By Ramesh Subbaraman
Keeping the physical and medical concerns of its mature workers in mind while cutting costs and material wastage through productivity enhancements – that is what Porite Singapore (Pte) Ltd has done.
The company plans to embark on a programme to redesign ten lifting machines which size ball bearings for various products.
Human Resource Executive Doris Ang said the company will be tapping on WorkPro again for the redesign project.
Pilot Test Successful
It piloted a redesigned machine in January this year, with successful results.
In the article on ‘A Day in the Life of a… Mature Worker’, we highlighted some of the problems faced by mature workers when lifting containers to empty out ball bearings into the hopper machine. By redesigning the machine, work processes and cost cuts had significantly improved (See box on Productivity improvements).
The company saw a reduction in medical claims and leave due to back or shoulder injuries among mature workers – results of operating the old machine which had a higher hopper.
Support For Mature Workers
Meanwhile Porite Singapore is also a strong advocate of age-friendly work places. Of the 85 staff employed, 16 are mature workers.
Six of them are aged between 50 and 54 and the other 10 are 55 and above. The oldest worker is 66 years old. The company also supports the re-employment age till 67.
It plans to reflect this in the Collective Agreement with the Metal Industries Workers’ Union when the present one ends in 2018.
“As for the policies to improve the work experience for mature workers, the company offers re-employment contracts to mature workers who are healthy and able and are still keen to continue working.
“Due to the ageing workforce and rising medical costs, the company has also increased the annual medical claim from $420 to $450 from 2016,” said Ms Ang.
Mature workers at the company also enjoy flexible work arrangements like adjusting the time they start work, especially for those who stay far away from the company premises in Jurong.
At A Glance: Productivity Improvements
|
|
Current Situation |
After Job Redesign |
|
Average time loss when machine stops |
180 mins (18 stops X 10 mins) |
36 mins (18 stops X 2 mins) |
|
Total quantity loss of ball bearings in 26 working days per month |
140, 400 pcs |
28, 080 pcs |
|
Loss per machine |
$4,260 |
$852 |
|
Loss from ten machines |
$42,600 |
$8,520 |
