Lean Manufacturing: Jabil Circuit Essay Example

had increasingly become known for the effectiveness with which it had implemented Just-In-Time (JIT) manufacturing systems5. Today, Toyota is often considered one of the most efficient manufacturing companies in the world and the company that sets the standard for best practices in Lean Manufacturing. The term “Lean Manufacturing” or “Lean Production” first appeared in the 1990 book The Machine that Changed the World6. Lean Manufacturing has increasingly been applied by leading manufacturing companies throughout the world, lead by the major automobile manufactures and their equipment suppliers.

Lean Manufacturing is becoming an increasingly important topic for manufacturing companies in developed countries as they try to find ways to compete more effectively against competition from Asia.. What is lean manufacturing Lean is a team based continuous improvement process designed for long term maximization of company resources. Lean is an approach to achieving manufacturing excellence based upon the continued elimination of waste. Waste is defined as activities that do not add value to the product. Lean Manufacturing utilizes techniques and principles that improve efficiencies of value added activities.

Value added activities mean transform raw materials and information into parts or products. On the other hand, non-value added activities are consuming resources that do not contribute to the physical change of the product.

Primary elements for lean manufacturing The five primary elements to consider when implementing lean manufacturing are manufacturing flow, organization, process control, metrics, and logistics (Feld, 2000). These elements represent the variety of aspects needed to sustain a successful lean manufacturing implementation program.

Manufacturing flow addresses physical changes and design standards. Organization identifies people’s roles/functions, training in new ways of working, and communication. Process control is directed at monitoring, controlling, stabilizing,

and pursuing ways to improve the process. Metrics addresses visible results-based performance measures, targeted improvement, and team rewards/recognition. Logistics provide the definition for operating rules and mechanisms for planning and controlling the flow of material.

Issues in lean manufacturing. Lean manufacturing is in direct opposition with traditional manufacturing approaches characterized by use of economic order quantities, high capacity utilization, and high inventory (Feld, 2000). In changing from a traditional environment to one of lean production, cultural issues will emerge quickly, as well as resistance to change. Implementing lean manufacturing techniques will change the organizational culture because everyone needs to be more involved and accountable and people may be laid off. A fast managing change program is needed to accompany the effort.

A slow approach generally does not work or achieve significant results. Lean manufacturing is not a magical solution (Feld, 2000). It involves a change in leadership that requires considerable communication, coordination, and organization which results in a change in the company’s culture. Just implementing one lean technique such as a Kanban system will not result in lean implementation. Positive employee reaction to lean manufacturing is essential to success, but does not always occur since becoming lean improves productivity and can reduce the number of workers needed.

Laying people off and asking the remaining employees to become more involved may not work. In order to create a lean manufacturing environment, the organization needs to be aware of where it is at that point. They must know why they need to change and why change is important. It is necessary to provide the answers to these questions to employees so they become more engaged in the process. “Motivation, tenacity,

leadership, and direction all play roles in the successful deployment of a lean program” (Feld, 2000). Roles within the team and the way in which team members interact with one another are important.

All members must understand their roles and why they were selected for their assignment. 3. 7 types of waste Waste elimination is one of the most effective ways to increase the profitability of any business. Processes either add value or waste to the production of a good or service. The seven wastes originated in Japan, where waste is known as “muda. " "The seven wastes" is a tool to further categorize “muda” and was originally developed by Toyota’s Chief Engineer Taiichi Ohno as the core of the Toyota Production System, also known as Lean Manufacturing.