? Products are being sold to customers directly and to shop keepers. The company has a sales desk from which people can buy Simba products directly.

32- Do you deliver each weekor month a certain quantity ofproducts or do shopkeepers order when necessary? The shopkeepers order when necessary, usually this happens each week.

33- What market segment is your product aimed at? The product is aimed at contractors, aid projects, and people and companies requiring water transport pipes.

14

34-

35-

36-

37-

38-

39-

40-

41-

42-


Do you supply the local market only or the international as wel!? Simba plastics suplies the local market only. All neighbouring countries have a plastic industry of their own, and exporting to these countries would not be economical due to import duties. These duties would make Simba products more expensive than the local manufacturer.

What is your yearly salesturnover (company and product under consideration? (tsh) The total yearly turnover of Simba plastics is a bout 400 hiliion shilling. The turnover of the pipe division is about 1/3 ofthis total. The HOPE pipes account for 30 percent ofthe pipe divisions turnover, this means about 1/9 ofthe total turnover.

How many employees are currently being employed at Simba plastics? At the moment approximately 460 employees are being employed by Simba plastics. The pipe section employes 66 people ofwhich 5 are temporarily being employed.

How many employees have a.fixed contract and how many a temporary? The pipe section employes 66 people ofwhich 5 are temporarily being employed.

What are the working hours and how many sh~fts.? In the pipe section 3 shifts of 8 hours each are used. The pipe extmsion machines require a long heating period before pipes can be extmded. It would not be economical to slmt down the machines every day, resulting intheuse ofthree shifts.

How many skilied people are employed and what kind (~fskills do they have? Most employees have a primary school training only. Most newly recmited employees have a degree in engineering.

Do you provide trainingfor your employees? Simba plastics provides practical and theoretica! training fortheir employees. Some employees are being send to outside training courses.

How does Simba products make the product known to the pub/ie? Simba uses advertising media like newspapers and television commercials and depends on direct contact advertising.

How do the produels reach the customers? Simba uses their own tmck to deliver the products to the customer. Costs of delivery are included in the price of the product. If a customer is in a hurry they can use their own transport as well.

Appendix A4: Mansoor Daya Chemieals Questionnaire

MANSOOR DA Y A CHEMICALS


1- What is the name of the product The name ofthe product is: X-pel

2- Wh at is the fimction of the product The function ofthe product is to speedily kill flies, mosquitos, wasps, and other flying insects.

3- Whoare your campelitors (local andorforeign)? The competitors are all imported aerosols, Mansoor Daya is the only Tanzanian producer of insect spray. lmported insect sprays are:

'Baygon' from Bayer, Indonesia, 400 ml., 2000 Tsh.; 'Doom' from CGP-holding, South Africa, 325 ml., 1600 Tsh.; 'BlackJack' from Safegard Chemical Corporation, USA, 11 oz, 1800 Tsh.

4- Who is the market leader (local or foreign).?

15

Mansoor Daya has the largest market share in Tanzania. X-pel is already 37 years in production and is well known. According to the general managerand some shopkeepers the largest competitor is Baygon from Bayer. Baygon is produced by Bayer lndonesia.

5- Are the customers satisfied with the product? The customers are already for 37 years satisfied by X-pel.

6- Are complains being received, and ifso what kind? No complains are being received.

7- Is the standard design changed if the market desires if'?

During the first production years, 3 7 years a go, the product was changed according to suggestions from customers. Characteristics changed were the smell ofthe insect spray and the size ofthe cans.

8- Do you give a warranty on your product? No warranty is given because no warranty is needed. X-pel has no expire date and it performs its function for a long time.

9- What is the life-expectancy ofthe product? The life-expectancy of X-pel is high, after 5 years X-pel can still be used.

10- What kind ofrequirements do you think are necessary fora good product? The product should fast and effectively kill insects.

11- Do you have any ideas for improving your produels? The product could be improved by replacing the CFC gas currently used by natura) gas. This makes the product environmentally friendly. Using natura} gas also makes it possible to export X-pel to Europe and India and reduces the cost price ofthe product.

16 Testinga Technology Audit Mcthodology


12- How many produels do you produce each month1 each year? About 500,000 cans of X-pel are produced each year.

13- Do you produce to order or to stock? X-pel is produced to stock. Each week is determined how many cans will be produced that week, depending on the market situation and the available stock.

14- Do you only produce slandard produels aralso specific produels on a specijic order? Only standard aerosol products are being produced.

15- How many standard types of product are currently in production? Three standard types of aeroso1s are currently in production: X-pel houschold aerosol, Xpel cockroach killer, and No bite mosquito repellent. Mansoor Daya also manufactures amongst others medicines, shampoo, and toothpaste.

16- What happens with a specific order? Only standard products are produced, specific orders are not being received.

17- Whoare your suppliers. jàreign and1or local? The suppliers are mostly foreign. Raw material is imported from Gennany and Holland, CFC from India, and empty cans from Kenya. The pyrethrins used in X-pel are refmed in the United States or Great Britain from daisy flowers grown in Tanzania.

18- !fforeign, why? No local suppliers are available.

19- Are the raw matcrials always available and how frequently are they ordered? Raw material supply is nota problem. Enough raw material is orderedfora production of 6 to 8 months. lfthe raw material stock is downtoa production period of2 to 3 months, a new supply is ordered.

20- What is the set-up time ofthe machines? According to the production manager the set-up time from the X-pel filling machine is 'not long'.

21- How many persons are capable to do it? The persons capable ofperfonning theset-upare the two operators ofthe machine and a technician.

22- Which machine is lhe battle neck in terms of output? The machine is not producing at full capacity because otherwise the employees inserting the spray nozzle and the employees packaging the cans are not able to handle the amount of cans.

23- What kind of maintenance do you perjàrm on the machines, prevenlive or curative? Preventive maintenance is performed on the machines during a low production period. Curative maintenance is performed when necessary

24- What is the average stand still time if a problem occurs? The stand still time differs a lot. It can last 1 hour or 5 days, depending on the problem.

Appendix A~: Mansoor Daya Chemieals Questionnaire

25- Is the quality ofthe product checked anywhere in the process? The quality of each batch of X-pel mixture is checked in the laboratory.

26- When are produels considered useless? The product is considered useless ifthe spray nozzle artachment is defom1ed by the manufacturing process. This can cause leakage ofthe can.

27- Do you have any ideas for improving your process? To automate the packaging process and the manual insertion ofthe nozzle.


28- What is the cast price ofthe product? The cost price ofthe product is about 1350 Tsh. per can.

29- What is the market price of the product'? The market price for one can at the factory is I 700 Tsh. In shops the price ranges from 1800 to 2500 Tsh.

30- Is the price set or con if he determined hy the shopkeeper? The price can be determined by the shop keeper.

31- Do you se!! to the customers directly or toshopkeepers only? Ifthe customer orders a large quantity of X-pel they can buy directly from the factory, otherwise Mansoor Daya sells to shopkeepers and wholesalers only.

32- Do you deliver each weekor month a certain quanti(v o_f product.~· or do shopkeepers order when necessary? The shopkeepers order when necessary.

33- What market segment is your product aimed at? The product is aimed at all market segments, able to buy the product.

34- Do you supply the local market only or the international as wel!? X-pel is also being exported to Kenya. Until recently X-pel was also exported to Ruanda and Burundi, but due to the local circumstances this export has stopped.

35- What is your yearly safes turnover (company and product under consideration? In 1996 the yearly salesturnover from X-pel was about 700,000 eaus multiplied bythe sa les price of 1700 Tsh. This equals l, 190,000,000 Tsh.

36- How many employees are currently heing employed by Mansoor Daya? Currently 80 people are being employed by Mansoor Daya. Due to the low market, the high import duties on raw materials, and the low price of imported products half the workforce has been temporarily send home. The import duties on imported finished products are less than the import duties on raw materials. Tilis makes it difficult for Mansoor Daya to compete with the imported products.

37- How many employees have afixed contract and how many a temporary? Thirty five employees have a temporarily contract, all other employees have a fixed contract.

17

18

38-

39-

40-

41-

42-


What are the working hours and how many sh?fts? The working hours are from 7:30 to 17:00 hours, with a 30 minute break. This accounts to 45 hours a week, but this is normally not reached. The average number ofworking hours per week are 38 to 39 hours.

How many skilied people are employed and what kind ofskills do they have? The general manager, the chief chemist, and the production manager have university degrees, most other employees have primary and secondary school.

Do you provide trainingfor your employees? The employees are provided with on the job training by Mister Daya himself.

How does Mansoor Daya make the product known to the public? The product is marketed by means of radio and television commercials, and printed advertisements. Mansoor Daya also employs a sales person who visits doctors and shopkeepers to make the products known to them, and ask them a bout market demands.

How do the produels reach the customers? Mansoor Daya has a tmck to deliver the products to shopkeepers and wholesalers.

Appendix A5: Tanzania Cables Ltd. Questionnaire

COMPANY: TANZANIA CABLES LTD.


1- What is the name of the product Electric cab ie ( 1.5 mm2

) for dornestic purposes.

2- What is thefimction ofthe product The function ofthe cableis the transportation of electricity to for example sockets.

3- Whoare your competitors (local and/orforeign)? TCL is the only cable manufacturer in Tanzania. There are cables being imported from Great Britain, Italy, and Taiwan. The most important competitor is AEI from the UK. Their products could be found in many hardware stores in the Dar es Salaam city centre.

4- Who is the market leader (local or foreign)? TCL has about a 30% market share in all types of cables. The rest ofthe market is dominated by imported cables. A smalt market survey amongst hardware stores in the city centre of Dar es Salaam, revealed that the cables from the English manufacturer AEI are sold in most hardware stores, and according to the shopkeepers a lso selt best.

5- Are the customers satisfied with the product? The customers are very satisfied with the products.

6- Are complaints being received. and ~f so what kind? Except for the occasional complaints of insufficient length on a rolt, no complaints are beli1g received.

7- Is the standard design changed ifthe market desires if? Ifthere is market demand fora changed product, TCL can manufacture it.

8- Do you give a warranty on your product? No warranty is given on the products. Ifhowever the length ofthe cable sold to the customer is not according to the length specified, the customer is reimbursed for the missing part. Before seltu1g the roltsof cable, they are weighted in order to have a check on the claims of a complaining customer.

9- What is the life-expectancy ofthe product? According to the quality engineer, the life expectancy ofthe cables is very high, depending on the use. Ifthe cables are used inside, shielded from water, the life expectancy is at least 25 years.

10- What kind of requirements do you think are necessary fora good product? The cables must meet the standards set by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards.

11- Do you have any idem; for improving your products? The products could be improved by instaHing a new PVC moutding machine. With a new computer controlled moutding machine the PVC layer can be applied more constantly, reducing the amount of scrap wire generated.

19

20 Testinga Technology Audit Methodology

Questions related to step 2 ofthe Technology Audit Methodology (production process)

12- How many produels do you produce each month' each year? The target production is a bout 84 tons of cableper month. These 84 tons includes the entire product range ofTCL. This target has not been reached for more than a year however, due to lack of raw materiaL The average production for the last months is a bout 60 tons of cableper month.

13- Do you produce to order ar to stock? The cables are only produced to order. TCL does not have enough currency to produce to stock. New raw materialscan only be bought ifTCL has received enough money from customers to pay for the order.

14- Do you only produce standard produels aralso specific produels on a specific order? If a elient demands a specific product, TCL can produce it. Tl_le product has to be within a certain diameter range however, because the extrusion machines can nothandle very large diameters. The time needed to produce a specific order is about ten days.

15- How man_v standani typesofproduct are currently in production? About 30 standard types ofproducts are in production.

16- What happens with a specific order? Ifthe specific order is fora relatively straight forward cable, it can be produced within l 0 days. lf a highly specific cable is demanded and the moulds are not available, it requires a longer period to manufacture the cable. The moulds have to be made or ordered from abroad.

17- Whoare your suppliers, foreign andlor local? The suppliers are mostly foreign, only the wooden rolls on which the cables are wound and the separating talcum powder are produced in Tanzania. The copper is imported from Zambia, and the PVC from Italy. The dies for drawing the copper wires to a different diameter are imported from Japan. The cooling oil for the drawing machines is obtained locally from BP and Esso.

18- ~fforeign, why? No local suppliers ofthese materials are available.

19- Are the raw matcrials always available and how frequently are they ordered? Raw materials are sometimes in short supply due to delivery delays and lack of currency. The delivery delays are often caused by the Dar es Salaam harbour custom authorities. New raw materialscan only be bought ifTCL has received enough money from customers to pay for the order.

20- What is the set-up time ofthe machines? The set-up time ofthe machines is not long. For the drawing and moulding machines the average set-up time is about 20 minutes.

21- How many persons are capable to do it? Many machine operators are capable of changing the set-up, because TCL rotates the machine operators to different machines after a certain period. This increases the flexibility ofthe employees.

Appendix A5: Tanzania Cables Ltd. Questionnaire 21

22- Which machine is the battle neck in terms ofoutput? TI1e bottie neck in termsof output is the annealing process. The heating ofthree rolls of copper wire in the annealing oven takes 6 hours. After these 6 hours the rolls have to cool down for 48 hours. Since TCL has no stock ofannealed wire, each order·takes at least 3 days to produce.

23- What kind of maintenance do you perfarm on the machines, prevenlive or curative? Preventive maintenance is performed on the machines. A fier producing a certain quantity ofproducts, the machine is inspected and maintained. The maintenance department has schedules for each machine descrihing what components have to be inspected a fier what quantity ofproduced products. Most maintenance is performed by TCL. New components are fabricated intheir own workshop ifpossible.

24- What is the average stand still time if a problem occurs? TI1e average stand still time is a bout 30 minutes. lf a problem is discovered by the machine operator, it is reported to the supervisor who informs the maintenance department. A technician from this department will solve the problem if possible. If it is not possible to repair the machine themselves, TCL will contract a local company to repair the components.

25- Is the quality ofthe product checked anywhere in the process? The diameter ofthe copper wires is checked afterstarting the drawing process and after drawinga certain length ofwire. The PVC coating is checked after coating a few meters of cable. lfno problems are apparent the production will continue. After cooling the PVC coating the cables pass a spark testing device. If a coating failure occurs this device will issue a waming. After producing a number of rolls of cable a batch sample is tested by the quality department The cable is tested for elongation, tensile strength, resistance, twisting, and ageing. The insulation ofthe cableis tested by applying high tension to the cable fora certain period. Ifno insulation failure occurs the cableis passed.

26- Wh en are products considered useless? [fthe cables are not according to the standards set by the Tanzanian Burealt of Standards, they are considered useless. TI1e standards used by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards are derived from the British standards.

27- Do you have any ideasfor improving your process? The process could be improved by instaHing a new PVC moutding machine and adding a cable winder. With a new computer controlled moulding machine the PVC layer can be applied more constantly, reducing the amount of scrap wire generated. Adding a new cable winder will increase the capacity ofthe rewinding process. Currently all the cables produced by TCL are rewinded from the steel factory rolls to the wooden rolls on only one rewinder. This machine is constantly being used, increasing the risk offailure. This single machine doesnotmeet the production capacity ofTCL ifmany different types of cable are in production.


28- What is the cast price ofthe product? TI1e product cost is 271 Tsh. per meter.


29- What is the market price of the product? The market price ofthe 1.5 mm2 cableis about 22,000 Tsh. per 100 meter. This implies that the cableis sold with a loss, because the production costs are 27,100 Shilling per 100 meter. Th is is done because of the competition TC L fa ces in the field of domestic purpose ca bles. The losses incurred are compensated by the profits made with the sell of other cables.

30- Is the price set ar can it be determined by the shopkeeper? The price can be detem1ined by the wholesalers and shop keepers.

31- Do you sell to the customers directly ar to shopkeepers only? The products are sold both toshopkeepers and to customers directly. TCL uses wholesalers and agents as intermediaries to reach more customers.

32- Do you deliver each week ar month a certain quantity of products ar do shopkeepers order when necessary? The shopkeepers order when necessary.

33- What market segment is your product aimed at? The products are aimed at all individuals or companies having electricity connected.

34- Do you suppl_v the local market only ar the international as welf.? TCL supplies cables to the local market only. There were some exports to Burundi but these have stopped.

35- What is your yearly sa/es turnover (company and product under consideration.? (üh)

The average yearly salesturnover from TCL is about 2 biBion Tsh. per year. Approximately 65% ofthe turnover is generated by cablesales to the national electricity supplier of Tanzania, TANESCO.

36- How many employees are currently bcing employed at your company? Currently TCL employs 84 people. Of these 84 about 50 workin the factory.

37- How many employees have afixed contract and how many a temporary? All the employees have a fixed contract. New employees have a probation period of 1 year. If during this year no problems arise, the employee is offered a fixed contract.

38- What are the working hours and how many shifts? The working hours are from 7:30 to 17:00. Ifthere are many orders, 2 shifts are used of 12 hours each. In the enamelling section they produce until the rolls being enamelled are finished. This is done to reduce the amount of scrap wire. Ifthe enamelling processis stopped in between a lot of se rap is generated.

39- How many skilied people are employed and what kind of skilis do they have? Halfthe employees have secondary school (form 4). The rest ofthe employees have primary school supplemented by short courses. About 6 employees have university degrees. The general manager has a M.Sc. degree in electrical engineering and the teehuical manager has a B.Sc. degree in electrical engineering.

Appendix A5: Tanzania Cables Ltd. Questionnaire 23

40- Do you provide trainingfor your employees? The employees being employed from the start of the company in 1978 were trained by the Japanese supplier ofthe machines. New employees are provided with on the job training. TCL eneaurages the employees to artend short training courses outside the company. TCL finances these courses for the employees.

41- How does the company make the product known to the pub/ie? The products are made known to the public by means of advertisements on radio, television, and in newspapers.

42- How do the produels reach the customers? The customers can piek up the products themselves at the TCL factory, or ifthe customer is unable to piek up the products TCL will deliver the products at the train or bus station or any other place within Dar es Salaam.


COMPANY: Carnaud Metalbox, a crown cork & seal company, Tanzania


1- What is the name ofthe product The product tmder consideration is a battery shell. The battery shell is a semi manufactured product which are sold to the Matsushita Electric Cooperation in Dar es Salaam.

2- What is thefimction ofthe product The ft.mction ofthe product is to provide the battery (the end product) with a leak and puncture proof casing.

3- Whoare your competitors (local andiorforeign).? Currently Camaud Metalbox is the only producer of battery casings in Tanzania. The Friendship Packaging company has recently acquired the machines necessary for the production ofbattery casings and will probably start production soon. The manufacturer ofthe battery casings of the imported batteries such as Philips, Sony, and Duracell could not be determined by us with the time and equipment available.

4- Who is the market leader (local or foreign).? According to the production manager, Camaud Metalbox is the local market leader in the battery casing business, because the batteries produced by Matsushita sell best in Tanzania.

5- Are the customers satis.fied with the products? Sofar the customers are satisfied with the products.

6- Are complaints being received. and ~fso what kind? Very few complaints are being received but sametimes the delivery is being complained about. Camaud bas a system for recording complaints and a customer service unit.

7- h the standard design changed if the market desires it? The standard design can be changed if the customer desires it. The colours used for printing can be changed relatively easy.

8- Do you give a warranty on your product? No written guarantee is given on the products, but defective products will be replaced.

9- What is the life-expectancy ofthe product? The answer to this question was not known at Camaud Metalbox.

10- What kind ofrequirements do you think are necessary fora good product? The skilis ofthe operator and their quality awareness are most importantfora good product.

11- Do you have any ideas for improving your products? The quality awareness of the employees could be improved, and Camaud wants to introduce the world class manufacturing system. The quality manager gives courses to imprave the quality awareness ofthe employees.


12- How many produels do you produce each month/ each year? Each month 6,000,000 battery casings are sold to Matsushita.

Appendix A6: Carnaud Metalbox Questionnaire

13- Do you produce to order or to stock? Due to low efficiency ofthe machines and sometimes the failure of Matsushita to collect all of the 6,000,000 battery casings before the end of the month, Camaud is forced to produce a certain amount of casings to stock.

14- Do you only produce standard products or also specifzc products on a specifzc order? Specific products on a specific order cao be produced as wel!. Only the dies for the production of the special order have to be manufactured by the engineering department or obtained from outs i de.

15- How many standard (vpes ofproduct are currently in production? Currently many types of standard product are in production: battery casings, crown corks, oil cans, coffee cans, paint cans, etc.

16- What happens with a specifzc order? If a specific order arrives, it takes at least two weeks to produce. The artwork for the specific product is done by Camaud Metalbox in Kenya and this takes time to complete and send to Dar es Salaam.

17- Whoare your suppliers, foreign andlor locaf? The suppliers of raw materials are all foreign suppliers. The tinned steel plates are imported from the U.K. and Japan. The inks are imported from Kenya, the V.K., and India. The vamish is imported from the V.K. and India.

18- lfforeign, why? No local suppliers are available.

19- Are the raw materia/.~ always available and howfrequently are the.v ordered? The raw material supply is no problem, they just have to be ordered in time. The delivery time of for example the steel is 5 month. There is no Jack of working capita! to order the raw materials in time. Camaud Metalbox is part of a multinational company which cao guarantee payments to suppliers.

20- What is the set-up time ofthe machines? The set up time ofthe printing machine, for example if a different colour is to be used, is a bout 2 hours. All traces ofthe previous colour have to be removed from the machine. The set up of the other machines necessary to produce the battery casings is oot changed.

21- How many persons are capable to do tt? Four operators ofthe printing machine are capable to change the set up.

22- Which machine is the bottie neck in terms of output? The printing machine can be considered the bottleneck ofthe production process. The machine is very old and sensitive to breakdowns. The maximum capacity of the printing press in not sufficient to print the steel plates for all production lines.

23- What kind ofmaintenance do you perform on the machines, prevenlive or curative? Preventive maintenance is performed on the machines, but there is no schedule of when to perform the maintenance. It is decided to perform the preventive maintenance when necessary.

25


24- What is the average stand still time ifa prohlem occurs? The average stand still time depends on the problem which occurs. This can be a short or long period.

25- h the quality ofthe product checked anywhere in the process? The quality ofthe products is checked during the production process. The printing is checked every 15 minutes. The quality ofthe finished battery casings is checked by the employee which packs the casings in to crates.

26- When are produels considered useless? The battery casings are considered useless if the casings show signs of the following characteristics: big silver margin, poor hammering, dents, mislocked side seam, upright tongues, out of register, scratch es, out of square, water marks, and mismatching.

27- Do you have any ideas for improving your process? The production process could be improved by instaHing a new double. colour printing machine. Th is will increase the printing capacity significantly because the number of printing passes is reduced. Improving the quality awareness of the employees wilt a lso improve the production process because problems wilt be noticed earlier. Ofthe 3 battery body makers only 1 machine uses carbide dies. The other 2 machines use dies made from an other material which wears down faster than the carbide dies. lnstalling carbide in the other 2 machines wilt improve the production process, because the dies wiltnothave to be replaced so often.

Questions related to step 3 ofthe Technology Audit Methodology (enterprise)

28- What is the cost price ofthe product? This infom1ation was considered confidential by Camaud Metalbox, and was not made available to us.

29- What is the market price ofthe product? The market price ofthe battery casings is 11,702 Shilling per l 000 casings.

30- Is the price set or can it be determined by the shopkeeper? Not applicable in this case.

31- Do you sell to the customers directly or toshopkeepers onfy? The battery casings are sold to the Matsushita Electric Corporation directly.

32- Do you deliver each week or month a certain quantity of produels or do shopkeepers order when necessary? Each month a certain quantity of battery casings are sold to Matsushita, although the quantity can be revised each month.

33- What market segment is your product aimed at? Not applicable in this case, because the battery casing is a semi manufactured product and not aimed at a specific market segment.

34- Do you supply the local market only or the international as welf? Camaud Metalbox supplies the local market only. Most customers of Camaud Metalbox are situated in the Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar area.

35- What is your yearly safes turnover (company and product under consideration)? The yearly sales turnover for the battery casings in 1996 was 600,000,000 Shilling. The sales turnover for the entire company in 1996 was a bout 2 biltion Shilling.

Appendix A6: Carnaud Metalbox Questionnaire

36- How many employees are currently being employed at your company? Camaud Metalbox currently employs 155 employees, but they want to reduce this number to 110 employees this year in order to save money and increase efficiency.

37- How many employees have ajixed contract and how man_v a temporary? All 155 employees have a fixed contract.

38- What are the working hours and how many sh~fts? The werking hours are from 7:30 to 17:00 hours. lf demand is high 2 or 3 shifts are used to increase production.

39- How many skilied people are employed andwhat kind of skilis do they have? Most employees have fmished primary school, and 4 employees, including the production manager, have university degrees.

40- Do you provide trainingfor your employees? Employees are provided with on the job training.

41- How does the company make the product known to the pub/ie? Camaud Metalbox does not make commercials for radio or television because they only produce semi manufactured products. They do visit trade fairs to make themselves knoWil to other companies which might be interested intheir products.

42- How do the produels reach the customers? The customers usually come to collect the fmished products. lf Camaud has to deliver the products by company truck the customer has to pay more. The battery casings are collected a few times per month in order to keep the stock at Camaud low.

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28

Ndg. R. Mbawala TAMECO. P.O. Box 40057 Dar es Salaam

Date: 27 March 1997

Subject: Technology Audit executed at T AMECO

Dear Mister Mbawala,


First of all we would like to thank TAMECO and you for giving us the opportunity toperfarm our Technology Audit project. We appreciate Mister Matimbwa's time and effort to show us the TAMECO production facilities and giving us the valuable information needed Without his support we would nothave been able toperfarm our project adequately.

Due to numerous power failures in our area we were not able to give you this summary of our report earlier. We would like to apologize for this delay.

The main conclusions and recommendations resulting from our research performed at TAMECO, will he mentioned below.

A product comparison is performed according to the methodology developed by the Department of Technology and Development Sciences of the Eindhoven University of Technology. The product comparison is performed on a TAMECO knife and a knife of Chinese origin. Random knives were obtained from a random shopkeeper in the Dar es Salaam city centre.

A few differences between the TAMECO knife and the Chinese knife were observed. The knife characteristics in which the TAMECO knife was considered of less quality than the Chinese knife will he mentioned, with a possible technologkal solution.

Sharpness The sharpness of the TAMECO knives upon buying them is less compared to the Chinese knife. In order to imprave the sharpness of the TAMECO knives, the grinding machines could use replacement. The grinders are also the bottleneck of the production process in terms of age (breakdown) and maintenance, thus influencing the overall capacity of TAMECO. New grinding machines would eliminate the need for manual sharpening machines, reducing lead time and production costs (Iabour costs).

Overall shape The shape of the T AMECO knife as designed is good. The point which makes the overall appearance of the Chinese knife better is the design of the cutting edge. The design of the TAMECO knife could he improved by introducing a double slanted cutting edge. If this is not possible with the current grinders, installing new grinders should he considered.

Appendix BI: Letter with recommcndations for T AMECO

Finish The finish of the TAMECO knife could use improvement compared to the Chinese knife. The grip of the TAMECO knife looks damaged: a dented surface, wireedges and damage from their removal. The moulding process can be considerably improved: the mould needs repair or replacement, the heating of the plastic should be better regulated and monitored, and the moulding time should be better regulated (opening the mould by machine at a constant interval insteadof manually by the operator). The TAMECO blades all seem to have a different shape and appearance, which is mainly caused by the manual sharpening process. Eliminating the manual sharpening process by instaHing new grinders would improve the finish of the blade considerably. Improving the quality awareness of the machine operators to prevent such things as lack of lubricant in the grinders, which causes grooves, would improve the overall finish of the blades as well.

Smoothness of grip Compared to the TAMECO knife, the grip of the Chinese knife is smooth and clean. Repairing or replacing the mould would improve the smoothness of the grip. lt would reduce the number and severity of wire edges thus reducing the necessity for manual removal. The use of stainless steel would eliminate the necessity of oiling the blades and thus the greasy appearance of the TAMECO knives.

Corrosion resistancy The TAMECO knives are sensitive to moisty environments. The use of stainless steel would considerably improve the corrosion resistancy of the TAMECO knives, and eliminate the necessity of oiling the blades and thus the greasy appearance. The use of stainless steel does probably imply the need for new tooling, because of the different mechanica! properties (hardness). This problem can be circumvented by instaHing an electro plating machine. This machine is capable of applying a corrosion resistant outside layer to the blade. The Chinese knife is made of stainless steel, although the quality of that steel is not perfect. On a used knife some corrosion can be detected as well.

Storage performance The TAMECO knives are covered in oil when leaving the factory to prevent premature corrosion. The use of stainless steel would improve the storage capabilities of TAMECO knives, due to the reduced risk of corrosion.

Besides mentioning the product shortcomings discovered by applying the Technology Audit Methodology, a few further recommendations can be made:

A market survey amongst shopkeepers selling TAMECO knives revealed that they, and according tothem also the customers, favoured the previous knives with the wooden grip. 1t might be profitable to resume production of the wooden grip knives. Many customers, especially in Dar es Salaam, expressed their wishesfora stainless steel blade. To satisfy their wishes, producing stainless steel knives would increase the market share of TAMECO, and thus the turnover (profit).

Improvements in the quality awareness of TAMECO employees will reduce the percentage production loss and improve the quality and appearance of the knives. The introduetion of quality standards increases the commonability of the knives, introducing a professional appearance. Presently each knife looks different.

29

30 Testinga Tcchnology Audit Methodology

Reorganizing the supply of raw materials increases the productivity of TAMECO. Presently there is no production due to lack of raw materiaL Ordering new raw material sooner will prevent this from happening. Changing the supplier of raw material can decrease the delivery time significantly. Currently all raw materials are bought in Germany, changing to South African suppliers reduces the delivery time and probably the costs of transport and/or material.

We feel we have described the product characteristics and the production process to our best judgement, if however you have the opinion we described certain elements inaccurate or incomplete we would appreciate to be informed. If any questions do arise, we are happy to answer them. We can be contacted through TIRDO or by mail: P.O. box 2687 DSM.

We would like to thank you again for your generous hospitality and collaboration.

Yours sincerely,


Appendix B2: Letter with reconunendations for Tamclt

Ndg. R. Mbawala Tamelt P.O. Box 40390 Dar es Salaam

Date: 28 March 1997

Subject: Technology Audit executcd at Tamclt

Dear Mister Mbawala,

First of all we would like to thank Tamelt and you for giving us the opportunity to perferm our Technology Audit project. We appreciate the production manager's time and effort to give us the valuable information needed. Without his support we would not have been able to perform our project adequately.

The main conclusions and recommendations resulting from our research performed at Tamelt, will he mentioned below.

A product comparison is performed according to the methodology developed by the Department of Technology and Development Sciences of the Eindhoven University of Technology. The product comparison is performed on a Tamelt tile and a Mbezi tile. Random tiles were obtained from both factories.

A few differences between the Tamelt tile and the Mbezi tile were observed. The tile characteristics in which the Tamelt tile was considered of less quality than the Mbezi tile will he mentioned, with a possible technological solution.

Strength The strengthof the Mbezi tiles is probably better than the Tamelt tiles. The Mbezi tiles are thicker and therefore appear more robust than the Tamelt tiles. The overlapping parts of the Tamelt tiles are considerable thinner than the overlapping parts of the Mbezi tiles. This makes it very likely that Tamelt tiles are more prone to damage than Mbezi tiles.

Weight Tamelt tiles weight less than Mbezi tiles. As mentioned above, this influences the strength of the tiles. The lighter tiles can also he considered a positive characteristic regarding ergonornies and safety. Less weight means easier handling of the tiles andreduces the possibility of injuries.

Tile attachment design (ridges and edges) The ridges and edges of the Mbezi tiles are more prominent than the Tamelt tiles. The edges which hook behind the battens are longer and the ridges which attach a tile to the adjacent tiles are higher. These characteristics allow the Mbezi tiles to he attached to the roof and each other more securely.

As can he seen in the above mentioned characteristics, the Tamelt tile shortcomings originate from a not optimal product design. To alleviate these shortcomings the design of the tile could use improvement. To change the design new moulds have to he ordered. An other option would he to change or adjust the roller of the mooiding machine to lift some shortcomings. This is probably a cheaper option. For a total redesign of the tile both the moulds and the roller need replacement.

31


Besides mentioning the product shortcomings discovered by applying the Technology Audit Methodology, a few further recommendations can be made:

Currently many handling activities are taking place during the production processof the tiles. This inevitably results in production losses and requires extra Iabour hours. After separation of the tiles from the moulds, the tiles are placed on a pallet. This pallet is moved outside to a temporary storage. From this temporary storage the pallets with tiles are moved again to the definite storage. Here the tiles are manually removed from the pallets and stacked on the ground to harden. If a customer buys the tiles they are manually handled in the truck. This process could be simplified by moving the pallets with tiles directly to the definite storage and leaving the tiles on the pallets to harden. If a customer buys the tiles the pallets can be moved into the Tamelt truck. The use of a packaging machine to wrap the tiles would reduce the amount of tiles damaged during transport. The transport of the tiles is after all the responsibility of Tamelt, and any tile broken during transport will costs Tamelt money. At the construction site the tiles can be removed from the pallets and the pallets return to the factory.

The currently used pigment is imported from Great Britain. This implies a long delivery time and payment in hard currency, which can be a problem. It is probably possible to import the pigment from a supplier closer to Tanzania, for example South Africa. This would reduce the delivery time and the shipment costs.

Currently the sand is stored outside without cover and is manually filtered before use. Covering the sand with a roof will keep the sand dry during the rain season, which will ease the filtering process. The use of a mechanica! filtering machine will increase the quality of the sand used and will reduce the manual activities.

The oil used to oil the moulds is not optima!. The tiles and moulds need a manual operation to ease the separation of the tile and mould by the separating machine. This manual separation can cause damage and requires extra Iabour hours. The oil originally used did not require the manual operation, but this oil was imported from the Netherlands and was too expensive for further use. It is probably possible to import the same grade of oil from a supplier closer to Tanzania, for example South Africa. This would reduce the likelihood of damage and the extra handling.

According to the production manager, the maximum capacity is not reached due to, amongst others, lack of working capita!. In the current situation, money to buy new raw materials is only available at the moment a customer buys tiles. Because of this lack of working capita! customers willing to buy tiles have to be disappointed. If Tamelt receives a capita! injection to increase the working capita!, the production can be considerably increased. The market demand fortiles is high, all tiles currently produced are easily sold. According to the production manager Tamelt wil! make a profit at 60 percent of the maximum production capacity, this is about 8500 tiles a day. The capita! injection has to be sufficient to reach this daily production.

Appendix 82: Letter with recommendations for Tamelt

We feel we have described the product characteristics and the production process to our best judgement, if however you have the opinion we described certain elements inaccurate or incomplete we would appreciate to be informed. If any questions do arise, we are happy to answer them. We can be contacted through TIRDOor by mail: P.O. box 2687 DSM.


Yours sincerely,


33

P.K. Nair Simba Plastics Ltd. P.O. Box 2459 Dar es Salaam

Date: 27 March 1997

Subject: Technology Audit executed in the pipe-division

Dear Mister Nair,


First of all we would like to thank Simba Plastics and you for giving us the opportunity to perform our Technology Audit project. We appreciate your time and enthusiasm to show us the Simba production facilities and giving us the valuable information needed. Without your support we would nothave been able to perform our project adequately.

Due to numerous power failures in our area we were not able to give you this summary of our report earlier. We would like to apologize for this delay.

The main conclusions and recommendations resulting from our research performed at Simba Plastics, will be mentioned below.

A product comparison is performed according to the methodology developed by the Department of Technology and Development Sciences of the Eindhoven University of Technology. The product comparison is performed on a piece of Simba HDPE pipe and a piece of Plasco HDPE pipe. Random pieces of pipe were obtained from a random shopkeeper in the Dar es Salaam city centre.

According to customers and shopkeepers in the Dar es Salaam city centre there is no difference between Simba pipes and Plasco pipes, even the price per meter is the same. They consider the quality equally good and both products sell good. However, a few differences between Simba pipes and Plasco pipes were observed. The pipe characteristics in which the Simba pipe was considered of less quality than the Plasco pipe will be mentioned, with a possible technologkal solution.

Inside diameter The inside diameter of the Simba pipeis smaller than the DIN standard prescribes. The allowed range is 29.6 to 30.7 mm, but the actual range is 26.9 to 27.8 mm. The cause of this deviation can be excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced or adjusted.

Inside roughness of pipe The inside roughness of the Simba pipe is worse than the Plasco pipe. This can be caused by excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. A third possibility is inadequate cooling of the internal mandrel of the die. This can cause the plastic to deform, however our expertise is not in this field. The first two shortcomings can be alleviared by replacing or adjusting the die.

Appendix 83: Letter with recommendations for Simba Plastics

Surface damage The amount of surface damage on the Simba pipeis more apparent than on the Plasco pipe. This damaged is caused by the many manual handling activities which are conducted in the factory. This handling is sometimes very rough. A solution for this problem is the use of a mobile trolley to transport the pipes between the various stores. To apply this solution the current layout of the pipe production hall needs to be changed. The corridors now available are to narrow to make efficient use of a trolley.

Constantness of wall thickness By examining the cross sections of the pipe samples, it is obvious that the constantnessof the wall thickness of the Simba pipeis low. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe varled between: 1.7 mm. and 2.7 mm. while the Plasco pipe varled between 2.0 and 2.3 mm. The cause of this wide range can be excessive local wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced or adjusted.

Outside diameter according to DIN 8074 According to DIN 8074 the HDPE pipe must have the an outside diameter of 32 (0.0 - 0.7) mm., Of our random bought sample of Simba HDPE pipe, the outside diameter varled between 31.5 mm. and 31.9 mm. The plasco pipe's outside diameter varled between 32.0 and 33.5 mm. This range is mainly caused by the rolling of the pipe; the pipeis slightly oval insteadof circular. The outside diameter of the Simba pipeis clearly not according to the DIN 8074 because even the largest diameter is less than the prescribed 32 mm. The cause of this can be that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced. The deviation in the outside diameter caused by the rolling of the pipe can not be removed, unless the pipe is sold in short straight pieces. This solution has the obvious drawback that many connections have to be made, which is expensive and time consuming.

Wall thickness according to DIN 8074 According to DIN 8074 the HDPE pipe must have a wall thickness of 2 (0.0 - 0.4) mm. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe varled between 1.7 mm. and 2.7 mm, while the Plasco pipe varled between 2.0 and 2.3 mm .. The wall thickness of the Simba pipeis clearly not according to the DIN standard. The cause of this deviation can be excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced or adjusted.

Besides mentioning the product shortcoming discovered by applying the Technology Audit Methodology, a few further recommendations can be made:

The current layout of the pipe production building is inefficient, with many manual handling activities taking place. This manual handling requires a lot of time of many employees, besides resulting in inevitable production and raw material losses. A complete restructuring of the layout by placing the machines in working sequence, with at the beginning the raw materials storage and at the end the fmished products storage, without any intermediate storage, would remove the need for many manual handling activities.

The waste water gulleys are often not covered and constitute a serious hazard for the employees, in addition to causing a huge monthly lossof water. If the current layout is changed Simba should use the opportunity to reptace the many twisting gulleys by one common drainage pipe.

35


The current electrical system is a confusion of electrical units and switch boards. Many cables are without proper insulation and could be tripped over easily. This situation is dangerous, confusing and new machines can't be installed easily. If a restructuring of the layout is to succeed, a complete overhaul of the electrical system is recommended as well. A single electrical unit capable of connecting all existing and newly ordered machines is required. The current generator needs to be replaced or a second generator added, because it is unable to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure. The costs of stopping certain machines needs to be compared with the costs of buying a new generator.

The overall impression of the production areasis untidy, with finished pipes and scrap plastic and scrap machines everywhere. Currently the finished pipe output of 5 machines is twisting around on the floor prior to rolling them. Placing a rolling machine at the end of each HOPE extrusion line would reduce the amount of pipe tingering on the floor. The finished products (HOPE pipe, PVC pipe and garden hoses) should be removed more often to the appropriate finished product storage. This will create some useful working space. The scrap machines should be removed immediately from the pipe production hall, they occupy valuable working space. Finally, cleaning the production area of scrap plastic creates a cleaner working atmosphere.

lmprovements in the quality awareness of the employees will improve the quality of the pipes and thus reducing the production losses. Making the employees more aware of the costs of the raw materials in use, could reduce the amount of raw material being wasted.

We feel we have described the product characteristics and the production process to our best judgement, if however you have the opinion we decribed certain elements inaccurate or incomplete we would appreciate to be informed. If any questions do arise, we are happy to answer them. We can be contacted through TIROOor by mail: P.O. box 2687 OSM.


Yours sincerely,


Appendix 8-1-: Letter "ith recommcndations forMansoor Daya Chemieals

Mister Mansoor Daya Mansoor Daya Chemieals Ltd. P.O. Box 2999 Dar es Salaam

Date: 14 April 1997

Subject: Technology Audit executed at Mansoor Daya Chemieals Ltd.

Dear Mister Daya,

First of all we would like to thank you for giving us the opportunity to perform our Technology Audit project at your factory. We appreciate your time and enthusiasm to show us the production facilities and giving us the valuable information needed. Especially your information about the Tanzanian business situation and your invitations to various social happenings were highly appreciated. Without your support we would nothave been able to perform our project adequately.

The main conclusions and recommendations resulting from our research performed at your factory, will be mentioned below.

A product comparison is performed according to the methodology developed by the Department of Technology and Development Sciences of the Eindhoven University of Technology. The product comparison is performed on a container of X-pel and a container of Baygon from Bayer. Random containers were obtained from a random shopkeeper in the Dar es Salaam city centre.

According toshopkeepers in the Dar es Salaam citycentreX-pel is the best selling insecticide, although the price is slightly higher than most comperitors. They consider the quality of X-pel very good. However, a few differences between X-pel and Baygon were observed The product characteristics in which X-pel was considered of less quality than Baygon will be mentioned, with a possible technologkal solution.

Operating instructions The X-pel instructions are less detailed than the Baygon instructions and only printed in English. This can cause problems for the non English speaking part of the population of Tanzania. The design of the X-pel container should be changed to incorporate a Swahili version of the operaring instruction as wel I. This can increase the market share of X -pel.

Wamings On the Baygon container the warnings are more specific, like a maximum operaring temperature of 50 o C, whereas on the X-pel container the warning is 'don't throw into fire and keep in a cool place'. The design of the X-pel container should be changed to incorporate more detailed warnings, like 'Maximum operaring temperature 55 °C. This would reduce the risk of damage to people or property by mishandling.

Expire date The X-pel container lacks a manufacturing and expire date. Adding a manufacturing and expire date will increase the perception of the customer that the X-pel is still active. This can result in higher sales. If Mansoor Daya Chemieals wants to exportsits products to the E.U. an expire date will be mandatory. In order to print these dates on the container a can prinring device has to be installed.

37


Pressurising gas X-pel uses CFC gas for pressurising the container. This gas causes serious damage to the ozone layer. In June/July of 1997 the CFC gas will be replaced by natural gas, thus alleviating this shortcoming. This requires a large capital investment, but the elimination of CFC enables Mansoor Daya Chemieals to export its products to India and the E. U. The use of natural gas will also reduce the manufacturing costs and increase the profit margin.

Smell of insecticide The smell of X-pel is not unpleasant but rather strong. It can be smelled fora long time after usage. By using alessstrong scent the time required to evaporate the X-pel smell can be considerably reduced.


The current generator needs to be replaced or a second generator added, because it is unable to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure. The costs of stopping certain machines needs to be compared with the costs of buying a new or extra generator.

The Pyrethrins are extracted from locally grown daisy flowers. The flowers are transported to the USA or Great Britain, where the Pyrethrins are extracted. The extracted Pyrethrins are then shipped back to Tanzania: The possibility of extracting the Pyrethrins in South Africa or interesting a local businessman, should be examined. This would reduce the transport costs and time needed to receive the raw materials.

The filters used to filter the X-pel mixture are imported from Switzerland. A cheaper alternative might be available in South Africa. This possibility should be examined.

A better method for checking the volume of X-pel mixture still present in the storage barrel could reduce the percentage production loss even further. Presently the non transparent storage barrel is periodically checked for the amount of X-pel still present. This system could be improved by using transparentor open barrels which can be easily monitored.

The time consuming manual weighting of the filled X-pel containerscan be accelerated by using a digital scale. A digital readout can be checked faster, is more accurate, and has less overshoot.

We feel we have described the product characteristics and the production process to our best judgement, if however you have the opinion we described certain elements inaccurate or incomplete we would appreciate to be informed. If any questions do arise, we are happy to answer them. We can be contacted through TIRDOor by mail: P.O. box 2687 DSM.

We would like to thank you again for your generous hospitality and collaboration, and when we are in the neighbourhood we will certainly drop by to say hello.

Yours sincerely,


Appendix B5: Letter with recommendations for Tanzania Cables Ltd.

C. Kwai Tanzania Cables Limited P.O. Box 508 Dar es Salaam

Date: 30 April 1997

Subject:Technology Audit executed at TCL

Dear MisterKwai,

First of all we would like to tl1ank Tanzania Cables and you for giving us the opporttmity to perform our Technology Audit project. We appreciate your time to give us tl1e valuable informationneeded. Witl1out your support we would nothave been able to perfonn our project adequately.

The main conclusions and reconm1endations resulting from our research perfom1ed at Tanzania Cables, will be mentioned below.

A product comparison is perfom1ed according to the methodology developed by the Department of Technology and Development Sciences oftl1e Eindhoven University ofTeclmology. The product comparison is perfom1ed on a piece ofTCL 1.5 nuncable and a piece of AEI 1.5 mm cab ie. Random pieces of cablewere obtained from random shopkeepers in the Dar es Salaam city centre.

According to customers and shopkeepers in the Dar es Salaam city centre there are notabie differences between the TCL 1.5 mnl cablè and the AEI 1.5 nmr cable: the price, tl1e flexibility ofthe cab ie, and the removability oftl1e outer sheatll. These characteristics were also discovered by us while applying tl1e methodology developed by the Department of Technology and Development Sciences of the Eindhoven University ofTechnology. These, and otl1er cable characteristics in which the TCL cable was considered of less quality than the AEI cab ie wil! be mentioned, witl1 a possible technologica i solution.

Outside dimensions According to the standards set by tl1e Tanzania Bureau of Standards, the outside dimensions ofthe 1.5 nun2 must be withul the following ranges: Minimum range: 4.4 x 8.25 nm1. Maximum range: 5.4 x 8.50 mm. The average outside dimensions oftl1e TCL cable are 5.2 x 9.6111111. TI1e widtl1 of9.6 111111. is clearly outside the range set by the standards. The cause oftlüs shortcoming can be excessive wear oftl1e die or tl1at the die was not manufactured accordiJ1g to tl1e specifications. Of course it is possible tl1at only tl1e production lot measured by us was outside tl1e standards. Tiüs implies a failure ofthe quality control department to detect tlüs lot. SiJ1ce TCL claims to produce according to the standards set by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards, more checks should be perfom1ed. This wil! reduce the raw material usage and tlms the costs of production.

Cable jlexibility The flexibility ofthe TCL cableis stiffer than the AEI cable. It requires more effort tobend the TCL cable iJ1 the des i red shape. Th is is caused by tl1e type of PVC used for the outer sheath. Changing the type of PVC to a more flexible variant, which a lso meet tl1e requirements specified by tl1e standards, wil! alleviate tl1is shortcommg.

39


Removability of insulation Due to the stiffness of the PVC coating and sticking of the outer sheath to the wire insulation, it is considerably more difficult to remove the grey outer sheath of the TCL cable, than the outer sheath of the AEI cable. The stiffness of the cable can be altered by changing the type of PVCtoa more flexible variant, which also meet the requirements specified by the standards. The sticking of the outer sheath to the wire insuiatien is caused by the type of talcum powder used andfor the talcum powder applying process (the amount of talcum powder being applied or its distribution).


The market price of the 1.5 mm2 cableis about 22,000 Tsh. per 100 meter. This implies that the cableis sold with a loss, because the production costs are 27,100 Shilling per 100 meter. This results in a lossof 18%, while the price of the TCL cableis still higher than the price of the competitors, which ranges between 19,000 and 20,000 Tsh per 100 meter. Unless this is a deliberate marketing strategy, the production of the 1.5 mm2 cable and all other loss making cables should be reconsidered.

The current lack of raw material is caused by a shortage of werking capital. A bout 65% of the total production is ordered by the Tanzania National Electricity Company (TANESCO). This company is very slow in paying their bills and is allowed to order on credit, which has a negative influence on the werking capital of TCL. lmplementing a teugher payment policy, such as direct payment on delivery or payment within a specified time limit, will imprave this situation. If TCL has more control over its cash inflow, better planning and ordering of raw matenals is possible.

The production process could be improved by instaHing a new PVC moulding machine and adding a cable winder. With a new computer controlled moulding machine the PVC layer can be applied more constantly, reducing the amount of scrap cable generated. lt will also reduce the time needed to set -up the machine. Adding a new cable winder will increase the capacity of the rewinding process. Currently all the cables produced by TCL are rewinded from the steel factory rolls to the woeden rolls on only one rewinder. This machine is constantly being used, increasing the risk of failure. This single machine does not meet the production capacity of TCL if many different types of cables are in production.

The possibility of finding a PVC supplier closer to Tanzania should be examined. lf an African supplier can be found it is possible that the transportation costs and delivery time will be reduced.

We feel we have described the product characteristics and the production process to our best judgement, if however you have the apinion we described certain elements inaccurate or incomplete we would appreciate to be informed. lf any questions do arise, we are happy to answer them. We can be contacted through TIRDOor by mail: P.O. box 2687 DSM.


Yours sincerely,


Appendix Cl: Technology Audit Report ofTAMECO

TECHNOLOGY AUDIT: TAMECO (Tanzania Mechanical Engineers Coop. Soc. Ltd.), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Although currently TAMECO is not producing due to lack of raw materials, we had the opinion that this wou1d not hamper us in performing a Technology Audit.

1. PRODUCT

Manufacturer TAMECO, P.O. Box 40057 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Tel. 863404 General Manager: Ndg. R. Mbawala Production Manager: Ndg. P.P. Matimbwa

Product name: The product can be named as: mu1ti purpose kitchen knife.

Proposed functioning of the product The proposed functioning of the knife is for kitchen purposes.

Actual functioning of the product The knife is most commonly used by farmers and villagers for harvesting purposes. The knife can easily repeatedly be sharpened what is of most interest to them. The knife is strong and not easy to bend, which increases the life span and safety during the rough harvesting conditions.

Usual operation conditions of the knife No operation condition can be singled out. The knife can be used in a mu1titude of conditions, although the most likely conditions will be the harvesting and the kitchen environments. After use in a moisty environment the blade of the knife is susceptible to corrosion. Oiling the blade regularly will prevent early corrosion.

Classification of product type Cutlery can be identified as a shopping good. Before buying new cutlery a quick examination of available products will be performed. There is a necessity for the product. Cutlery is classified under SITC code 696.

Identification of branch type The ISIC code for the cutlery branch is 381. The major di vision is manufacturing (3), with subdivision 'Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment' (381).

Identification of market competitors TAMECO is the only knife producer in Tanzania, however people do make knives themselves. Foreign competitors are many and from many different countries. For example: China, Japan, India, Pakistan etc.

Identification of market leader According to TAMECO and some shopkeepers in Dar es Salaam, the best selling knife is a stainless steel knife of Chinese origin. The name of the manufacturer in China is not known. The reasons for its success are the low costs and the stainless steel blade. All the other knives similar to the TAMECO knives are more expensive and probably aimed at a different market segment. The TAMECO knives are mostly aimed at people with nota lot of money, and who need a knife which can be used and sharpened for a long time.

-ll

..J.2 Testing a Technology Audit Methodology

Product charaderistics

Functional characteristics

1. durability

2. reliability

3. safety

4. maintainability

5. sensitivity w.r.t. environment

6. versatility

7. performance

8. operational complexity

9. compatibility

10. ergonornies

The cutting time that the knife retains a certain sharpness. If eerrosion is not an issue for the customer (the blades are not made of stainless steel), then the durability of the TAMECO knives is high. The knives can easily be sharpened by means of stones, sand or other knives. Sharpening the blades deteriorates the width of the blade, so after numerous sharpenings the strength of the knife is effected. If however eerrosion is an issue, for example in the kitchen environment, then the durability of the TAMECO knives is not so high.

The chance that the blade or grip of the knife fails at a certain pressure being applied to the knife. The reliability of the TAMECO knives is relatively high, but no exact data are available. The blade is securely attached to the grip and the steel is treated (tempered) to make it strong and not prone to breaking. All blades are bend tested by hand before attaching the grip. In a moisty environment the reliability of the blades can be effected due to corrosion.

As mentioned by reliability, the blade is securely attached to the grip. The grip is designed to prevent accidental slip of the hand onto the blade, by means of its shape.

The possibilities to resharpen the knife. The maintainability of the TAMECO knives is high. The use of carbon steel instead of stainless steel makes the knives easy to sharpen. Sharpening stainless steel is considered far more difficult.

The TAMECO knives are sensitive to moisty environments. The blades are not made of stainless steel which implies oiling the blades in order to keep them without corrosion. The grip is made of a plastic material which melts at a temperature of 180° C.

It is possible to use the TAMECO knife fora host of alternative applications, ranging from kitchen purposes to for example harvesting coconuts.

The performance of the knives upon buying them is not spectacular. The customers are expected to sharpen the knives themselves. The length and thickness of the blade suits the most common applications of the knife. The TAMECO knives give a rigid appearance.

Not applicable in this case.


The knife has a grip which is shaped to fit the hand easily. The thickness of the grip makes the knife easy to handle.

Appendix C I: Technology Audit Report of T AMECO

11. storage capabilities

Inherent characteristics

1. construction complexity

2. ecological impact of materials

The possibility to keep the knife on the shelf without losing performance. The TAMECO knives are covered in oil when leaving the factory to prevent premature corrosion. This oil makes it possible to keep the knives on the shelf without corrosion. A disadvantage of oiling the knives is that the carton box in which the knives are packed is soaked withoilas well. This gives the box a dirty appearance.

The knife is made of two partsof relatively easy construction.

The production of the TAMECO knives does not harm the environment significantly. All production leftovers are used or recycled. The remaining metal scrap is used for making fences and the waste plastic is grounded and used again.

3. use of rare materials No rare materials are being used.

Aesthetic characteristics

1. look

2. smell

3. noise

4. feel

Through western eyes the look of the knives is appalling. Of a random sample from the store of twelve knifes (1 box) not one looked the same. Because of a damaged mould, the grips look damaged as well. The two halves of the mould appear not to fit exactly together which causes wire-edges. The wireedges left by the moulding process are removed by hand, which gives the grips a damaged appearance. An other observed defect seems to be the injection of not enough plastic in the mould. This gives the grip a dented surface. The blades all seem to have a different shape and appearance. This is mainly caused by the manual sharpening process which takes place if the result of the grinding machine is not satisfactory. Some blades have grooves which are caused by a lack of lubricant in the grinding machines.



After purchasing the knife, the grip feels greasy due to the oiling of the blades. Of course, this wears off after use. The damage to the grips caused by the moulding process and the removal of the wire-edges, makes the grips feel not smooth.

In order to determine the importance of the product characteristics, a pair wise comparison technique is used. With this technique each product characteristic is compared with each other, one at a time, by asking the question: 'Which is more important when buying this product'. Granted, this question can be hard to answer when comparing two dissimHar characteristics, but it is still important to decide which of the two is the dominant (Ullman; page 122). The comparison can be found in the following matrix. Some remarks should be made, the comparison is done from a Western viewpoint and secondly, from the view of a student. Due to lack of time and the purpose of the Technology Audit (quick scan), no interviews with the local population about their buying habits have been performed.

43

Testing a Tcchnology Audit Mcthodology

Product characteristics 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

1. Durability - 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 10

2. Reliability 0 - 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 9

3. Safety 0 1 - 0 1 1 0 1 l 1 1 1 1 1 10

4. Maintainability 0 1 1 - 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 7

5. Sensitivity w.r.t. 0 0 0 1 - 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 7 environment

6. Versatility 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 4

7. Performance 1 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 13

8. Ergonornies 0 0 0 t 0 1 0 - 1 1 1 1 0 0 6

9. Storage capabilities 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 1 1 0 0 3

10. Construction complexity 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0

11. Ecological impact of 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 1 0 0 2 materials

12. Use of rare materials 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 - 0 0 1

13. Look 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 10

14. Fee! 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 - 9

With this ranking one can asses the relative importallee of a product shortcoming. In the following table the TAMECO knife will be compared to the Chinese knife. Some product characteristics are translated into knife-specific sub-characteristics, in order to simplify the comparison. The grading of the product characteristics is done according to the secend draft: + = TAMECO knife is better than the product characteristic of the Chinese knife; 0 = TAMECO knife is equal to the product characteristic of the Chinese knife;

= TAMECO knife is worse than the product characteristic of the Chinese knife; ? = not measurable by us in the time available to perferm TAM. The grading is done on the products as bought in the shops, without further actions taking place.

Appendix C 1: Technolo~c Audit Report of T AMECO 45

Product characteristic Rank Characteristic description T AMECO compared with Chinese knife

Performance 13 Sharpness -

Rigidity +

Durability 10 Sharpness duration ?

Safety 10 Blade attachment +

Grip design 0

Look 10 Co!our 0

Overall shape -

Finish -

Reliability 9 Blade faiture expectancy +

Grip failure expectancy +

Fee! 9 Smoothness of grip -

Maintainability 7 Resharpening possibilities +

Sensitivity w.r.t. 7 Corrosion resistancy -environment

Heat resistancy of grip 0

Ergonornies 6 Profile of grip 0

Thickness of grip +

Versatility 4 Application possibilities +

Storage capabilities 3 Storage performance -

Ecological impact 2 Environmentally friendly materials are used 0

Harmful rnatenals can easily be separated 0

Use of rare materials 1 Rare materials usage 0

Construction complexity 0 Number of parts 0

Complexity of parts 0

Tcsting a Tcchnology Audit Methodology

Explanation of the product shortcomings The product shortcomings are sorted in decreasing number of significance, according to the ranking.

Sharpness The sharpness of the TAMECO knives upon buying them is not spectacular. The Chinese knife on the other hand is relatively sharp. The TAMECO customers are expected tosharpen the knives themselves, the result of which can be much better than the Chinese knife.

Overall shape The shape of the TAMECO knife as designed is notbad The point which makes the shape of the Chinese knife better is the design of the cutting edge. The Chinese knife has a double slanted cutting edge, where as the TAMECO knife has a single one.

Finish Because of a damaged mould, the grips of the TAMECO knives look damaged. The two halves of the mould appear not to fit exactly together which causes wire-edges. The wire-edges left by the mooiding process are removed by hand, which gives the grips a damaged appearance. An other observed defect seems to be the injection of not enough plastic in the mould. This gives the grip a dented surface. The blades all seem to have a different shape and appearance. This is mainly caused by the manual sharpening process which takes place if the result of the grinding machine is not satisfactory. Some blades have grooves which are caused by a lack of lubricant in the grinding machines. The finish of the Chinese knives is good.

Smoothness of grip After purchasing the TAMECO knife, the grip feels greasy due to the oiling of the blades. Naturally, this wears off after use. The damage to the grips caused by the moulding process and removal of the wire-edges makes the grips feel not smooth. The grip of the Chinese knife is clean and smooth.

Corrosion resistancy The TAMECO knives are sensitive to moisty environments. The blades are not made of stainless steel which implies oiling the blades in order to keep them without corrosion. The Chinese knife is made of stainless steel although the quality of that steel is not perfect. On a used knife some corrosion can be detected as well.

Storage performance The TAMECO knives are covered in oil when leaving the factory to prevent premature corrosion. This oil makes it possible to keep the knives on the shelf without corrosion. A disadvantage of oiling the knives is that the carton box in which the knives are packed, is soaked with oil as well. This gives the box a dirty appearance. The Chinese knives don't need oiling because they are made of stainless steel. Each Chinese knife has a paper cover which protects the blade against damage during storage.

Appendix Cl: Technology Audit Report ofTAMECO

2. PRODUCTION PROCESS

Layout of the production process The TAMECO factory consists of an office building, two production halls, one storage hall, and two sheds. One shed is used for milling maize, the other for processing wood. The layout of the main (knives) production facilities is shown in the next figures.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

~~

14 D D . 13 ~ tJ

[J~ [J

press oven

[]

tempering oven cooling water/oil grinders intermediate store

11

I

polishing machine hammering machine manual sharpening machine

14

c:=:::J

1

I I ('

16°

~ 0

L]

e][J [J I s

13

I

120

()()

10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

13

manual polishing machine offices oil drums doors fuse boxes scrap fire extinguishers

47


15

1. moulding machine 9. scrap plastic 2. water drums 10. fuse box 3. oil drum 11. crates 4. control panel 12. compressor 5. pumps and compressor 13. furniture 6. scrap plastic recycler 14. doors 7. bags with scrap plastic 15. mechanical workshop 8. workbench

Flow chart of the production process The production process of the knives is depicted in the next figures. The symbols used are the ones prescribed by the second draft of the TAM, although these are not the standard logistic symbols. The actlvities 'cooling' and 'testing' arenotmachines butnoother symbol was available in the second draft for representing these activities. The production processof the knives is relatively straight forward.

Appendix Cl: Technology Audit Report of T AMECO

from stamping

from tempering

to oven

to tempering

to grinders

tomanual polishing and sharpening machine

49

50

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

steel plate 2000x250x1.6 mm. (CK75) 8. electricity input 9. kitchen knife blades 10. steel plate scrap 11. hardened blades 12. scrap blades 13. tempered blades 14.

15.

Description of machine features

Degree of mechanisation


one side grounded blades fully grounded blades polished blades manually polished blades manually sharpened blades plastic scrap polypropylene plastic finished product

Machine Degree of Predictability Capacity Flexibility mechanisation of quality of machine of machine

Stamping machine self-acting machine medium high medium .

Grinding machine self-acting machine medium low low Polishing machine self-acting machine medium medium low Hand polisher tool or handieraft low low high Hand grinder tool or handieraft low low high Mooiding machine self-acting machine medium medium low

* The flexibility of a self-acting machine is low according to the second draft. The flexibility of the stamping machine is considered medium because the machine is capable of producing a wide variety of products if the stamp shapes are changed.

Toleranee Tolerances are not an issue at TAMECO. Although product drawings are available, no tolerances are mentioned. The knives are manually sharpened, which results in a wide range of dimensions. The overall dimensions are determined by the skilis of the machine operators. Because of a damaged mou1d the knives differ quite a lot from the intended shape.

Capacity The average capacity of the production process is about 2000 knives each day. According to the production manager, the maximum capacity is often not reached due to lack of raw materials, power failures, and machines failures. The maximum capacities of the machines as provided by the production manager are shown in the next table.

Appendix C 1: Tcchnology Audit Report of T AMECO

Machine Max. capacity per Number of shifts Max. capacity per man per shift (8h) day (ideal situation)

Stamping machine 9.500 1 9.500

Oven 4.400 1 4.400

Tempering oven 4.400 1 4.400

Grinding machine (two lines) 1.500 2 3.000

Polishing machine 1.500 2 3.000

Hand grinder 1.500 2 3.000

Hand polisher 1.500 2 3.000

Moutding machine 1.500 3 4.500

The number of shifts is determined by the availability of raw matenals and the market demand. The grinders are considered the bottleneck of the production process. The grinders are 17 years old and thus susceptible to breakdowns. The actual capacities of the other machines are determined by the capacity of the grinders. At an ave rage, the production process has a 10 percent loss of production.

flexibility At the moment the flexibility of the production processis rather low. Only two different shapes of blades can be produced by the production process due tothefact that only two stamping shapes are available. The price of stamping shapes is very high. TAMECO can't afford buying more shapes, resulting in the low flexibility. The set-up time required to change the stamping shape and grinding shape is approximately 1 hour.

Description of raw materials and ready bought parts TAMECO is not using ready bought parts. The raw matenals being used are:

CK75 steel plate 2000x250x1.6 mm. fortheblades Polypropylene plastic for the grips Stemkor X4 oil for oiling the blades

The CK75 steel is not a stainless steel, thus susceptible to corrosion. The steel plate and Polypopuleen plastic are bought in Germany. This requires TAMECO to pay in {hard) currency which is not always available. The delivery time is long because of the distance and the money guarantees demanded by the Germans. The quality of the raw matenals is good, it is tested by the university of Eindhoven and the university of Dar es Salaam prior to delivery.

51


Identification of features causing product shortcomings Features causing product shortcomings can be production process features, design, and raw material features. Ready bought parts are not used by TAMECO.

Product Cause of product shortcoming shortcomings

Sharpness - Grinding machines properties. - Manual sharpening (grinding) process is not adequate.

Overall shape - Product design.

Finish - Damaged mould. - Sometimes plastic is not sufficiently heated prior to injection. - Moulding time is not constant; the operator determines the

actual moulding time. - Manual sharpening process is not adequate. - Possible lack of lubricant in the grinding machine.

Smoothness of grip - Damaged mould. - Use of non stainless steel (product design), which require the

knives to be oiled.

Corrosion resistancy - Use of non stainless steel (product design).

Storage performance - Use of non stainless steel (product design).

ldentification of teehoical remedies lifting product shortcomings As can be seen in the table above, the TAMECO knife shortcomings originate from: a not optimal design, a not optima! production process and a not optima! material choice. In the second draft, the latter can't be found in the six categoties of improverneut Material choice is therefore considered to be part of the design of the product. No appropriate category of product improverneut can be identified, which covers all technica! remedies. Each product shortcoming can theoretically be in a different category. A classification can be made of technica! remedies in decreasing order of significanee according to the importance of the product shortcomings.

sharpness

overall shape

In order to improve the sharpness of the TAMECO knives, the grinding machines need replacement. The grinders are also the bottleneck of the production process in terros of age (breakdown) and maintenance, thus influencing the overall capacity of TAMECO. New grinding machines would eliminate the need for manual sharpening machines, reducing lead time and production costs (Iabour costs).

The product design could be improved by introducing the double slanted cutting edge. If this is not possible with the current grinders, installing new grinders should be considered.

Appendix C I: Tcchnology Audit Report of T AMECO

finish The moulding process should be considerably improved: the mould needs repair or replacement; the heating of the plastic should be better regulated and monitored; the moulding time should be better regulated (opening the mould by machine at a constant interval instead of manually by the operator). Eliminating the manual sharpening process by installing new grinders would improve the finish of the blade considerably. Improving the quality awareness of the machine operators to prevent such things as lack of lubricant in the grinders would improve the overall finish of the blades as well.

smoothness of grip Repairing or replacing the mould would improve the smoothness of the grip. It would reduce the number and severity of wire edges thus reducing the necessity for manual removal. The use of stainless steel would eliminate the necessity of oiling the blades and thus the greasy appearance of the TAMECO knives.

corrosion resistancy The use of stainless steel would considerably improve the eerrosion resistancy of the TAMECO knives, and eliminate the necessity of oiling the blades and thus the greasy appearance. The use of stainless steel does probably imply the need for new tooling, because of the different mechanical properties (hardness ).

storage performance The use of stainless steel improves the storage capabilities of TAMECO knives, due to the reduced risk of corrosion.

Further recommendations A market survey amongst shopkeepers selling TAMECO knives revealed that they, and according to them also the customers, favoured the previous knives with the wooden grip. It might be profitable to resume production of the wooden grip knives. Many customers, especially in Dar es Salaam, expressed their wishes for a stainless steel blade. To satisfy their wishes, producing stainless steel knives would increase the market share of TAMECO, and thus the turnover (profit).

Improvements in the quality awareness of TAMECO employees will reduce the percentage production loss and improve the quality and appearance of the knives. The introduetion of quality standards increases the commonability of the knives, introducing a professional appearance. Presently each knife looks different.

Reorganizing the supply of raw materials increases the productivity of TAMECO. Presently there is no production due to lack of raw materiaL Ordering new raw material sooner will prevent this from happening. Changing the supplier of raw material can decrease the delivery time significantly. Currently all raw materials are bought in Germany, changing to South African suppliers reduces the delivery time and probably the costs of transport and/or materiaL

53

5-1- Testing a Technology Audit Methodology

3. ENTERPRISE PART

General information Currently TAMECO is not producing due to lack of raw materials. Obviously this costs a lot of money because the memhers are still being paid their salaries. The financial situation of TAMECO is therefore not promising. TAMECO is depending heavily on foreign aid to survive.

Product price The average price of TAMECO knives is usually between 800 and 100 Tsh a piece or 8000 Tsh per dozen. The direct competitor, a Chinese knife, sells for slightly less.

Management The technica! knowledge of the management (production manager) seems to be sufficient. The logistic knowledge of the management could use some improvement. Ordering raw material in time seems to be a problem. A related aspect is the provision of sufficient funds to make in time ordering possible. This is the responsibility of the accountant.

A vailability of information No clear insights in the availability of information and the communication flows were obtained, because TAMECO was not producing at the time of the audit and not all employees were present.

Skilis and knowledge of employees The employees are provided with on the job training by the production manager. Their knowledge to operate the machines seems to be adequate, but understanding of quality aspectsis clearly missing.

Direct enterprise environment The power supply to TAMECO is suffering from occasional interruptions, influencing the overall productivity. The situation has recently been improved by the installation of a transformer, which enables TAMECO to operate all the machines at once. Prior to this installation not all machines could be operated at the same time.

The infrastructure in and around the TAMECO plant is good, a tarmac road runs next to the factory. The infrastructure in Dar es Salaam is good, having a deep sea harbour, an international airport, and a railway connecting Tanzania with neighbouring countries. Especially the deep sea harbour is useful for TAMECO, the raw matenals ordered in Germany are delivered by means of sea transport.

Appendix C2: Technology Audit Report ofTamelt Skandia

TECHNOLOGY AUDIT: TAMELT SKANDIA, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

1. PRODUCT

Manufacturer TAMELT SKANDIA, P.O. Box 40390, Plot no.98 Mbagala Industrial Area, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Tel. 51303 General Manager: Ndg. R. Mbawala

Product name: The product can be named as: double Roman roofing tile.

Proposed functioning of the product The proposed functioning of the tileis covering roofs to give people and property proteetion against environmental influences (rain, sun, and wind). The roof tiles also provide proteetion against fire.

Actual functioning of the product The actual function of the tiles is equal to the proposed functioning.

Usual operation conditions of the tile

55

The tiles can be used in many different operation conditions. The construction of the house needs to be designed to carry the load of the tiles. The fundament and the wooden roof structure need to he strong to carry the weight of the tiles. The distance between the roof beams is important to prevent the tiles from falling down and a regular appearance.

Classification of product type Roofing tiles can he classified under SITC code 661 (lime, cement and fabricated building materials, except glass and clay materials).

Identification of branch type The ISIC code for the roofing tile branch is 369. The major division is manufacturing (3), with subdivision 'Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products' (369).

Identification of market competitors According to the Tamelt production manager, the local market competitors are: Dodoma Tiles, Mbezi Tiles and Mbeya Tiles. Foreign tiles are being imported but their prices are considerably more expensive and thus aimed at a different market segment.

Identification of market leader According to Tamelt the market leader is Mbezi Tiles. Mbezi Tiles has been producing tiles for over ten years and is consequently better known to the public. Before Tamelt, Mbeya and Dodoma entered the market Mbezi had a monopoly in the roofing tile business.


Product characteristics


1. durability

2. reliability

3. safety

4. maintainability


6. versatility

7. performance

The time that the tile performs its function, proteetion against the environment, adequately. The durability of the tiles is high. The likelibood of damage once the tiles are on a roof is negligible, except for rare meterological occurrences. The most vulnerable period is the manual handling in the factory, the transport to the customer, and the construction of the roof.

The chance that the tile performs its function, proteetion against the environment, adequately. The reliability of the Tamelt tiles is relatively high. The properties of batches of Tamelt tiles are randomly tested for strength, weight and leakage. This gives no 100 percent guarantee against leakage. Leakage can still occur due to placement errors and faulty tiles (inclusions of foreign objects: stones, wood etc.).

Measurements taken to prevent injuries when handling the tiles and when 'using' the roof. Tamelt tiles are easy to handle and work with. The weight of the tiles is manageable and no dangerous sharp edges are felt. The tiles are designed to prevent accidental slipping of tiles from the roof. The tiles are hooked behind battens and each other. Tamelt tiles have the added advantage of the possibility to nail the tiles to the battens. Compared to the traditional metbod of covering roofs, the concrete roof tiles are fireproof.

The possibilities to clean or replace tiles. The maintainability of the Tamelt tiles is high. The surface of the Tamelt tiles is smooth and therefore easy to clean. As with all roof tiles, damaged tiles can easily be replaced, even when attached with a nail.

The tiles are exposed to sometimes extreme environmental conditions. Heavy doses of sun light, rain, and dust deteriorate the colour of the tiles after a certain amount of time.

Except for covering many types of roofs, no obvious alternative applications can be mentioned.

Proteetion against the environment. The performance of the tiles depends on the weather- and fire resistancy and the overall construction of the house. The construction of the house is not measurable by us, and therefore not included in the product comparison. The performance of the Tamelt tiles is relatively high. The properties of batches of Tamelt tiles are randomly tested for strength, weight and leakage.

Appendix C2: Technology Audit Report ofTamelt Skandia 57


9. compatibility

10. ergonornies




2. ecological impact of matenals

The operational complexity of building tile roofs is relatively high compared to the traditional methods of covenng roofs. The foundations and walls need to be strong enough to carry the weigh of the tiles. The timber roof trusses and battens need to be accurately placed to their calculated positions to facilitate the tiles. The tile manufacturers provide building instructions on request. This operational complexity is inherent to all roofing tiles and is therefore not included in the product companson.

The tiles can be used in many different environments. If the Tamelt tiles are resistant to sub-zero temperatures is not measurable by us in the limited time available. No data about this subject is available at Tamelt.

The ease of handling the roofing tile depends on the weight and smoothness of the tile. The Tamelt tile weights 4 kilogram and is relatively smooth.

The possibility to store the tiles without losing performance. The tiles can be stored for a considerable time without losing performance. lf stored outside the colour can detenorate after a certain amount of time, depending on the environmental conditions.

The tile consists of one part of relatively easy construction, which is moulded into shape.

The production of the Tamelt tiles does not harm the environment significantly. All matenals used are of natmal ongin, no chemical additives are used.

3. use of rare matenals No rare matenals are being used.


1. look

2. smell

3. noise

4. feel

The colour of the Tamelt tiles is nice red and uniform, and the overall appearance is good. The moulded tiles are being checked for damage after moulding and after drying the tile.



The surface of the Tamelt tiles is smooth and no dangerous sharp edges can be feit.

In order to determine the importance of the product charactenstics, a pair wise companson technique is used. With this technique each product charactenstic is compared with each other, one at a time, by asking the question: 'Which is more important when buying this product'. Granted, this question can be hard to answer when camparing two dissimHar characteristics, but it is still important to decide which of the two is the dominant (Ullman; page 122).

58 Testinga Technolo~ Audit Methodology

The comparison can be found in the following matrix. Some remarks should be made, the comparison is done from a Western viewpoint and secondly, from the view of a student. Due to lack of time and the purpose of the Technology Audit (quick scan), no interviews with the local population about their buying habits have been performed.

Product charactenstics 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Tot.

1. Durability - 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 11

2. Reliability 0 - 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 10

3. Safety 0 0 - 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 9

4. Maintainability 0 0 0 - 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 7

5. Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 0 0 0 1 - 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 8

6. Performance 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 12

7. Compatibility 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 4

8. Ergonornies 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 1 1 1 1 0 0 5


10. Construction complexity 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 0 0 0 0 1

11. Ecological impacts of matenals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 - 1 0 0 3

12. Use of rare matenals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 - 0 0 2

13. Look 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 13

14. Fee! 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 - 6

With this ranking one can asses the relative importance of a product shortcoming. In the following table a Tamelt tile will be compared to a Mbezi tile. Some product characteristics are translated into tile-specific sub-characteristics, in order to simplify the comparison. The grading of the product characteristics is done according to the second draft:

+ 0

?

Tamelt tile is better than the product characteristic of the Mbezi tile; Tamelt tile is equal to the product characteristic of the Mbezi tile; Tamelt tile is worse than the product characteristic of the Mbezi tile; not measurable by us in the time available to perform TAM and/or no data available at Tamelt.

The grading is done on the productsas bought from the factory, without further actionstaking place.

Appendix C2: Technology Audil Report ofTamelt Skandia 59

Product charactenstic Rank Charactenstic descnption Tamelt compared with Mbezi roof tile

Look 13 Colour uniformity +

Overall appearance 0

Performance 12 W eather resistancy ?

Fire resistancy 0

Strength -

Weight -

Leakage ?

Durability 11 Life expectancy ?

Reliability 10 Tile failure expectancy ?

Safety 9 Weight +

Dangerous sharp edges 0

Tile attachment design (ndges and edges) -

Nail attachment +

Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 8 Possible coloor detenoration ?

Maintainability 7 Surface smoothness +

Replaceability 0

Fee I 6 Surface smoothness +

Sharp edges 0

Ergonornies 5 Weight +

Smoothness of the tile 0

Compatibility 4 Climatological compatibility ?

Ecological impact of matenals 3 Use of environmental fnendly matenals 0

Use of rare matenals 2 Rare matenals usage 0

Construction complexity 1 Complexity of parts 0

Storage capabilities 0 Co1our detenoration ?

Explanation of the product shortcomings The product shortcomings are sorted in decreasing number of significance, according to the ranking factors.

Strength The strengthof the Mbezi tiles is probably better than the Tamelt tiles. The Mbezi tiles are thicker and therefore appear more robust than the Tamelt tiles. The overlapping parts of the Tamelt tiles are considerable thinner than the overlapping parts of the Mbezi tiles. This makes it very likely that Tamelt tiles are more prone to damage than Mbezi tiles. The overlapping area was also recognized by the production manager as a weak spot in the design.

60 Tcsting a Tcchnology Audit Methodology

Weight Tamelt tiles weight less than Mbezi tiles. As mentioned above, this influences the strength of the tiles. The lighter tiles can also be considered a positive characteristic regarding ergonornies and safety. Less weight means easier handling of the tiles and reduces the possibility of injuries

Tile attachment design (ridges and edges) The ridges and edges of the Mbezi tiles are more prominent than the Tamelt tiles. The edges which hook bebind the battens are longer and the ridges which attach a tile to the adjacent tiles are higher. These characteristics allow the Mbezi tiles to be attached to the roof and each other more securely.

Appendix C2: Technology Audit Report ofTamelt Skandia


Layout of tbc production process The Tamelt factory consists of a production hall, an office building and a sales building .. The layout of the production process is shown in the next figure.

19 20

o~o 23

~ ~ 14

~ 12

013

6 3 15

~ 3 ~ ~ 14

11

~ 260 0 ~ 27 14

1. sand storage 15. drying cabins 2. sand filter 16. spare parts storage 3. conveyor belt 17. cement/pigment storage 4. sand collector 18. brick making machine 5. water storage 19. tile testing office 6. cement/sand elevator 20. office 7. water + pigment added and mixed 21. air compressor 8. tile moulding 22. welding equipment 9. mould oiling 23. storage 10. compressed air for oiling 24. ridge tile moulding machine

61

11. tile - mould separator 25. special shapes moulding (manually) 12. tile cutter 26. empty moulds storage 13. control panel 27. main power supply 14. tile drying and storage racks 28. entrance


Flow chart of thc production process The production process of the tiles is depicted in the next figures. The symbols used are the ones prescribed by the second draft of the TAM.

from mixer

from oiler

1. filtered sand 2. Portland cement 3. electricity 4. pigment (Fe02)

5. water 6. mixture 7. dried tile + mould

<moulding tiles>

cutter <cutting the tiles>

8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

to store

finished tile empty mould vegetable oil compressed air oiled mould continuous tile + mould cutted tile + mould

Appendix C2: Technology Audit Report ofTamelt Skandia 63



Machine Degree of Predictability Capacity of Flexibility mechanisation of quality machine of machine

Mixer self-acting machine medium high low Separator self-acting machine medium high* low Oiler self-acting machine medium high* low Tile moutder self-acting machine medium high* low Cutter self-acting machine medium high* low

* The capacity of the separator, the oiler, the tile moulder, and the cutter are connected with each other; the material flow through these machines is determined by a conveyer belt. This conveyer determines the speed of the inputs and the outputs as well.

Toleranee Tolerances are not an issue at Tamelt. Although product drawings are available, no tolerances are mentioned.

Capacity For the last three years, the average capacity of the production process is about 1.400 tiles each day. This is noteven 10 percent of the maximum capacity, which the machinescan reach: 14.400 a day. According to the production manager, the maximum capacity is not reached due to lack of working capital, power failures, and machines failures. In the current situation, money to buy new raw materialsis only available at the moment a customer buys tiles. Because of this lack of working capital customers willing to buy tiles have to be disappointed. The market demand for tiles is high, all tiles produced are easily sold. The machine which fails most oftenis the moulding machine. The main problem of this machine are the guide irons which direct the moulds to the conveyor belt. These irons suffer from wear caused by the moulds and mixture.

Flexibility At the moment the flexibility of the production processis rather low. Only one type of tile can be produced by the production process due tothefact that only one type of mould is available. The costs of buying thousands of new moulds and a new roller for the moulding machine are high. It is possible to produce tiles of a different colour, if the necessary pigment is available. The pigment is imported from England and is therefore relatively expensive.

Description of raw matcrials and ready bought parts Tamelt is not using ready bought parts. The raw matenals being used are:

sand Portland cement pigment (Fe02)

water vegetable oil for oiling the moulds

The sand, cement, water and pigment are used to make the mixture necessary to make the tiles. The oil is used to oil the moulds, which makes it easier to separate the tile and the mould. The sand, cement and vegetable oil are bought on the local market The pigment is bought in England. This requires Tamelt to pay in (hard) currency which is not always available.


The delivery time is long because of the distance and the money guarantees demanded by the British. The quality of the raw materials is good, although the sand needs filtering to remove foreign objects like stones or wood. The grain size of the sand is also tested, to prevent leakage of the tiles. The oil used to oil the moulds is not optimal. The tiles and moulds need a manual operatien to ease the separation of the tile and mould by the separating machine. The oil originally used did not require the manual operation, but this oil was imported from the Netherlands and was too expensive for further use.

Identification of features causing product shortcomings Features causing product shortcomings can be production process features, design, and raw material features. Ready bought parts are not used by Tamelt.

Product shortcomings Cause of product shortcoming

Strength - Product design

Weight - Product design

Tile attachment design - Product design (ridges and edges)

A visual presentation of the relations between the product and process shortcomings, according to the secend draft, can be seen in the next figure.

Product shortcoming

Strength

Weight

ile altachment design

( ridges and edges)

Production shortcoming

Product design

It should be mentioned that product design is not really a production process shortcoming, unless the design phase is incorporated in the production process.

ldentification of teehoical remedies lifting product shortcomings As can be seen in the table above, the Tamelt tile shortcomings originate from a not optimal product design. To alleviate these shortcomings the design of the tile could use improvement. To change the design thousands of new moulds have to be ordered, which needs a considerable investment. An ether option would be to change or adjust the roller of the moulding machine to lift some shortcomings. This is probably a cheaper option. For a total redesign of the tile both the moulds and the roller need replacement. The category of improvement, according to the secend draft, which can be identified is category number 3. This category means that the product must be redesigned, that the existing production process parameters are not capable of manufacturing the redesigned product and that production of the redesign is possible by the existing production process configuration.

Appendix C2: TechnolO!:,'Y Audit Report ofTamelt Skandia 65

Further recommendations Currently many handling activities are taking place during the production process of the tiles. This inevitably results in production losses and requires extra employees. After separation of the tiles from the moulds, the tiles are placed on a pallet. This pallet is moved outside to a temporary storage. From this temporary storage the pallets with tiles are moved again to the definite storage. Here the tiles are manually removed from the pallets and stacked on the ground to harden. If a customer buys the tiles they are manually handled in a truck. This process could be simplified by moving the pallets with tiles directly to the definite storage and leaving the tiles on the pallets to harden. If a customer buys the tiles the pallets can be moved into the Tamelt truck. The use of a packaging machine to wrap the tiles would reduce the amount of tiles damaged during transport. The transport of the tiles is after all the responsibility of Tamelt, and any tile broken during transport will costs Tamelt money. At the construction site the tiles can be removed from the pallets and the pallets return to the factory.

The currently used pigment is imported from Great Britain. This implies a long delivery time and payment in hard currency, which can be a problem. It is probably possible to import the pigment from a supplier closer to Tanzania, for example South Africa. This would reduce the delivery time and the shipment costs.

Currently the sand is stored outside without cover and is manually filtered before use. Covering the sand with a roof will keep the sand dry during the rain season, which will ease the filtering process. The use of a mechanical filtering machine will increase the quality of the sand used and will reduce the manual activities.

The oil used to oil the moulds is not optimal. The tiles and moulds need a manual operation to ease the separation of the tile and mould by the separating machine. This manual separation can cause damage and requires extra employees. The oil originally used did not require the manual operation, but this oil was imported from the Netherlands and was too expensive for further use. It is probably possible to import the oil from a supplier closer to Tanzania, for example South Africa. This would reduce the likelihood of damage and the extra handling.

According to the production manager, the maximum capacity is not reached due to, amongst others, lack of working capital. In the current situation, money to buy new raw materials is only available at the moment a customer buys tiles. Because of this lack of working capital customers willing to buy tiles have to be disappointed. If Tamelt receives a capital injection to increase the working capital, the production can be considerably increased. The market demand for tiles is high, all tiles currently produced are easily sold. According to the production manager Tamelt will make a profit at 60 percent of the maximum production capacity, this is about 8500 tiles a day. The capital injection has to be sufficient to reach this daily production.


3. ENTERPRISE PART

General information Currently Tamelt is not producing at normal capacity due to lack of working capital. Only ten percent of the maximum capacity is used, while they start making a profit at 60 percent of maximum capacity. Obviously this costs a lot of money because the employees still have to be paid their salaries and other costs have to be paid as well, such as electricity. The financial situation of Tamelt is therefore not promising.

Product price The average price of Tamelt tiles is 330 Tsh including sales tax. The direct competitor, Mbezi tiles, sells their tiles for 310 Tsh including sales tax.

Management The technica} knowledge of the management (production manager) seems to be sufficient. The logistic knowledge of the management could use some improvement, many unnecessary handling activities are taking place. Ordering raw material in time seems to be a problem, due to the lack of working capital. The management and financial department should make more effort to obtain the neerled working capital. This should be possible because of the high market demand for tiles.

A vailability of information No clear insights in the availability of infonnation and the communication flows were obtained.

Skilis and knowledge of employees The employees are provided with on the job training. Their knowledge to operate the machines seems to be adequate.

Direct enterprise environment The power supply to Tamelt is suffering from occasional interruptions, influencing the overall productivity. No generator is available to supply electricity in case of such a power failure.

The infrastructure around the Tamelt plant is not good. A tannac road runs close to the factory, but the road between Tamelt and this tarmac road is a rather bumpy dirt road. Since Tamelt is responsible for the transport of the tiles to the construction site, this dirt road can cause a high percentage of breakage. The infrastructure in Dar es Salaam is good, having a deep sea harbour, an international airport, and a railway connecting Tanzania with neighbouring countries. Especially the deep sea harbour is useful for Tamelt, the pigment ordered in Great Britain is delivered by means of sea transport.

Appendix C3: Technology Audit Report of Simba Plastics

TECHNOLOGY AUDIT: SIMBA PLASTICS LTD., Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

1. PRODUCT

Manufacturer Simba plastics Ltd., P.O. Box 2459 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Tel. 051-863651-2 General Manager: R.R. Shah Production Manager: P.K. Nair Status: Private owned company Fmmdation year: 1967

Product name The product can be named as: 1 inch HOPE (High Density Poly-Ethylene) pipe. Although the name would suggest a diameter of 1 inch (25,4 mm.), this is not the case. The name 1 inch is used for marketing reasons. Many people still use the English measurement system.


67

The characteristics of the pipe are: outside diameter of 32 (0,0 - 0,7) mm., wall thickness of 2 (0,0 - 0,4) mm., weight 0,196 Kg/m (calculated with a mean density of 0,95 g/cm3

).

Proposed functioning of the product The proposed fonctioning of the pipe is transporting water onder high (max. 6 Kg./cm2 according to DIN 8074) or low pressure.

Actual functioning of the product It is thinkable that the pipe can be used for other purposes except transporting water, for example transporting other liquids (except chemicals) or guiding electricity cables. The main use however is ondoubtable transporting water.

Usual operation conditions of the product The pipes can be used in many different operation conditions. There are limitations however. The maximum pressure the pipe can withstand is 6 Kg./cm2 (according to DIN 8074), the maximum operating temperature is limited (160oC to 180°C), and chemieals can't be transported because HDPE is not chemica} resistant.

Classification of product type Plasticproductscan be classified onder SITC code 893 (Articles of artificial plastic materials).

Identification of branch type The ISIC code for the plastic industry branch is 356. The major division is manufacturing (3), with division 'manufacture of chemieals and chemical, petroleum, coal, rubber and plastic products' (35), with subdivision 'manufacture of plasticproductsnot elsewhere classified' (356).

Identification of market competitors According to the Simba plastics production manager, the local market competitors in the pipe sector are: Plasco, Banco, and Tegry plastics.

68 Tcsting a Technology Audit Methodology

ldentification of market leader In the pipe business Plasco and Simba plastics are of equal size according to the production manager. Plasco is specialized in producing pipes and does not produce other products. Simba on the other hand bas a wide range of plastic products and can be considered market leader in this field. Because of the equal market share of Plasco and Simba no clear market leader can be identified. For this reason and for Plasco's specialism in pipes, a Plasco pipeis chosen for the product comparison.



1. durability

2. reliability

3. safety

4. maintainability


6. versatility

7. performance

The time that the pipe performs its function, transportation of water, adequately. The durability of the pipes is high. According to the. production manager at least 40 years, depending on the handling and use of the pipes. If the pipes are misused, for example subjected to heavy loads or too high a pressure, the durability is adversely effected.

The chance that the pipe performs its function, transportation of water, adequately. The reliability of the Simba pipes is relatively high, according to the production manager 100 percent. The properties of Simba pipes are batch wise tested for strength, and dimensions. Extrusion defects do occur after power failures but these are usually detected by the on line quality check. The pipeisthen scrapped.


The possibilities to replace pipes. The possibility to replace the pipes at the end of their life cycle depends on the attachment and placement of the pipes. lf the pipes are buried deep in the ground replacing is difficult and time consuming. Attachment and placement are not pipe characteristics and therefore not included in the product comparison.

The pipes are sensitive toa hot environment and chemical products. The maximum operating temperature is between 160° C and 180° C. If subjected to these conditions the strength of the pipes can be effected, which can result in leakage.

The pipes are versatile, they can be used totransport other liquids which do noteffect the integrity of the pipes.

The amount of water that can be transported during a certain time interval at a certain pressure. This depends on the inside diameter and roughness of the pipe, and the maximum pressure the pipe can withstand. The inside of the Simba pipe bas grooves which effects the drag coefficient and thus the water flow. The maximum pressure allowed according to DIN 8074 is 6 Kg/cm2

, however the pipe is tested up to 18 Kg./cm2 •

Appendix C3: Tcchnology Audit Report of Simba Plastics 69


9. compatibility

10. ergonornies

11. stomge capabilities

12. norm compliancy




The opemtional complexity of the pipes is very low. Using standard conneetion parts, the pipes can be easily attached. For large scale projects the pipes are sametimes welded together. This requires a special welding machine.

The Simba pipeis manufactured according to DIN 8074. This means the pipe is compatible with standard attachment and conneetion fittings.

Theease of handling the pipes. At the factory 150 meters of pipe are tightened together as a big roll, which is not easy to handle. It doesn't fit in the back of a normal car. nepending on the stomge time these rolls effect the shape of the pipes; the pipes are not stmight, but slightly curved. This negatively effects the handling. Before use, the pipes have to be stmightened, otherwise the attachment won't fit and you will lose some length.

The possibility to store the pipes without losing performance. The pipes can be stored fora long time without losing performance. The only chamcteristic being effected is the stmightness of the pipe, as mentioned under ergonomics.

The Simba pipeis manufactured according to DIN 8074. This means the outside diameter, the weight, as wellas the wall thickness have to be within a certain toleranee range. According to DIN 8074 the HDPE pipe must have the following chamcteristics: an outside diameter of 32 (0,0 -0,7) mm., a weight of 0,196 Kg/m (calculated with a mean density of 0,95 g/cm3

) ·and a wall thickness of 2 (0,0- 0,4) mm. Of a random bought sample of Simba HDPE pipe, the outside diameter varled from: 31,5 mm. to 31,9 mm. This range is mainly caused by the rolling of the pipes; the pipeis a slightly oval insteadof circular. The outside diameter of our sample is clearly not according to the DIN 8074. The wall thickness varled from: 1.7 mm. to 2.7 mm. This is also not according to the DIN standard. With the limited equipment at our disposal it is not possible to accumtely determine the weight of our sample.

The pipe consistsof one partand thus this chamcteristic is not meaningful for the product comparison.

The material used for the pipes is polyethylene. This material is not degmdable and thus harmful for the environment.

3. use of mre matenals No rare matenals are being used.


1. look The amount of surface damage apparent on the pipes and the overall shape of the pipe. The Simba pipeis smooth and shiny but with a little damage probably caused by handling. The wall thickness is visibly notconstant along the circumference of the pipe.


2. smell Not applicable in this case.

3. noise Not applicable in this case.

4. feel The surface of the Simba pipe feels smooth.

Although not a product characteristic according to the second draft, norm compliancy has been added, because it can be an important product characteristic. Simba plastics claims to produce according to the DIN 8074 standards and this feature is added to see whether they meet this standard.

In order to determine the importance of the product characteristics, a pair wise comparison technique is used. With this technique each product characteristic is compared with each other, one at a time, by asking the question: 'Which is more important when buying this product'. Granted, this question can be hard to answer when comparing two dissimHar characteristics, but it is still important to decide which of the two is the dominant (Ullman; page 122). The comparison can be found in the following matrix. Some remarks should be made, the comparison is done from a Western viewpoint and secondly, from the view of a student. Due to lack of time and the purpose of the Technology Audit; quick scan, no interviews with the local population about their buying habits have been performed.

Product characteristics 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Tot.

1. Durability - 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10

2. Reliability 0 - 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 9

3. Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 0 0 - 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 7

4. V ersatility 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 5

5. Performance 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 13

6. Operational complexity 1 1 1 1 0 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12

7. Compatibility 1 1 1 1 0 0 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 11

8. Ergonornies 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 - 1 1 1 1 0 1 6


10. Norm compliancy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0

11. Ecological impacts of materials 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 1 0 0 2


13. Look 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 8

14. Fee! 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 - 3

With this ranking one can asses the relative importance of a product shortcoming. In the following table a piece of Simba pipe will be compared toa piece of Plasco pipe. Random pieces of pipe from the beginning of random pipe rolls were obtained from a random shopkeeper in the Dar es Salaam city centre. In the next tablesome product characteristics are translated into pipe-specific sub-characteristics, in order to simplify the comparison. The grading of the product characteristics is done according to the second draft:

+ 0

?


=

=

Simba pipeis better than the product characteristic of the Plasco pipe; Simba pipe is equal to the product chamcteristic of the Plasco pipe; Simba pipeis worse than the product chamcteristic of the Plasco pipe; no data available at the company and not measurable by us in the time available to perform TAM.

Product characteristic Rank Characteristic description Simba compared with Plasco pipe

Perfonnance 13 lnside diameter -

lnside roughness of pipe -

Maximum pressure allowed ?

Operational complexity 12 Ease ofuse 0

Compatibility 11 Possibility to use standard conneetion parts 0

Durability 10 Life expectancy 0

Reliability 9 Pipe failure expectancy ?

Look 8 Surface damage -

Constantness of wal! thickness -

Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 7 Heat resistancy 0

Chemica! resistancy 0

Ergonornies 6 Ease of handling 0

Straightening needed 0

Versatility 5 Ability to transport other liquids 0

Starage capabilities 4 Pipe straightness 0

Feel 3 Surface smoothness +

Ecological impacts of materials 2 Environmentally friendly materials are used 0


Nonn compliancy 0 Outside diameter according to DIN 8074 -

Weight according to DIN 8074 ?

Wal! thickness according to DIN 8074 -

Both pipe samples are made of the same material: poly-propylene, this implies that many product characteristics (heat resistancy, chemical resistancy, environmental friendliness, etc.) are the same. The packaging, when leaving the factory, of both samples is the same as well.

Explanation of the product shortcomings

71

The product shortcomings are sorted in decreasing number of significance, according to the ranking factors.

Inside diameter Both the Simba pipe and the Plasco pipe are called one inch pipes, and should have the dimensions described in DIN 8074. However, the inside diameter of the Plasco pipe is slightly larger, thus increasing the flow capacity of the pipe and consequently the performance of the pipe. This difference in diameter is very small, less than 1 mm., and the difference in performance is probably equally small.


Inside roughness of pipe The inside roughness of the Simba pipe is worse than the Plasco pipe. The Simba pipe bas little grooves rwming in the length of the pipe on the inside, which can be easily felt. According to the Simba production manager the effects of roughness on the flow capacity of a pipe is negligible.

Surface damage The amount of surface damage on the Simba pipe is more apparent than on the Plasco pipe. After the extrusion process no obvious surface damage can be detected. The damaged is caused by the many handling activities which are conducted in the Simba factory. This handling is sometimes very rough.

Constantness of wal! thickness By examining the cross sections of the pipe samples, it is obvious that the constantnessof the wall thickness of the Simba pipeis low. The Plasco pipe wall thickness is more constant. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe varled between: 1. 7 mm. and 2. 7 mm and the thickness of the Plasco pipe between 2.0 and 2.3 mm.

Outside diameter according to DIN 8074 According to DIN 8074 the HDPE pipe must have the an outside diameter of 32 (0,0- 0,7) mm., Of our random bought samples of HDPE pipe, the outside diameter of the Simba pipe varled between 31,5 mm. and 31,9 mm and the outside diameter of the Plasco pipe between 32,0 mm. and 33,5 mm .. These ranges are mainly caused by the rolling of the pipes; the pipes are slightly oval insteadof circular. The outside diameter of the Simba pipeis clearly not according to the DIN 8074 because even the largest diameter is less than the prescribed 32 mm ..

Wal! thickness according to DIN 8074 According to DIN 8074 the HDPE pipe must have a wall thickness of 2 (0,0 - 0,4) mm. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe varled between: 1.7 mm. and 2.7 mm. and the thickness of the Plasco pipe between 2.0 and 2.3 mm. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe is clearly not according to the DIN standard, the Plasco pipeis within the toleranee range of the DIN standard.



Simba Plastics Ltd. produces a vast amount of products, ranging from pipes to ice cream cups. At the request of the production manager the TAM is performed on the pipe division of Simba and our focus will be on the 1 inch HOPE pipe. The pipe division also produces PVC pipes and flexible garden hoses. Because of the large amount of products the production facilities are also large and widespread. Simba has three different production plants separated by a few kilometres. Each production plant consists of a number of buildings with different product divisions. The layout of the production process will therefore only cover the pipe production, which is one building of one production plant.

Layout of the production process The layout of the pipe production processis shown in the next figure.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

~ 14

olll D0ll" 12

raw material mixers raw material storage mixed raw material

~ 16

m

automatic spiral loader with filter extrusion machine

30

[;]

9

17. 18. 19. 20. 21.

0

0

31

32

32

rolls of HOPE pipe scrap machines water cooler water filter water pumps

73

7-l-

6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

cooling reservoirs traction puller pvc pipe cutter intermediate pvc pipe storage pvc pipe flange machine finished pvc pipe storage HOPE pipe rolling machine scrap HOPE pipe grinder scrap HOPE pipes storage scrap pvc pipe grinder scrap pvc pipe storage

Flow chart of the production process

22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32.


diesel generator automatic power switch boards power switches die storage room office pipe testing laboratory used cooling water gulleys cooling water supply gulleys dressing room outside pipe storage doors

The production processof the HOPE pipes is depicted in the next figures. The symbols used are the ones prescribed by the secend draftof the TAM.

1. 2. 3. 4.

extrusion machine e<truding liD PB pipe >

'cooler' <oooling the pipe>

poly-ethylene grains electricity cooling water waste water

'rolling' 'cuttiri ' 'testinf

5. 6. 7.

to store

hot extruded HOPE pipe cooled extruded HOPE pipe fmished HOPE pipe

Appendix C3: Tcchnology Audit Report of Simba Plastics 75

Flow process chart The flow chart on the previous page is not the standard logistic method of depicting a production process. In this paragraph the standard method with the standard logistic symbols is used to construct a flow process chart. This standard method is described in armex B of our research proposal. A flow process chart provides very accurate information about the production proce~. It is a systematical reproduetion of every step in the production process of a product.

general storage

manual transport of raw material to pipe production hall

storage in production hall

transport to extrusion machine

intermediale storage by extrusion machine

extrusion process

cooling process

traction pulling of pipe

intermediale storage of finished pipe

cutting process

diameter inspeetion

rolling of pipe in 150 meter rolls

inetermediate storage of pipe roUs

manual transport to fmished product storage

finished product storage

During the extrusion and cooling processes the pipeis transporred as well. This is not depicted in this flow process chart, because the operations are the main purpose of the process. With this process flowchart the handling and transportation actlvities can be shown more accurately. A drawback of using this method is that the various inputs of the machines are not immediately apparent.




Machine Degree of Predictability Capacity of Flexibility mechanisation of quality machine of machine

Extrusion machine self-checking machine high high medium ** Traction puller self-acting machine high* high low

* The predictability of quality of the traction pulter is high. The only function it performs is pulling the material through the die of the extrusion machine.

** The flexibility of the extrusion machine is medium. By changing the die of the machine, many different products can be extruded.

Toleranee Tolerances are important at Simba plastic, because the pipes are produced according to DIN 8074. This standard implies that the dimensions of the pipe have to be within a certain toleranee range. According to DIN 8074 the HOPE pipe must have the following characteristics: an outside diameter of 32 ( toleranee within 0,0- 0,7) mm., a weight of 0,196 Kg/m (calculated with a mean density of 0,95 g/cm3

) and a wall thickness of 2 ( toleranee within 0,0 - 0,4) mm. Sometimes pipes are produced which do not comply with this standard. This is done at special request from the customer if a cheaper product is needed. The tolerances are mainly determined by the die and the speed of the extrusion process.

Capacity The average capacity of the production process depends on the diameter of the pipe. For small diameters, including the 1 inch pipe, the average capacity is about 5 or 6 meters per minute. For larger diameters the capacity is less, about 3 or 4 meters per minute. The maximum capacity of the machines is higher than these figures, about 9 meters per minute, depending on the diameter of the pipe. According to the production manager, the maximum capacity is not reached due to power failures, human errors, lack of water, and the possible occurrence of extrusion defects if producing at a higher speed. The planning of raw material purebases is managed properly. The purchasing process is started three month in advance because of the long delivery time. The pipes production is a continuous process, if a part of the production line fails the production stops. All 6 HOPE pipe production lines are capable of producing the same diameters. The machine which fails mostoften is the mixing machine. This machine is only used for the production of pvc pipes and is therefore not relevant for the description of the HOPE pipes production process

flexibility The flexibility of the production process is high. All pipe diameters can be produced by all the extrusion machines due to the fact that each extrusion machine bas the same set of dies. Extruding other shapes is also possible if the dies are available. Changing the die of an extrusion machine is fairly easy, it takesabout 3 to 4 hours. This time is mainly caused by cooling down the old die and warming up the new die. Purchasing a new die takes about 3 to 4 weeks. New dies can be bought on the local market, but are sometimes imported from India.

Appendix C3: Tcchnology Audit Report of Simba Plastics

Description of raw materials and ready bought parts For making the 1 inch HOPE pipe, Simba Plastics does not use ready bought parts, except when a machine breaks down, spare parts are imported. The raw material being used is: high-density polyethylene. This is the base material for the HOPE pipe. This material can not be obtained locally; Simba Plastics imports bags of HOPE grains from: Italy, Spain, South Africa, India and Germany. As mentioned before, the time between ordering the raw materials and the delivery, takes about three months. This requires an adequate and efficient ordering process.

Identification of features causing product shortcomings Features causing product shortcomings can be production process features, design, and raw material features. Ready bought parts are not used by Simba Plastics.


lnside diameter - Die not manufactured according to dimension specifications. - Wom down die.

lnside roughness of pipe - Die (internal mandrel) not manufactured according to surface specifications. - Worn down die (mternal mandrel).

- Inadequate cooling of the die (internal mandrel).

Surface damage - The many manual handling processes cause damage.

Constantness of wall thickness - Die not manufactured according to dimension specifications. - Worn down die.

Outside diameter according to - Die not manufactured according to dimension specifications. DIN 8074 - Rolling of the pipe.

Wal! thickness according to - Die not manufactured according to dimension specifications. DIN 8074 - Worn down die.

77

A visual presentation of the relations between the product and process shortcomings can be seen in the next figure.

Product shortcoming

Inside diameter

Inside roughness

Surface damage

Constantness of wall thickness

Outside diameter acc. tD DIN 8074

Wal! thickness acc. tD DIN 8074


Womdowndie

Inadequate cooling ofthe die

Manual handling processes

Rollingofthe pipe


Identification of teehoical remedies lifting product shortcomings As can beseen in the table above, the Simba pipe shortcomings originate from a not optimal production process. Most product shortcomings originate from the use of a faulty die. To alleviate these shortcomings the die needs to be replaced or adjusted. The design of the product and the con:figuration of the production process can remain the same. The category of improvement, according to the second draft, which can be identified is category number 5. The categoties of improverneut are rather ambiguous and do not describe all product shortcomings and remedies adequately. Therefore a classification can be made of possible technical remedies in decreasing order of significanee according to the importance of the product shortcoming.

Inside diameter The inside diameter of the Simba pipeis smaller than the DIN standard prescribes. The allowed range is 29,6 to 30,7 mm, but the actual range is 26,9 to 27,8 mm. The cause of this deviation can be excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced or adjusted.

Inside roughness of pipe The inside roughness of the Simba pipeis worse than the Plasco pipe. This can be caused by excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. A third possibility is inadequate cooling of the internal mandrel of the die. This can cause the plastic to deform, however our expertise is not in this field. The first two shortcomings can be alleviared by replacing or adjusting the die.

Surface damage The amount of surface damage on the Simba pipeis more apparent than on the Plasco pipe. This damaged is caused by the many manual handling activities which are conducted in the Simba factory. This handling is sometimes very rough. A solution for this problem is the use of a mobile trolley totransport the pipes between the various stores. To apply this solution the current layout of the pipe production hall needs to be changed. The corridors now available are to narrow to make efficient use a trolley. Simba is developing plans to restmeture the production process which would make the use of trolleys a possibility.

Constantness of wall thickness By examining the cross sections of the pipe samples, it is obvious that the constantnessof the wall thickness of the Simba pipeis low. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe varled between: 1.7 mm. and 2. 7 mm. The cause of this wide range can be excessive local wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced or adjusted.

Outside diameter according to DIN 8074 According to DIN 8074 the HDPE pipe must have the an outside diameter of 32 (0,0- 0,7) mm., Of our random bought sample of Simba HDPE pipe, the outside diameter varled between 31,5 mm. and 31,9 mm. This range is mainly caused by the rolling of the pipe; the pipeis slightly oval in stead of circular. The outside diameter of the Simba pipe is clearly not according to the DIN 8074 because even the largest diameter is less than the prescribed 32 mm. The cause of this can be that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced. The deviation in the outside diameter caused by the rolling of the pipe can not be removed, unless the pipe is sold in short straight pieces. This solution has the obvious drawback that many connections have to be made, which is expensive and time consuming.

Appendix C3: Technolob'Y Audit Report of Simba Plastics 79

Wall thickness according to DIN 8074 According to DIN 8074 the HOPE pipe must have a wall thickness of 2 (0,0 - 0,4) mm. The wall thickness of the Simba pipe varled between: 1.7 mm. and 2.7 mm. The wall thickness of the Simba pipeis clearly not according to the DIN standard. The cause of this deviation can be excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. To lift this shortcoming the die needs to be replaced or adjusted.

Forther recommendations The current layout of the pipe production building is inefficient, many manual handling actlvities are taking place as can be seen in the flow process chart. This manual handling requires a lot of time of many employees, besides resulting in inevitable production and raw materialloss. A complete restructuring of the layout by placing the machines in working sequence, with at the beginning the raw matenals storage and at the end the fmished products storage, without any intermediate storage, would remove the need for many manual handling activities.

The waste water gulleys are often not covered and constitute a serious hazard for the employees, in addition to causing a huge monthly loss of water. If the current layout is changed Simba should use the opportunity to replace the many twisting gulleys by one common drainage pipe.

The current electrical system is a confusion of electrical units and switch boards. Each time an extrusion line was added, more units and boards were placed Many cables are without proper insulation and could be trippedover easily. This situation is dangerous, confusing and new machines can't be installed easily. If a restructuring of the layout is to succeed, a complete overhaul of the electrical system is recommended as well. A single electrical unit capable of connecting all existing and newly ordered machines is required The current generator needs to be replaced or a second generator added, because it is unable to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure. The costs of stopping certain machines needs to be compared with the costs of buying a new generator.

The overall impression of the production areasis untidy, with finished pipes and scrap plastic and scrap machines everywhere. Currently the finished pipe output of 5 machines is twisting around on the floor prior to rolling them on the one rolling machine in use. Placing a rolling machine at the end of each HOPE extrusion line would reduce the amount of pipe lingering on the floor. The finished products (HOPE pipe, PVC pipe and garden hoses) should be removed more often to the appropriate finished product storage. This will create some useful working space. The scrap machines should be removed immediately from the pipe production hall, it occupies valuable working space. Finally, cleaning the production area of scrap plastic more often gives a better overall impression.

Improvements in the quality awareness of Simba Plastic employees will improve the quality of the pipes and thus reducing the percentage production loss. Making the employees more aware of the costs of the raw materials in use, could reduce the amount of raw material being wasted.


3. ENTERPRISE PART

General information Simba Plastics Ltd. produces a vast amount of products, ranging from pipes to ice cream cups. Because of the large amount of products the production facilities are also large and widespread. Simba bas three different production plants separated by a few kilometres. Each production plant consistsof a number of buildings with different product divisions. Currently Simba Plastics is not producing at the average capacity, due to the water shortage and power failures which are occurring three to four times a day. The management of Simba Plastics consists almost entirely of people of lndian origin. Many Indian expatriates are allowed to reside in Tanzania for three years only. This implies that the management bas to be changed regularly.

Product price The cost price of the product is approximately 37.150 Shilling per 150 meter pipe. The market price of 150 meter HOPEpipeis 45.900 Shilling. lf a large amount of pipeiS ordered, more than 25 rolls of 150 meter, a discount of about 15 percent is offered. The market price for 150 meter pipeisthen 38,900 Shilling. At one local store a price of 36.000 Shilling for 150 meter Simba or Plasco pipe was mentioned. According to the production manager this must have been an old batch or part of a very large order. The percentage of profit used to calculate the market price is 4 to 5 percent.

Management The technica! knowledge of the management (production manager) is very good. The materials management is good as well. Ordering raw material in time seems to be no problem despite the long delivery time and market uncertainty.

A vailability of information The availability of information seems to be no problem. The production manager was able to show detailed information about production loss, capacity, operating hours etc. per machine.

Skilis and knowledge of employees The employees are provided with on the job training and some employees are provided with external training. Their knowledge to operate the machines seems to be adequate, but an improvement in quality and costs awareness could be useful.

Direct enterprise environment The power supply to Simba Plastics is suffering from regular interruptions, influencing the overall productivity and production losses. The current generator is unable to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure. After each power faiture many meters of pipe are to be scrapped, due to cooling down of the mould and plastic.

The infrastructure in and around the Simba Plastic plants is good, a tarmac road runs next to all three factories. The infrastructure in Dar es Salaam is good, having a deep sea harbour, an international airport, and a railway connecting Tanzania with neighbouring countries. Especially the deep sea harbour is useful for Simba Plastic, the raw materials ordered abroad are delivered by means of sea transport.

Appendix C..J.: Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals 81

TECHNOLOGY AUDIT: MANSOOR DAYA CHEMICALS LTD., Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

1. PRODUCT

Manufacturer Mansoor Daya Chemieals Ltd., P.O. Box 2999 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Tel. 051-860130 Managing Director: Mansoor Daya PhC. Production Manager: Mister Jackson Status: Private owned company Foundation year: 1960

Product name The product can be named as: X-pel super insect spray.

Product characteristics The active ingredients of X-pel are Pyrethrins and Piperonyl Butoxide. The pressurising gas used in the X-pel container is CFC.

Proposed functioning of the product The proposed functioning of X-pel is killing flies, mosquitos, wasps and other flying insects. X-pel can also be used to kill roaches, water bugs, silverfish, spiders and crickets.

X-pel should be used as follo'YI!s: Point valve away and press button down. Close doors and windows and spray into the air in all directions for 3 to 5 seconds. Leave room closed for 10 minutes. Por killing roaches, water bugs, silverfish, spiders and crickets, spray into hiding places, cracks, crevices, baseboards and window frames, directly on insects if possible. Repeat if necessary. Avoid spraying directly on to food or plants. Remove cage birds or bowls before spraying.

Actual functioning of the product It is thinkable that X-pel can be used for killing other insects than described on the container.

Usual operation conditions of the product X-pel can be used in many different eperation conditions. There are limitations however. Because the container is pressurised, environments which can cause puncturing or hearing of the container have to be avoided. The container has to be stored in a cool place.

Classification of product type Insect spray can be classified onder SITC code 599 (chemical materials and products, n.e.s.)

Identification of branch type The major division is manufacturing (3), with division 'manufacture of chemieals and chemical, petroleum, coal, rubber and plastic products' (35), with subdivision 'manufacture of other chemical products' (352).


ldentification of market competitors According toMister Daya the competitors are all imported aerosols, Mansoor Daya is the only Tanzanian producer of insect spray. Imported insect sprays are:

'Baygon' from Bayer, Indonesia, 400 ml., 2000 Tsh.; 'Doom' from CGP-holding, South Africa, 325 ml., 1600 Tsh.; 'BlackJack' from Safeguard Chemical Corporation, USA, 11 oz, 1800 Tsh.

Identification of market leader According toMister Daya, X-pel has the largest market share in Tanzania. X-pel is therefore compared with the product Baygon from one of the international market leaders Bayer from Germany.



1. durability

2. reliability

3. safety

4. maintainability


6. versatility

7. performance

The time the container can be used by continuous spraying. By relating this time to the volume of the container an indicator for the durability is obtained. The 350 ml. X-pel container can be continuously used for about 80 seconds. If, according to the specifications, 3 to 5 seconds cycles are used, the container can be used for 16 to 27 cycles.

The chance that the container performs its ftmction, spraying insecticide, adequately. The reliability of the X-pel container is high. Each X-pel liquid mixture is tested for its chemical composition, and filtered twice before entering the container. This ensures that the risk of spray nozzle blockage is negligible.

Measurements taken to prevent injuries of users of X-pel. X-pel is nonpoisonous and non-inflammable. Operating instructions and warnings are printed in English on the container to inform the customer of how to use X-pel.

Not applicable in this case. The container can't be refilled.

The containers are sensitive toa hot environment and should be kept in a cool place. An environment risking puncturing of the container should be avoided as well, because the containers are pressurized.

X-pel can be used to killother insects, besides its main ftmction killing flies, wasps, mosquitos and other flying insects. It can be used for killing crawling insects, like roaches, as well.

The ability of X-pel to effectively kill various insects. By own experience we can conclude that the performance of X-pel is good. It speedily killed the mosquitos, flies and roaches in the researchers sleeping accommodations.

Appendix C-1-: Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals 83


9. compatibility

10. ergonornies


The operational complexity of X-pel is very low. Using the directions pnnted on the container, the user is instructed in how to use X-pel. These directions are clear and understandable: Point valve away and press button down. Close doors and windows and spray into the air in all directions for 3 to 5 seconds. Leave room closed for 10 minutes. For killing roaches, water bugs, silverfish, spiders and cnckets, spray into hieling places, cracks, crevices, baseboards and window frames, directly on insects if possible. Repeat if necessary. Avoid spraying directly on to food or plants. Remove cage birds or bowls before spraying.


Theease of handling the X-pel container. The container is notheavy and easy to handle. The diameter of the container is such that it fits easily in the hand. The cap can be removed easily without applying much force. The spray nozzle is easy to press down.

The possibility to store the product without losing performance. The X-pel containerscan be stored fora long time without losing performance. X-pel has no expire date, but according to the rnanaging director it can be stored for at least 5 years.

12. norm compliancy X-pel is approved by the Tropical Pesticides Research Institute, Arusha and the Tanzania Bureau of Standards.




The container is constructed as every other aerosol container and this charactenstic is therefore not meaningful for the product comparison.

The ingredients used in X-pel are all natural products and therefore not harmful for the environment. The pressurizing gas used in the X -pel container is CFC and thus extremely harmful to the ozone layer.



1. look

2. smell

3. noise

4. feel

Appearance and attractiveness of the container. The colours and design of the X-pel container are attractive to the eye and make the purpose of the contents immediately clear.

According to the rnanaging elirector X-pel is made to smelllike pine. Although we can't detect the pine smell, the smell of X-pel is not unpleasant. However, it can be smelled for a long time after usage.


The container is constructed as every other aerosol container and this charactenstic is therefore not meaningful for the product comparison.

8-1- Testing a Technology Audit Methodology

In order to detennine the importance of the product characteristics, a pair wise comparison technique is used. With this technique each product characteristic is compared with each other, one at a time, by asking the question: 'Which is more important when buying insecticide'. Granted, this question can be hard to answer when comparing two dissimHar characteristics, but it is still important to decide which of the two is the dominant (Ullman; page 122). The comparison can be found in the following matrix. Some remarks should be made, the comparison is done from a Western viewpoint and secondly, from the view of a student. Due to lack of time and the purpose of the Technology Audit; quick scan, no interviews with the local population about their buying habits have been performed.

Product characteristics 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Tot

1. Durability - 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12

2. Re1iability 0 - 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 6

3. Safety 0 1 - 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 10

4. Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 4

5. Versatility 0 1 0 1 - 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 8

6. Perfonnance 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 13

7. Operational comp1exity 0 0 0 1 0 0 - 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 6

8. Ergonornies 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0


10. Nonn compliancy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 - 0 0 0 1 2

11. Ecological impacts of materials 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 10


13. Look 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 - 1 6

14. Smell 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 - 2

With this ranking one can asses the relative importance of a product shortcoming. In the following tableX-pel from Mansoor Daya will be compared to Baygon from Bayer. A random container from each manufacturer was obtained from a random shopkeeper in the Dar es Salaam city centre. In the next tablesome product characteristics are translated into product-specific subcharacteristics, in order to simplify the comparison. The grading of the product characteristics is done according to the second draft:

+ 0

?

= = = =

X-pel is better than the product characteristic of Baygon; X-pel is equal to the product characteristic of Baygon; X-pel is worse than the product characteristic of Baygon; no data available at the company and not measurable by us in the time available to perform TAM.

Appendix C-l: Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals

Product characteristic Rank Characteristic description X-pel compared with Baygon

Performance 13 Killing potentlal ?*

Durability 12 Volume related spraying time ?

Safety 10 Non-toxicity +

Non-flammability +

Operating instructions -

Warnings -

Storage capabilities 10 Expire date -

Ecological impacts of materials 10 Active ingredients +

Pressurising gas -

Versatility 8 Flying insects 0

Crawling insects 0

Reliability 6 Container faiture expectancy 0

Operational complexity 6 Required number of actions 0

Time required +

Look** 6 Colours of container +

Design of container +

Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 4 Heat resistancy ?

Puncturing resistancy 0

Norm compliancy 2 ***


Smell 2 Smell of insecticide -

Ergonornies 0 Ease of handling +

* **

The killing potential is not measurable by us with the available equipment and time. The characteristic 'look' is very subjective. In our apinion the X-pel container is more attractive than the Baygon container. We prefer blue over green.

85

*** Norm compliancy is not camparabie because of the different norms used in Tanzania and Germany.

Volume related spraying time lf the volumes of X-pel and Baygon are related toeach other, 400 mi. of X-pel can be used for 91 seconds and 400 mi. of Baygon for 208 seconds. This would suggest that the durability of Baygon is significantly higher. If however the prescribed spraying cycles are compared, 400 mi. of X-pel can be used for 18 to 30 cycles of 3 to 5 seconds, while Baygon cart be used for 21 cycles of 10 seconds (for 20m2

). Using this criteria the durability of X-pel can be higher than the durability of Baygon. The length of the cycles used depends on the killing potential of the products and the number of square meters that needs to be sprayed. The killing potential is not measurable by us with the available equipment and time, and X-pel does not explicitly mention the number of square meters which cart be effectively sprayed with one cycle. lt is therefore not possible to come to a reliable condusion regarding the durability.



Operating instructions The operating instructions of the Baygon container are very detailed and printed on the container in Englishand Swahili. The X-pel instructions are less detailed and only printed in English. This can cause problems for the non English speaking part of the population of Tanzania.

Warnings The warnings on the Baygon container are more elaborate than the warnings on the X -pel container. On the Baygon container the warnings are more specific, like a maximum operating temperature of 50 o C, whereas on the X-pel container the warning is 'don't throw into fire and keep in a cool place'. The Baygon container has more warnings but this is caused by the more harmful contents of this insecticide.

Expire date The Baygon container is printed with the manufacturing date and the expire date. The X-pel container lacks such information. The information on the Baygon container states a maximum usage time of 3 years. According to the rnanaging director of Mansoor Daya the maximum usage time of X-pel is at least 5 years. X-pel is not supplied with an expire date because, according to the rnanaging director, X-pel is used by the customer before that time. The stock held by Mansoor Daya and the various wholesalers and shopkeepers is very small, and will be used before 5 years have passed.

Pressurising gas The pressurising gas used in the Baygon container is natural gas. As statedon the container, this gas is not harmful to the ozone layer. X-pel uses CFC gas for pressurising the container. This gas causes serious damage to the ozone layer. In June/July of 1997 the CFC gas will be replaced by natural gas as well, thus alleviating this shortcoming.

Smell of insecticide According to the rnanaging director X-pel is made to smelllike pine. Although we can't detect the pine smeU, the smell of X-pel is not unpleasant but rather strong. It can be smelled for a long time after usage. The smell of Baygon is a sweet vanilla like smell, which is not as strong as X -pel.

Appendix C..j.: Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals 87


Mansoor Daya Chemieals Ltd. produces a vast amooot of products, ranging from cough syrup to insecticide. The TAM is performed on the X-pel insecticide because we use this product almost daily and it is thus very familiar. The layout of the production process will only cover the hall in which X-pel is produced. The adjacent halls will not be drawn. The entire building is a maze of rooms, halls and galleys which would require a long time to be accurately drawn.

Layout of the production process The layout of the X-pel production processis shown in the next figure.

16

28

15 17

---r-

19 [ 0 18

21 20

23

22

26 24

25 25

27

88

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Large mixing tank Small mixing tank X -pel raw material storage X-pel filter stack CFC storage tank Finished and fittered X-pel mixture X-pel filter X-pel pump X -pel filter machine CFC pump Scale X-pel packaging table X-pel manual filling machines Electrical switch board

Flow chart of the production process

15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28.


Door Main storage Production managers office Mixing machine Ovens Label printing machine Finished product storage Bottle filling department Tablet punching section Tablet mixing section Laboratory Finished X-pel storage Offices CFC storage ( outside)

The production processof the X-pel containers is depicted in the next figures. The symbols used are the ones prescribed by the second draft of the TAM.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Pyrethrins Piperonyl Butoxide Odourless kerosene Electricity Finished mixture

Tornixture store

'Filter stack' <filtering mixture>

6. 7. 8. 9.

Tofinished product store

Liquid CFC gas Empty X-pel container Compressed air FinishedX-pelcontainers

Appendix C4: Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals 89

Flow process chart The flowchart on the previous page is not the standard logistic method of depicting a production process. In this paragraph the standard method with the standard logistic symbols is used to construct a flow process chart. This standard method is described in annex B of our research proposal. A flow process chart provides very accurate information about the production process. It is a systematical reproduetion of every step in the production process of a product.

empty containe11

container disassembie

can

CFC

butoxide pyrethrins kerosene

ingredieDIB meaourement

mixer

filterstack

mter

I

1 6lling of can I I I 1 nozzle insertion I I

: nozzle anachment I I

: CFC injection I

weigin messurement

cap altachment

The dashed line in this figure depiets the filling machine. Although the container is transporred in this machine, this is not indicated in this flowprocesschart for sake of clarity. In order to keep this chart uncluttered, not every symbol is described. With this process flow chart the handling and transportation actlvities can be shown more accurately. A drawback of using this method is that the various inputs of the machines are not immediately apparent.




Machine Degree of mechanisation Predictability of Capacity of Flexibility of quality machine machine

Mixing tank self-acting machine high* high medium ..

Filling machine self-acting machine high* high medium ..

* The predictability of quality of the mixing tank and filling machine is high. After a number of hours mixing, the mixture in the mixing tank is properly stirred. The filling machine bas an average production loss of less than 0.1 percent. ** The flexibility of the mixing tank and filling machine is medium. The mixing tank can be used to mix other compounds, and the filling machine is capable of filling different size containers with varloos productsas well.

Toleranee Tolerances are off relative importallee twice during the production of X-pel. During the measurement of the X-pel mixture ingredients and during the filling of the container. The tolerances for the ingredients are of minor importallee becaose of the size of the mixing tank (10,000 Litre). If the amount of one ingredient is slightly misjudged, the effect of this misjudgment on the entire mixture is negligible. The tolerances during the filling of the container are of more importallce. lf the amount of gas injected in to the container is wrong, the pressure in the container can be too low to use all of the X-pel inside. Filling mistakes are detected by measuring the weight of the containers after filling. Approximately 1 can in 5000 doesnotmeet the prescribed nett weight of 250 grams, so the filling accuracy of the filling machine is very good.

Capacity The capacity of the mixing tank is 10,000 litres, which is enough to fill 20,000 containers of Xpel. The average mixing time is about 3 hours. The maximum capacity of the filling machine is 30,000 containers per day (8 hours). This maximum capacity is not reached because the manual insertion of the nozzle and the packaging of the filled containers can not keep up with this amount. In June/July 1997 the production process will be changed to use natoral gas insteadof CFC. With the new production process, the insertion of the spray nozzles will be done automatically thos reducing this capacity limit. The capacity reached duringa normal day of 8 hours is about 10,000 containers, however X-pel is not produced each day of the week. X-pel is produced to stock. Each week is determined how many cans will be produced that week, depending on the market situation and the available stock.

flexibility The flexibility of the production process is medium. The mixing tank can be used to mix other compounds, and the filling machine is capable of filling different size containers with varloos productsas well. The filling machine set-up time required to change the product being producedis about 30 minutes. Depending on the type of product and the type of can, the injection of mixture and gas bas to be changed, the tool attaching the nozzle needs to be adjusted, and the varloos tubes and pipes have to be floshed.

Description of raw matcrials and ready bought parts Por the production of X-pel Mansoor Daya imports ready bought parts and raw material from abroad, but uses also raw materials available on the local market The empty containers are imported from Kenya, withall the components (cap, nozzle and can) assembled. This avoids having to pay import duties on theseparate components, only one duty on the complete container bas to be paid. No local container manufacturer is available, but the quality of the imported containers is very good, with almost no rejects.

Appendi:x C.-k Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals 91

The filters used in the filtering machine are imported from Switzerland. The filters can be used only once. For each mixture batch 5 filters are needed. The Pyrethrins are extracted from locally grown daisy flowers. The flowers are transported to the USA or Great Britain, where the Pyrethrins are extracted. The extracted Pyrethrins are then shipped back to Tanzania. The Pyrethrin extraction process can not be done in Tanzania. The CFC pressurising gas is imported from India, but in June/July 1997 the pressurising gas will be changed to locally available natural gas. The synthetic Piperonyl Butoxide is imported from the V.K., because also no local manufacturer is available. The odourless kerosene (Shellsol T.) is locally available from Shell. The Pyrethrins have a paralysing effect on insects which enables the Butoxide to kill them. The odourless kerosene is used to dilute the Pyrethrins and Butoxide, because these products are very concentrated.

Identification of features causing product shortcomings Features causing product shortcomings can be production process features, design features, raw material features or ready bought parts features.


Operating instructions - Container design

Warnings - Container design

Expire date - Container design

Pressurising gas - Raw material shortcoming

Smell of insecticide - Design of X-pel mixture

A visual presentation of these relations can be seen in the next figure.

Product shortcoming

Operating instructien

Warnings

Expire date

Pressurising gas

SmeU of inseeticide


Container design

Raw material

Design of X-pel mixture

Identification of teehoical remedies lifting product shortcomings As can be seen in the table and tigure above, the X -pel shortcomings originate from a not optimal design and raw material choice. In the second draft, the latter can't be found in the six categoties of improvement Material choice is therefore considered to be part of the design of the product. The category of impravement which can be identified using the second draft is category 4. This category states: the product must be redesigned, the existing production process parameters are not


capable of manufacturing the redesigned product, and production of the redesign requires changes of configuration of the existing production process. According to the second draft this category will never occur if TAM is executed properly. We feel this is not correct, category 4 is possible but requires a large capital investment. By changing the pressurising gas from CFC to natural gas the production process configuration has to be changed by adding a new gas injection and automatic nozzle insertion machine. The existing production process parameters have to be changed as well in order to use the natural gas. The pressurising of the containers has to be done in a separate and secure room, because of the flammability of the natural gas. The categoties of impravement mentioned in the second draft are rather ambiguous and do not describe all product shortcomings and remedies adequately. After trying to use this system a number of times we feel that this entire section of the second draft should be thoroughly rewritten. From now on we will not use this metbod any more, instead a classification can be made of possible technical remedies in decreasing order of significanee according to the importance of the product shortcoming.

Operating instructions The X-pel instructions are less detailed than the Baygon instructions and only printed in English. This can cause problems for the non English speaking part of the population of Tanzania. The design of the X-pel container should be changed to incorporate a Swahili version of the operating instruction as well. This can increase the market share of X-pel.

Warnings On the Baygon container the warnings are· more specific, like a maximum operating temperature of 50 o C, whereas on the X-pel container the warning is 'don't throw into fire and keep in a cool place'. The design of the X-pel container should be changed to incorporate more detailed warnings, like 'Maximum operating temperature 55 °C. This would reduce the risk of damage to people or property by mishandling.

Expire date The X-pel container lacks a manufacturing and expire date. According to the rnanaging director of Mansoor Daya the maximum usage time of X-pel is at least 5 years. X-pel is not supplied with an expire date because, according to the rnanaging director, X-pel is used by the customer before that time. The stock held by Mansoor Daya and the various wholesalers and shopkeepers is very small, and will be used before 5 years have passed. Adding a manufacturing and expire date will increase the perception of the customer that the X-pel is still active. This can result in higher sales. If Mansoor Daya wants to exports its products to the E. U. an expire date will be mandatory. In order to print these dates on the container a can printing machine has to be installed.

Pressurising gas X-pel uses CFC gas for pressurising the container. This gas causes serious damage to the ozone layer. In June/July of 1997 the CFC gas will be replaced by natural gas, thus alleviating this shortcoming. In order to accomplish this, the entire production process will be changed. The pressurising of the containers has to be done in a separate and secure room by a new gas injection machine, because of the flammability of the natural gas. This requires a large capital investment, but the elimination of CFC enables Mansoor Daya to export its products to India and the E.U. The use of natural gas will also reduce the manufacturing costs and increase the profit margin.

Smell of insecticide The smell of X-pel is not unpleasant but rather strong. It can be smelled fora long time after usage. By using alessstrong scent the time required to evaporate the X-pel smell can be considerably reduced.

Appendix C-1-: Technology Audit Report of Mansoor Daya Chemieals

Forther recommendations

The current generator neeels to be replaced or a second generator added, because it is unable to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure. The costs of stopping certain machines neeels to be compared with the costs of buying a new generator.

93

The Pyrethrins are extracted from locally grown daisy flowers. The flowers are transporred to the USA or Great Britain, where the Pyrethrins are extracted. The extracted Pyrethrins are then shipped back to Tanzania. The possibility of extracting the Pyrethrins in South Africa or interesting a local businessman, should be examined. This would rednee the transport costs and time needed to receive the raw materials.

The filters used to filter the X-pel mixture are imported from Switzerland. A cheaper alternative might be available in South Africa. This possibility should be examined.

A better method for checking the volume of X-pel mixture still present in the storage barrel could reduce even further the percentage production loss. Presently the non transparent storage barrel is periodically checked for the amount of X-pel still present. This system could be improved by using transparentor open barrels which can be easily monitored.

The time consuming manual weighting of the filled X-pel containerscan be accelerated by using a digital scale. A digital readout can be checked faster, is more accurate, and has less overshoot.


3. ENTERPRISE PART

General information Mansoor Daya produces a vast amount of products, ranging from cough syrups to tooth paste. Mansoor Daya is the only Tanzanian producer of insect spray. At the moment the company has serious problems with cheap competitors entering the market, due to the heavy import duties Mansoor Daya has to pay on its raw materials. In the current situation it is cheaper to import finished products than producing them locally, due to the high import duties on raw matenals compared to finished products.

Product price The cost price of X-pel is about 1350 Tsh. per can. The market price for one 350 ml. can at the factory is 1700 Tsh. In shops the price ranges from 1800 to 2500 Tsh. The prices of the competitors vary between 1600 Shilling (Doom) to 2000 Shilling (Baygon). The competitors are all imported aerosols. Imported insect sprays are:

'Baygon' from Bayer, Indonesia, 400 ml., 2000 Tsh.; 'Doom' from CGP-holding, South Africa, 325 ml., 1600 Tsh.; 'Black Jack' from Safeguard Chemical Corporation, USA, 11 oz, 1800 Tsh.

Management The technica! knowledge of the rnanaging director, Mister Mansoor Daya himself, is good. Although being a chemical engineer (pharmacy) originally, Mister Daya also handles the technica! and managerial aspectsof the company. We get the impression that he wants to keep control of all these aspects himself, and does oot want to delegate any responsibility. Ordering raw material in time seems to be no problem despite the long delivery time.

A vailability of information While talking to the production manager we noticed that at times he was unable to supply us with answers to technica! questions. He directed us to Mister Daya to get the answers to these questions. Production data is carefully recorded, in order to trace possible product shortcomings to its source. New products are thoroughly tested before entering the market The testing processof new products takesabout 12 months to complete.

Skilis and knowledge of employees Employees are provided with on the job training by Mister Mansoor Daya bimself and by older and more experienced employees. Their knowledge to operate the machines seems to be adequate. The general manager, the chief chemist, and the production manager have university degrees, most other employees have primary and secondary school.

Direct enterprise environment The power supply to Mansoor Daya Chemieals is suffering from regular interruptions, influencing the overall productivity and production losses. The current generator is unable to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure. During our visit a careless truck driver tore down a number of electricity poles. This caused a cessation of production of almost a week in many companies in that area. The truck driver is now reflecting his driving skills in prison.

The infrastructure in and around the Mansoor Daya factory is good, a 4 lane tarmac road runs next to the factory. The infrastructure in Dar es Salaam is good, having a deep sea harbour, an international airport, and a railway connecting Tanzania with neighbouring countries. Especially the deep sea harbour is useful for Mansoor Daya, the raw matenals ordered abroad are delivered by means of sea transport.

Appendix C5: Tcchnology Audit Report of Tanzania Cables Ltd.

TECHNOLOGY AUDIT: TANZANIA CABLES LTD. (TCL), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

1. PRODUCT

Manufacturer Tanzania Cables Ltd. (TCL), P.O. Box 508 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Tel. 051-862834 Managing Directer: M.M. Kombe Teehuical Manager: C. K wai Status: Parastatal company Foundation year: 1978

Product name The product can he named as: 1.5 mm2 electrical cable for dornestic purposes.


95

The cable consist of a red PVC coated positive wire, a black PVC coated negative wire, and an uncoated ground wire. These wires are enclosed in a grey PVC coating. TCL manufactures its products according to the standards set by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards. The standards used by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards are derived from the British standards. The standards used can he found in appendix I. TCL has made checklists in which these standards are incorporated. The checklist are easier to use than the actual standard documents. The standards regarding one product are described in multiple standard documents and can he hard to locate.

Proposed functioning of the product The proposed functioning of the product is the transportation of electricity to electrical appliances, like soekets and light bulbs, from the electricity supply.

Actual functioning of the product The actual functioning of the product is mostly according to the proposed functioning of the product, the transportation of electricity to electrical appliances from the electricity supply. The cable can he used for other purposes, like binding, as well.

Usual operation conditions of the product The cable can he used in many different eperating conditions. The cable is tested for use in high and low temperatures. The cable can also he used in a wet environment, the PVC coating is tested for its weatherproofness. The maximum eperating temperature of the cable is 70° C.

Classification of product type Electrical cable can he classified under SITC code 723 (Equipment for distributing electricity).

Identification of branch type The major di vision is manufacturing (3), with division 'manufacture of fabricated metal products, machinery and equipment (38), with subdivision 'manufacture of electrical machinery apparatus, appliances and supplies' (383).

Identification of market competitors According to the teehuical manager the competitors are all imported cables, Tanzania Cables is the only Tanzanian producer of electrical cables. There are cables being imported from Great Britain, Italy, and Taiwan. The most important competitor is AEI from the U.K. Their products could he found in many hardware stores in the Dar es Salaam city centre.


ldentification of market leader According to the teehoical manager, TCL has a market share of 30% in all types of cables. The rest of the market is dominated by imported cables. A small market survey amongst hardware stores in the city centre of Dar es Salaam, revealed that the cables from the English manufacturer AEI are sold in most hardware stores, and according to the shopkeepers also sell best. The English product is manufactured according to the British Standards and is therefore suitable for the TAM product comparison.

Product charactcristics


1. durability

2. reliability

3. safety

4. maintainability


6. versatility

The time that the cable performs its function, the transportation of electricity from the electricity supply to electrical appliances, like soekets and light bulbs, adequately by normal use. By normal use the durability of the TCL electrical cable is very high, at least 25 to 30 years according to the quality manager. If the cables are misused, for example subjected to heavy loads or too high a temperature, the durability is adversely effected.

The chance that the cable performs its function, the transportation of electricity from the electricity supply to electrical appliances, adequately. The reliability of the TCL cables is high. After cooling the PVC coating, the cables pass a spark testing device. If a coating failure occurs this device will issue a warning. After producing a number of rolls of cable a batch sample is tested by the quality department The cable is tested for elongation, tensile strength, resistance, twisting, and ageing. The insuiatien of the cable is tested by applying high tension to the cable for a certain period. If no insuiatien failure occurs the cable is passed. Because of all these tests, the reliability of the TCL cables is 100%, according to the teehoical manager.

Measurements taken to prevent injuries of users of TCL cables. The insuiatien of the positive and negative copper wires and the protective outer sheath can be considered safety characteristics, however these characteristics are standard features of every electricity cable. The thickness of the insuiatien and outer sheath can vary.

Not applicable in this case. The ability to replace a cable depends on the installation of the cable: in a wall or bebind a remevabie panel. This is not a product characteristic of the cable itself.

The PVC coating of the cable is sensitive to high temperatures and should not be used above 70 o C. PVC is sensitive to certain chemieals and direct exposure to these chemieals should be avoided. Repeated bending of the cable should be avoided to prevent metal fatigue of the cable.

The cables are not versatile, they can only be used for electricity transportation. The standards describe the voltage range in which the cable can be used, 300 - 500 Volt.

Appendix C5: Technology Audit Report of Tanzania Cables Ltd. 97

7. performance


9. compatibility

10. ergonornies


The ability of the cables to transport electricity over a certain distance without excessive losses. This can be determined by measuring the resistance of the cable per unit length. The maximum allowed resistance of 1 Km. of TCL cableis 11.9 Ohm .

The ease of instaHing electricity cables. The operational complexity of TCL cables is not high. Everybody with some knowledge of electricity can use the TCL cables. Factors which influence the ease of instaBation are the flexibility of the cable and the ease of removing the insulation.

The ability of the products to be used for different electrical applications. The TCL cable can be used for a range of voltages, from 300 to 500 Volt. according to the standards set by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards.

The ease of handling the cable. The flexibility of the cable is the determining factor for the ease of handling.

The possibility to store the product without losing performance. The TCL cables do not have a limited shelf life. If stared under normal conditions the cable will retain its characteristics for many years.

12. norm compliancy TCL cables are manufactured according to the standards set by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards. The standards used by this bureau are derived from the British Standards. The standards used can be found in appendix 1. TCL has made checklists in which these standards are incorporated. The checklist are easier to use than the actual standard documents. The standards regarding one product are described in multiple standard documents and can be hard to locate.




The TCL cable cernprises the same components (insulated positive and negative wires, and an uncoated ground wire) as every other electrical cable and this characteristic is therefore not meaningful for the product comparison.

The insuiatien coatings are made of PVC. This material is not degradable and therefore harmful for the environment. The buming of PVC creates highly toxic gasses.



1. look

2. smell

Appearance of the cable. The TCL cableis coated with grey PVC which creates a shiny surface. In our opinion the appearance or attractiveness of an electricity cable is not relevant for cernparing electricity cables.



3. noise Not applicable in this case.

4. feel The TCL cable feels smooth. In our opinion the feel of an electricity cable is not relevant for camparing electricity cables.

In order to determine the importance of the product characteristics, a pair wise comparison technique is used. With this technique each product characteristic is compared with each other, one at a time, by asking the question: 'Which is more important when buying electricity cables'. Granted, this question can be hard to answer when camparing two dissimilar characteristics, but it is still important to decide which of the two is the dominant (Ullman; page 122). The comparison can be found in the following matrix. Some remarks should be made, the comparison is done from a Western viewpoint and secondly, from the view of a student. Due to lack of time and the purpose of the Technology Audit; quick scan, no interviews with the local population about their buying habits have been performed.

Product characteristics 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Tot.

1. Durability - 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 7

2. Reliability 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 11

3. Safety 1 0 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10

4. Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 0 0 0 - 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 4

5. Versatil ity 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2

6. Performance 1 0 0 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 0 1 8

7. Operational comp1exity 0 0 0 1 1 0 - 1 1 1 0 1 6

8. Compatibility 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 - 0 1 0 1 3

9. Ergonornies 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 - 1 0 1 5

10. Storage capabilities 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0

11. Norm compliancy 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 - 1 9

12. Eco1ogical impacts of 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 - 1 materials

With this ranking one can asses the relative importance of a product shortcoming. In the following table a 1.5 mm2 cable from TCL will be compared to a 1.5 mm2 cable from AEI. A random piece of cable from each manufacturer was obtained from a random shopkeeper in the Dar es Salaam city centre. In the next table some product characteristics are translated into product -specific subcharacteristics, in order to simplify the comparison. The grading of the product characteristics is done according to the second draft: + TCL cable is better than the product characteristic of AEI cable; 0 TCL cable is equal to the product characteristic of AEI cable;

TCL cable is worse than the product characteristic of AEI cable; ? no data available at the company and not measurable by us in the time available to

perform TAM.


Product characteristic Rank Characteristi c descri pti on TCL compared with AEI cable

Reliability 11 Cable faiture expectancy ?

Safety 10 Insulation thickness +

Sheath thickness +

hJSulation quality 0

Norm compliancy 9 Positive and negative wire diameter 0 (mm)

Ground wire diameter (mm) 0

Insulation thickness (mm) 0

Outside dimensions (mm) -

Resistance (ohms/Km) ?

Resistivity (Ohms - mm2/Km) ?

Tensite Strength (Kg/mm2) ?

Elongation (%) ?

Weight (g/m) ?

Performance 8 Resistance per unit length ?

Durability 7 Life expectancy ?

Operational complexity 6 Cable flexibility -

Removability of insulation -

Ergonornies 5 Cable flexibility -

Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 4 Heat resistancy ?

Chemical resistancy ?

Fatigue resistancy ?

Compatibility 3 Voltage range 0

Versatility 2 Voltage range 0

Ecological impact of matenals 1 Environmentally friendly matenals are 0 used

Storage capabilities 0 Shelf life ?


To clarify this table, the grading of some characteristics are explained in more detail.

Reliabilityjdurability Since both products are manufactured according to the same standards, the cable failure expectancy and life expectancy are likely to be the same as well. There could be differences however due to tolerances. The failure expectancy and life expectancy are not measurable by us in the limited time frame.

Safety

Norm compliancy

Performance

Sensitivity w.r.t. environment/Starage capabilities

The safety of one cable is considered better if the thickness of the insulation and outer sheath is higher than on the other cable. We are not looking at whether the thicknesses are within the tolerances.

Many standards are not measurable by us with the time and equipment at our disposal. The ones that are measurable were measured with a slide rule. The accuracy of this slide rule is 0.05 mm, therefore the measurements taken by us are not highly accurate.

The resistancy of electricity cables is measured, according to the standards, in Ohms per Kilometre. We could not afford to purebase 1 Km. of AEI cable to make the comparison. To measure the resistance of a small piece of cable highly sensitive equipment is needed, which was notatour disposal.

These characteristics are not measurable by us. Since both cables are manufactured according to the same standards, they are likely to be the same, except for small differences due to tolerances.


Outside dimensions According to the standards set by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards, the outside dimensions of the 1.5 mm2 must be within the following ranges: Minimum range: 4.4 x 8.25 mm. Maximum range: 5.4 x 8.50 mm. The average outside dimensions of the TCL cable are 5.2 x 9.6 mm. The width of 9.6 mm. is clearly outside the range set by the standards. The outside dimensions of the AEI cable are 4.8 x 8.6 mm. This is close to the set standards, only the width is 0.1 mm. outside the limits. Of course it is possible that only the production lots measured by us are outside the standards. This implies a failure of the quality control department to detect this lot.

Cable flexibility The flexibility of the TCL cable is stiffer than the AEI cable. It requires more effort to bend the TCL cable in the desired shape. According to some shopkeepers in the Dar es Salaam city centre some customers complained about this stiffness.

Removability of insulation Due to the stiffness of the PVC coating and sticking of the outer sheath to the wire insulation, it is considerably more difficult to remove the grey outersheathof the TCL cable, than the outer sheath of the AEI cable. According to some shopkeepers in the Dar es Salaam city centre some customers complained about this difficulty of removing the outer sheath.



Tanzania Cables Ltd. produces a vast amount of cables, more than 30 standard types of cable are in production and at least 100 different typescan be produced. The TAM is performed on the 1.5 mm2 electrical cable, because this product faces the most competition on the Tanzanian market The layout of the entire factory is drawn, but only the machines needed to produce the 1.5 mm2

cable will be discussed in more detail.

Layout of tbc production proccss The layout of the TCL factory is shown in the next figure.

0

30

-

23

JI 38 JI JI

JIJIJI JIJI

~

D~

23

~crtro-: 0 : 21 0 --------' n 28n

29

34

39

34


1. Heavy duty drawing machine 25. Wire traction puller

2. Intermediate drawing machine 26. Wire winding machine

3. Fine drawing machine 27. Coiling machines (reducing length)

4. Switch board 28. Testing machines

5. Cooling liquid storage tank 29. Testing equipment & offices

6. Annealing oven 30. Enamelling machine Oarge diameter

7. Rolls of wire in container wires)

8. Alum. wire drawing machine 31. Enamelling machine (small diameter

9. Air compressor wires)

10. Re winders 32. Offices

11. Wire twisting machine 33. Finished product storage

12. Wire twisting machine 34. Doors

13. Wire piek-up (on bobbins) 35. Toilets

14. Binding machine (flexible 36. Electrical switch boards & Circuit

wire) breakers)

15. Lay-up machine 37. Auxiliary generator

16. Steel armouring machine 38. Empty roll storage

17. lnsulation attachment 39. Storage ( space for future expansion)

18. Wire puller 40. Workshop

19. Wire piek-up 41. Rewinding machine

20. Wire input from rolls 42. Finished product storage

21. Powdering machine 43. Oil drums

22. PVC extrusion machine 44. Scrap product storage

23. Cooling (water) 45. Extrusion moulds storage

24. Spark tester

Flow chart of the production process The production processof the X-pel containers is depicted in the next figures. The symbols used are the ones prescribed by the second draft of the TAM.

Fromspark tester

G) I Tostore


1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Fromstore

13

From spark tester

1.8 mm. copper wire electricity cooling mixture pressed air

26

wasted cooling mixture scrap copper 1.38 mm. copper wire air from vacuum pump annealed 1.38 copper wire red or black PVC PVC insulated cable cooling water wasted cooling water cooled PVC insulated cable

Intennediate duty drawing machine

<drawing to dcsired diam.>

Extrudiug machine <applying PVC insulation>

To annealing oven

'Spark testing' testing PVC insulation

2

Winding machine <Wmding finished ca bie>

15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27.

Tostore

scrap PVC insulated cable spark tested PVC insulated cable winded PVC insulated cable copper wire input for ground wire 1.13 mm. copper ground wire annealed 1.13 mm. copper ground wire talcum powder powdered insulated cables grey PVC grey PVC sheathed cable cooled grey PVC sheathed cable spark tested grey PVC sheathed cable winded finished 1.5 mm2 cable


Flow process chart The flow chart on the previous page is not the standard logistic method of depicting a production process. In this paragraph the standard method with the standard logistic symbols is used to construct a flow process chart. This standard method is described in annex B of our research proposal. A flow process chart provides very accurate information about the production process. It is a systematical reproduetion of every step in the production process of a product.

Ground wire Positive wire Negative wire g Voorr.l3d koper draad

Q Heavy duty drawing

8-~,~~ y

~-V V. Voorr.ud

QPla5tic

Po~dering mac~ ' '

~sion machine

Co~g '

Spa~ tester

Voorraad koperdraad

Heavy duty drawing

lntetmedi.ate duty dra wing

Oven

8 EX1rusion machine '------1

Cooling

Spark tester

Wiretractionpuller

' ' ' -------------------------------------

D C) 0 Coiling machine

~ v

Voomad koperdraad

Heavy duty drawing

Intennedi.ate duty drawing

EX1rusion machine

Spark tester

Wiretractionpuller

In order to keep this chart uncluttered, not every symbol is described. With this process flow chart the handling and transportation activities can be shown more accurately. A drawback of using this method is that the various inputs of the machines are not immediately apparent.




Machine Degree of mechanisation Predictability Capacity of Flexibility of quality machine of machine

Intermediale duty self-acting machine high* high medium ...

drawing machine Annealing oven self-adjusting machine high low .. low

,ol-.l<-.1<-.1

Extrusion machine self-checking machine medium high medium ...

Spark tester self -checking machine medium high low Winding machine self-acting machine medium high low

* The predictability of quality of the intermediate duty drawing machine is high. After starting production and after drawing a eertaio length of wire, the diameter is tested. The dies used for drawing the wire can be used for approximately 6 months. This results in a high predictability of quality. ** The capacity of the annealing oven is low. Only three rolls of wire can be annealed at the same time. The annealing process takes 6 hours to complete, after which the rolls of wire have to cool down for 2 days. The annealing procedure can be considered the bottleneck of the production process. *** The flexibility of the intermediate duty drawing machine and the extrusion machine is medium. By changing the dies of the machines many different types of cables can be produced. **** The flexibility of the annealing oven is low. The oven is only capable of heating rolls of wire which fit in the oven.

Toleranee Tolerances are important at Tanzania Cables Ltd., because the cables are produced according to the standards set by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS), which are derived from the British Standards. These standards imply that the dimensions and characteristics of the cables have to be within eertaio toleranee limits. According to the TBS standards the 1.5 mm2 cable must have the following characteristics: a positive and negative wire diameter of 1.38 mm. ± 1%, a ground wire diameter of 1.13 mm. ± 1%, a maximum resistance of 11.9 Ohm/Km. ± 1%, a resistivity of 17.241 Ohm-mm2/Km. ± 1%, a tensile strength of 23 Kg./mm2 ± 1%, an elongation above 30% ± 1%, a maximum average insulation thickness of 0.8 mm., a minimum average insulation thickness of 0.7 mm, a minimum insulation thickness of 0.6 mm., and outside dimensions within a maximum of 5.4 x 8.5 and a minimum of 4.4 x 8.25 mm.

Capacity The target production capacity of Tanzania Cables .is about 84 tons. of cable per month. These 84 tons includes the entire product range of TCL. This target has not been reached for more than il year however, due to lack of raw material. The.lackofraw. material is.caused.by.the .. shortag~ of working capita!. About 65% of the total production is ordered by the Tanzania National Electricity Company. (TANESCO). This companyis .very slow in paying their bills and is allowed to order on credit. This is the main reason for the lack of working capita!. The average production for the last months is about 60 tons of cable per month. The annealing procedure can be considered the bottleneck of the production process. The capacity of the annealing oven is low. Only three rolls of wire can be annealed at the same time. The annealing process takes 6 hours to complete, after which the rolls of wire have to cool down for 2 days.

106 Testing a Teclmology Audit Methodology

The average capacity of the drawing and extrusion machines depends on the diameter of the cables being produced. For large diameter cables the maximum capacity is less than for small diameter cables. The capacity of the wire drawing machine for the 1.5 mm2 cable is 1545 meter per hour. According to the production manager, the capacity of the extrusion machine for the insulation is 7,000 meter per hour, and for the sheathing 2,200 meter per hour.

flexibility The flexibility of the production process is medium. Tanzania Cables Ltd. can produce many different types of cable, more than 30 standard types of cable are in production and at least ·l 00 different types can be produced. By changing the dies in the wire drawing and extrusion machines different types of wire and cable can be produced. The dies of the drawing machine can be changed within 20 minutes. These dies can be used for approximately 6 months. If a die is wom down, it can be drilled to a larger diameter to be used again. Changing the die of the extrusion machine is fairly easy, it takesabout 3 to 4 hours. This time is mainly caused by cooling down the old die and warming up the new die.

Description of raw matcrials and ready bou&ht parts For the production of 1.5 mm2 TCL imports raw materials from abroad, but also locally available materials are used. The copper for the wires is imported from Zambia and the PVC for the insulation and outer sheath is imported from Italy. The talcum powder for easy separation of the outer sheath, the cooling oil, and the wooden rolls for winding the cables are obtained from local suppliers. The dies used for drawing the copper to the desired diameter are imported from Japan. All the machines used by TCL were obtained from Japan and have been in use since TCL started producing in 1978. The wooden rolls are sold with the cables and are not retumed to the factory. According to the technical manager retuming the rolls to the factory by giving arefund for them, is nota cost effective option. After the cable is unrolled by the customer the wooden rolls are often damaged and not reu..o;;able. Raw matenals are sometimes in short supply due to delivery delays and lack of currency. The delivery delays are often caused by the Dar es Salaam harbour custom authorities. New raw materials can only be bought if TCL has received enough money from customers to pay for the order.

Identification of features causing product shortcomiQgs Features causing product shortcomings can be production process features, design features, raw material features or ready bought parts features.


Outside dimensions - Die not according to specifications

Cable flexibility - PVC features

Removability of insulation - PVC features - Talcum powder features - Talcum powder applying process


A visual presentation of these relations can be seen in the next figure.

Product shortcoming Production shortcoming

Outside dimensions Die not according to specifications

Cable llexibility PVC features

V Removability of insulation Talcum features

~ Talcum applying process

Identification of teehoical remedies lifting product shortcomings As can be seen in the table and figure above, the TCL 1.5 mm2 cable shortcomings originate from a not optima! production process and raw material choice. In the second draft, the latter can't be found in the six categoties of improvement. The categoties of improverneut mentioned in the second draft are rather ambiguous and do not describe all product shortcomings and remedies adequately. After trying to use this system a number of times we feel that this entire section of the second draft should be thoroughly rewritten. We will not use this method any more, instead a classification can be made of possible technica! remedies in decreasing order of significanee according to the importance of the product shortcoming.

The product shortcomings are sorted in decreasing number of significance, according to the ranking factors.

Outside dimensions According to the standards set by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards, the outside dimensions of the 1.5 mm2 must be within the following ranges: Minimum range: 4.4 x 8.25 mm. Maximum range: 5.4 x 8.50 mm. The average outside dimensions of the TCL cable are 5.2 x 9.6 mm. The width of 9.6 mm. is clearly outside the range set by the standards. The cause of this shortcoming can be excessive wear of the die or that the die was not manufactured according to the specifications. Of course it is possible that only the production lot measured by us was outside the standards. This implies a failure of the quality control department to detect this lot. Since TCL claims to produce according to the standards set by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards, the cost of more batch checks can be compared to the savings in raw material usage.

Cable flexibility The flexibility of the TCL cable is stiffer than the AEI cable. It requires more effort to bend the TCL cable in the desired shape. This is caused by the type of PVC used for the outer sheath. Changing the type of PVCtoa more flexible variant, which also meet the requirements specified by the standards, will alleviate this shortcoming.

108 Testinga Tcchnology Audit Methodology

Removability of insulation Due to the stiffness of the PVC coating and sticking of the outer sheath to the wire insulation, it is considerably more difficult to remove the grey outer sheath of the TCL cable, than the outer sheath of the AEI cable. The stiffness of the cable can be altered by changing the type of PVC to a more flexible variant, which also meet the requirements specified by the standards. The sticking of the outer sheath to the wire insuiatien is caused by the type of talcum powder used and/or the talcum powder applying process (the amount of talcum powder being applied or its distribution).

Further recommendations

The market price of the 1.5 mm2 cable is about 22,000 Tsh. per 100 meter. This implies that the cableis sold with a loss, because the production costs are 27,100 Shilling per 100 meter. This results in a lossof 18%, while the price of the TCL cableis still higher than the price of the competitors. Their price ranges between 19,000 and 20,000 Tsh per 100 meter. This is done because of the competition TCL faces in the field of dornestic purpose cables. Unless this is a deliberate marketing strategy, the production of the 1.5 mm2 cable and all other loss making cables should be reconsidered.

The lack of raw material TCL is currently suffering, is caused by a shortage of werking capital. A bout 65% of the total production is ordered by the Tanzania National Electricity Company (TANESCO). This company is very slow in paying their bills and is allowed to order on credit, which has a negative influence on the werking capita} of TCL. Imptementing a teugher payment policy, such as direct payment on delivery or payment within a specified time limit, will improve this situation. lf TCL has more control over its cash inflow, better planning and ordering of raw materials is possible.

The production process could be improved by installing a new PVC moulding machine and adding a cable winder. With a new computer controlled moutding machine the PVC layer can be applied more constantly, reducing the amount of scrap wire generated. It will also reduce the time needed toset-up the machine. Adding a new cable winder will increase the capacity of the rewinding process. Currently all the cables produced by TCL are rewinded from the steel factory rolls to the woeden roUs on only one rewinder. This machine is constantly being used, increasing the risk of failure. This single machine does not meet the production capacity of TCL if many different types of cables are in production.

The possibility of finding a PVC supplier closer to Tanzania should be examined. If an African supplier can be found it is possible that the transportation costs and delivery time will be reduced.

Appendix CS: Technology Audit Report of Tanzania Cables Ltd. 109

3. ENTERPRISE PART

General information Tanzania Cables Ltd. produces many different types of electricity cables, ranging from cables for dornestic purposes to high tension cables. Tanzania Cables is the only Tanzanian producer of electricity cab les. At the moment TCL is a Parastatal company, meaning owned by the Tanzanian government. During our visit TCL was negotiating with Korean investors for a possible take over. The target production of TCL is about 84 tons of cable per month. These 84 tons includes the entire product range of TCL. This target has not been reached for more than a year however, due to lack of raw materiaL The average production for the last months is about 60 tons of cable per month.

Product price The market price of the 1.5 mm2 cable is about 22,000 Tsh. per 100 meter. This implies that the cableis sold with a loss, because the production costs are 27,100 Shilling per 100 meter. This results in a lossof 18%, while the price of the TCL cable is still higher than the price of the competitors. Their price ranges between 19,000 and 20,000 Tsh per 100 meter. This is done because of the competition TCL faces in the field of dornestic purpose cables. There are cables being imported from Great Britain, Italy, and Taiwan. The most important competitor is AEI from the U.K. The price of 1.5 mm2 cable from AEI is 20,000 Shilling per 100 meter.

Management Because of the negotiations between TCL and Korean investors we were unable to meet the general manager during our visits to the TCL factory. We did speak to the technica! managerand the quality manager. The quality manager showed us around the factory and he had a good knowledge of the production process. The technica! manager seemed to be less informed about the production process. Many details we asked him had to be looked up in hooks or obtained from other employees.

A vailability of information While talking to the technica! manager we noticed that at times he was unable to supply us with answers to technica! questions. All the machines were supplied with clear tables in which the machine settings for different types of cables were shown. This reduces the time needed to set-up a machine. The quality check department uses standard checklists of product characteristics which are batch wise checked and tested. These checklists are a compilation of the various standards the cables have to meet, since TCL claims to produce according to the standards set by the Tanzanian Bureau of Standards.

Skilis and knowledge of employees Half the employees have secondary school (form 4). The rest of the employees have primary school supplemented by short courses. TCL eneomages the employees to attend short technica! courses. These courses are paid for by TCL. The knowledge of the employees to operate the machines seems to be good, even the maintenance of the machines and the fabrication of small spare parts are performed by TCL employees. About 6 employees have university degrees. The general manager has a M.Sc. degree in electrical engineering and the technica! manager has a B.Sc. degree in electrical engineering.

Direct enterprise environment The power supply to TCL is suffering from regular interruptions. This is compensated for by a powerful generator. This generator is able to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure.


The infrastructure in and around the TCL factory is good, a 4 lane tarmac road runs next to the factory. The infrastructure in Dar es Salaam is good, having a deep sea harbour, an international airport, and a railway connecting Tanzania with neighbouring countries. Especially the deep sea harbour and the Tanzania - Zambia rail road are useful for TCL, the raw materials ordered abroad are delivered by means of sea and rail transport.

Appendix C6: Technology Audit Report of Canmud Metalbox

TECHNOLOGY AUDIT: Camaud Metalbox, a crown cork & seal company, Tanzania

1. PRODUCT

Manufacturer

111

Carnaud Metalbox (CMB), a crown cork & seal company, P.O. Box 618 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, tel. 864251 General manager: Production Manager: Status: Foundation year:

Product name

Mr. Muthu Karamboya Mr. Edwin Shittineli Private 1947

The product onder consideration is a battery casing. Two types of battery casings are currently in production by CMB. Bothare produced for Matsushita Electric but different printing designs are used. One casing is called the Panasonic casing, and the other the National Special casing. The National Special battery is most commonly sold in Dar es Salaam and its casing will he used for the product comparison.

Product characteristics The battery casings are a semi manufactured product which are sold to the Matsushita Electric Cooperation in Dar es Salaam. The casings areforD size batterles of 1.5 Volt.

Proposed functioning of the product The proposed functioning of the product is to provide the battery (the end product) with a leak and puncture proof casing. The casing is also used to inform the consumer about the batterles specifications and wam them about the possible hazards of batteries.

Actual functioning of the product The actual functioning of the product is exactly according to the proposed functioning of the product:

to provide the battery (the end product) with a leak and puncture proof casing. to inform the consumer about the batterles specifications and wam them about the possible hazards of batteries.

Usual operation conditions of the product The casing is part of a battery and can therefore he exposed to the chemieals used in the battery. The batterles can be used in many different appliances, for example flashlights, toys, and audio equipment. The batterles can he used in many different environments, but exposure to fire should he avoided.

Classification of product type Battery casings can he classified onder SITC code 698 (Manufacturers of metal products not elsewhere specified).

Identification of branch type The major elivision is manufacturing (3), with elivision 'manufacture of fabricated metal produ~ts. machinery and equipment (38), with subdivision 'manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment (381).


Identification of market competitors Currently Camaud Metalbox is the only producer of battery casings in Tanzania. The Friendship Packaging company bas recently acquired the machines necessary for the production of battery casings and will probably start production soon. The manufacturer of the battery casings of tlte imported batterles such as Philips, Sorry, and Duracell could not be determined by us with the time and equipment available.

Identification of market leader According to the production manager, Camaud Metalbox is the local market leader in the battery casing business, because the batterles produced by Matsushita sell best in Tanzania. Since Caniaud is market leader in the local battery field its casing is compared with a casing from an imported battery from a major battery manufacturer like Duracell.



1. durability

2. reliability

3. safety

4. maintainability


6. versatility

7. performance

The time that the battery casing performs its functions: to provide the battery (the end product) with a leak and puncture proof casing and to inform the consumer about the batterles specifications and wam them about the possible hazards of batteries. By normal use the durability of the CMB battery casing is very high. lf the batterles are misused, for example subjected to heavy loads or too high a temperature, leakage can occur and the durability of the casing is adversely effected.

The chance that the battery casing performs its function adequately. According to the production manager, the reliability of the CMB ba~ry casings is 1()0%. By normal use oo leakage will occur.

Measurements taken to prevent injuries of users of battery casings. The users are the persons using the batterles. The National Special casings are not printed with wamings not to recharge the battery, nottoshort the battery, and not to dispose of the battery in a fire.

Not applicable in this case. The battery casing cannot be maintained or replaced. The rechargability of a battery is not a product chamcteristic of the casing itself.

While using a battery, the casing can be subjected to chemicals, fire, or moist. These environments should be avoided to prevent leakage of the acid through the CMB casing.

Not applicable in this case. The casings are not versatile, they can only be used for enclosing batterles.

The ability of the casings to prevent leakage and puncturing of the battery, to wam and inform the customers about the battery specifications, and to contain the battery contents. The performance of the National Special battery casings is medium, sirree the reliability is 100% but rro warnings are prlnted on the casing and the battery specifications are bard to loc~te.

Appendix C6: Technology Audit Report of Carnaud Metalbox 113


9. compatibility

10. ergonornies

ll. storage capabilities

The ease of installing the CMB battery casing. This can not be determined by us since this is done by the Matsushita Electtic company.

Not applicable in this case. The CMB casings can not be used for different applications besides enclosing batteries.

The ease of handling the CMB casing.. The sharpness and the existence of wire edges are the determining factors for the ease of handling battery casings.

The possibility to store the prodUct without losing performance. The CMB battery casings have a limited · shelf life. If stored for a long tiqte the- casings can show signs of corrosion. Corrosion and accumulated dirt can influence the performance ofthe casing.

12. norm compliancy Not applicable in this case.

Inherent charaderistics



The CMB battery· casing- is a-hammered- metal shell of relatively easy construction. The shell consists of only one part, a roetal sheet; which is rolled in to shape. By bending and hammering the side flanges of the roetal roll are connected to farm a closed casing.

The battery casing consists only of a tinned roetal sheet printed with an ink. The roetal sheet has na heavy enviranmental impact, but th.e inks ~d varnish used in the production process creates chemical waste materials. These waste matenals are a burden for the environment.

3. use of rare materials No rare matenals are being used.


1. look

2. smell

3. noise

4. feel

Appearance of the battery casing. The National Special battery casing is printed in three colours. The design of the casing is nice, but no safety warnings are printed and the battery specificatians are hard to locate. The green colour used has some water marks. The ink coverage is not sufficient, the roetal can still be seen through the ink. Since three colours are used, three printing passes are needed. This implies that the tinned plates have to be properly aligned in order to prevent overlap of the colours. On the National Special battery we bought some printing overlap could be detected (out of register).



The CMB battery casings feels smooth. In our apinion the feel of a battery casing is not relevant for the product comparison.

ll.J. Testinga Technology Audit Methodology

In order to detennine the importance of the product characteristics, a pair wise comparison technique is used. With this technique each product characteristic is compared with each other, one at a time, by asking the question: 'Which battery casing characteristics are more important for the customer'. Granted, this question can be hard to answer when comparing two dissimHar characteristics, but it is still important to decide which of the two is the dominant (Ullman; page 122). In this case answering this question is particularly difficult because the customer is not the final user of the batteries, but the Matsushita Electtic company which buys the battery casings. The comparison can be found in the following matrix. Some remarks should be made, the comparison is done from a Western viewpoint and secondly, from the view of a student. Due to lack of time and the purpose of the Technology Audit (quick scan), no interviews with the Matsushita Electtic company and the local population about their buying habits have been performed.

Product characteristics 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Tot.

l.Durability - 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 6

2. Reliability 1 - 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 8

3. Safety' 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

4. Sensitivity w.r.t. environment 0 0 1 - 0 1 1 1 1 0 5

5. Performance 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 9

6. Ergonornies 0 0 1 0 0 - 0 1 1 0 3

7. Storage capabilities 0 0 1 0 0 1 - 1 1 0 4

8. Construction complexity 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 - 1 0 2

9. Ecological impact of matenals 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 1

10. Look 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 - 7

Since Matsushita Electtic determmes the nntm desi p g gn of the battery casin , t 1ey appa g rently consider safety (printing of warnings) not important.

With this ranking one can asses the relative importance of a product shortcoming. In the following table the National Special battery casing from CMB will be compared to the casing of a Duracell battery. Random batterles from Matsushita and Durace U· were obtained· from random shopkeepers in the Dar es..Salaam city centre_ In the next tablesome product characteristics are translated i.Qto product-specific sub-characteristics, in order to simplify the comparison. The grading of ~e · product characteristics is done according to the second draft: + National Special casing characteristics are better than the product characteristic of the

Duracell casing; 0 = National Special casing characteristics are equal to the product characteristic of the

Duracell casing; - - National Special casing characteristics are worse than the product characteristic of the

Duracell casing; ? = no data available at the company and not measurable by us in the time available to

perfonn TAM.

Appendix C6: Techno1ogy Audit Report of Carnaud Meta1box 115

Product characteristic Rank Characteristic description CMB compared with Duracell casing

Perfonnance 9 Leakage resistancy -

Pulleture resistancy 0

Waming instructions and specifications -

Containment of battery contents ?

Reliability 8 Casing. faiTure expectancy 0

Look 7 Colours -

Design -

Printing quality -

Durability 6 Ufe expectancy -

Sensitivity w.r.t environment 5 Heat resistancy +

Chemica! resistancy ?

Moisture resistancy -

Storage capabilities 4 Colrosion resistancy -

Ergonornies 3 Sharpness of casing_ -

Wireedges -

Constructiorn:omplexity 2 &se of C33ÎIIg cormruction -

Ecological impact of materials 1 Enviroomental friendly materials. Wied +

Safety 0 W aming .instructions -

The product designs of the National Special battery and the Duracell batterles are totally different. The National Special battery uses an printed outer casing of tinned steel which is produced by CMB, and an inner casing of tubular steel. The Duracell battery has a single tubular casing, with a printed plastic cover. Comparing these two sorts of casings is extremely difficult. Many product. shortcomings of the National Special battery are design inherent and can not be changed without changing the entire battery design and production process.


Explanation of the product shortcomings The product shortcomings are sorted in decreasing number of significance; according-to the ranking factors.

Leakage resistancy The design of the National Special casings looks more prone to leakage than the Duracell single tubular casing design The hammered flanges of the National Special outer casing manufactured by C.MB create a seam through which leakage can occur. This seam is a product design inherent characteristic of the National Special battery.

Waming instructions and speci.fications The CMB outer casing of the National Special battery is not printed with any warning instructions. The Duracell battery is provided with the warnings: 'Do notconneet improperly, charge or dispose of in fire. Battery may explode or leak.' The specifications on the National Special casing are very smalland do not attract attention. The specifications on the Duracell plastic cover however, are · more visible. The art work of the casing design is supplied to CMB by MatsUshita Electric. ,

Colours The colours used in the artwork of the National Special outer casing are not attractive, .we personally like the Duracell colours better. This characteristic is of course very subjective and may vary between one researcher and the other. The art work of the casing design is supplied to CMB by Matsushita Electric.

Design The art work design of the National Special outer casing is in our opinion less attractive than the Duracell art work This chamcteristic is of course very subjective and may vary between one researcher and the other. The art work of the casing design is supplied to CMB by Matsushita Electric.

Printing quality The green coloor used in the National Special outer casing has some water marks. The green ink covemge is not sufficient, the metal can still be seen through the ink Since three colours are used, three printing passes are neerled This implies that the tinned plates have to be properly aligned in order to prevent overlap of the colours. On the National Special battery we bought, some printing overlap could be detected (out of register). The printing on the Duracell plastic cover does not show water marks or overlap of the different colours.

Life expectancy The tubular Duracell casing appears more robust, less prone to leakage and puncturing, than the National Special casings. The plastic Duracell cover is also corrosion proof. The casings design is a product design inherent chamcteristic of the National Special battery determined by Matsushita Electric.

Moisture/corrosion resistaney The Duracell battery is covered with a printed plastic cover which-gives a certain degree of proteetion against corrosion which increases the shelf life. The National Special casing lacks such a cover and is thus more prone to moisture. The National Special casing is not entirely painted and a large area of clear metal is exposed. The casings design is a product design inherent characteristic of the National Special battery determined by Matsushita Electric.

Appendix C6: Technolo~,>y Audit Report of Carnaud Metalbox 117

Sharpnessjwire edges of casing The National Special outer casing manufactured by CMB is made of thin (0.2 mm.) tinned steel plate. This tin plate can be very sharp and may contain wire edges. The Duracell casing is made from thick tubular steel covered with a printed plastic cover, which is considerably less sharp. The casings design is a product design inherent characteristic of the National Special battery determined by Matsushita Electric.

Ease of casing construction The National Special outer casing consistsof one part, a metal sheet, which is rolled in to shape. By bending and hammering, the side flanges of the metal roll are connected to form a closed casing. The Duracell battery is of an easier construction, a thick tubular steel casing covered by a printed plastic cover. The casings design is a product design inherent characteristic of the National Special battery determined by Matsushita Electric.



Carnaud Metalbox currently produces many types of standard products: battery casings, crown corks, oil cans, coffee cans, paint cans, etc. Specific products on a specific order can be produced as well. Only the dies for the production of the special order have to be manufactured by the engineering department or obtained from outside. The TAM is performed on the battery casings, because this product contributes the largest percentage to the annual sales turn over and the production manager suggested this product. The layout of the entire factory is drawn, but only the machines needed to produce the battery casings will be discussed in more detail.

Layout of the production process The layout of the CMB factory is shown in the next figure.

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35

34

34

2

1

3

8

8

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o 0 B D DO

DDoo DDD

0

r:J' ' ~ : ____ :

4

3

10 1[7]

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33

111

Appendix C6: Technology Audit Report of Carnattd Metalbox 119

1. Raw material storage 19. Battery body maker 2. Office 20. Finished battery casing storage 3. Tools storage 21. Auto smag production line 4. Doors 22. Cap and bottorn production area 5. Hot water boiler 23. Blank cutters 6. Printing machine 24. Paint can production line 7. Varnish/white coat machine 25. Disused machines 8. Oil heated oven 26. Square oil can production line 9. Sheet sizer 27. Blank cutter 10. Strip cutter 28. Leakage testing device 11. Blank cutter 29. Handle ring manufacturing machine 12. Strip cutter 30. Stamping machines 13. Crown press 31. Handle welding machine 14. PVC injection machine 32. Production line under construction 15. Oven 33. Finished can storage 16. Crown counter 34. Storage space 17. Battery body maker 35. Mechanical engineering department 18. Battery body maker

Flow chart of the production process The production process of the battery casings is depicted in the next figures. The symbols used are the ones prescribed by the secend draft of the TAM.

From printing machine

~ Oven <Doyms priAtechhoet>

Fromvamish bin Î'\ _ Oven

mac e ~ <DsyiasvarDilhed lhcetl>

Tooven

Tovamish machine

Tooven

Tostrip cutter

120

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Promoven (\

~ _ Strip cutter

<cun:io&'"mellllllripl>

Fromblank cutter f\ Batterv bodv maker ~ <MakioaMbanQy-CidÛlp>

electricity pressed air hot water 0.2 mm. tinned sheet ink waste ink waste water wet printed sheet crude oil dry printed sheet

19

11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.


Toblonk cutter

Tobattery bodymaker

To store

varnish waste varnish wet varnisbed sheet dry varnisbed sheet waste strips metal strips waste blanks metal blanks waste battery boclies finished battery casings

Flow process chart The flow chart shown above is not the standard logistic method of depicting a production process. In this paragraph the standard method with the standard logistic symbols is used to construct a flow process chart. This standard method is described in annex B of our research proposal. A flow process chart provides very accurate information about the production process. lt is a systematical reproduetion of every step in the production process of a product.


Printing

Print check

Oven

Varnishing

Oven

Printed sheets

Strip cutter

Blank cutter

' : Tension release ' ' ' Stamping

Rolling

Hammering

Fringing

V Battery casing storage

The dashed line in this figure depiets the battery body maker. Although the casing is transporred in this machine, this is not indicated in this flowprocesschart for sake of clarity. In order to keep this chart uncluttered, not every symbol is described. With this process flow chart the handling and transportation actlvities can be shown more accurately. A drawback of using this method is that the various inputs of the machines are not immediately apparent.

Description of machine features Degree of mechanisation

Machine Degree of mechanisation

Printing machine self-acting machine Varnishing machine self-acting machine Ovens self-checking machine Strip cutter self-acting machine Blank cutter self-acting machine Battery body makers self-acting machine

Predictability of quality

medium medium high medium medium medium

Capacity of Flexibility machine of machine

medium . medium ....

medium· low medium . low medium .. low medium .. low medium ... low

• The capacity of the printing, the varnishing, and the ovens is medium, about 3000 sheets per hour. This capacity is not sufficient to supply all production lines with printed sheets. The printing and varnishing machines are connected to ovens which consequently operateat the same capacity.


•• The capacity of the strip and the blank cutter is medium. The printed metal sheets have to be inserted manually. ••• The capacity of the battery body makers is medium, around 240 casings a minute. Three machines are necessary to reach the desired output. •••• The flexibility of the printing machine is medium, many different designs can be printed.

Toleranee Tolerances are not measured during the production process. The printing process and battery body manufacturing process are visually inspected for deviations. The printing output is checked about every 15 minutes, and the finished casing are visually inspected by the operatorwhopacks the casings into crates. The battery casings are considered useless if the casings show signs of the following characteristics: big silver margin, poor hammering, dents, mislocked side seam, upright tongues, out of register, scratches, out of square, water marks, and mismatching. The average battery casing production line spoilage in March 1997 was 1.03%

Capacity The target production is 6,000,000 casings per month but this figure is not always reached due to the low efficiency of the machines. CMB is forced to keep a small stock of casings in order to reach this monthly target. The printing machine can be considered the bottleneck of the production process. The machine is very old (1950) and sensitive to breakdowns. The maximum capacity of the printing pressis about 3000 sheets per hour, which is not sufficient to print the steel plates for all production lines. The capacity of the varnishing machine is slightly more than the capacity of the printing machine, about 3500 sheets per hour. The capacities of the battery body makers differ per machine. The newest machine has a capacity of 250 casings per minute, the others 240 and 230 casings per minute.

flexibility The flexibility of the production processis low. Except for the printing machine all other machines used in the production process can only be used for the manufacture of the battery casings. The time required to change the colour used in the printing machine is about 2 hours. This time is needed to remove all traces of the previous colour from the printing machine. Theset-upof the other machines used for the manufacture of battery casings is not changed.

Description of raw materials and ready bought parts For the production of the battery casings CMB imports raw materials from abroad. The 0.2 mm. tinned steel plates are imported from Trostre Works in the U.K. and the Nippon Steel Corporatien in Japan. The inks are imported from Goates Brothers Ltd. in Kenya, the U.K., and Hindustan Ink from India. The varnish is imported from the U.K. and India. The raw material supply is no problem, they just have to be ordered in time. The delivery time of for example the steel is 5 month. There is no lack of working capital to order the raw materials in time. Carnaud Metalbox is part of a multinational company which can guarantee payments to suppliers. No ready bought parts are used by CMB for the production of battery casings.


Identification of features causing product shortcomings Features causing product shortcomings can be production process features, design features, raw material features or ready bought parts features. Many product shortcomings discovered by us are caused by the product design inherent characteristics of the National Special battery which are determined by Matsushita Electtic and can not be changed by CMB. In this part only the product shortcomings which, in our opinion, can be attributed to CMB will be described.


Printing quality - Very old printing machine - Insufficient quality awareness of the machine operators

Identification of teehoical remedies lifting product shortcomings As can be seen in the table above, the battery casing shortcomings, which can be attributed to CMB, originate from a not optimal printing process. The categoties of improvement mentioned in the second draft are rather ambiguous and do not describe all product shortcomings and remedies adequately. After trying to use this system a number of times we feel that this entire section of the second draft should be thoroughly rewritten. We will not use this method any more, instead a classification can be made of possible technical remedies in decreasing order of significanee according to the importance of the product shortcoming.

Printing quality The green colour used in the National Special outer casing bas some water marks. The green ink coverage is not sufficient, the metal can still be seen through the ink. Since three colours are used, three printing passes are needed. This implies that the tinned plates have to be properly aligned in order to prevent overlap of the colours. On the National Special battery we bought, some printing overlap could be detected (out of register). The printing on the Duracell plastic cover does not show water marks or overlap of the different colours. By improving the quality awareness of the machine operators, the occurrence of water marks and other printing deficiencies can be reduced. The installation of a new printing machine, able to print more colours in one pass, reduces the number of printing passes required and thus the likelibood of misalignment and colour overlap. It also increases the capacity of the printing process and the overall capacity of the factory.

Further recommendations

While examining competing battery casings it was noted that the competitors use printed stickers insteadof printing directly on the metal casing. This solution should be examined by Carnaud Metal Box. Printing the stickers themselves or obtaining them from an outside supplier might be cheaper, but will definitely free some much needed printing capacity on the printing machine.

The quality awareness of the employees could be improved, Carnaud wants to introduce the world class manufacturing system. This system is developed by the international head office of Carnaud Metal Box to improve quality in all their factories. The quality manager gives courses in this system, but more emphasis on the quality awareness of the employees will improve the quality of the final products. Not detecting quality problems in the final productscan have major financial consequences for the company.

12..j. Testing a Technology Audit Methodology

3. ENTERPRISE PART

General information Camaud Metalbox is part of a multinational company with factorles in many different countrles. The head office is situated in the United Kingdom. Until 1996 the factory was a Parastatal company, a majorlty share was held by the Tanzanian government. Recently the governmental share was obtained by the Crown Cork & Seal company of the United States. Carnaud Metal Box currently produces many types of standard products: battery casings, crown corks, oil cans, coffee cans, paint cans, etc. Specific products on a specific order can be produced as well. Only the dies for the production of the special order have to be manufactured by the engineering department or obtained from outside.

Product price The product prlce information was considered confidential by Camaud Metalbox, and was not made available to us.

Management The general manager of Carnaud Metalbox is an Indian expatriate who has worked for different Metalbox factorles around the world. His rnanaging skilis seem to be sufficient but rather authoritarian. The Tanzanian technica! manager had many plans to improve the production process and was eager to gain more knowledge about logistic principles. Our overall impression was that the factory was well managed.

A vailability of information The availability of information in the company is very good. All the machines were supplied with clear tables in which the machine settings for different types of products were shown. This reduces the time neerled toset-up a machine. Each department is also supplied with quality data from the past few month. From these tables the employees can see how their department is performing compared to the other departments. Examples of possible defects are also on display in order to instruct the machine operators about defects which can occur during manufacturing.

Skilis and knowledge of employees Most employees have finished primary school, and 4 employees, including the production manager, have university degrees. Employees are provided with on the job training.

Direct enterprise environment The power supply to Camaud Metalbox is suffering from regular interruptions. This is compensated for by a powerful generator. This generator is able to supply all the machines with electricity in case of a power failure.

The infrastructure in and around the Camaud Metalbox factory is good, a 4 lane tarmac road runs next to the factory. The infrastructure in Dar es Salaam is good, having a deep sea harbour, an international airport, and a railway connecting Tanzania with neighbouring countries. Especially the deep sea harbour is useful for Carnaud Metalbox, the raw materials ordered abroad are delivered by means of sea transport.

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