Constructing a production exception handling system for the semiconductor manufacturing process

Abstract

Purpose

Facing keen worldwide competition, it is not enough for companies to pursue customer satisfaction; they must actively pursue customer delight. This paper seeks to design a work‐in‐process (WIP) exception handling system (WIPEHS) not simply measuring on‐time delivery performance for managers to take necessary improvement activities. It helps managers detect abnormal WIP levels in advance, trigger rectifying actions and finally notify pertinent people to coordinate roots causes and preventive means.

Design/methodology/approach

The structure of WIPEHS is proposed and then constructed with a soft package, Vigilance. A typical semiconductor factory is built and production data are simulated to evaluate the effectiveness of WIPEHS.

Findings

Collecting and analyzing results from the simulated typical semiconductor factory, the paper finds that the proposed system can effectively improve on‐time delivery performance; and that durations from a WIP exception detected a WIP exception back to normal and durations between two successive WIP exceptions significantly.

Practical implications

It helps factories outperform due dates, achieving significantly higher performance than prior performance without the production exception handling system, which should greatly please customers.

Originality/value

The proposed WIPEHS provide a total solution for undesirable production variations potentially harmful to due‐date performance. It anticipates WIP exception, notifies pertinent recipients, tracks the progress of exception resolution, and provides a forum for discussion of the root causes.

Citation

Yeh, T. (2011), "Constructing a production exception handling system for the semiconductor manufacturing process", Kybernetes, Vol. 40 No. 9/10, pp. 1530-1542. https://doi.org/10.1108/03684921111169549