~ LEAN MANUFACTURING OVERVIEW ~

Lean manufacturing is commonly perceived as a workfloor effort which produces visible "results" such as a shadow board or a U-shaped workcell or brightly colored 2-bin system.  These elements are necessary components of the Visual Factory that is created by Lean Initiative, but are actually only a sub-set of the available Lean tools.  The reorganization of one or two workcells rarely produces a result that affects the bottom line.

Achieving financial results requires a more holistic approach encompassing a coordinated slate of initiatives to upgrade management systems, decision making, technical projects, and cultural transformation. Achieving financial improvements is the result of reducing systemic waste, which requires a systems engineering approach.

Cultural Transformation
A Lean Manufacturing project is not just a technical project, but is also deeply cultural.  It is the cultural transformation, especially at the management levels, that is so often overlooked in Lean initiatives.  Without the cultural transformation, any gains from LEAN are sure to be lost as the organization regresses to its previous ways. The cultural transformation starts at the top. The company leaders must alter their thinking patterns. It is difficult because life long habits must be reprogrammed.

Learning to See
The waste on the manufacturing floor is hidden in plain site, lost in the wasted seconds and minutes of non-value added (NVA) activities.  "Learning to See" this waste is one of the first items of training in a Lean initiative.

Focusing on the Flow
The best way to detect waste in a Lean environment is by focusing on the flow. When flow stops, there is some kind of waste that is impeding flow.  Anything that is anti-flow is anti-lean.  For example, lengthy set-up times that are tolerated in a conventional manufacturing environment are seen as pure waste in a Lean environment.