Lean Tools

Lean tools are the individual components of a Lean system.

The most common Lean tools are:

• 5S
• Countermeasures
• Jidoka
• Kaizen
• Kanban
• Pareto (80/20) charts
• Process flow charts
• Poka yoke
• Pull /Just In Time Manufacturing
• Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED)
• Standard Work
• Total Productive Maintenance
• Value stream maps
• Visual controls

Most of the Lean tools are fairly simple to understand in theory but are much harder to put in place. Lean tools can certainly provide incremental gains when used alone, but are most powerful when they are part of a Lean strategy and a continuous improvement culture.

In these strong Lean cultures, Lean tools have the infrastructure to make them effective, have broad support at all levels of the organization, and have the values system in place that makes people (especially the frontline) want to use the Lean tools.