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Practical Guide Volume 4

POLL: What is the source of improvement activity in your company?

POLL QUESTION: What is the source of improvement activity in your company?

For most companies, the pull for improvement activity and the source of ideas comes from a variety of sources. As a company becomes more sophisticated, Lean efforts originate from an increasingly diverse range of systems and stakeholders.

From the list below, please check all the sources that act as meaningful originators of improvement activity in your company. Please do not check a block if the source only contributes on rare occasions or if it provides ideas without resolution.

By Jeff Hajek, ago

Walk Time

Walk time is an important factor in continuous improvement. Its main impact is on the seven wastes and on Standard Work. Obviously, the problem is that walking takes time that could be better spent working on a process. Walking distance adds up in a surprising hurry. For example, if a Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

Projects

A project is a set of interconnected tasks intended to achieve a specific goal. It is characterized by having a fixed end. Projects can be either individual or collaborative in nature. They are often limited by some constraint, usually cost. The practice of running a project is known as project Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

8 Wastes / 8th Waste

The 8 wastes are a variation on the seven wastes that were first proposed by Taiichi Ohno, the father of modern Lean. The original seven wastes are: Transportation Inventory (Excessive) Motion Waiting Overprocessing Overproduction Defects (Note that the first letter of each of these wastes spells the acronym “TIMWOOD“.) The Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

RIPS Cycle

A variation of the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle (AKA the Deming Cycle), RIPS stands for Review-Implement-Prove-Standardize, and is a proven method of continuously improving Standard Work and other forms of process standardization. Processes should not be static. There should be a constant scrutiny on how to make them better. The best people Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

TIMWOOD

TIMWOOD is a mnemonic device used to help people remember the different forms of waste associated with Lean. These seven wastes are widely accredited to Taiichi Ohno. The TIMWOOD Acronym Transportation: Moving materials from one place to another is a waste of transportation. Inventory: Anything more than immediately necessary to Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

OSHA

OSHA, or the Occupational Safety & Health Administration, is a part of the US Department of Labor. It was formed in 1970 with the mission of assuring a safe and healthful working environment by setting and enforcing standards. It also provides training, outreach, education, and assistance. The underlying mission of Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

Standard Work requires you to share your tricks and secrets

Job security is extremely important to people. One way that people increase their job security is to hold crucial information close to the vest. The thought is that the employee can’t be let go if the information goes with him. The problem, with this belief, though is that in a Lean organization, processes change rapidly. Skills become far more important than specific process knowledge.

By Jeff Hajek, ago

Value

Value, simply put, is something that a customer is willing to trade for. The trade is most commonly done with cash, meaning that a customer is willing to pay for it. Not all things that are valued are paid for, though. Consider the numerous free downloads on websites (including our Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago

Process Map

A process map is a visual representation of how work flows through an operation. In practical Lean applications, it is often used synonymously with the term process flow chart. The truth though, is that “process map” is a generic term. A process flowchart is just one specific type of process Read more…

By Jeff Hajek, ago