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7 Principles of Lean Manufacturing

Learn the basic principles of lean manufacturing and the benefits it brings to your organisation

What is lean manufacturing?

Lean manufacturing or lean production was originally developed at the Toyota Motor Company and was called the Toyota Production System (TPS). The word lean is used in the sense of having no waste and taking elements out of the production process that do not add value to the finished product. Lean thinking is ‘lean’ because it provides a way to do more and more with less and less.

When thinking about waste, it can be put into perspective in seven areas:

When thinking about waste, it can be put into perspective in seven areas:

 

What are the seven principles of lean manufacturing?

The seven principles of lean manufacturing are considered as a recipe for improving work-place efficiency.

  • Define value: 
    What is the customer willing to pay for the product? What kind of value are they getting when buying your product?
  • Map out the value stream: 
    Using the customer value as a reference point, map out the activities that provide value and the unnecessary ones.
  • Relationship management:
    Your workforce is the most valuable resource you can have. Enabling them to problem solve independently and feel valued will help drive improvements in lean manufacturing. It’s also important to have a good relationship with your suppliers, through collaborative risk and information sharing. Communication is key.
  • Removing waste:
    Eliminating waste wherever possible. Look at the key areas above where waste can be eliminated.
  • Create a flow:
    After removing waste, ensure the remaining steps run smoothly.
  • Establish a pull:
    Limit inventory and apply JIT (Just in Time) to sync with demand.
  • Perfect:
    Continue to fine-tune and perfect processes to increase effectiveness over time.
 

What are the benefits of a lean supply chain?

When implementing the process of lean production, you should expect to see the below benefits.

  • Waste elimination
  • Pull scheduling to help you limit inventory
  • Multifunctional teams

However, it’s important to recognise that these benefits only come from a successful application. Here are a few hints and tips to make lean production a success:

  • Prioritise opportunities based on results, effort, and financial impact
  • Focus scarce resources on top priorities to generate the quick wins
  • Develop a coordinated effort across the organisation
  • Create an environment that rewards speed and good risk taking
 

Should every company adopt lean supply chain techniques?

A lean supply chain is not for every organisation. There can be a potential to limit creativity and innovation within the organisation. So before moving onto lean production, you should analyse the payoff to ensure that you have skilled workforce, and you have access to the capital needed to undertake the project. This ensures that there are no competing priorities and hidden costs.

 

What is operations management?

Operations management is a key area within any organisation. It plays a key role in keeping supply chains operational in today’s challenging environment. Discover the key to success when thinking about operations management. Find out more about Operations Management

Operations management key themes

Just in time Advantages disadvantages Obsolesence Vendor managed inventory
Warehousing Warehousing management Inventory management

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