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5.3 Lean Production & Quality Management

(HL ONLY)

Lean Production:

British Firms:

- Overproduced
- Produced too slowly
- Unnecessarily moved people, materials, stock, etc
- Mistakes were made in production
- Made goods of greater quality (therefore expense) than the needs/wants of the customer

Japanese Firms (lean production aims):

- Avoid producing more than what is required
- Do not waste time (nobody is idle)
- Avoid errors through regulated quality control
- Avoid inefficient manufacturing processes
- Avoid unnecessary movement/transport

Kaizen (continual improvement):

This method strives toward perfection by eliminating waste in the workplace.
Successful implementation requires "the participation of workers in the improvement." People at all levels of an organisation participate in this method.
It develops a culture of continual small improvements and standardisation yields large results in terms of overall improvement in productivity.

Objectives:

Less waste, with higher output
Greater efficiency of production

Case Study: Toyota's Production System

Vocabulary:

Muda = Waste

Muri = Overburden

Mura = Uneven-ness

Operating with the minimum resource required to consistently deliver:

Just what is needed
In just the required amount
Just where it is needed
Just when it is needed

Kanban = A scheduling system for lean manufacturing and just-in-time manufacturing.

Kanban is an inventory-control system to control the supply chain.

Lean Production

Highest quality
At the lowest cost
Shortest lead time --> Amount of time between beginning of manufacturing & end of manufacturing

Heijunka = Leveling

Elegantly and without haste – helps organizations meet demand while reducing while reducing wastes in production and interpersonal processes.

Kaizen = Continuous Improvement

A strategy where employees at all levels of a company work together proactively to achieve regular, incremental improvements to the manufacturing process.

Jidohka = Automation

Jidoka highlights the causes of problems because work stops immediately when a problem first occurs. This leads to improvements in the processes that build in quality by eliminating the root causes of defects.

Just-in-Time Production

A pull system of production - production is only triggered once an order has been made
Stock of raw materials arrive "just in time" for them to be used in production
Finished goods are dispatched as soon as they are completed
Barcode systems ensure that stock levels are managed accurately

Advantages of JIT

Reduced stock holding costs
Improved liquidity
Reduced breakeven point
Improves motivation

Cradle to Cradle Design and Manufacturing

Reduce the consumption of materials and stimulate recycling habits
- All materials in continuous cycles
- Renewable energy only
- Celebrating diversity
Different design approach --> Assembly and disassembly of product is considered --> Every part of the product is designed to be taken back in the technical and biological cycle --> No longer using, but borrowing products --> circular economy

Types of stock

Stock are also known as inventories. There are 3 categories of stock:

Raw materials and components
Work-in-Progress
Finished goods

Quality Management

Quality is achieving a standard for a product or service which meets customers expectations

Key aspects of quality:

Conformance -
- Does it do what it is expected to do?
Performance - How well does it do it?
Aesthetics - How good does it look like?

Quality Control: Inspection and taking defects out

Quality Assurance: Based on processes and builds quality in

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