What is the “gemba” and how do you “go to the gemba” effectively? Today we’re answering your questions! In this episode we explain: What the gemba is and why going to it isn’t enough. The goal for every leader when it comes to the gemba. Why going to the gemba is a lot like meditation. …
Why Going To The Gemba Isn’t Enough (And How Going To The Gemba Is More Like Meditating) Read More »
Lean is truly about “the elimination of waste.” In other words, it is about making the best use of your resources. To do this well, you must learn how to manage the relationship between people and machines in work cells. Many organizations divide up machines in such a way that it causes operators to be …
How to Optimize Labor and Machines in Work Cells Read More »
The success of your lean goals truly depend on the strength of your foundation. While so many lean tools come into play–”just in time,” one-piece flow, kaizen, work cells, balanced workloads, scheduling, etc–these are the things that are built upon the foundation. The foundation itself that you need to succeed with lean is quite different …
Foundation Problem: When Your Production Team Lacks Real Teamwork Read More »
If you have equipment and processes requiring changeovers or setup time, you must learn a lean principle called SMED (single minute exchange of die). SMED—also known as “quick changeover”—is the practice of radically reducing changeover times. You must reduce your changeover times for two primary reasons: Long changeovers waste your equipment capacity. Long changeovers tempt …
Quick Changeover Video (SMED) at the Lean Donut Shop Read More »
Many lean implementation efforts have failed for either of two reasons: Individual tools are cherry-picked and implemented individually without understanding that lean tools function together as an integrated system. Or, lean is viewed only as a technical set or tools and the role of people and their behavior is forgotten or neglected. In both situations, an understanding …
