Lean Manufacturing
Lean manufacturing is a conceptual framework based on implementation of industrial engineering in an innovative way by Toyota executives. Now certain principles are derived from it. Its objective is to improve productivity by reducing waste and decreasing cycle time. . LMS has shorter manufacturing and new product lead times; team based work organization with responsibility for producing finished products and components of acceptable quality with self inspection in just in time manner. JIT system also employs a smaller supplier base providing JIT deliveries.
Lean concepts form part of world-class manufacturing philosophies that advocate utilizing the resources efficiently and effectively. .
The survey, the results of which are summarised in this post, is based on 71 respondents from thirty two Industries and 63 from forty two Technical Institutions in India.
The key issues for any organization to implement LMS
They are identified as follows:
Inventory: For the implementation of LMS, 27 % and 39 % respondents rate Inventory as a very important and important issue respectively. Reduction of inventory is the basis for JIT.
The cumulative 56 % response indicates that majority consider inventory as a key issue.
Lead-time: For the implementation of LMS, 31 % and 30 % respondents rate Lead-time as a very important and important issue respectively. Reduction of cycle time is another important issue to lean journey.
LMS find out the wastage to time in the processes and eliminate it on regular basis.
Rejection: For the implementation of LMS, 21 % and 11 % respondents rate rejection as a very important and important issue respectively. Rejections have to be brought down to reduce cycle time as well as inventory
This response indicates that more attention has to be paid towards rejection control to improve lead-time and quality of the products. LMS helps in control rejection.
Transportation Cost: For the implementation of LMS, 4 % and 40% respondent's rate transportation cost as a very important and important issue respectively. Indian companies have to come out with transport solutions that make small lot transportation compete with large lot transportation.
Transportation time and cost play a big role in Inventory accumulation. A proper logistic management will help Indian organizations to reduce the transportation as well as inventory cost. For example In India M/s Transystem Logistics does "Milk runs" for Toyota Kirloskar Motor's (TKM) manufacturing plant (Gupta, 2003) and it helps TKM to work on the principles of JIT as well as to optimize the inventory levels. LMS advocates the removal of the waste in transportation.
Break down Maintenance: For the implementation of LMS, 13 % and 34% respondent's rate break down maintenance as a very important and important issue respectively. Breakdowns have to be brought down.
Without high availability of machines with proper maintenance it is very difficult to commit deliveries and maintain quality. With a proper maintenance system, which leads to TPM, LMS improve the Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).
House keeping: For the implementation of LMS, 19 % and 39 % respondents rate house keeping as a very important and important issue respectively. This shows people understand the importance of clean and visible work place.
A good house keeping is required to pick the required items quickly and start the work. The principles of motion economy recommend keeping all item in designated places and Japanese 5 S program incorporates it.and it became a basic principle of LMS.
Product Design / Changes in Design: For the implementation of LMS, 19 % and 34 % respondent's rate product design and design changes as a very important and important issue respectively. Value engineering exercise is important for reducing waste that exist due to product designs.In today's competitive world where the variety of products decides any organization's market share, proper management of Product design and its changes is very important. LMS is extended to design activity also in Japan. It helps for a speedy product design and its changes.
Process Selection: For the implementation of LMS, 22 % and 30 % respondents rate Process selection as a very important and important issue respectively. Cellular manufacturing has to be followed.A proper selection of process decides the throughput time, effective utilization of the available resources such as machines, skilled manpower etc. LMS declares overprocessing as a waste and thus helps to identify process waste and makes selection of a proper process an important decision.
Supplier & Vendor Relations: For the implementation of LMS, 30 % and 27 % respondents rate Supplier Relations as a very important and important issue respectively. For implementing JIT there has to be change in supplier and vendor relations
For the implementation of LMS, 28 % and 24 % respondents rate vendor relations as a very important and important issue respectively. As discussed earlier mutual trust and win-win strategy with suppliers and vendors helps to strengthen the whole supply chain. A healthy relationship with suppliers is possible with the implementation of LMS as well as it is the base for LMS.
Material Handling: For the implementation of LMS, 22 % and 33 % respondents rate Material handling as a very important and important issue respectively. Material handling can be redesigned to increase efficiency.
Waste identification and elimination in material handling system through LMS leads to Lead-time improvement; reduce throughput time reduction and minimization of rejections due to transportation.
Information Technology: For the implementation of LMS, 27 % and 40 % respondents rate Information Technology as a very important and important issue respectively. JIT systems do require MRP and other planning techniques.
It is very clear for the response that use of IT in every field of operations will help to take decisions at faster rate and accurately. IT helps to minimize the wastage due to repetitive nature of work. It also save a lot of time, which is very crucial in today's competitive world. A well planned IT system for the business is must to implement LMS in any organization.
The key issues for the purpose of Inventory Management:
Small Batch Production: For the implementation of LMS, 18 % and 30 % respondents rate small batch production keeping as a very important and important issue respectively. For better lead time and variety products small batch production is the need of hour. It also helps to maintain the Inventory level. LMS principles support organizations to produce small batch production.
Setup time reduction: For the implementation of LMS, 27% and 33 % respondents rate setup time reduction as a very important and important issue respectively. To produce small batch production setup time reduction is very essential. Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) principles developed by Shingo (1989) helps the person on shop floor to reduce the setup time.
Nearby Suppliers: For the implementation of LMS, 15 % and 43 % respondents rate nearby suppliers as a very important and important issue respectively. For faster delivery of components / material nearby suppliers are still considered very well owing to the logistics problem in India. Also the amount of follow up required with suppliers and vendors can be reduced with a proper online system and mutual trust. The global market provides an opportunity to select suppliers and vendors from any part of the world.
Nearby Customers: For the implementation of LMS, 10 % and 45 % respondents rate nearby customers as a very important and important issue respectively. This shows that some times logistics related problems affect the decision of entering in far away markets. But in today's world a manufacturer has little choice of customer selection.
Direct Online Suppliers: For the implementation of LMS, 25 % and 30 % respondents rate Direct Online suppliers as a very important and important issue respectively. The impact of Information Technology in our day to day life is reflecting in the supply chain management. LMS helps to design Lean Supply Chain.
The key issues in the area of Quality are analyzed as under
Process Control: For the implementation of LMS, 46 % and 33 % respondents rate Process Control as a very important and important issue respectively. As the selection of process is important, its control is also important from the LMS point of view. A controlled process will produce defect free products consistently, which is necessary for the implementation of LMS.
Vendor Development: For the implementation of LMS, 21 % and 31 % respondents rate Vendor Development as a very important and important issue respectively. Vendor development is the aspect on which every organization is working seriously. In today's outsourcing world the effectiveness of the supply chain depends more on the vendors and suppliers. The success of LMS depends on the proper network of loyal vendors.
Level of Automation: For the implementation of LMS, 24 % and 42 % respondents rate Automation as a very important and important issue respectively. Many persons see automation as an alternative to manual work owing to its numerous advantages, but in Indian conditions we have to adopt it very carefully looking to the cost involvement.
Measurement of Quality: For the implementation of LMS, 31 % and 37 % respondents rate Quality measurement as a very important and important issue respectively. Measurement is required to understand the present level of rework and for improving it.
The quality of products at every stage of manufacturing is very important in LMS and thus to ensure it a quality measurement system should be in its place.
The key issues in the area of Maintenance
They are analyzed as under
Spare Parts Management: For the implementation of LMS, 24 % and 51 % respondents rate house keeping as a very important and important issue respectively. The cumulative 75 % importance level clearly indicates that non-availability of spare parts causes great difficulty for maintenance of equipment. Thus it is very crucial to have right spare parts available at right time and in right quantity.
Cleanliness: For the implementation of LMS, 31 % and 27 % respondents rate cleanliness as a very important and important issue respectively. A good housekeeping and cleanliness provides a base for any advanced manufacturing system.
Application of TPM: For the implementation of LMS, 21 % and 52 % respondents rate Total Productive Maintenance as a very important and important issue respectively. The availability of equipment at the required time is must for the implementation of LMS and it is possible only with the application of TPM.
Worker's participation: For the implementation of LMS, 39 % and 39 % respondents rate worker's participation as a very important and important issue respectively. It is not true only for the maintenance issues as asked in questionnaire but in all aspect of LMS. The active participation of the entire workforce is sought for the success of any activity. The teamwork provides the perfect base for the implementation of LMS.
Conclusions
The authors made the conclusion that the participants in the survey are clear about the concepts of LMS.
Global Business and Management Research: An International Journal > July 1, 2009
Nitin Upadhye, S G Deshmukh, Suresh Garg,
Barriers in Implementation of Lean Manufacturing System in Indian industry: A survey
Rakesh Kumar
Research Scholar, Mechanical Engineering Department,
YMCA University of Science and Technology,
Faridabad-121006 (Haryana), India.
Dr. Vikas Kumar
Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering Department,
YMCA University of Science and Technology,
Faridabad-121006 (Haryana), India.
Abstract: Lean Manufacturing system has been acknowledged by Indian industry as a capable system in enhancing organisational performance by focusing on elimination of waste from the manufacturing system and thus improving effectiveness of the organisation. Though if used on full scale as organisational culture it can produce significant improvement in organisational performance. This paper has attempted to explore the key barriers in extensive implementation of Lean Manufacturing even after two decades of introduction with Indian industry.
International Journal of Latest Trends in Engineering and Technology (IJLTET)
Vol. 4 Issue 2 July 2014
http://ijltet.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/33.pdf
A Qualitative Study on Barriers of Implementation of Lean Manufacturing: An Indian Cotext (Delhi NCR Region)
Akhil Kumar
The International Journal Of Engineering And Science (IJES)
|| Volume || 3 || Issue || 4 || Pages || 21-28 || 2014 ||
ISSN (e): 2319 – 1813 ISSN (p): 2319 – 1805
www.theijes.com The IJES Page 21
http://www.theijes.com/papers/v3-i4/Version-2/C03402021028.pdf
BECOMING LEAN ENTERPRISE: THEORY AND CASE STUDIES - Company Based Customized Programmes and Management Development Programme at NITIE, Mumbai, India
