Lean Manufacturing Systems

Lean Manufacturing is a manufacturing system and philosophy that has been developed originally by Toyota and now continues to be used throughout the world by a vast amount of manufacturers.

Lean manufacturing systems are about the steady elimination of waste along with the improvement of quality as well as production time and reduction in cost when it comes to the manufacturing process from raw material to a completed product. Waste can also be defined as anything which will not add value to the customer or anything in which the customer does not wish to pay for.

One example of this is; if you order a shirt to be custom made for instance, it may take six weeks before it is completed. However, the actual time span that the tailors or seamstresses are working on the shirt is only five hours. The remaining time is made up of ordering material and waiting for shipping etc. This extra time does not in actual fact add quality or value to the customer. By applying the principles of lean manufacturing, the process of making the shirt and delivery time would be reduced from five to four weeks or in some cases even less.

There are companies by the name of "Eyeglass in About an Hour" that have applied a vast amount of Lean principles to their operations. This has resulted in items that used to take weeks to complete, are now completed in approximately one hour, which adds value to the customer. This has resulted in what was once thought to be an impossible speed of delivery now being routine. Adding value to the customer and adding value to the product are two very different things. For instance, the shirt that you require to be custom made can be made more valuable by adding extra stitching or using top quality fabric or by adding a logo. All of these different things will make the product last longer. However, these things do not add value to the customer, if he wants a basic shirt that fits well and will last for approximately two years. Therefore the customer will not be willing to pay a high price for a more valuable shirt when these added extras are a waste to him.

There are seven types of waste that are identified through lean manufacturing implementation. These include:

1. Over-Production

A product that cannot be sold or needs to be sold at a reduced price is wasteful.

2. Inventory

Another wasteful factor is a great deal of cash which is tied up in excess inventory.

3. Conveyance

It is exceptionally wasteful to unnecessarily move a part during the production process. This can also cause a great deal of damage to the product, which will in effect cause wasteful rework.

4. Correction

One very large source of waste is by having to re-work parts due to manufacturing errors.

5. Motion

Another things that put undue stress on the body and cause waste is unnecessary or awkward operator motions. By using lean manufacturing concepts and adding improvement to this area, less injuries and compensation claims for workmen will be experienced.

6. Processing

Customer requirements which are unclear can cause the manufacturer to add unnecessary processes, which will in effect add cost to the product.

7. Waiting

An idle operator between operations is wasteful. For the machine to wait on the operator is something that can be accepted, but for the operator to wait on the machine is highly unacceptable.

Eliminating waste in the work environment requires a major change in the understanding as to what waste is. In order to truly implement a Lean Manufacturing System, it is essential to change your definition of waste to anything that does not add value to the customer. Once you have reached an understanding of lean manufacturing systems then you will see an array or opportunities for eliminating waste.

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