You're aiming for quality and cost efficiency in Lean Manufacturing. How do you achieve both simultaneously?

Lean thinking and quality consciousness need to be integral to the value system of the manufacturing team! Each team member needs to feel responsible for his work and the impacts downstream of the process. Only then, value stream mapping and lean thinking will yield desired results!

Waste needs to be designed out of the system from the start. Both material waste and waste of movement. (This will mean different methods for different countries and different work skill levels, automation vs. high amount of manual labor.) Quality can be maintained in both scenarios. Quality expectations need to be communicated clearly at workstations. Both images and go/no go tolerances need to be shown with clear images and instructions at each workstation. Visual and physical controls will allow the workforce to be flexible without requiring in-depth training for each location. Remove any doubt of what is expected. Failure can usually be tied back to poor communication. Lean should never mean lower performance from a product.

En Luxeapers, nuestro enfoque elimina desperdicios y optimiza procesos, reduciendo costos sin comprometer la calidad del producto. Implementamos principios clave como mejora continua (Kaizen), justo a tiempo (JIT) y control de calidad total. La colaboración de todo el personal es esencial. Fomentamos un ambiente donde cada empleado aporta ideas para mejorar eficiencia y calidad. Utilizamos análisis de valor y mapas de flujo de valor para identificar mejoras. Además, empleamos automatización inteligente y mantenemos un estricto control de calidad en cada etapa de producción. Esto garantiza productos de alta calidad y bajos costos operativos. En Luxeapers, Lean Manufacturing es una filosofía que asegura excelencia y rentabilidad sostenibles.

Value Stream Mapping Mapping your value stream is the first critical step. This involves analyzing each step in your production process to identify which actions add value and which do not. By doing so, you can optimize operations, ensuring all processes are necessary, capable, available, and suitable. Removing unnecessary steps reduces waste and costs, while focusing on value-added steps enhances product quality. Remember, a streamlined value stream is not just about cutting costs; it’s about creating a flow that delivers the best possible product to your customer.

We must always understand that the consumer is never willing to pay for anything which is non-value adding in our process. This is why we must avoid unnecessary steps in our process or “over processing” in our operations. Our value stream must be guided by clearly defined standard routines and this will help us avoid waste !!

Implementing continuous flow in production processes ensures smoother transitions and fewer disruptions, which in turn reduces lead times and inventory costs. This is achieved by organizing workstations so that products move through the production line with minimal waiting time. Continuous flow helps identify quality issues quickly and address them before they impact subsequent processes. By ensuring products are made to order and not left in inventory, it maintains a high level of quality and responsiveness to customer demand.

The Continuous Flow principle is also applicable to office work. The workflows have usually many handovers and delays contribute to increased work in process. While this does not usually show up as working capital increase in balance sheet, it can cause to e.g. lost sales. A simple and theoretical example - sales person needs to submit a proposal to a client. Before submitting proposal, pricing and contractual terms need to be approved by the company. Pricing approval ends up in finance departments queue and legal department has a separate queue for reviewing terms & conditions. Proposal cannot be submitted without approvals i.e. no sales can be made as long as the proposal is in review work queues.

From a quality perspective, the process flow and control plan is a good place to start. After you assign costs to each step of the process, you will be able to assign costs to each recommendation while keeping the past or similar performances in the organization in mind and risks AND their potential costs. (Sometimes fool-proofing creates an inefficiencies to protect quality.) Then you will have an agreed upon way for the team to calculate the overall cost, the increase in quality and efficiency. Although there will still be some disputes on risk numbers and exact costs for the constituent steps, there should be general agreement if the overall changes you are making are worthwhile. DON'T forget to get buy-in from your operators.

Proper workplace organization improves continuous flow, safety, and quality in our operations. Workstations that have clear paths and demarcations with all equipments and items properly set in their place improves the overall efficiency and performance of the operations.

Pull is a very good value chain technique that can help in cost efficiency and inventory management . By using pull techniques lean systems can accurately predict the demand and also improve on the cost control by reducing wastes and reacting to demand fluctuations with agility

Integrate Quality into Processes: Design workflows where errors are impossible or instantly visible, allowing immediate corrections. This prevents the costs and delays of rework or scrap. Employee Empowerment: Train employees to understand their role in quality control. Provide them with the necessary tools and knowledge to prioritize quality at every production stage. Continuous Monitoring: Implement real-time monitoring systems to detect and address issues as they arise. This ensures a consistent focus on quality and minimizes defects. Feedback Loops: Establish feedback mechanisms for continuous improvement. Encourage team members to report issues and suggest process enhancements, fostering a culture of quality and collaboration.

Implementation of the SDCA cycle (Standardize-Do-Check-Act) is key for quality in our operations. Strict adherence to quality standards, checking for errors and taking actions for deviations is key !!

Total performance management in our operations is key for safety, quality, and improved performance. Embedding this culture amongst our operational teams will ensure waste is reduced !!