Work sampling is a technique that provides valuable information to fleet maintenance managers on areas of low technician productivity. Basically, it is a series of snapshot observations of work in progress, taken randomly over a period of time, intended to uncover areas of potential efficiency and effectiveness improvement.
This technique involves an observer, as he/she encounters a technician, categorizing and recording the activity of that technician, based on the instant the observer came into contact with that person. Typically, “activity” is classified into three categories:
- Productive – Direct, hands-on productive work.
- Supportive – Any activity used to support the productive work.
- Non-productive – “Wasted time, such as waiting for instructions, socializing, coffee breaks, etc.
Advantages
Some of the pluses about work sampling is that it:
- Is relatively easy to adopt.
- Requires few resources.
- Can be conducted by anyone with limited training.
- Provides quick information.
- Does not require continuous observation of technicians over a long period of time.
- May be interrupted at any time without affecting the results.
The theory of work sampling is based on the law of probability. Observations are made at random times to give each individual moment during an observation an equal chance of being observed. Observing the people or events at the same time each day may not provide a reliable sampling of their complete routine.
One way to ensure the randomness of observations is to use random number tables or random number generators.
