What is Lean Manufacturing?

At the heart of ‘lean’ is the customer, and a focus on the customer’s definition of quality. Lean production involves being able to deliver a product or service to the customer on time, in full, every time. You might be asking; what’s that got to do with lean? The simple answer is 'everything'.

Put yourself in the customer’s shoes for a moment. I know you can do it; you’re probably somebody’s customer several times a day, whether it’s in the supermarket, the petrol station, the news agent or even at work.

So what is it you really want? Could it be value for money? Would you be just a little bit upset if you found out that you were paying for somebody’s poor work practices? What if you found out that a loaf of bread, costs ten cents more than it should, because the baker always made more dough than he used, and made you pay for it? And what if you found out that, that same baker, always baked more loaves than he could sell, and added another five cents to the cost of each loaf to cover that as well?

Lean philosophy tells us that the customer shouldn’t be paying for anything that doesn’t add value to the product, or service that is being provided. So, do you know what lean manufacturing is now?

If you answered with something like: eliminating waste, or only doing those things that add value for the customer, you’d be on the right track. Lean manufacturing is about both. If you are going to do only those things that add value for the customer, you have to eliminate waste. So let’s go back to our baker for a moment.

We know two things about his baking practices, he always makes too much dough (and throws out the excess) and he always bakes too many loaves, and throws out what he doesn’t sell. What do you think the baker would say if you asked him why he made you pay for his waste? He’d probably say that if he didn’t he’d go broke. By not covering all of his production costs, including his waste, he wouldn’t make enough money to stay in business. And if you asked him why he made too much, he’d probably say because that’s they way he’s always done it. It was probably the way he was taught. Remember the old truism “you can never have too much of anything”? Still think that it’s true?

Our baker friend could reduce his waste, and his costs (and perhaps his prices), if he were able to eliminate or reduce the extra dough and bread he threw out. By measuring his excess dough every night (bakers usually bake at night) and working out what the average quantity was, he could reduce the amount he threw out significantly, simply by reducing the amount of dough he made by the average amount of waste. If he did the same thing with the loaves he threw out, he’d be able to further reduce his waste, and his costs.

This is a simple lesson in lean manufacturing, but there is still one thing to learn. It doesn’t stop! You keep trying to reduce or eliminate waste. And the thing is, you not only get less waste, but you get better at what you do, all the time, because you’re always learning, and improving on what you do.

Talk about workplace learning :)

What lean practices are being used in your workplace? How has 'lean' reduced waste and costs where you work? Do you have lean stories do can share with us? We look forward to hearing from you.

Peter Hancock

Work Doctor at Workplace Learning Initiatives Pty Ltd


Free 'LEAN' learning resources:

 

Download free learning resources from Workplace Learning Initiatives Pty Ltd








Related Article:

• Why focus on workplace learning?

Curing a sick workplace: Coffee & cake, or onions?

In previous postings ('Is your workplace sick?' and 'Symptoms of sick workplace') we discussed how a workplace can become unhealthy and unproductive. We also considered various workplace ‘symptoms’, such as Occupational Health and Safety incidents, accidents and ‘near misses’; high levels of staff turn-over, or absenteeism. These symptoms can indicate that a workplace has problems.

So if we can identify the symptoms of a sick workplace can we provide the cure? Sure, but it’s important to remember that something is causing these symptoms. We need to get beyond the symptom to the cause of the problem. The right ‘medicine’ for any given workplace will depend upon the true nature of the problem.

Some time ago, one of our consultants told us about the frustrations he was having in a client’s workplace. There was constant tension and bickering within the workplace. It seemed few of the issues were really serious, but there were petty squabbles and arguments between workers almost every day. The poor communication was eroding goodwill and there was little cooperation between the work-teams. The symptoms of this workplace dis-ease were problems with product quality, failure to meet delivery deadlines and ultimately, dissatisfied customers!


Our consultant was visiting the site every week. He began to bring cake to the morning coffee breaks. He encouraged shopfloor operators and their team leaders to get together over coffee and cake and talk about their issues and concerns. Through group discussions and separate one-to-one conversations, both on and off-the-job, he identified key issues. He also began to see that the key people involved had different understandings of the production process and what was required. After several weeks of informal investigation and coffee and cake conversations, he brought all of the key players together at the same table. He explained to them what was happening, what he had learned, and how he perceived the situation. “You guys need to talk about this stuff and sort out these misunderstandings,” he said. ”I can’t keep buying cake forever!”

It would be nice if coffee and cake could cure all our workplace problems—but that’s unlikely unless the conversations get to the real cause of the problems. “What’s really going on here?” can be a useful question. Finding the cure for workplace ills involves sussing out the causes beneath the symptoms and surface appearances. What’s really going on is often quite different to what appears to be happening. Root Cause Analysis may be needed to get to the bottom of things and really understand the cause(s) of problems.

Most workplaces are a bit like onions—there are several layers, one inside the other. Peeling away the layers can reveal misunderstandings, communication difficulties, people not really listening, workers learning (but sometimes learning the wrong things), and relationships which need maintenance and/or repair. Peeling the layers can also reveal everyday work practices causing waste. There may be waste of time, materials, energy and effort. There may be all of the Seven Wastes commonly found in workplaces, but they are overlooked or accepted because they’re ‘normal’.

So finding the right approach might involve coffee, cake and peeling onions! There are multiple layers and points of view to be explored. Without proper ‘diagnosis’ and understanding of the root causes of problems, we are unlikely to come up with a permanent ‘cure’ or sustainable solutions.

Dr Peter Waterhouse
Work Doctor at Workplace Learning Initiatives Pty Ltd


Related Articles

• Is your workplace sick?
• Symptoms of a sick workplace
• Why blaming doesn’t work
• Why focus on workplace learning?