The best way to reduce machining lead time is to establish a “flow” from one process to another, using cells to link, synchronize, and eliminate excessive material handling, excess inventory, and ...

If you google “Buffer Management” you will get a variety of results that focus mainly on buffers used to pad time for a task in project management or a deliberate amount time built into a project ...

Most facilities that fail in lean implementations have weak quality systems. More specifically, they have failed to create stable process flow. If you have some or even one of these issues, you will ...

Dave Drew, group pharmaceutical director of Matcon (Moreton-in-Marsh, UK), says that lean production is essential for drugmakers to survive in the current environment. Pharmaceutical companies today ...

In today's manufacturing environment, assembly work is routinely characterized by short production cycles and constantly diminishing batch sizes, while the variety of product types and models ...

Manufacturers can identify and reduce waste using tools such as value-stream mapping. Process efficiency programs at pharmaceutical companies-whether called operational excellence, lean manufacturing, ...

I am going to share some pictures with you from Hodges Millwork of Royce City, Texas, in this article to demonstrate just how common sense lean is for anyone who may still doubt the simplistic, yet ...

On a roll for over 50 years now, Toyota Motor Corp. is the logical first place to look for a glimpse into the future of lean manufacturing. There a new generation is gearing up to spread the tried-and ...