Abstract
The current market, becoming more rigid, forces companies to search continuously for innovation and improvement of their processes and products as a way to keep competitive and gain strategic advantages. Due to the global economic crisis, more and more companies try an approach through new management methodologies that allow better performances in terms of earning, profit and cost reduction. The present article proposes an integrated TOC (Theory of Constraints), Lean and Six-Sigma (TLS) model, with the objective of improving continuously a productive system, although it shows flexibility to be applied in other kinds of systems. The model synergistically integrate the best practices found in existing TOC, Lean and Six-Sigma models. The proposed model derivatives mainly from Eliyahu Goldratt’s TOC model of the “5 focus steps” and TLS model “Ultimate Improvement Cycle”, developed by Bob Sproull. The proposed TLS model was tested on an important Portuguese Manufacture. The implementation of a first continuous improvement cycle was completed and a second cycle began. The main results obtained by the implementation of the TLS model were extremely satisfactory.
Highlights
The XX century was of extreme importance to the industrial world where three big production paradigms arised and which are still decisive in the way managers administer industrial plants and their processes till nowadays (JACOBS; CHASE; AQUILANO, 2009).From those new paradigms, came some new methodologies that through continuous improvement cycles can create satisfactory results on productive system’s performances
One TLS model is presented and the results of the proposed model tested in a real Lean productive system are shown
The iTLS model uses the characteristics of TOC, to identify the constraint and focus the improvement there to the optimization of the global system, elevate the constraint and increase gains using the tools of Lean and Six-Sigma in a way to eliminate waste and variability
Summary
The XX century was of extreme importance to the industrial world where three big production paradigms arised and which are still decisive in the way managers administer industrial plants and their processes till nowadays (JACOBS; CHASE; AQUILANO, 2009) From those new paradigms, came some new methodologies that through continuous improvement cycles can create satisfactory results on productive system’s performances. Current studies prove that the most effective continuous improvement systems in terms of costs reduction are gaining market share and improving quality currently are the models that combines the Theory of Constraints, Lean and Six-Sigma methodologies (PIRASTEH; FARAH, 2006; SPROULL, 2009). Those models are known as TLS models. The best state of the art found during the review of the models, which integrate the Theory of Constraint, Lean and Six Sigma, use TOC to focus and identify system constraints and some Lean and Six Sigma (LSS) tools which are mainly utilized to eliminate waste and reduce variability in the constraint step
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