Monthly Archives: April 2006

Manufacturing Jobs Data: USA and China

Posted on April 7, 2006 by John Hunter

Manufacturing Productivity and the Shifting US, China, and Global Job Scenes-1990 to 2005 (working paper – July 2005) by William Ward, Clemson University: Manufacturing productivity growth from 1990 to 2004 should have taken away 7.5 million of the 17.7 million … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Economics, Manufacturing, Popular, quote | 6 Comments

How Whirlpool Defines Innovation

Posted on April 7, 2006 by John Hunter

How Whirlpool Defines Innovation [the broken link was removed] now we say if we’re going to put any money in an innovation project, it has to sit on a migration path, it has to be something that the customer really … Continue reading →

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Toyota Again Get Positive Press

Posted on April 7, 2006 by John Hunter

Toyota Eyes Chance to Pass by Anthony Faiola, Washington Post: The mainstream press continues to note the success of Toyota. Toyota has been toying with hybrid engines for the past 20 years. But the company began to seriously pursue a … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Lean thinking, Management, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged | Comments Off on Toyota Again Get Positive Press

Seduce Them With Six Sigma Success

Posted on April 6, 2006 by John Hunter

Seduce Them With Success [the broken link was removed – sadly ASQ continues to increase their impeding of the access to material on quality management, in direct conflict with their professed mission] by Jay Arthur: Instead the change agents are … Continue reading →

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Lean Thinking Needed

Posted on April 6, 2006 by John Hunter

Bank Wire Transfers vs. FedEx Delivery My goal was to give them all the paperwork, ensure I had sufficient funds, and schedule the transfer such that the money arrives in the sellers’ account on a particular date next week. But … Continue reading →

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Lean Enterprise Institute Expands

Posted on April 5, 2006 by John Hunter

Lean Enterprise Institute Expands Services to Growing Lean Community [the broken link was removed] “LEI is introducing new programs, led by new people, at a new location to improve the practice of lean, the search for lean knowledge, and how … Continue reading →

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Womack Podcast on GM

Posted on April 5, 2006 by John Hunter

Topic: Management Improvement, Toyota Production System Womack Audio on Bloomberg.com [the broken link was removed] (14 minutes) via the Lean Blog, where they quote from the audio: “What do they worry about? They worry about the fact the system is … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Manufacturing, Toyota Production System (TPS), webcast | Tagged | Comments Off on Womack Podcast on GM

Lean Manufacturing Success

Posted on April 4, 2006 by John Hunter

Oshkosh Truck Driven to Succeed [the broken link was removed] by Arlen Boardman: Wuest said this reduced the order-to-delivery time from 12 to 16 weeks to seven days. It made better use of manufacturing space and reduced inventory-holding costs. He … Continue reading →

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Problems with Bonuses

Posted on April 3, 2006 by John Hunter

What sort of bonuses should we pay? by Seth Godin: Money, it’s been shown time and time again, is a demotivator. I’m not talking about a fair or even generous salary. Being a cheapskate is no way to find a … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Management, Performance Appraisal, Psychology, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Company’s Purpose is to be Useful to Society

Posted on April 2, 2006 by John Hunter

Toyota powers to the front [the broken link was removed] (Toyota President, Katsuaki Watanabe) eschews the normal management mantra of shareholder value above all. A company’s purpose, Watanabe insists, is to be useful to society. W. Edwards Deming described the … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Lean thinking, Management, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment