ABSTRACT
Animal [mostly sheep] sacrifice for [Had'ie], [Fad'ie] and [Sadaka] had created many environmental problems at the Holy Muna area, until the Sacrifice Benefiting Project [SBP] was established to handle nearly one half of the sacrificed animal [640,000 sacrifices] under controlled conditions in 6 [Model] sacrifice facilities. The work operations in the Me'aesam [Model] facility No. 1, which had been equipped for processing 300,000 sacrifices, was studied in order to have them optimized, as well as the labourers work schedule and the use of sacrifice products. The facility was surveyed, together with reviewing and analysing data of a previously conducted motion-time study of operations. The time required for hanging the sacrificed sheep on rack and the time required for hide removal are the longest among the 14 present operations, and both operations hold the others [i.e. bottle necking]. Different operation alternatives were tried, and the best among them, considering easiness, practicability, cost-effectiveness and fulfillment of Islamic rules, includes only 10 operations with considerable change in operations sequence, but none in the hardware; however, requires increase in labour-force to the two [bottle-neck] operations, with reductions in others, making up a total labour increase of 20%. The total basic time of all operations is reduced by 43.6%, with increase in production by 37.8%, which may be further raised to 83.8% if the work schedule is increased from 10.5 work shifts on [Tashrik] days to 14 shifts. This can be achieved by adding 3 shifts before and 0.5 shift after [Tashrik] as may be allowed by [Shafie Madh-hab]; however, this would require the issue of a religious [Fatwa]. Moreover, the wastes, representing 53% of the sheep weight, could be optimally processed; visceras may be washed, packed and distributed for human use; blood may be collected while anticoagulated, dried and used as poultry ration; hides may be removed carefully under supervision, cleaned, salted and sent for tanning; stomach and intestine contents and other wastes may be treated and used as animal rations and organic manures, as well as for manufacture of animal fat, medicinals and other articles; meanwhile, eliminating the environmental impact of their disposal