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All data is not created equally. There are many different categories of ways to describe things. Interestingly, there seems to be little consensus on what the terminology means. The term “attribute data”, if searched for on the web, yields a variety of definitions. Further confusing the issue, some of the Read more…
What is A3 Thinking? A3 thinking is a philosophical approach to problem solving that centers on a well-communicated team approach to using the PDCA cycle. The tool used to apply this way of thinking is known as the A3 report. Download our Free A3 Report Template A3 Thinking Background Whether Read more…
The “Theory of Constraints” is the management philosophy of Eliyahu M. Goldratt. He introduced it in his 1984 book, The Goal. The overall premise is that a system can only produce as fast as the slowest step. The throughput of the system, therefore, can be improved with a focused effort Read more…
Major changes are often hard to implement all at once. It may be because the technology or idea is not fully proven, or it may be a lack of resources in getting the bugs worked out. There may also be substantial risk if there is a mistake in the planning Read more…
Most continuous improvement efforts, either directly or indirectly, are centered on improving flow. Flow is the condition where work moves from one process to the next without stopping. Improving flow means taking out all the efficiencies that keep that continuous movement smooth and direct. When flow doesn’t exist, it is Read more…
Queue time is a very specific form of waiting, one of the traditional seven wastes. It occurs when a person or item is in line behind something else and is waiting for the same resource. Queue time occurs in two basic flavors. There is the time spent by the customer Read more…
Gap analysis is the art of identifying where performance or capability falls short of needs, and of coming up with an effective way of addressing that gap. That gap is also occasionally referred to as the “delta”. That delta comes in one of two forms. The first is that there Read more…
SWAG is an acronym, likely originating in the US Army, for “scientific wild-ass guess”. It is used to describe a hypothesis or decision that is based on a small amount of factual evidence, but nowhere near enough to have certainty. Any organization with a fast pace of change, at some Read more…
The term stability is the tendency of something to keep its current state. The opposite of stability is Lean operations is variation, or the state of things fluctuating wildly, or drifting away from normal. Stable processes tend to not only produce high quality outputs, but also do it in a Read more…
Many people are familiar with the concept of one-touch exchange of dies, an offshoot of SMED. The basically means that there should be a simple, fluid motion to replace dies and fixtures in order to minimize setup time. The concept is present in the real world as well. Consider the Read more…
Enter a heavy manufacturing facility, and you will likely hear the “clank, clank, clank” of metal hammers, or the dull thud of a dead blow hammer. Hammers are used to compensate for a quality problem elsewhere. In most cases, they are used to “adjust” a component, or install something that Read more…
The status quo is defined as the current or existing state or condition. In plain English, it is how things are today. There is an old adage that the definition of insanity is doing things the same way and expecting different results. Getting better requires that something is done differently. Read more…