{"id":16980,"date":"2019-05-23T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-05-22T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sapastaging.com\/can-innovation-really-eliminate-human-error\/"},"modified":"2024-10-01T10:10:57","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T09:10:57","slug":"can-innovation-really-eliminate-human-error","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sapastaging.com\/en\/can-innovation-really-eliminate-human-error\/","title":{"rendered":"CAN INNOVATION REALLY ELIMINATE HUMAN ERROR?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A mistake by an operator can affect the good functioning of a machine or even damage it permanently. We asked ourselves how innovation can counter this and optimise the production phase.<\/span><\/h2>\n

Not long ago I was in a town by the sea as a guest at a friend\u2019s whose grandfather is one of the few active fishermen in that town.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vincenzo is 82 years old and still going out to sea. Not every morning, though – he gives in with a little embarrassment.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Vincenzo, the last fisherman of his hometown.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I meet him in the veranda where he is sitting mending a net.<\/span><\/p>\n

I am in awe in front of this white-haired, curved and very trim man who is still busy with the same activity he was carrying out 40 years ago, the thing he\u2019s been doing all his life: mending the nets.<\/span><\/p>\n

I congratulate him: only a seaman can keep that strong. He laughs. He says that it is more difficult now, what with old age, reduced eyesight and the humidity that has gone into the bones.<\/span><\/p>\n

Up until a few years ago, his brother used to go out to fish with him. They used to do everything together, so when it was calm, one could rest and the other one would guard the boat; if one had not seen a rip in the net, the other one would. The sea was less big together.<\/span><\/p>\n

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I am telling you about this because it has to do with our outlook at SAPA and I am sure that you have read about it before.<\/p>\n

As you know, the automotive sector has changed a lot over the years. Maybe because of it being projected into the future (at the end of day, what\u2019s a car if not an arrow projected forward?), but also due to consumers\u2019 requirements, the automotive sector is one of the sectors where the drive towards change is most visible.<\/strong> I am talking about new materials, gadgets and of the car\u2019s performances.<\/p>\n

But I am also talking about the innovation that pertains us car makers, the innovation linked with production.<\/p>\n

You will agree that the way a car is built today is much leaner than it was fifty years ago. If I think of Vincenzo and his net, I realise that in our sector only few finishings are still linked to the production model of the past, or maybe not even them.<\/p>\n

Innovation was fundamental, and it still is, to optimise the production processes that determine delivery times and, therefore, all the other phases.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thinking back to my experience, I can see that SAPA made process optimisation to one of its main strengths: The One-Shot\u00ae Method, which is patented and is the world\u2019s fastest method to produce car parts, rests precisely on the reduction of the number of phases. <\/strong>\u00a0At the heart of this method is the simplification of the production chain: if we can eliminate even just one phase in comparison with the traditional method, then we can already talk of \u201cOne-Shot\u00ae Method\u201d.<\/strong> The crazy thing is that this method brought us results that, believe me, were unimaginable for me at the beginning.<\/p>\n

In practice: many parts that are produced with the One-Shot Method\u00ae are produced in just one press stroke.<\/strong> This means that we achieved the maximum level of optimisation.<\/strong> Would you like me to quote some examples?<\/p>\n

The One-Shot\u00ae Bicolor A-Pillar, which is even moulded in two colours already.<\/p>\n

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One-Shot\u00ae Bicolor A Pillar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But also our Engine Beauty Cover, for which productivity increased by 300%.<\/span><\/p>\n

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One-Shot\u00ae Engine Beauty Cover<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Innovation has another positive consequence, that is to say, it reduces human error to the minimum.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the past few years, Vincenzo has been mending his fishing nets without his brother\u2019s help: I realise how much our daily circumstances can influence our work.<\/p>\n

It is true that the specialised workers that work in our plants every day are highly qualified and carefully selected.<\/p>\n

But it is also true that everyone can have a bad day, or not feel well and make a mistake.<\/p>\n

At SAPA we asked ourselves how much human error can impact on our work and what these errors are concretely.<\/strong> And more than that: we found a solution<\/strong>, a sort of guardian angel for all our operators who can reduce errors to zero.<\/p>\n

Let me explain myself better. I start from this premise: most of the errors that people make are caused by external factors, such as:<\/p>\n