The aim of this article is to identify opportunities for using synergies obtained by incorporation of the two methods of management: Lean Management and Agile Management on the example of the process of column concreting. Despite the seemingly contradictory assumptions the two concepts complement each other in analysed example. The strategy is based on using the idea of "one piece flow" in accordance with the Lean Management which led to a reduction of costs due to increased turnover of formwork. At the same time the success of the project resulted in a significant dependence on the ability to provide a rapid response to changing conditions during in the maturation of concrete (depending on weather conditions, which can be expected on the basis of projections having different reliability). The simultaneous use of Lean and Agile Management allowed to achieve positive results for different scenarios of environment impact on the analysed process.
In a reality of global competition, companies have to minimize production costs and increase productivity in order to boost com-petitiveness. Facility layout design is one of the most important and frequently used efficiency improvement methods for reducing operational costs in a significant manner. Facility layout design deals with optimum location of facilities (workstation, machine, etc.) on the shop floor and optimum material flow between these objects. In this article, the objectives and procedure of layout design along with the calculation method for layout optimization are all introduced. The study is practice-oriented because the described case study shows how the layout of an assembly plant can be modified to form an ideal re-layout. The research is novel and innovative because the facility layout design and 4 lean methods (takt-time design, line balance, cellular design and one-piece flow) are all combined in order to improve efficiency more significantly, reduce costs and improve more key performance indicators. From the case study it can be concluded that the layout redesign and lean methods resulted in significant reduction of the following seven indicators: amount of total workflow, material handling cost, total travel distance of goods, space used for assembly, number of workers, labor cost of workers and the number of Kanban stops.
Lean has established itself as the primordial approach to obtain operational excellence. Its simple and intuitive techniques focus on reducing lead time through continuous improvement, involving all levels of employees in the organization. However, the rate of successful implementations has remained low. This paper contributes to the understanding of continuous improvement in a Lean context, by analyzing a database of almost 10.000 improvement actions, from 85 companies, covering the time frame 2010–2018. It discusses categories of actions, their impact and cost, as well as key characteristics of the companies. It proposes an objective criterion to identify “success” and “failure” in Lean implementation and tries to link these to operational results. It is probably the first time an analysis of this magnitude on the subject has been performed.
The paper presents the technology and organization of the artistic cast production. On the basis of the actual cast production system, the
manufacturing process was shown, in particular sand–piece moulding, which is a very important process and a time-consuming part of the
entire manufacture of the casts. The current state of the production process as well as the organization of the work and production
technology were analysed with the use of methods and techniques of production improvement, the Lean Manufacturing concept and
computer systems. The results of the analysis and studies were shown with use of schemes and graphs of the layout of the production
resources, a flow chart of the production process, value stream mapping, and a costs table for the production and modernization of the
moulding stage. The work has shown that there are possibilities to improve the artistic cast production system. This improvement leads to
increased productivity, lower production costs of artistic casts and increased competitiveness of the foundry.
The relatively limited application of lean in the food process industries has been attributed to
the unique characteristics of the food sector i.e. short shelf-life, heterogeneous raw materials,
and seasonality. Moreover, barriers such as large and inflexible machinery, long setup time,
and resource complexity, has limited the implementation and impact of lean practices in
process industries in general. Contrary to the expectations in the literature, we bring in this
paper a successful experience of lean implementation in a company of the food-processing
sector. By focusing on two lean tools (VSM and SMED), the company reduced changeover
time by 34%, and increased the production capacity of the main production line by 11%.
This improvement enabled the company to avoid the use of temporary workers by extending
the worktime of its workforce during peak months. Moreover, the reduction of setup time
avoided the use of large lot size in production, which, in turn, reduced the total cycle time
of production and the incidence of quality problems.
Lean is one of the systematic approach to achieve higher value for organizations through
eliminate non-value-added activities. It is an integrated set of tools, techniques, and principles
designed to optimize cost, quality and delivery while improving safety. In Vietnam,
industry waste management and treatment has become serious issue. The aim of this research
is to present the effective of Lean application for industrial wastes collecting and
delivery improvement. Through a case study, this paper showed the way of Lean tools and
principles applied for wastes management and treatment such as Value Stream Mapping,
Pull system, Visual Control, and Andon to get benefit on both economic and environment.
In addition, the results introduced a good experience for enterprises in Vietnam and other
countries have similar conditions to Vietnam in cost saving and sustainable development in
waste management.
This paper introduces the Lean School, a Learning Factory, along with a “game” of physical
simulation that is developed in it. All this is focused on teaching-learning, both of students
and professionals, of the potential advantages offered by the implementation of the Lean
Production in the organizations.
The participants gain a practical experience, based on experimental learning, which gives
them a better understanding of the principles and tools of Lean philosophy.
This physical environment is not limited to theoretical teaching, but goes beyond and implements
a production system near a real one. It starts from a configuration of a production
plant with an unbalanced system and throughout the different iterations, called productions,
introduces and implement the Lean principles, which makes its participants acquire
not only knowledge but also the skills needed to implement an efficient production in their
organizations.
All the constituent elements of the system will be described briefly: the product, the variations
thereof, the initial design with its layout, as well as the subsequent productions, and
the results of learning of each one.
A robust manufacturing sector is imperative for achieving sustainable and inclusive development.
Also, in the Indian context, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are
of vital importance due to their contribution to GDP, exports and employment. Indian
Government has launched many schemes to vitalize and improve the competitiveness of
Manufacturing MSMEs. ‘Lean Manufacturing Competiveness Scheme’ (LMCS) is a huge
step aimed to act as a catalyst for lean adoption by Indian MSMEs. This paper uses SAP
LAP framework to address critical questions regarding lean adoption by Indian manufacturing
MSMEs in the context of the government scheme ‘LMCS’. The study adds to the
existing body of knowledge on lean manufacturing that emphasizes on the importance of
soft issues while implementing lean. It also benefits the stakeholders by suggesting suitable
actions that can be taken to further improve the competitive priorities of MSMEs.
This study demonstrates application of Lean techniques to improve working process in
a sewing machine factory, focusing on the raw material picking process. The value stream
mapping and flow process chart techniques were utilized to identify the value added activities,
non-value activities and necessary but non-value added activities in the current
process. The ECRS (Eliminate, Combine, Rearrange and Simplify) in waste reduction was
subsequently applied to improve the working process by (i) adjusting the raw material picking
procedures and pre-packing raw material as per demand, (ii) adding symbols onto the
containers to reduce time spent in picking material based on visual control principle, and
(iii) developing and zoning storage area, identifying level location for each row and also
applying algorithms generated from a solver program and linear programming to appropriately
define the location of raw material storage. Improvement in the raw material picking
process was realized, cutting down six out of 11 procedures in material picking or by 55%,
reducing material picking time from 24 to 4 min or by 83%. The distance to handle material
in the warehouse can be shortened by 120 m per time or 2,400 m per day, equal to 86%
reduction. Lean techniques
Studies linking the use of lean practices to company performance have been increasing as
markets are becoming more competitive and companies are eager for reducing waste and
therefore implementing the Lean Management (LM) philosophy to improve performance.
However, results from these studies have found various and different impacts and some light
is needed. Extant literature was reviewed and, to achieve the research objective, a metaanalysis
of correlations was carried out. The obtained results suggest a positive relationship
between some lean practices and performance measures. Furthermore, the presence of moderators
influencing the relationship between lean practices and performance outcomes is
highlighted in our results. To our best knowledge, this is the first research that proposes
a comparison of results from primary studies on Lean implementation, by analysing the
linear relationship between lean practices and enterprise performance. It fills this gap and
therefore represents an important contribution.