When we think of lean, we think of work cells, kanban cards, TQM, etc. But many people make a basic mistake. That’s the mistake of not understanding the concepts on which lean manufacturing is based. Many people who copied Lean failed because they did not understand the concepts behind Lean.
We will give a simple definition of lean manufacturing before continuing. Lean manufacturing can be defined as a systematic approach to continuously identify and remove waste from the system. All tools and techniques are based on meeting this simple requirement.
To identify the conceptual difference between lean manufacturing and conventional manufacturing, we will take a look at the definition given above. There is a very important word to keep in mind. That is “Delete”. Removing waste from the system may not sound much different than minimizing waste in the system, which we talk about in conventional manufacturing. But think about it. These two words are very different in the context of manufacturing (or even services).
When you think about minimizing waste, you are thinking about the current system where you have waste. Consider minimizing that waste by adjusting the system. When you think about removing or removing debris from the system, you will have to find the causes of the debris and remove it from the system. This means that you will have to redefine the process so that no waste is generated. So in the first case, you live in the system where there is waste and you fight for some improvement. In the latter, change the system so that the system itself has no waste. Are they not really different?
I’ll give you one more example to clarify the conceptual difference between lean manufacturing and traditional manufacturing. Think work in progress (WIP). In a traditional manufacturing process, WIP is treated as an asset that helps to run the process smoothly. However, lean manufacturing, WIP is treated as a waste in itself. In addition, lean manufacturing treats WIP like a mirror reflecting the imperfection of the system.
I can continue to explain the conceptual differences that these systems have. But it is very important to understand one thing about lean manufacturing. Lean manufacturing is not a fine tuning to the traditional manufacturing system you had. It is a completely different system. In order to implement lean manufacturing successfully, understand the conceptual differences between lean and traditional manufacturing.
For more information on Lean Manufacturing and your free “Lean Basics” e-book, visit http://www.leanmanufactureconcepts.com
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