Enhancing productivity in manual electronics assembly and inspection through illumination design

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify, study and quantify the effects of lighting on yield and productivity in manual electronics assembly (MEA) and inspection as a limiting work design criterion. The study also examines the potential interactions among lighting option, workers' age, and years of experience.Design/methodology/approach – A three‐factor full factorial experiment is adopted to statistically evaluate the independent variables (process yield and assembly time) versus randomly selected levels of three factors: type of light (low pressure sodium, mercury vapor lamps, and metal halide lamps measured in foot‐candle luminaries), operator age, and years on the job. A residual analysis is also conducted to complement and corroborate the ANOVA findings.Findings – The study finds that metal halide lamps, based on the ANSI recommended ranges of 186‐464 foot‐candles, lead to significant increases in labor productivity and through‐put, irrespective of operators' age and years of experience. A...

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