Lean. Introductory course. Lean manufacturing tools and their essence What is lean manufacturing

The production process of a modern enterprise is a complex mechanism for transforming semi-finished products, raw materials, materials and other items of labor into finished products that satisfy the needs of society. The main task of the production system in this case becomes the continuous improvement of the “value stream” for the consumer, which is based on the rational combination in time and space of all main, auxiliary and service industries. This allows you to produce products with minimal labor costs and the economic indicators and results of the production and economic activities of the enterprise depend on this, including the cost of production, profit and profitability of production, the amount of work in progress and the amount of working capital.

At the same time, at many enterprises one of the main issues is the issue of the efficiency of production processes in terms of the duration of the production cycle. There is a need to spend a lot of effort on coordinating all auxiliary and service production for the uninterrupted supply of the main production with raw materials, electricity, as well as timely maintenance of equipment, warehousing, and transportation. A situation with equipment failure at one technological stage leads to the likelihood of a shutdown of the entire workshop. Hence, the organization of an uninterrupted, efficient production cycle at an enterprise acquires particular relevance and significance for optimizing costs and achieving the best final results.

Production efficiency at most enterprises is directly related to the complexity and duration of the production cycle. The longer this cycle, the greater the number of auxiliary and service industries involved in it, the less efficient production as a whole turns out to be. This pattern is explained by the obvious need to spend a lot of effort on coordinating all activities to ensure the uninterrupted supply of basic production with raw materials, energy resources, equipment maintenance, transportation and storage of products, and loading and unloading. Equipment malfunction at one technological stage can lead to disruptions in the entire production, even to its complete stop. Thus, it is especially important to improve efficiency and achieve the best results by solving the problem of stable functioning of the entire production system.

One way to solve this problem is to introduce a system Lean technologies (“Lean manufacturing”), which is designed to optimize production processes, constantly improve product quality while constantly reducing costs. The system is not just a technology, but an entire management concept that assumes maximum market orientation of production with the interested participation of all personnel of the organization. The experience of implementing the described technology, at least in the form of individual elements, at enterprises in various industries has shown its promise, as a result of which there is no doubt about the need to study this experience and further expand the scope of its application.

Economic essence of Lean technologies

As an economic definition, production is a system of converting raw materials, semi-finished products and other objects of labor into finished products that have consumer value for society. The main task of the production system is to continuously improve the process of creating value for the consumer through the rational combination in time and space of all main, auxiliary and service industries. Thus, savings in time, material and labor resources are achieved, production costs are reduced, production profitability increases, and all economic indicators of the production and economic activities of the enterprise are improved.

As industrial relations develop, production process management systems also develop and improve. One of the latest was the Lean manufacturing system, based on the principles of effective resource management, attention to the needs of the customer, concentration on the problem of eliminating all types of losses, and the full use of the intellectual potential of the enterprise personnel. One of the main goals of the system is cost reduction, production enterprise management, based on a constant desire to eliminate all types of losses.

Lean Manufacturing Concept combines the optimization of production processes, aimed at constantly improving product quality while constantly reducing costs, with the involvement of every employee in this process. The concept is maximally focused on market business conditions.

Over the past twenty years, a new productivity paradigm has become increasingly applied in global practice. It originally originated at Toyota and was called - Toyota Production System (TPS). It is focused on growth in a post-industrial economy, when instead of mass production based on guaranteed demand, there is a need for diversified production capable of satisfying individual customer needs, operating in small batches of a variety of goods, including piece goods. The main task of such production was to create competitive products in the required quantities, in the shortest possible time and with the least expenditure of resources.

Production that meets the new requirements is called “lean” (lean, lean production, lean manufacturing), and enterprises that have increased the operational efficiency of their production thanks to the implementation of the new system are called “lean enterprises”.

Lean businesses differ from others in the following ways:

1. The basis of the production system of such enterprises is people. They are a creative force in the process of producing competitive products, and technologies and equipment are only a means of achieving their goals. No theory, strategy, or technology will make an enterprise successful; This will only be achieved by people based on their intellectual and creative potential.

2. Lean production systems enterprises are focused on complete elimination of losses and continuous improvement of all processes. All company employees, from workers to senior management, are involved in the daily work of preventing all possible types of losses and continuous improvement.

3. Enterprise management makes decisions, taking into account prospects for further development, while immediate financial interests are not decisive. The management of such companies does not engage in useless administration - command, unreasonably strict control, evaluation of employees using complex systems of various indicators; it exists for the reasonable organization of the production process, timely detection, solution and prevention of problems. The ability to see and solve problems in the workplace is valued in every employee - from senior management to workers.

Key tools of the Lean system to increase labor productivity are:

• 5S system– a management technique designed to effectively organize the workspace. The name comes from Japanese words starting with S, for which in Russian you can find analogues starting with the letter C, these are:
  • 1) Sorting items and/or documentation at the workplace according to the degree of their need and frequency of use with the elimination of everything unnecessary;
    2) Systematization, when each item should be in a certain easily accessible place;
    3) Maintaining cleanliness and order;
    4) Standardization of the workplace ordered by previous procedures;
    5) constant improvement of the developed standard.
  • These simple and, at first glance, insignificant procedures, nevertheless, affect labor efficiency, eliminate the loss of things and time, reduce the likelihood of fires and other emergencies, and generally create a favorable microclimate in the workplace.
• Standardized work– a clear and maximally visualized algorithm for performing a specific activity, including standards for the duration of the cycle of operations, the sequence of actions when performing these operations, the amount of materials and items in use (inventory level).
• Methodology "Breakthrough to Flow" is to smooth out and improve the efficiency of the production flow by creating fixed production cycles. In each of the selected cycles, the principles of standardized work discussed in the previous paragraph are implemented.
• TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) concept– system of universal equipment maintenance. This system involves combining the operation of equipment with constant technical maintenance. Thanks to the constant monitoring and maintenance of equipment in working (good) condition by production personnel, the level of losses caused by breakdowns and equipment downtime due to repair work, including planned ones, is reduced, which allows for the highest efficiency throughout the entire life cycle of the equipment. This frees up the maintenance personnel to deal with more important tasks.
• SMED (Single Minute Exchange of Die) system– technology for rapid equipment changeover. In the process of equipment changeover, two groups of operations can be distinguished - external, which can be carried out without stopping the equipment, for example, preparing tools and materials, and internal, for which a break in the operation of the equipment is necessary. The essence of the system is to transfer the maximum number of internal operations to a group of external ones, which becomes possible thanks to the introduction of a number of technological and organizational improvements.
• Pull production system is an approach to organizing the production flow that eliminates losses associated with overproduction or waiting for the completion of the previous stage of work. Each technological operation, as it were, “pulls” the required amount of product from the previous one and transfers it to the next one. As a result, there is neither a surplus nor a shortage of products in the production process.
• System for submitting and reviewing proposals provides all employees with a clear mechanism for implementing proposals for improvement and provides measures to encourage employees to submit such proposals.

The integrated use of Lean tools allows you to achieve a significant increase in labor productivity without significant investments, almost exclusively using the company’s internal reserves. In essence, the Lean concept is a specific approach to all issues of production organization, allowing not only to implement innovative technologies that increase labor productivity and production efficiency, but to create conditions for the formation of a corporate culture based on the general participation of personnel in the process of continuous improvement of the company’s activities.

Error Prevention Process Used in Lean Systems

A widely used error prevention method used in Lean systems is the Poka-yoke technique.

Poka-yoke– (poka – random, unintentional error; yoke – error prevention), (English Zero defects – Zero error principle) – the principle of searching for the causes of errors and creating methods and technologies that exclude the very possibility of their occurrence. If it is impossible to complete the work in other ways than the correct one, but the work is done, it means it was done without errors - this is the fundamental idea of ​​the method.

Various defects in products can arise due to human forgetfulness, inattention, misunderstanding, carelessness, etc. Errors of this kind are natural and inevitable, and they must be viewed from this angle in order to find ways to prevent them.

The error prevention technique includes:

• creating prerequisites for defect-free work,
• introduction of defect-free work methods,
• systematic elimination of errors that have arisen,
• taking precautions and implementing simple technical systems to help employees prevent mistakes.

The Poka-yoke method, used in conjunction with other lean manufacturing tools, ensures that the manufactured product is defect-free and the production process runs smoothly.

Increasing the efficiency of enterprise management through Lean technologies

In general, the use of Lean principles can provide significant effects(in times):

• productivity growth – 3-10 times;
• reduction of downtime by 5-20 times;
• reduction in manufacturing cycle time by 10-100 times;
• reduction of warehouse stocks - 2-5 times;
• reduction in cases of defects – 5-50 times;
• acceleration of entry to the market of new products by 2-5 times.

The best foreign and Russian practice implementation of lean manufacturing tools gives such results:

• Electronics industry: reduction of production process steps from 31 to 9. Reduction of production cycle from 9 to 1 day. Release of 25% of production space. Savings of about 2 million dollars in six months.
• Aviation industry: reduction of order fulfillment time from 16 months to 16 weeks.
• Automotive industry: quality increase by 40%
• Non-ferrous metallurgy: productivity increase by 35%.
• Overhaul of large-capacity vessels: release of 25% of production space. Reducing the time of one of the main operations from 12 to 2 hours. Saving about 400 thousand dollars in 15 days.
• Assembly of automotive components: release of 20% of production space. Refusal to construct a new production building. Savings of approximately $2.5 million per week.
• Pharmaceutical industry: waste reduction from 6% to 1.2%. Reduce electricity consumption by 56%. Saving 200 thousand dollars annually.
• Consumer goods manufacturing: 55% increase in productivity. Reduction of production cycle by 25%. Inventory reduction by 35%. Savings of about 135 thousand dollars per week.

In general, today in the Russian market there is a shortage of professionals with experience in optimizing production processes through the implementation of lean manufacturing technology. Lean considers any production from the point of view of process optimization by all employees of the company. This global approach hides the main complexity of the “lean production” methodology, since a specialist in this field must combine the skills of a teacher and manager, forecaster and analyst.

Conclusion

Lean production (lean production, lean manufacturing) is a concept for managing a manufacturing enterprise based on the constant desire to eliminate all types of waste. Due to the deployment of a Lean system (lean production system) at the enterprise, the practical implementation of an innovative approach to increasing labor productivity is possible. In essence, the Lean concept is a certain system of views on the organization of production, a kind of production paradigm that makes it possible to implement a number of innovative engineering methodologies to increase production efficiency (including labor productivity) and create conditions for the transformation and formation of a corporate culture based on universal participation of personnel in the process of continuous improvement of the company’s activities.

Japan knows a lot about the quality of its products and many of us are familiar with this. But where do they get such a desire to improve the quality of their goods - is it just a matter of mentality? It's no secret that the Japanese have their own approaches to management. One such approach will be discussed further.

Lean (leanproduction) is an approach to managing an organization based on improving product quality while reducing costs. It sounds like something impossible, but practice shows that this can be achieved by following some rules.

The concept of lean manufacturing was developed by Toyota engineer and entrepreneur Taiichi Ono together with his colleague Shigeo Shingo. Then it was adapted for American companies and was called Lean Production. The concept involves the involvement of every company employee in the optimization process and full focus on the consumer.

The main goal of lean manufacturing is the continuous elimination of waste - only in this way can we achieve excellence, reduce the cost of the product and improve its quality. The Toyota Production System has the term muda, which means all possible losses, waste, garbage and costs.

There are production processes that are and are not of value to the consumer. According to the concept of lean manufacturing, it is necessary to systematically eliminate processes that do not represent value (but add prices to the product).

The good news is that any company has enormous opportunities to improve in any area.

Types of losses

So what are the losses? Taiichi Ohno proposed seven, but three more were subsequently added to them, albeit by American management researchers, and in the end there were exactly ten.

1. Overproduction. Too many items or not on time.
2. Expectation. When an unfinished product sits in the processing queue, it adds value to the product.
3. Unnecessary transportation. It needs to be optimized in terms of time and distance. Any transportation increases the risk of damage.
4. Extra processing steps.
5. Excess inventory. Inventory in warehouses freezes profits.
6. Unnecessary movements. This is a waste of time.
7. Release of defective products. In addition to financial costs, this also affects the company’s image.
8. Unrealized creative potential of employees.
9. Overload of workers or equipment(muri).
10. Uneven performance of the operation(mura).

These ten types of losses need to be minimized, or even eliminated altogether (and without allocating financial resources). This will help improve the quality and reduce the price of the product.

What actions do not increase value for the consumer, but increase price? For example, paperwork, ordering components, packaging and storage, order processing, sales and promotion of goods. If you remove all these points, it is possible to significantly reduce the cost of production. The company's goal is to reduce processes that do not bring value.

Lean Manufacturing Principles

They are quite simple, but require great organizational skills.

• Find out what creates value for the end customer. Many activities and processes in an organization are completely unimportant to the consumer, so they should be eliminated.
• Identify only the most necessary processes in product production, remove unnecessary ones and avoid any losses.
• Ensure a continuous flow of product creation.
• Do only what the consumer needs. The quantity and the products that he needs.
• Reduce unnecessary actions, strive for excellence.

Lean Manufacturing Tools

There are a lot of lean manufacturing tools, and some are very specific to a particular enterprise or business area. We have collected universal tools that will suit any organization.

• Just in time – allows you to produce products just in time and in the right quantity
• Kanban is a just-in-time management principle that helps distribute workloads evenly among all workers.
• Andon is a visual system that allows all employees to see the state of affairs in production

These tools are used in various fields of activity: construction, medicine, education, banking, logistics, trade.

The concept of lean manufacturing is still relatively young, but is constantly being improved. This is one of the main principles of kaizen - continuous improvement. Therefore, not only the organizational structure of the organization is improved, but also the approach itself, lean production itself. His successes are undeniable, which is why the ideas of the concept are so popular all over the world.

Leanproduction(lean production, lean manufacturing - English) lean- “skinny, slender, without fat”; in Russia, the translation “lean” is used; there are also variants “harmonious”, “sparing”, “thrifty”, in addition there is a variant with transliteration - “lin”) - a management concept based on a steady desire to eliminate all types of losses. Lean manufacturing involves the involvement of each employee in the business optimization process and maximum customer focus.

Lean manufacturing is an interpretation of the ideas of the Toyota Production System by American researchers of the Toyota phenomenon.

Basic aspects of lean manufacturing.

The starting point of lean manufacturing is customer value.

Value is the utility inherent in a product from the customer's point of view. Value is created by the manufacturer as a result of a series of sequential actions.

The heart of lean manufacturing is the process of eliminating waste.

Waste is any activity that consumes resources but does not create value for the consumer.

Waste in Japanese is called muda, a Japanese word that means loss, waste, that is, any activity that consumes resources but does not create value. For example, the consumer does not need the finished product or its parts to be in stock. However, with a traditional management system, warehouse costs, as well as all costs associated with rework, defects, and other indirect costs are passed on to the consumer.

In accordance with the concept of lean manufacturing, all activities of an enterprise can be classified as follows: operations and processes that add value to the consumer, and operations and processes that do not add value to the consumer. Hence, anything that does not add value to the customer is classified as waste and must be eliminated.

Types of losses.

Taiichi Ohno (1912-1990), the father of the Toyota production system and lean manufacturing, being an ardent fighter against losses, identified 7 types of them:

• losses due to overproduction;
• loss of time due to waiting;
• losses due to unnecessary transportation;
• losses due to unnecessary processing steps;
• losses due to excess inventory;
• losses due to unnecessary movements;
• losses due to the release of defective products.

Jeffrey Liker, who along with Jim Womack and Daniel Jones actively researched the Toyota manufacturing experience, identified the 8th type of waste in the book “The Toyota Way”:

• unrealized creative potential of employees.

It is also customary to distinguish 2 more sources of losses - muri and mura, which mean “overload” and “unevenness”, respectively:

Mura— uneven performance of work, such as a fluctuating work schedule caused not by fluctuations in end-user demand but rather by the nature of the production system, or an uneven pace of work to complete an operation, causing operators to rush and then wait. In many cases, managers can eliminate unevenness by leveling out planning and paying close attention to the pace of work.

Muri- overload of equipment or operators that occurs when working at a greater speed or pace and with greater effort over a long period of time - compared to the design load (project, labor standards).

Basic principles.

Jim Womack and Daniel Jones, in their book Lean Manufacturing: How to Eliminate Waste and Thrive Your Company, outline the essence of lean manufacturing in five principles:

1. Determine the value of a specific product.
2. Determine the value stream for this product.
3. Ensure the continuous flow of the product value stream.
4. Allow the consumer to pull the product.
5. Strive for perfection.

Other principles:

• Excellent quality (delivery on first presentation, zero defect system, detection and solution of problems at their source);
• Flexibility;
• Establishing long-term relationships with the customer (by sharing risks, costs and information).

Lean manufacturing tools.

Taiichi Ohno wrote in his work that the Toyota production system rests on two “pillars” (often called the “pillars of TPS”): the jidoka system and the “just-in-time” system.

1. “just-in-time” principle;
2. the principle of autonomation, or automation using intelligence. Also known as "jidoka", which means embedding quality.

The “just in time” principle is that during the production process, the parts needed for assembly are on the production line exactly at the moment when they are needed, and in exactly the required quantity. As a result, a company that consistently implements a similar principle can achieve zero inventory levels.

The second principle on which the Toyota production system, and therefore lean manufacturing, is based, is called « autonomy » (autonomation). It should not be mixed with conventional automation. Autonomy is sometimes called automation with intelligence, or “automation with a human face.” Autonomy serves a dual role. It eliminates overproduction, an important component of production losses, and prevents the production of defective products.

Subsequently, within the framework of the lean manufacturing concept, many elements were identified, each of which represents a specific method, and some (for example, kaizen) themselves claim the status of a concept:

• Unit flow
• Kanban
• Total equipment care - Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) system
• 5S system
• Quick changeover (SMED)
• Kaizen
• Poka - yoke (“error protection”, “fool proof”) - a method of preventing errors - a special device or method due to which defects simply cannot appear.

Implementation algorithm (according to Jim Womack).

1. Find a change agent (you need a leader who can take responsibility);
2. Obtain the necessary knowledge on the Lean system (knowledge must be obtained from a reliable source);
3. Find or create a crisis (a good motive for introducing Lean is a crisis in an organization);
4. Map the entire value stream for each product family;
5. Start work in the main areas as quickly as possible (information about the results should be available to the organization’s personnel);
6. Strive to get results immediately;
7. Carry out continuous improvements using the Kaizen system (move from value creation processes on the shop floor to administrative processes).

Typical mistakes when implementing lean manufacturing.

• Misunderstanding of the role of management when implementing a Lean system
• Building a “System” that does not have the necessary flexibility
• Starting implementation not from the “basics”
• Jobs change, but habits don't change
• Measure everything (collect data), but react to nothing
• “Paralytic analysis” (endless analysis of the situation, instead of continuous improvements)
• Do without support

Lean culture.

Lean manufacturing is impossible without a lean culture. The main thing in Lean culture is the human factor and teamwork. This is greatly supported by the emotional intelligence (EQ) of employees. A certain corporate culture also corresponds to a lean culture.

Story.

The father of lean manufacturing is considered to be Taiichi Ohno, who began working at Toyota Motor Corporation in 1943, integrating the best world practices. In the mid-1950s, he began to build a special production organization system called the Toyota Production System or Toyota Production System (TPS).

The Toyota system became known in the Western interpretation as Lean production, Lean manufacturing, Lean. The term lean was proposed by John Krafcik, one of the American consultants.

A significant contribution to the development of the theory of lean manufacturing was made by Taiichi Ono’s colleague and assistant, Shigeo Shingo, who, among other things, created the SMED method.

The ideas of lean manufacturing were expressed by Henry Ford, but they were not accepted by business because they were significantly ahead of their time.

The first disseminator of the Kaizen philosophy throughout the world was Masaaki Imai. His first book, Kaizen: The Key to Japan's Competitive Success, was published in 1986 and translated into 20 languages.

Lean manufacturing concepts were first applied to discrete manufacturing industries, most notably the automotive industry. The concept was then adapted to continuous production conditions. Gradually, lean ideas went beyond manufacturing, and the concept began to be applied in trade, services, utilities, healthcare (including pharmacies), the armed forces and the public sector.

In many countries, the spread of lean manufacturing is provided with government support. In a period of intense competition and an escalating crisis, enterprises around the world have no other way than, using the world's best management technologies, to create products and services that maximally satisfy customers in terms of quality and price.

Regular international and regional conferences contribute to the dissemination of Lean ideas. One of the largest platforms for the exchange of best practices in lean manufacturing in Russia is the Russian Lean Forums (since 2011 - the Russian Forum “Development of Production Systems”), which have been held annually since 2006.

According to a study by the Institute for Integrated Strategic Studies (ICSI) on the spread of lean manufacturing in Russia in March-April 2006, out of 735 surveyed Russian industrial enterprises, 32% used Japanese experience. In March-April 2008, a repeat survey was conducted, the results of which were announced in the report by Vera Kononova “Application of Lean Manufacturing at Russian industrial enterprises in 2006-2008.” at the III Russian Lean Forum “Lean Russia”. The first enterprises that announced that they began to apply lean production methods: Gorky Automobile Plant (GAZ Group), RUSAL, EvrazHolding, Eurochem, VSMPO-AVISMA, KUMZ OJSC, Chelyabinsk Forging and Press Plant (ChKPZ OJSC ), Sollers OJSC (UAZ, ZMZ), KAMAZ, NefAZ, Sberbank of Russia OJSC, etc. The Government of Tatarstan has adopted a target program for the implementation of Lean.

Examples of using.

Lean card.

The deployment of the lean production concept in Russia is presented on the Lean map - the world's first lean production map. The Lean map created by ICSI and the Leaninfo.ru Blog identifies enterprises that, according to available information, use lean manufacturing tools, as well as lean people - that is, people who are famous, have significant experience in lean manufacturing and are active in spreading lean ideas. The map is constantly updated, mainly thanks to user information. Upon application with confirmation, you can mark on the map any organization using lean manufacturing methods.

The world's largest companies successfully use Toyota's experience: Alcoa, Boeing, United Technologies (USA), Porsche (Germany), Instrument Rand (Russia) and many others.

Lean logistics (Lean logistics). The synthesis of logistics and lean concepts made it possible to create a pull system that unites all firms and enterprises involved in the value stream, in which partial replenishment of inventories in small batches occurs. Lean logistics uses the Total Logistics Cost (TLC) principle.

Lean manufacturing in medicine. Experts estimate that approximately 50% of nursing staff's time is not spent directly on the patient. There is a transition to personalized medicine, in which the patient receives help “at the right time and in the right place.” Medical facilities should be located so that the patient does not have to waste time on numerous trips and waits in other places. Now this leads to significant financial expenses for patients and a decrease in the effectiveness of treatment. In 2006, at the initiative of the Lean Enterprise Academy (UK), the first EU conference on the problem of introducing Lean in the healthcare sector was held.

Lean mail. In the Danish Postal Department, as part of Lean Manufacturing, a large-scale standardization of all services offered was carried out to increase labor productivity and speed up postal shipments. To identify and control postal services, “maps for the continuous creation of their value” have been introduced. An effective system of motivation for postal employees has been developed and implemented.

Lean office. Lean manufacturing methods are increasingly used not only in production, but also in offices (lean office), as well as in local and central government.

Lean House. The use of lean technology in everyday life makes it possible to make life environmentally friendly and reduce energy costs to a minimum level. The passive house is a typical example of lean living. A passive house, or rather an energy-efficient house, is a house in which heating costs are about 10% of normal energy consumption, which practically makes it energy independent. The heat loss of a Passive House is less than 15 W. hour/m² per year (for comparison, in an old building 300 W.hour/m² per year), and the need for minor heating of the house arises only at negative outside temperatures. At temperatures below minus 20, a passive house cools down by 1 degree per day.

Lean construction is a Lean management strategy in the construction field aimed at increasing the efficiency of all stages of construction. Allows you to reduce costs by 10-20%.

Lean software development is the adaptation of principles for software development.

Lean manufacturing and education.

One of the main channels for disseminating progressive ideas of lean manufacturing is specialized courses and programs on lean manufacturing and production systems in universities. The first (opened in 2005) and, unfortunately, so far the only specialized program in Russia for training specialists in the field of production systems and lean manufacturing is the MBA-Production Systems course at the Graduate School of Business of Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov.

The magazine "General Director" together with "MBA-Production Systems" of the Higher School of Business of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov annually conducts Practical conferences on lean production. Conferences are held for plant directors who are already developing or are just about to implement their own production system based on lean manufacturing

To popularize the ideas of lean production in Russia, it is very important to attract the attention of talented and enterprising youth to this technology - students and young professionals. For these purposes, ICSI, together with the Deming Association, held the First Competition of Diploma and Coursework in Lean Manufacturing in Russia.

Negative aspects of lean manufacturing.

It should also be noted that the implementation of lean manufacturing also has certain negative aspects. In practice, quite a large number of companies practicing lean manufacturing, following Toyota, widely use so-called labor. temporary workers on short-term contracts who can easily be laid off if production volumes decline. For example, in 2004, Toyota employed 65,000 permanent workers and 10,000 temporary workers.

Lean manufacturing is a special company management scheme. The main idea is to constantly strive to eliminate all types of costs. Lean manufacturing is a concept that involves involving every employee in the optimization procedure. This scheme is aimed at maximum orientation towards the consumer. Let us consider further in more detail what the lean production system is.

History of origin

The introduction of lean manufacturing into industry occurred in the 1950s at Toyota Corporation. The creator of this control scheme was Taiichi Ono. A great contribution to the further development of both theory and practice was made by his colleague Shigeo Shingo, who, among other things, created a method for rapid changeover. Subsequently, American specialists studied the system and conceptualized it under the name lean manufacturing (lean production). At first, the concept was used primarily in the automotive industry. Over time, the scheme was adapted to process production. Subsequently, lean manufacturing tools began to be used in healthcare, utilities, services, trade, the armed forces, the public administration sector and other industries.

Main aspects

Lean manufacturing in an enterprise involves analyzing the value of the product that is produced for the end consumer at each stage of creation. The main objective of the concept is the formation of a continuous process of eliminating costs. In other words, lean manufacturing is the elimination of any activity that consumes resources but does not create any value for the end customer. For example, he does not need the finished product or its components to be in stock. Under the traditional system, all costs associated with defects, rework, storage, and others are passed on to the consumer. Lean manufacturing is a framework in which all company activities are divided into processes and operations that add and do not add value to the product. The main task, therefore, is the systematic reduction of the latter.

Lean Manufacturing: Waste

In costs, the term muda is used in a number of cases. This concept means various expenses, garbage, waste and so on. Taiichi Ohno identified seven types of costs. Losses are generated due to:

• expectations;
• overproduction;
• transportation;
• unnecessary processing steps;
• unnecessary movements;
• release of defective goods;
• excess stocks.

Taiichi Ono considered overproduction to be the main thing. It is a factor that causes other costs to arise. One more item has been added to the above list. Jeffrey Liker, who studied the Toyota experience, cited the unrealized potential of employees as a loss. Sources of costs include overloading of capacity, employees when carrying out activities with increased intensity, as well as uneven execution of the operation (for example, an interrupted schedule due to fluctuations in demand).

Principles

Lean manufacturing is presented as a process divided into five stages:

1. Determining the value of a specific product.
2. Installing this product.
3. Ensure continuous flow of flow.
4. Giving the consumer the ability to pull the product.
5. The pursuit of excellence.

Among the other principles on which lean manufacturing is based are:

1. Achieving excellent quality - delivery of goods from the first presentation, using the “zero defects” scheme, identifying and solving problems at the earliest stages of their occurrence.
2. Forming long-term interaction with the consumer by sharing information, costs and risks.
3. Flexibility.

The production system used at Toyota is based on two main principles: autonomy and just-in-time. The latter means that all the necessary elements for assembly arrive on the line exactly at the moment when it is needed, strictly in the quantity determined for a particular process to reduce inventory.

Components

Within the framework of the concept under consideration, various components are identified - lean production methods. Some of them may themselves act as a control circuit. The main elements include the following:

• Flow of single goods.
• General equipment care.
• 5S system.
• Kaizen.
• Fast changeover.
• Preventing errors.

Industry options

Lean healthcare is the concept of reducing the time spent by health care personnel not directly related to providing care to people. Lean logistics is a pull scheme that brings together all suppliers involved in the value stream. In this system, partial replenishment of reserves occurs in small volumes. The main indicator in this scheme is the logistics total cost. Lean manufacturing tools are used by the Danish Post Office. As part of the concept, large-scale standardization of the services offered was carried out. The goals of the event were to increase productivity and speed up shipments. “Value flow maps” were introduced to control and identify services. A motivation system for department employees was also developed and subsequently implemented. In construction, a special strategy has been formed, aimed at increasing the efficiency of the construction process at all stages. Lean manufacturing principles have been adapted for software development. In city and state administration, elements of the scheme under consideration are also used.

Kaizen

The idea was formulated in 1950 by Dr. Deming. The introduction of this principle brought great profits to Japanese companies. For this, the specialist was awarded a medal by the emperor. After a while, the Union of Science announced a prize named after. Deming for the quality of industrial products.

Benefits of Kaizen Philosophy

The benefits of this system have been appreciated in every industrial sector, where conditions have been created to ensure the highest efficiency and productivity. Kaizen is considered a Japanese philosophy. It is about promoting continuous change. The Kaizen school of thought insists that constant change is the only path to progress. The system's main focus is on increasing productivity by eliminating unnecessary and drudgery. The definition itself was created by combining two words: “kai” - “change” (“transform”), and “zen” - “towards the better”. The merits of the system are quite clearly reflected by the success of the Japanese economy. This is recognized not only by the Japanese themselves, but also by world experts.

Goals of the Kaizen concept

There are five main directions in which production development is carried out. These include:

1. Reduce waste.
2. Immediate troubleshooting.
3. Optimal use.
4. Teamwork.
5. Top quality.

It should be said that most of the principles are based on common sense. The main components of the system are improving the quality of goods, involving each employee in the process, and readiness for interaction and change. All these activities do not require complex mathematical calculations or the search for scientific approaches.

Reduce waste

The principles of Kaizen philosophy are aimed at significantly reducing losses at each stage (operation, process). One of the main advantages of the scheme is that it includes every employee. This, in turn, involves the development and subsequent implementation of proposals for improvement at each. Such work helps to minimize resource losses.

Immediate troubleshooting

Each employee, in accordance with the Kaizen concept, must counteract problems. This behavior helps resolve issues quickly. Fixing problems immediately does not increase production cycle times. Immediate problem solving allows you to direct activities in an effective direction.

Optimal use

Resolving problems quickly frees up resources. They can be used to improve and achieve other purposes. Taken together, these measures make it possible to establish a continuous process of efficient production.

Teamwork

Involving all employees in solving problems allows you to find a solution faster. Successfully overcoming difficulties strengthens the spirit and increases the self-esteem of company employees. eliminates conflict situations, promotes the formation of trusting relationships between superior and subordinate employees.

Best quality

Quick and effective problem solving contributes to well-coordinated teamwork and the creation of a large amount of resources. This, in turn, will ensure improved quality of products. All this will allow the company to reach a new level of capacity.

This question is asked by entrepreneurs in the industrial sector and the production of material goods. And the answer will be useful for the service sector, IT and social projects.

Lean Management (also called “lean manufacturing methodology”), like the Kaizen philosophy and other management tools, can be applied to every business and process. Because everything can be optimized. It is a way of thinking and acting productively, not just a tactic from a couple of algorithms.

Lean production is

There are many synonyms: lean manufacturing, lean management, lean thinking... even lean transformation. Thinking and transformation (in English the word “transformation” itself can independently mean lean methodology) as a philosophy and theory of doing business, production and management as a practice.

Words reflect an idea as well as just-in-time production, introduced into Toyota as the first-ever example of the Lean method and continuous improvement of the assembly line production of cars. Taiichi Ohno is an engineer who developed lean principles after World War II.

His postulates:

• waste disposal,
• reduction of inventories,
• productivity increase.

While Henry Ford maintained resources on his production line “ahead of demand,” Toyota built partnerships with suppliers and, in fact, made cars to order.

Many industrial startups start with transformation, using methods and tools from the start of production until the last stage of customer support. A long-standing business can also change from the old “regime” to new thinking, although this requires perseverance and patience from managers. This path is more profitable in the long run.

It's amazing how the lean manufacturing system changes the hierarchy in the company's structure. Instead of managers and staff, a community is formed multidisciplinary employees. All the company's resources, even human ones, are used to the fullest, everyone can suggest an improvement, everyone can test their idea in practice, and everyone is responsible for the overall result. This flexibility allows you to make changes instantly, and therefore respond to consumer requests, competitors’ attacks and market unrest.

What is Lean management

In a primitive interpretation, Lean or lean manufacturing is a project management methodology in a company that eliminates all interference with production. Wasting time and resources spoils the results. If the process can be done faster, better quality and cheaper- this is worth doing right now.

The revision of work algorithms occurs in two stages:

1. Analysis. To understand whether the current order in the company is working well, analyze all processes and draw up a diagram. Call center scripts, algorithm for accepting applications, logistics, working with returns in an online store; technical support scripts, processing requests in the bug tracker, rolling out updates in an IT product company. Write down the entire procedure, identify bad spots yourself or use programs (any software for visualizing algorithms, bottlenecks, resources and time).
2. Alteration. When you find “vulnerabilities”: coordination problems, lack of resources, or outdated bureaucratic processes, propose an alternative. An alternative does not have to be, or even need to be, an innovation, a sea change, or a perfect solution. Just a way to do better. You can go through the options proposed by the team. Not just in my head, but in practice. No one knows in advance what will be useful in your project. The benefits and costs of each alternative are reviewed based on practice. The best option is finally implemented.

And these two stages are constantly repeated. Lean manufacturing is never done. This is endless improvement in the little things. With Lean there are no grand innovations, only continuous improvement in small steps.

For the director

The main task of a manager is the profitability of the company. One way to achieve this would be to solve problems and reduce production costs, and another would be to focus on creating "values" for the client in a product or service. The most interesting thing is that by correctly defining the value for the client, you can direct the team’s efforts and material resources only to the important and reduce costs on the unimportant.

That is, Lean helps save money without losing quality and eliminates ultimately useless processes from the company’s work algorithm.

For example: a client needs woodworking machines.

• What is really important to the buyer? Price, functionality and delivery are important to everyone. But there are clients price oriented(cheaper budget models of machines) and quality oriented(machines that allow you to make complex and exclusive carving projects). They all want to get the machine to the workshop quickly and accurately.
• What can be optimized or improved? Raising the quality to raise the price is justified. Select licensed products with certification in a language known to the consumer, and instructions can be provided. Provide delivery using a reliable logistics agency with which we have established favorable terms of cooperation.
• What to remove? It is worth removing all actions that interfere with work. There is a car repair plant with geographically distributed workshops. Every day, its managers gather in the main building for a planning meeting to agree on a list of work. If you implement a unified business management system, you can get rid of the daily loss of time from planning meetings, which is 7 hours for each workshop manager per week.
• What to do and in what order to get loyal customers? In the eyes of the client, the purchasing algorithm looks like this: first determine the exact model of the machine, then the delivery method and address. Asking the client to log in and enter the address before choosing a product will not be pleasant for the client. If the address is entered after the online consultant has helped you choose a model, configuration and other nuances in the pop-up window, the client already feels trust and is satisfied. Customer value is met, tasks are completed during. The company also has an algorithm - you cannot send an order until it is paid for. This is fair and eliminates the problem of disappointed expectations on both sides.

The director's goal in the Lean methodology: bring the process of production, sale and delivery of goods to the client to idealized perfection. At the same time, the emphasis is on the benefit of the client, not the company. The company's benefit becomes an accompanying success, thanks to savings in time and resources in production and increased profits.

For staff

What is lean manufacturing for employees of a factory or IT support center of an IT company? Properly applied methodology saves raw materials, improves working conditions and helps workers earn more.

Lean in an enterprise must also be implemented correctly. If you use the method thoughtlessly, the manager can:

1. If you want to save money, buy low-quality components
2. rearrange equipment in the workshop to reduce the distance between conveyors, but forget about the length of power cables
3. set up a calendar of experiments and prohibit unplanned creativity
4. issue fines for breaking working tools, but do not check their quality and condition
5. add your own option.

Lean methodology encourages the constant exchange of ideas between employees.

If the methodology is accepted by the team, then any plant worker can propose to the director his idea of ​​​​improving the work process. Because the employee who directly carries out the work process sees much better where and what can be improved in this process. With the constant implementation of such proposals, the plant, of course, increases its efficiency.

And the worker will be rewarded if the idea turns out to be useful. He will receive carte blanche to implement and practically test his idea. Only through trial and error can you find the right path, and lean manufacturing recommends constantly trying and improving.

For example, a convenient mobile organizer will reduce the number of missed deadlines and increase the speed of work of the marketing and design departments. Its implementation in a company will save time, which means lean production.

For the company

Both the head of the company and the ordinary project performer create the value of the product for the client through their actions. All efforts are aimed at this.

The benefit for the client does not arise in some moments— the fact of product selection, order acceptance, warehouse configuration or delivery date.

Value is created through a flow of results-oriented processes:

• an online consultant helps you choose the size, model and color;
• When placing an order, you can choose the payment method by credit card or cash to the courier;
• The kit includes a guarantee, a coupon for replacement or return, gift cards or an invitation to a themed event;
• You can name the delivery date and time, call the courier, or select a specific chain store for pickup.

The nonlinearity of the work of the entire company makes it possible to simplify flows, change their algorithms so as to gain savings, increase value at the same costs, or significantly reduce the percentage of defects and returns.

In addition to the pure value and the absence of defective copies, it is important for the client customization product, especially in the consumer segment. If a company can rebuild its conveyor belt and produce different or new product models without significant losses, then it will definitely win the competition. Even make prefabricated ones individual kits from basic parts or provide exclusive sets to order - already a tangible superiority in the market.

Muda, mura, muri it

This is what waste or waste is called in Lean methodology. Anything unnecessary that needs to be removed. Anything that doesn't add value to the customer. Muda, mura, muri are words from the Japanese language that have taken root perfectly in English business slang.

- waste, useless spending. Consequences of management errors.

* muda, which is added in some classifications.

- causes of muda. Unevenness and inconsistency of load, overload.

Seasonal, regular, advertising-driven consumer demand has its own rhythm, clock frequency (week, month, quarter). We analyze ups and downs in demand, in-demand and unprofitable products from the model range. We forecast, distribute the load and tasks.

- inexpediency. Unreasonable difficulties in work.

Muri	In industry
Non-core work	Place the sales manager at the workshop conveyor belt. Appoint a third wife as a director of the plant as a gift.	Performing tasks unrelated to the position held and developed skills. Send the layout designer to the call-center.
Poorly equipped workplace	One set of tools for 4 installers.	The intern has a laptop, but it does not have an antivirus or specialized programs necessary for work. The designer uses outdated pirated photoshop.
Unclear instructions	Abstract ordering requirements, measurements by eye.	“Make the layout more cheerful, and the buttons are just wow!”
Lack of tools and equipment	There is one printer in the director's office, the accounting department constantly runs to print it.	A programmer is hired with his own laptop and is required to carry it to the office, since it is impossible to buy and equip him with a stationary one.
Lack of proper maintenance/unreliable equipment	An outdated conveyor belt, the maintenance of which is overdue for six months to a year.	The system administrator does not organize and sign the cables in the server rack. The time it takes to find a fault multiplies several times.
Untrusted processes	Untested technologies for processing raw materials, abstractly proven accounting methods and dubious ideas in production.	Monkey testing as the only and sufficient way to test programs for bugs (errors).
Poor communication and connection	Poor audibility on the radio in the workshop area. Dealing with the director's secretary when it is important to urgently report an emergency. Bureaucracy.	2 mobile numbers, 8 instant messengers, 3 emails and 5 social networks to get the go-ahead to complete the task.

The essence of lean transformation is to remove all muda, muri and mura. Understanding their cause-and-effect relationship, you can focus on the origins of the problems, so that you don’t have to clean up every little detail later.

Advantages of Lean methodology

A skeptic will say why a lean transformation is needed if you can simply apply a couple of standard instructions for combating defects from GOSTs or reduce paper waste on bureaucracy at the enterprise? Lean manufacturing methods as a tool are powerful, but without understanding the philosophy and structure, it will not be possible to fully implement them.

It’s like a university program: I knew it, I passed it, I forgot it. After the exam, all that will remain in your head is “phew!” and there is nothing to apply in practice. Likewise, by implementing a couple of algorithms that reduce costs or deadlines for completing tasks once, according to the instructions, you cannot create lean manufacturing. Lean is about constant change. Even carrying out modernization once a year does not mean actually introducing the methodology.

The whole point in experience, practice. Only after personal experience, testing theories and collecting data can new stages of experiments be analyzed and developed. Set yourself such a cycle as the norm for introducing corrections, fighting muda, mura and muri.

To initially launch a project using the lean methodology, you need to:

1. collect all the information about the future task,
2. segment it into subtasks, develop and test them separately,
3. calculate all deadlines and budget based on the collected experience of competitors or your own past projects (rely only on real data instead of abstract theories

Lean Manufacturing Principles

Based on all muda, mura and muri, there are exactly 10 principles of lean manufacturing:

1. Eliminate garbage
2. Minimize inventory
3. Maximize Flow
4. Production depends on consumer demand
5. Know customer requirements
6. Do it right the first time
7. Empower workers
8. Build a system with easy replacement of its parts
9. Establish partnerships with suppliers
10. Create a culture of continuous improvement

There are also three basic business objectives. They guide the transformation of the entire company:

• Target. What customer problems does the company solve, the ultimate value for the consumer?
• Process. Criteria for evaluating each value stream? Checking algorithms and chain links, combating waste, inexpediency and overload. Each step is valuable, real, accessible, adequate and flexible, and the flows and influences are even.
• People. How to distribute responsibility for each process and production flow? To assign a person not to a position, but to a process entrusted entirely? The task leader frames value creation in terms of business goals and actively implements lean transformation.

For individual career development, these same three basic tasks look like this:

• What is target my job?
• Process to generate better results in the most efficient way?
• Who are those People who am I creating value for?

The concept of “kaizen” helps answer these questions.

The principles of Kaizen philosophy - continuous improvement

Term kaizen- consists of two Japanese characters カイゼン: kai - changes And zen - good. Changes for the better, continuous improvement, transformation for good... It is difficult to say whether this is a theoretical teaching of philosophers or a practical method of management. Kaizen is a symbiosis of both concepts, allowing subordinates to propose and quickly test their ideas to improve the operation of the enterprise. Lean transformation comes from the practical part of kaizen and is based on its philosophy.

Kaizen rests on five pillars:

1. Equal interaction all levels (management, managers, workers) and direct communication between them
2. Individual discipline
3. Healthy moral condition the team and each individual
4. Mugs quality
5. Offers on improvements to everything from the workplace and assembly line to the way the company's performance is assessed.

Read more about kaizen in the next article.

Algorithm for implementing lean manufacturing

According to James Womack, founder of the Lean Enterprise Institute and author of several books on transformation:

• Choose a leader - a responsible agent of change
• Get knowledge about lean and kaizen from a reliable source
• Find or create a crisis - a problem that requires immediate solution
• Experiment, practice, analyze the results immediately - do not get carried away with developing a strategy (proven by the Wright brothers)
• Construct real and desired maps of value streams. They must be different
• Ensure results are transparent to all staff
• Reduce production cycle time (faster flow)
• Implement kaizen and continuously develop the company (value creation on the shop floor moves to administrative changes)

Here's where to start implementing lean manufacturing. Possible tools:

1. Value Stream Mapping
2. Pull production
3. Kaizen
4. Poka Yoke
5. Total Productive Maintenance (TPM)
6. Just-In-Time (JIT)
7. Visualization
8. U-shaped cells

Examples of lean manufacturing implementation

The competitiveness of a company often depends on certain criteria. Fast delivery of delicious pizza will beat simply delicious pizza. Customizing a car from an official car dealer is more interesting than the standard basic configuration. And detailed results of private medical tests are always better than meager extracts from the district clinic.

You can ensure an advantage over your competitors (speed, customization, quality of research) by continuously improving your project management system, as many companies in the world do.

Successfully implemented lean:

• in the USA: Toyota, Alcoa, Boeing, Pella, Emerson Electric, Jacobs Equipment Company (Danaher)
• in Europe: Motoman Robotec, Unior, Iskra Asing, Volvo, Metso, Nuon
• in China: Lenovo, Suntory
• state and municipal departments of many countries.

Lean Applications and Tools

It is easier to implement transformation in a modern company than it was 30 years ago. There are many similar applications for Android and iOS that help you run an economical and quality-oriented business.

Lean manufacturing tools are used to motivate staff, build relationships and communication between the workshop and management, analyze the results of introducing new ideas and detect waste in the work of the enterprise. Testing and experiments, developing a conveyor system or a bug tracker for programmers - all this is software for lean methodology.

Worksection is a Saas service that has full project management functionality, a Gantt chart and several types of reports.

Gantt chartallows you to track relationships, chronology and those responsible for tasks. Reports highlight overdue tasks and exceeded budgets.

In the “by people” task section, the manager can see the amount of work for each person and who is idle. It is so easy to identify misallocation of human resources.

So the fight against muda, mura and muri becomes clear and simple.

You can create a separate project “proposals from the team”, where you can create ideas to be implemented as tasks.

Set a deadline for two weeks or a month, test the idea, discuss the process in the comments and then analyze the result.
If the idea is good, implement it completely.

Oracle

More often, company owners use programs like Oracle or virtual services for project management.

LeanApp

The most famous application, LeanApp for iOS, allows you to systematize and control all processes in the company.

Verdict

Companies are implementing lean manufacturing all over the world, but not all of them are thriving because of it. Many do not know how, do not understand the philosophy, or incorrectly apply memorized instructions in practice.

The essence of the methodology

1. waste disposal,
2. empowerment of workers,
3. reduction of inventories,
4. productivity increase.

The method is always individual and depends on many factors - industry and market segment, target audience, product or service, priority and competitive differentiation of the company.

Start the fight against waste in the “narrowest” places in the work flow - where the error is critical.

Finding a crisis and solving it is much more effective than mindlessly implementing the Lean algorithm.