iTLS™ model for increasing operational efficiency: Application in an energy and telecommunications systems industry

Theory of Constraints, Lean Manufacturing, and Six Sigma are methodologies that have already brought numerous benefits regarding system efficiency. Their applications range go from operations management to service levels, revolutionizing the market and boosting the economy. However, the market demand is extremely high and aiming for continuous improvement as a way to always seek to prosper, integration models related to these methodologies have been proposed. As a way to amplify their benefits of use, the objective of this article is to propose and execute a logical application roadmap through a model that integrates the methodologies of Theory of Constraints, Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma, called iTLS™, a model that is little studied in the literature. Therefore, the action research method was used where the limiting factors of the process were highlighted and corrective actions were outlined that resulted in a significant improvement in operational performance. The process of improving operational performance follows a logical sequence of tool application developed through the proposal of a methodology using the iTLS™ model and using as metrics the OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness), MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures) and MTTR (Mean Time To Repair) indicators.