The ease of making a change is correlated to the willingness to make a change. This is a critical concept to understand when trying to create a continuous improvement culture. A big part of a CI culture is the expectation that everyone contributes. Great Lean companies have participation from people Read more…
Predictive maintenance is the practice of using data to try to anticipate and avoid machine failures. It differs from preventative maintenance in that it uses checks to identify abnormal conditions before the machine has a problem. Most failures in machines are not immediate, catastrophic failures. Electric motors might show changes Read more…
Preventive maintenance is the set of steps taken to avoid breakdowns in machines. These steps may include minor activities such as topping off fluids, inspection, lubrication, filter changes, and tightening as needed. It may also include more significant actions such as overhauls, rebuilds, and component replacement. In between those extremes Read more…
W. Edwards Deming is credited with popularizing the term “instant pudding” in continuous improvement. More accurately, he states that there is no instant pudding in CI, and that you should not expect immediate results. He lists this desire for quick and easy fixes as an obstacle to improvement in his Read more…
Breakthrough improvements are major changes in processes that yield business-altering results. Continuous improvement, on the other hand, is the relentless attack on waste that makes companies get better at a steady pace. A strong, improvement-oriented company will have both breakthrough improvements and a continuous improvement culture as part of its Read more…
Accounts payable (AP) is an accounting term. It is the listings on a company’s financial statement of the obligations to pay off short term debt. This is most often in the form of bills for materials and services received and short-term loans. It also includes things like accrued payroll expenses Read more…
An andon light, in its most common use, is a status indicator for a work area. It generally has green, yellow, and red lights in a stack. As the operator experiences abnormal conditions, he or she lights a different color. The colors have meaning. Yellow might be a call for Read more…
Why do people call Lean efforts a journey? One of the things you will learn about Lean as you get more experienced at it is that you are never done. There are always more improvements to be made, new tools to be learned or created, and new skills to develop. Read more…
Why are there so many Lean specialties? The main reason for the specialties is that Lean is primarily thought of as an improvement philosophy for manufacturing. In fact, it was originally called “Lean Manufacturing.” But those who got good at it quickly learned two things. The first is that the Read more…
Why are there so many Japanese terms in Lean? Should we use the English or the Japanese version of terms? As you may know, Lean traces its roots to post WWII Japan. Toyota was trying to find a way to compete in a fragmented market that was short on resources. Read more…
Who is the governing body of Lean? The short answer is that there is no governing body for Lean. There are, however, quite a few powerful influencers. In terms of companies, Toyota is the company most closely associated with Lean. While they have no authority over “Lean”, when they speak, Read more…
What keeps people from trying Lean? What are the barriers? There are several reasons companies choose not to try to implement Lean. More accurately, it is the people who make decisions for the company who decide not to try it. The first common reason is reputation. Some people have heard Read more…