<![CDATA[Labor-intensive manual production lines often lose efficiency through non-value-added (NVA) motion and uneven operator workload, yet these two problems are usually addressed separately. This study aims to design a framework whose main contribution is the integration of waste identification, work-method redesign, and workload balancing within a single procedure. Value Stream Mapping (VSM) maps the production flow and locates waste, the Eliminate–Combine–Rearrange–Simplify (ECRS) principle redesigns the work sequence, and a full-time-equivalent (FTE) workload analysis reallocates operators across stations. Standard times were established using the Westinghouse performance rating and ILO allowances. The framework was applied to a barecore production line in the furniture sector. The proposed redesign reduces the number of activities from 10 to 8 with the same workforce of 32 operators, and is estimated to cut total production time per sheet by 84.3 s (9.05%), from 931.15 to 846.86 s. The maximum operator workload is estimated to decrease from 0.81 to 0.77, and the workload range between the most- and least-loaded stations to narrow from 0.68 to 0.64, with no station exceeding the FTE limit of 1. These results indicate that the estimated efficiency gain comes from removing waste rather than from overloading operators. The framework offers a low-cost, repeatable diagnostic-and-redesign procedure and has potential for application to other labor-intensive manual production environments, subject to further validation across different products and layouts.]]>
