Improving cycle time through managing variability in a DRAM production line

The authors describe the process adopted to improve productivity in terms of cycle time decrease in a DRAM wafer fab (AMOS, Texas Instruments Italy). In order to arrange the structural and managerial factors influencing the cycle time of products, an integrated approach aimed to contain the variability is outlined. Such a process generated a 30% cycle time reduction in 1996 with a remarkable impact on the operating performance of the factory.