Case Study

Build Your “House” of Production on a Stable Foundation

Faced with downtime on key pieces of sophisticated equipment in a machine-intensive environment, Delphi's Plant 1 launched a successful improvement effort by focusing on rigorous…

Case Study

For Athletic Shoe Company, the Soul of Lean Management Is Problem Solving

When it began a lean transformation in 2003, New Balance, the only athletic shoe manufacturer that still makes some products in the U.S., focused on…

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

How do I start to learn "real lean" when my company practices "fake lean"?

Dear Gemba Coach: I understand now there is “real lean” and “fake lean.” I suspect my company has been practicing fake lean all these years.…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Why does no one ask about production flow anymore?

Dear Gemba Coach: As I read lean posts and papers, no one seems to have problems like this anymore, but I am trying to convince…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Ask Art: Do You Prefer a Handwritten or Computerized Process for Visual Management?

You can — and should — focus on more critical operational questions than how to set up your visual management systems. Here are the questions…

by Art Byrne

Article

Lean WX – An Rx for Making Things Better

As someone whose understanding of lean/TPS grew exponentially by working on the line, Josh Howell encourages every would-be lean enterprise out there, even those who…

by Josh Howell

Article

You Are Not Different: Make universal lean principles work locally

Lean principles are universal, argues Orry Fiume, but the application of them is always local. Don't use this challenge as an excuse to avoid Lean.

by Orest (Orry) Fiume

Article

Nine Tips to Better Process Development

Achieve exceptional results with your next product launch. Master nine proven techniques for designing successful, waste-free processes.

by Eric Ethington and Matt Zayko

Article

Why you can't convince your boss to support lean activities, unless ...

Dear Gemba  Coach: I work as a deployment champion in a manufacturing company, but I don’t have the support of my managers because they don´t…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Reflections From Ten Years of Michael Ballé's Gemba Coach

Since his first Gemba Coach column of ten years ago, Michael Balle has consistently tied his advice to a faithful application of core Toyota Production…

by Tom Ehrenfeld

Lexicon Term

Takt Image

Creating an awareness of takt time in areas of a production process where products cannot be delivered and taken away at the frequency of takt…

Article

What is the lean approach to quality – is that what six sigma is all about?

Dear Gemba Coach: I’m a frequent reader of your columns and you always seem to emphasize quality first, but I can’t find many books detailing…

by Michael Ballé

Article

How Does Lean Apply In a Job Shop?

Dear Gemba Coach: In our job shop we make high precision modules and tools, work that involves a great deal of variety and very little…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Dentist Drills Down to the Root Causes of Office Waste

Applying lean concepts to dentistry isn't as difficult as, well, pulling teeth. Dr. Sami Bahri, driven by a gut feeling that the traditional method of…

by Chet Marchwinski

Case Study

Sustain Your Lean Business System with a “Golden Triangle”

When medical device maker Phase 2 fought off an overseas challenge by meeting the global price, margins took a big hit. With help from customer…

by Chet Marchwinski

Case Study

Standardized Work Hangs Ten with San Diego’s Surfing Culture -- Meeting the Challenges of Leadership, Culture, and Resistance

Instead of wiping out with a Southern California surfing school, the lean management principle of standardized had a positive impact, helping it boost surfing time…

by Doug Bartholomew

Article

Emerging Stronger

Learn how GE Appliances and Herman Miller leverage lean practice to design new standardized work for assembly to ensure a safe working environment for employees.

by John Shook

eBook

Lean Lexicon 5th Edition

The fifth edition of the Lexicon, first published in January 2003, is 140 pages, containing 60+ illustrations and 207 key terms from A3 Report to…

by Lean Enterprise Institute

Article

Which is best for a lean environment, a U-shaped cell or assembly line? Why?

Dear Gemba Coach: Which is best for a lean environment, a U-shaped cell or assembly line? Why?

by Michael Ballé

Case Study

Thrustmaster Comes Around

The following Lean Enterprise Institute case study reveals how Thrustmaster of Texas successfully adopted lean thinking and practices to make sustainable improvements in a short…

by and David Drickhamer