Lean Manufacturing Principles Research Articles

Developing an Innovative and Creative Hands-on Lean Six Sigma Manufacturing Experiments for Engineering Education

The goal of this study was to develop an innovative and creative hands-on project based on Lean Six Sigma experiments for engineering education at the College of Engineering at the University of Hail. The exercises were designed using junction box assembly to meet the following learning outcomes: 1-to provide students with solid experience on waste elimination and variation reduction and 2-to engage students in exercises related to assembly line mass production and motion study. To achieve these objectives, students were introduced to the principles of Lean manufacturing and Six Sigma through various pedagogical activities such as classroom instruction, laboratory experiments, hands-on exercises, and interactive group work. In addition, Minitab 17 statistical package and Quality Companion 3 software were used to facilitate The Lean Six Sigma exercises. The software application and hands-on manufacturing assembly were found to be extremely valuable in giving students the chance to identify which variables to control in order to minimize variation and eliminate waste. This research was funded by a grant from the Deanship of Academic Research at University of Hail for project number E-26-IC, and under the umbrella of Ministry of Education within the framework of the National Initiative on Creativity and Innovation in Saudi Universities at University of Hail.

Lean services: a systematic review

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to highlight the importance of Lean methodology through an exhaustive literature review, and its implications and application in the service industry right from its initiation in 1990s till date.Design/methodology/approachThe paper summarises the evolution of Lean in services and has systematically classified the reviewed literature in four dimensions, namely time, publisher, region and content. Further under “time” dimension, the literature is classified into Pre-Lean era, Lean awareness era, Lean Exploration era and Lean implementation era. Under the “content” dimension, the categories include theoretical foundation, frameworks/models and application/case studies.FindingsThe analysis inferred; Lean is gaining roads in services, though the research is still at nascent stage. Lean is applicable in services though transfer of Lean manufacturing principles to services has certain limitations because of the characteristics of services. The need is to focus on process difference between services and manufacturing. Respect for people and employment engagement is critical to Lean in service. The authors identified the necessity to standardise the Lean service definition, principles, and tools and to develop guidelines for structured implementation in service industry.Research limitations/implicationsThough multiple databases have been taken-up but that does not assume that the literature presented in this paper is by any means comprehensive. Development of a standard model/framework for Lean services is critical for future research. Rigorous industry-specific studies, specifically in developing nations are another area for future research. Future studies could analyse the impact of join applications and possible links between Lean service and other approaches like TQM, Six Sigma, etc., with an aim of process improvement.Practical implicationsThis paper would serve as a resource for Lean practitioners as well as researchers as a fundamental platform, contributing to Lean body of knowledge.Social implicationsService industry has special significance to the society in large. Many services including governments, public interest services, non-profit organisations, healthcare, banking, consulting, etc., has a significant share across markets. Lean being a proven methodology for successful process improvements has to be looked at from a services perspective. This paper helps in such interest.Originality/valuePublications reviewing the adoption of Lean in services is scarce in literature. This paper serves as an excellent resource for research on the subject and will facilitate academicians and practitioners to objectively understand Lean in service sector.

Productivity improvement of a manufacturing facility using systematic layout planning

Implementation of lean manufacturing principles and believing in continuous improvement are the tools which help industries to sustain global competition. With the escalation in population, the dem...

An empirical study for implementation of lean principles in Indian manufacturing industry

Purpose – Lean manufacturing (LM) principles are one of the alternatives to improve manufacturing productivity, quality and customer satisfaction in Indian manufacturing industry. The purpose of this paper is to find the implementation status of LM principles across Indian manufacturing organizations through the empirical survey methodology. Design/methodology/approach – The survey questionnaire was developed based upon literature review conducted on LM and also considered experts suggestion in the field of LM. The survey questionnaire was sent to 753 manufacturing organization located in India. The respondent organization details have gathered from the list of Confederation of Indian Industries directory for the year 2011.The selected respondents were production managers, quality managers, sales managers, maintenance managers, CEOs of the organization. The empirical survey collected 180 filled survey questionnaires from Indian manufacturing industries. Findings – The study clearly identified that many manufacturing organizations were in initial transition stage and concentrating mostly in-plant operations instead of collaboration in all levels of business with suppliers and customers. The present study found that drivers for implementation of LM were customer satisfaction and organizational continuous improvement program. The present study also found that barriers to implement LM principles were employee resistance, implementing few elements of LM principles instead of the complete package of LM framework, budget constraints and lack of understanding of LM principles to shop floor managers. Finally the study concluded that Indian manufacturing organizations have to conduct continuous learning programmed to improve understanding of LM principles as well as to maintain their motivation level in apex point. The study also suggested that a systematic LM framework is needs to Indian manufacturing organizations, which will act as clear cut guiding torch to the organization managers to implement LM principles across organization. Research limitations/implications – The sample size of the present study was moderate number than previous studies. However the study only concentrated on manufacturing organizations across India. The results of the present study cannot generalize across all the sectors of Indian organizations. Originality/value – The concept of LM was very popular among developed and developing countries in the world. Many research studies were performed across world to find the status of LM implementation in their countries. Very few research studies reported the status of LM implementation in Indian manufacturing industries and those studies also with limited focus of the status of LM implementation. Hence the study presented details status of LM principles implementation in Indian manufacturing industries.

Abstract WMP62: Achieving Ultra-Fast Door-to-Needle Times With a “Treat-in-CT” Acute Stroke Protocol

Background: Ultra-early thrombolysis [onset-to-treatment time (OTT) < 90 min], leads to better clinical outcomes. We utilized lean manufacturing principles to re-choreograph patient flow such that tPA was delivered in the CT scanner rather than moving the patient to a separate treatment room. We tested the efficiency and safety of a “Treat-in-CT” protocol comparing metrics and outcomes before and after implementation. Methods: In July 2014, a LEAN rapid improvement event was conducted to design a “Treat-in-CT” stroke protocol. Several changes included: (1) Vital signs monitors and point of care glucose and INR were placed near the scanner. (2) Computer monitors were placed in the scanner to allow for rapid charting and order entry. (3) Local EMS crews, physicians, nursing staff, and CT technicians were trained on parallel work-flow in the scanner. The “Treat-in-CT” protocol went live 10/1/2014. We directly compared the “Pre” and “Post” Treat-in-CT epochs (1/2013-9/2014 and 10/2014-8/2015, respectively) with regard to baseline variables, metrics, and outcomes. Non-parametric statistics were used with p<0.05 required for significance. Results: In the Pre- and Post-Treat-in-CT epochs, 139 and 74 patients were treated with IV tPA, respectively. Baseline variables were similar between the two epochs. Median door-to-needle time was lower in the Post-Treat-in-CT epoch: 38 min pre vs. 29 min post (p=0.002) with a trend towards lower OTT: 131 min pre vs. 100 min post (p=0.07). To ensure that efficiency did not impact safety, favorable discharge location (87% pre vs. 81% post, p=0.3), symptomatic hemorrhage rate (2.9% pre vs. 1.5% post, p=1.0), stroke mimic rate, and 90 day mRS were compared and did not differ. Conclusions: The AHA Target: Stroke-Phase II guidelines recommend administration of tPA bolus while in the CT scanner. A “Treat-in-CT” acute stroke protocol using efficient choreography and parallel processing expedited tPA delivery without compromising safety.

Integration of Occupational Health and Safety into Lean Manufacturing: Quebec Aeronautics Case Study

The literature remains divided the ideal conditions for integration of occupational health and safety (OHS) into continuous improvement initiatives based on the principles of lean manufacturing. Few significant results and little documentation exist on the effectiveness, sustainability and the degree of integration. This paper outlines some possible explanations for the non-success of this integration and examines the hypothesis that integration is unsuccessful when the lean-based improvements themselves suffer from sustainability issues. This research project addressed the case of a Quebec manufacturing company and focused on musculoskeletal injury (MSI). Twenty-four employees participated in the study for two months. Corporate documentation was analyzed. Individual interviews were used to document workers’ perception of their work environment. Continuous improvement interventions were observed to identify possible risks of MSI, and obtain a general portrait of OHS and continuous improvement in this company. The majority of the employees surveyed believed that the continuous improvement initiatives were short-lived. They also reported they experienced MSI-related discomfort following organizational changes. Examination of several initiatives showed that results were not maintained over time. The integration of OHS into continuous improvement is not systematic. When this integration is apparent, OHS goals are not always met and are rarely subject to monitoring. Taking OHS into consideration, implementing lean principles does not directly guarantee a reduction in cases of MSI. The integration of OHS into continuous improvement activities is reflected in the systematic consideration of OHS in driving lean improvements. The results of this project will help to develop a better approach to the implementation of lean to improve this integration in our industries.

Systematic Improvement of Supplier Integration within the Product Development Process

Initially, companies have mainly optimized processes in production and logistics. Now, an improvement in the Product Development Process (PDP) takes place more and more. For this reason, companies use lean approaches to make their processes more effective and efficient. To reach this goal, the principles of Lean Manufacturing have been transferred to the PDP. In the current situation, many companies have recognized the numerous potentials of Product Development (PD), which can be realized in companies with the so-called ‘Lean Development’ (LD). Apart from these advantages, a major problem can be identified: On the one hand, the development process is an increasingly important core process in companies, but on the other hand, companies are decreasingly the owners of these processes. A shift in development activities takes place towards the suppliers. As a result of this shift, suppliers become a very important factor for the success of the PDP and the entire company. This current situation necessitates a systematic integration of suppliers within PD. Existing management approaches for a systematic integration of suppliers have substantial deficits. Based on this research gap, findings were generated as part of a study and a comprehensive analysis in the context of a research project. The results confirm that numerous savings can be achieved for the factors development quality, time, and costs. Business cases show, however, significant deficits in the long-term focus of supplier relationships. In order to improve this issue, the integration requires an extensive analysis of the current business organization and a restructuring of development processes. A selection of the results and findings of Supplier Management and future fields of action are presented in this publication.

Improvement of operational efficiency in a jobshop using lean manufacturing principles: a case study

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to document experiences gained due to implementation of lean strategies in one of the Caribbean jobshop manufacturing organisations. Design/methodology/approach: The present mode of the selected Caribbean manufacturing firm's operations has revealed that there is existence of excessive motion, processing time and queue time within the manufacturing layout. To gain insights in the lean area, a comprehensive review of literature has been conducted. For in depth analysis of the company's problems, the 5-whys methodology was followed. The current value stream map (CVSM) has been developed after making several company visits and necessary computations. For improvement of the system, various lean strategies have been proposed and future value stream map (FVSM) was developed. Findings: Due to implementation of lean strategies such as parallel processing, smaller batching, deployment of new technology and computer aided job assessment the company realised benefits in terms of reduction in lead time (∼86%), reduction in processing time (∼67%) and an increased effectiveness of flow (from 4% to 57%). Lean implementation also resulted in improved flow effectiveness and quality reports. Practical implications: With the proposed lean strategies the company can now capable of quicker revenue generation, reduction in costs and an increase in productivity. Originality/value: The study experiences can be applied in similar jobshop situations to reduce costs and improve the effectiveness of their manufacturing operations.

Improvement of operational efficiency in a jobshop using lean manufacturing principles: a case study

Improvement of operational efficiency in a jobshop using lean manufacturing principles: a case study

Aspects about Implementation of Lean Manufacturing Principles for Quality Improvement in a Production System for Automotive Industry

Now, worldwide, the Lean Manufacturing system represents the most comprehensive management philosophy within a manufacturing process. One of the basic principles of Lean Manufacturing is 5S process which involves the risks and wastes eliminating and it is considered a key of worker and equipment’s safety. Therefore, during the last years, 5S was expanded to 6S by the Safety adding. Thus, in this paper aspects about 6S process implementation on a manufacturing company of automotive components is presented. The monthly implementation extent of each 6S process indicators from 2013 until now is described, especially on the production lines of the factory. Finally, the major benefits of the introduction of the 6S principles in the company are highlighted.

Drivers and Barriers of Lean Implementation in the Greek Manufacturing Sector

Lean manufacturing has evolved from a set of tools and techniques to become a management philosophy. It can be used to reduce waste and improve the efficiency of companies. Many companies worldwide have implemented lean management and achieved great improvements. The present paper focuses on the lean manufacturing implementation within the Greek manufacturing sector. The purpose is to determine the extent to which the main principles of lean manufacturing are understood and adopted in Greek manufacturing sector companies. Also this paper aims to assess the importance of the driving factors and barriers towards implementing lean manufacturing in the Greek environment. A structured questionnaire was developed and circulated to a large number of Greek manufacturing companies. Based on the literature review and questionnaire findings, the degree of implementing lean manufacturing in Greece is assessed and discussed against literature review findings.

Strengths and weaknesses of small and medium sized enterprises regarding the implementation of lean manufacturing

The purpose of this article is to explore the difficulties experienced when implementing Lean Manufacturing in small and medium sized enterprises (SME). In this work, we draw up a dual evaluation focusing first on the key characteristics of SMEs and then on the management principles of Lean Manufacturing. Based on an analysis of the scientific literature, we observe a number of conflicts between the characteristics identified for SMEs and Lean Manufacturing. The absence of functional organization, lack of methodology and deficiency of formal procedures are often the cause of difficulties experienced by SMEs during the implementation of Lean practices. The analysis of the literature suggests that the notions of leadership, expertise and decision-making are crucial when implementing Lean Manufacturing. However, in the framework of SMEs, these elements tend to be concentrated under the responsibility of the head of the enterprise, leading to several strengths and weaknesses for such implementation.

Lean versus green: The impact of lean logistics on greenhouse gas emissions in consumer goods supply chains

Consumer goods supply chains have gradually incorporated lean manufacturing principles to identify and reduce non-value-added activities. Companies implementing lean practices have experienced improvements in cost, quality, and demand responsiveness. Nonetheless certain transportation and distribution practices may have detrimental impact on the environment. This study asks: What impact do current best practices in lean logistics have on the environment?The research hypotheses propose that since just-in-time inventory management significantly increases the frequency of transport it will also increase greenhouse gas emissions in a supply chain. Conversely, product postponement and vendor-managed inventory practices decrease supply chain emissions because they improve the flexibility of the system to manage uncertainty in supply and demand and thus reduce transportation-related emissions while only increasing facility-related emissions, which are relatively smaller. The hypotheses are tested using a simulation model of a manufacturing-retailer supply chain. The research hypotheses are empirically supported, suggesting that business process improvements need to consider when operational changes can have the unintended consequence of significantly increasing emission-intensive transactions.

The Development and Implementation Lean Manufacturing in Indonesian Furniture Industry

This research discusses about the principles of lean manufacturing in furniture export industries. The aim of this research is to improve productivity by reducing waste which exists in the production floor. This research discusses about the implementation of Value Stream Mapping (VSM) as waste initial identification instrument, standardization work, and Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) as an analysis tool and improvement implementation. Both of that methods are conducted in this research. This research is practically applicable and proven to be able to reduce waste which exists in production floor and to improve the factory’s productivity.

Implementation of Lean Manufacturing Principles in the Process Industry: A Case Study

This research aims at implementing lean manufacturing principles in different industries and re-design the manufacturing system based on the concepts of lean manufacturing by developing a pull-oriented manufacturing system. This research was applied at the assembly line of Sunny Egypt Company for Electronics Industry which related to UNION AIR GROUP at Egypt. LCD 32'' model television was selected from the company's products for improvement. The Results obtained showed that the implementation of lean manufacturing in industrial systems eliminates wastes, increases productivity, profit, improves product’s quality, decreases cycle times, work in progress, inventory, raw materials, costs and number of operators. This research can be useful in developing a more generic approach to design lean environment.

Application of Lean Manufacturing Tools in the Food and Beverage Industries

Recent years have shown an increasing use of lean manufacturing (LM) principles and tools in several industrial sectors. Already a well-established management philosophy, it has shown numerous successful applications even outside production environments. This work presents the application of some LM tools, and the corresponding shift in philosophy, in two Portuguese companies of the food and beverage industries. Main implementation issues are presented and discussed; followed by the results obtained from the application of LM tools in the production system of these companies. Significant gains are obtained in both companies and, more importantly, it instills a continuous improvement culture and increases production flexibility while reducing lead times.

Application of interpretive structural modelling for analysing the factors influencing integrated lean sustainable system

The modern manufacturing systems recognize the importance of adopting lean and sustainable manufacturing principles. Especially, Indian automotive component manufacturing organizations are interested in adopting the integrated lean sustainable manufacturing system. An appropriate methodology is required for enabling the organizations to identify the dominant factors. In this context, this article presents the interpretive structural modelling approach for identifying the mutual relationship among factors influencing the integrated lean sustainable manufacturing system. From the literature study and survey conducted among Indian automotive component manufacturing organizations, 25 influencing factors have been identified. Based on the study, top-management commitment in adopting integrated lean sustainable manufacturing and environmental knowledge occupy the bottom level of model which shows that it has more driving power. Efforts are being taken to implement the factors in the surveyed organizations.

Development of a Framework for a Lean based Water and Energy Efficiency Assessment Tool

The manufacturing industry of South Africa is the sector consuming the largest portion of the total energy consumption and second largest portion of total water consumption per annum nationally. With a significant increase in electrical energy cost in recent years, together with the reserve energy margin dropping below the minimum level required for sustainable operation of energy utilities, energy efficiency improvement is becoming imperative for organisational success as well as national economical sustainability. This paper explores selected Lean manufacturing principles and its positive effect on energy and water efficiency. Although the implementation of Lean manufacturing techniques naturally leads to the improvement of energy and water intensity, the author believes that there is even greater potential in the development of a Lean based tool which will specifically focus on the improvement of energy and water efficiency. For this purpose the value stream mapping tool was chosen as the foundation. This paper continues to explain the process undergone to develop standardised energy and water specific waste categories to be used in conjunction with the traditional Lean wastes. The study concludes by detailing the development of the tool, together with its framework for implementation and a brief discussion on the forecasting model incorporated.

Monitoring processes through inventory and manufacturing lead time

Purpose – Since lean manufacturing considers that “Inventory is evil”, the purpose of this paper is to find and quantify the relations between work-in-process inventory (WIP), manufacturing lead time (LT) and the operational variables they depend upon. Such relations provide guidelines and performance indicators in process management. Design/methodology/approach – The authors develop equations to analyse how, in discrete deterministic serial batch processes, WIP and LT depend on parameters like performance time (of each workstation) and batch size. The authors extend those relations to processes with different lots and the authors create a multiple-lot box score. Findings – In this paper, the relations among WIP, LT and the parameters they depend on are derived. Such relations show that when WIP increases, LT increases too, and vice versa, and the parameters they depend on. Finally, these relations provide a framework for WIP reduction and manufacturing LT reduction and agree with the empirical principles of lean manufacturing. Research limitations/implications – Quantitative results are only exact for discrete deterministic batch processes without any delays. Expected results might not be achieved in real manufacturing environments. However, qualitative results show the underlying relations amongst variables. Different expressions might be derived for other situations. Practical implications – Understanding the relations between manufacturing variables allows operations managers better design, implement and control manufacturing processes. The box score, implemented on a spreadsheet, allows testing the effect of changes in different operational parameters on the manufacturing LT, total machine wait time and total lot queue time. Originality/value – The paper presents a discussion about process performance based on the mutual influence between WIP and LT and other variables. The relation is quantified for the discrete deterministic case, complementing the models that exist in the literature. The box score allows mapping more complex processes.

Ontario's emergency department process improvement program: the experience of implementation.

ObjectivesIn recent years, Lean manufacturing principles have been applied to health care quality improvement efforts to improve wait times. In Ontario, an emergency department (ED) process improvement program based on Lean principles was introduced by the Ministry of Health and Long‐Term Care as part of a strategy to reduce ED length of stay (LOS) and to improve patient flow. This article aims to describe the hospital‐based teams’ experiences during the ED process improvement program implementation and the teams’ perceptions of the key factors that influenced the program's success or failure.MethodsA qualitative evaluation was conducted based on semistructured interviews with hospital implementation team members, such as team leads, medical leads, and executive sponsors, at 10 purposively selected hospitals in Ontario, Canada. Sites were selected based, in part, on their changes in median ED LOS following the implementation period. A thematic framework approach as used for interviews, and a standard thematic coding framework was developed.ResultsTwenty‐four interviews were coded and analyzed. The results are organized according to participants’ experience and are grouped into four themes that were identified as significantly affecting the implementation experience: local contextual factors, relationship between improvement team and support players, staff engagement, and success and sustainability. The results demonstrate the importance of the context of implementation, establishing strong relationships and communication strategies, and preparing for implementation and sustainability prior to the start of the project.ConclusionsSeveral key factors were identified as important to the success of the program, such as preparing for implementation, ensuring strong executive support, creation of implementation teams based on the tasks and outcomes of the initiative, and using multiple communication strategies throughout the implementation process. Explicit incorporation of these factors into the development and implementation of future similar interventions in health care settings could be useful.