Method and apparatus for identifying and obtaining bottleneck cost information

A method for obtaining bottleneck cost information for a product in a manufacturing facility having a bottleneck process step, comprising the steps of:

• obtaining time and quantity data from a plurality of respective manufacturing process steps in the manufacturing facility;
• calculating a bottleneck processing time, responsive to a completed product of the bottleneck process step, by a computer;
• obtaining a bottleneck time charge;
• and
• obtaining a bottleneck cost of the product responsive to the bottleneck processing time and the bottleneck time charge.

A method for obtaining a bottleneck cost of a product in a manufacturing facility having a plurality of manufacturing process steps, comprising the steps of:

• obtaining time and quantity data, associated with a plurality of units to be processed by the manufacturing facility, from each manufacturing process step;
• storing the time and quantity data from the plurality of respective manufacturing process steps in a memory location of a computer;
• calculating a processing time corresponding to each process step responsive to the time data by the computer;
• calculating a total thruput value for a product at each process step by the computer;
• calculating a thruput rate for each process step in response to the total thruput value and the processing time of the respective plurality of process steps by the computer;
• selecting a minimizing thruput rate corresponding to the factory bottleneck process step;
• calculating a bottleneck processing time responsive to completed products at the bottleneck process step by the computer;
• obtaining a bottleneck time charge;
• and
• obtaining a bottleneck cost of the product responsive to the bottleneck processing time and bottleneck time charge.

An article of manufacture including a computer readable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for determining a bottleneck for a product in a manufacturing facility, the computer readable program code means in the article of manufacture comprising:

• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to calculate a processing time responsive to time and quantity data acquired at a process step;
• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to calculate a total thruput value for the product at the process step;
• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to calculate a thruput rate responsive to the total thruput value and the processing time;
• and
• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to select a minimum thruput rate corresponding to the bottleneck.

An article of manufacture including a computer readable medium having computer readable program means embodied therein for obtaining bottleneck cost information for a product in a manufacturing facility having a bottleneck process step, the computer readable means in the article of manufacture comprising:

• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to calculate a bottleneck processing time responsive to a completed product of the bottleneck process step;
• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to obtain a bottleneck time charge;
• and
• computer readable program code means for causing a computer to obtain a bottleneck cost of the product responsive to the bottleneck processing time and the bottleneck time charge.

A method for estimating a delivery time of a quantity of units produced at a manufacturing facility, comprising the steps of:

• inputting, into an input device at a first manufacturing process step, a first accept time value and a first complete time value associated with a first quantity of units to be processed at the first manufacturing process step;
• inputting, into a second input device at a second manufacturing process step, a second accept time value and a second complete time value associated with a second quantity of units to be processed at the second manufacturing process step;
• calculating, by a processing device, a first processing time value associated with the first manufacturing process step and a second processing time value associated with the second manufacturing process step;
• and
• determining an estimated delivery time for a third quantity of units processed by the first and second manufacturing process steps to a customer based on the first and second processing time values.

A method for improving the efficiency of a manufacturing facility having a plurality of manufacturing process steps, wherein each manufacturing process step includes a manufacturing machine, comprising the steps of:

• inputting, into a first input device at a first manufacturing process step in the plurality of manufacturing process steps, a first accept time value, a first begin time value, a first complete time value, and a first accept quantity value associated with a first quantity of units to be processed at the first manufacturing process step;
• inputting, into a second input device at a second manufacturing process step in the plurality of manufacturing process steps, a second accept time value, a second begin time value, a second complete time value, and a second accept quantity value associated with a second quantity of units to be processed at the second manufacturing process step;
• inputting, into an input device at a third manufacturing process step in the plurality of manufacturing process steps, a third accept time value, a third begin time value, a third complete time value, and a third accept quantity value associated with a third quantity of units to be processed at the third manufacturing process step;
• calculating, by a processing device, a first, a second, and a third processing time values for the first, second, and third manufacturing process steps, respectively;
• calculating, by the processing device, a first, a second, and a third thruput values for the first, second, and third manufacturing process steps, respectively, based on an average selling price of the product, raw material cost, and the first, second, and third accept quantity values;
• calculating, by a processing device, a first, a second, and a third thruput rate values for the first, second, and third manufacturing process steps, respectively, based on the first, second, and third thruput values and the first, second, and third process time values;
• comparing the first, second, and third thruput rate values of the manufacturing process steps to obtain a lowest thruput rate value;
• and
• increasing the machine speed in the manufacturing process step associated with the lowest thruput rate value.

A method for determining a price of a product produced at a manufacturing facility having a plurality of manufacturing process steps, comprising the steps of:

• inputting, into a first input device at a first manufacturing process step in the plurality of manufacturing process steps, a first time value and a second time value associated with a first quantity of units to be processed at the first manufacturing process step;
• inputting, into a second input device at a second manufacturing process step in the plurality of manufacturing process steps, a third time value and fourth time value associated with a second quantity of units to be processed at the second manufacturing process step;
• subtracting, by the processing device, the first time value from the second time value to obtain a first net cycle time;
• subtracting, by the processing device, the third time value from the fourth time value to obtain a second net cycle time;
• dividing, by the processing device, the first net cycle time by the first quantity to obtain a first net flow rate;
• dividing, by the processing device, the second net cycle time by the second quantity to obtain a second net flow rate;
• comparing the first and second net flow rates to obtain a lowest net flow rate;
• obtaining a product's bottleneck cycle time cost associated with a manufacturing process step having the lowest net flow rate by multiplying the lowest net flow rate associated with the lowest net flow rate by a cycle time charge and by the third quantity;
• obtaining a total bottleneck cost by summing the product's bottleneck cycle time cost and a product's raw materials cost;
• and
• selecting a price for the product based on the total bottleneck cost.

A semiconductor manufacturing facility, comprising:

• a production line, including a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing process steps, for manufacturing a plurality of units;
• a first semiconductor manufacturing process step, in the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing process steps, for providing a dry etch process step of the plurality of units;
• a first bar code scanner for inputting a first accept time, a first begin time, a first complete time, a first accept quantity of units, and a first complete quantity of units associated with the first semiconductor manufacturing process step;
• a second semiconductor manufacturing processing step, in the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing processing steps, for providing a wet etch process in the plurality of units;
• a second bar code scanner for inputting a second accept time, a second begin time, a first complete time, a second accept quantity of units, and a second complete quantity of units associated with the second semiconductor manufacturing process step;
• and
• a computer, coupled to the first bar code scanner and the second bar code scanner, for 1) obtaining a first thruput rate value for the first semiconductor manufacturing process step and a second thruput rate value for the second semiconductor manufacturing process step, and 2) identifying whether the first or second manufacturing process step is the bottleneck.

An apparatus for identifying a manufacturing process step in a production line of a manufacturing facility which limits the capability of the manufacturing facility to produce a product, the apparatus comprising:

• a first bar code scanner at a first manufacturing process step in the production line, for inputting a first accept time, a first begin time, a first complete time, a first accept quantity of units, and a first complete quantity of units;
• a first computer, coupled to the first bar code scanner, for storing a first accept time, a first begin time, a first complete time, a first accept quantity of units, and a first complete quantity of units;
• a second bar code scanner at a second manufacturing process step in the production line, for inputting a second accept time, a second begin time, a second complete time, a second accept quantity of units, and a second complete quantity of units;
• a second computer, coupled to the second bar code scanner, for storing the second accept time, a second begin time, a second complete time, a second accept quantity of units, and a second complete quantity of units;
• and
• a central computer, coupled to the first and second computers, for calculating 1) a first and second processing time values associated with the first and second manufacturing process step responsive to the first and second accept times and the first and second complete times, 2), a thruput value responsive to the product average selling price, raw material cost, and first and second complete quantity of units, and 3) calculating a thruput rate for the first and second semiconductor manufacturing process steps responsive to the first and second processing times and first and second thruput values.