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Andon response log
An andon is the signal an operator uses to call for help the moment something goes wrong: a cord, a button or a light at the station. An andon response log records each call and what happened next: when it was called, which station and what type of problem, when help arrived, when it was fixed, how long the line was down, the cause, the countermeasure and whether it was escalated. The response time, from the call to someone arriving who can help, shows whether the support around the line works; the causes show what to fix so the calls stop. Page 1 of this template is the log with a type key: quality, material, maintenance and help. Page 2 has an example of response targets and escalation by type to replace with your own, the escalation levels and a daily summary by type and by station. The Excel version works out response and fix minutes from the times, including calls past midnight, flags calls answered later than the target you set for their type, and counts calls, average response, downtime and escalations by type and by station, with a chart of average response against target.
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
When to use it
When to use an andon response log
- When an andon is in place but nobody measures how long people wait for help.
- To set and check response targets for team leaders, maintenance, materials and quality.
- To find the stations and causes behind most calls, and fix them.
- As the data behind a daily or tier meeting review of yesterday's calls.
How to fill it in
- 1
Agree the types and targets
Decide the call types, who answers each, how fast, and who is called next if the problem is not fixed. Page 2 has an example to change.
- 2
Log every call
Time called, station and type, even when the problem was fixed in a minute. Short calls show where help is needed often.
- 3
Write the arrival and fix times
When the responder arrived and when the problem was resolved. The Excel version works out the minutes, past midnight too.
- 4
Record the cause and the countermeasure
What caused the call and what was done about it. Note the downtime if the line stopped.
- 5
Escalate by the rules
When a call is not fixed within its escalation time, call the next level and mark it on the log.
- 6
Review every day
Look at the calls over target and the stations that call most, and fix the cause behind repeat calls.
A filled-in example
Illustrative, not a benchmarkAn example: andon calls over two shifts on an assembly line (illustrative).
- 08:00, station 1, quality: the team leader arrived at 08:02, a 2-minute response inside the 3-minute target. Fixed at 08:20, past the 10-minute escalation time, with 15 minutes of downtime.
- 23:58, station 2, maintenance: the technician arrived at 00:05, a 7-minute response against a 5-minute target, so it is flagged. Escalated to level 1 and fixed at 00:10.
- 11:00, station 2, material: help arrived in 4 minutes, but the fix took 30 minutes while the right pallet was found.
- 10:00, station 1, material: no arrival time written yet, so the call shows as open.
Across the three answered calls the average response was (2 + 7 + 4) ÷ 3 = 4.3 minutes and one was over target. Both calls past their escalation time were slow fixes after help had arrived, which points to spares and material rather than to the responders.
Common mistakes
Treating calls as bad news
If people are blamed for pulling the cord, they stop pulling it and problems are hidden. Judge the response, not the call.
Logging only the long stops
Short calls show the frequent problems. Log them all.
No agreed targets
Without a target for each type of call, a slow response is only an opinion.
Fixing the symptom every time
If the same station calls for the same cause every day, the countermeasure is not working. Look at repeat calls every week.
Download the template
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
Run this template in LeanSuite
In LeanSuite anyone on the floor raises an issue as a tag from a QR code at the machine, rules route it to an owner by tag type, area, department and priority with a due date, and a tag that cannot be fixed locally is escalated to tier 2 or tier 3 with its history.
In the lean glossary
FAQ
Andon response log: common questions
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