Monthly Archives: July 2006

Lean Manufacturing Dream

Posted on July 6, 2006 by John Hunter

This article is from 2001 and worth reading. It is important to keep up with what is currently happening but there is a great deal of useful information from 5, 10,20, 50… years ago. Achieving the lean dream [the broken link was removed] by Nelson J. Teed: Growth and lean are great partners for another reason. Positive employee reaction to lean is crucial to success, and not automatic. Lean improves productivity and can reduce the number of people needed. Layoffs … Continue reading →

Posted in Lean thinking, Management Articles, Manufacturing | Tagged | 1 Comment

Quality and Innovation

Posted on July 4, 2006 by John Hunter

I think the The Quality Movement Vs. The Innovation Movement by Bruce Nussbaum makes a mistake in calling the innovation movement separate from the quality movement. Wow. It makes sense. The father of quality, of course, was Dr. W. Edwards Demming, and he preached for a very long time before he was really heard. In fact, as I recall, Japanese companies first accepted Demmings teachings long before U.S. and European corporations. Lets quote Deming on innovation from New Economics, page … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Innovation, Management, Popular, quote | 5 Comments

Toyota Homes

Posted on July 4, 2006 by John Hunter

Live in your next Toyota [the broken link was removed]: Housing makes up less than 1% of Toyota’s $183 billion annual sales. But company officials say technology acquired from years of making cars is central to homebuilding Toyota style. A “smart key” similar to the car key you don’t need to take out of your pocket to unlock your Toyota opens and closes the front door. A mechanism for reducing engine noise and tremors is installed under the floor to … Continue reading →

Posted in Innovation, Management, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged | 1 Comment

Fun Camping Drum-Buffer-Rope Example

Posted on July 3, 2006 by John Hunter

Shmula Goes Camping: Drum-Buffer-Rope Managing the Constraint is mostly about managing the non-bottleneck systems and making them “aware” how fast they should work — when they should slow down, when they should stop, or when they should increase pace and by how much. The Drum-Buffer-Rope system allows for a systems-wide awareness. The Drum The Bottleneck or Constraint, acts as a Drum — it sets the rhythm that the whole system should follow. In Lean Manufacturing, this is also called “Takt … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Quality tools, Theory of Constraints | Tagged

Another Article on Lean UK Hospitals

Posted on July 3, 2006 by John Hunter

Country to follow the hospital’s ‘lean’ lead by Jane Lavender: Since the introduction of lean thinking, the length of time it takes a patient to get from the accident and emergency to the operating theatre has been reduced by 38 per cent. Paper work has been cut by 42 per cent and the total time patients spend in hospital has been slashed by 32 per cent. The article also says “Nine months ago the hospital became one of only six … Continue reading →

Posted in Health care, Lean thinking, Management, Public Sector, UK

Seminars by Toyota UK

Posted on July 3, 2006 by John Hunter

‘Increasing quality, efficiency and profitability via A Lean Approach’ is a series of six one day tour, seminar and workshop events at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) plant in Burnaston, Derbyshire that focuses on the Toyota Production System (TPS) and Quality Management. Guests can choose from three workshops, HRM, Visual Control or Practical Problem Solving, and take part in a Q&A session with the speakers: Hein Van Gerwen, Managing Director; Carl Klemm, Deputy Managing Director; Clive Bridge, Corporate Affairs Director … Continue reading →

Posted in Manufacturing, Toyota Production System (TPS), UK | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Six Sigma Theory?

Posted on July 2, 2006 by John Hunter

Can we develop theory around Six Sigma? Should we care? [the broken link was removed] by Suzanne de Treville, Norman M. Edelson, Anilkumar N. Kharkar and Benjamin Avanzi. An interesting paper exploring what six sigma means and what it mean that what it means depends on who you ask. The ideas explored provide good information for most management improvement programs as most share common tools and concepts but vary significantly between implementations. Why examine the question of six sigma theory? … Continue reading →

Posted in Management Articles, Six sigma | Tagged

TQM for the Water Business

Posted on July 1, 2006 by John Hunter

How dealers can put TQM to work [the broken link was removed] by Brian Cusimano Deming did not like the term TQM. It was not defined, so each person using it meant something different. And the faddish nature of the term drew a large number of “hacks” (consultants who spoke with authority but without knowledge). Seeing the term TQM used now however, I find refreshing. To use the term TQM you must go against the temptation to talk only about … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Quality tools | Tagged , , ,

CEO Flight Attendant

Posted on July 1, 2006 by John Hunter

Street Smarts: Learning From JetBlue by Norm Brodsky. The Jet Blue CEO works (once a month he estimates) as a flight attendant. He interacts directly with customers in real world situations (not just talking to travel managers in his office). This getting out and seeing work in action is exposed a great deal, including a lean management concept, Genchi Genbutsu – to go to see the problem in situ (not just reading a report about it). he’s shaping the company … Continue reading →

Posted in Creativity, Customer focus, Deming, Management, quote, Respect, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments