Applying Lean Problem Solving Tools and Techniques
Understand company's long and short term growth and profit goals and objectives.
Understand the strategic approaches specified by management to achieve those goals and objectives.
These must be fully supported.
Determine which strategic approaches involve specific process changes or improvements, as compared
to strategies for developing new products or markets for example. Improvements may include cost
reductions, manufacturing cycle time reductions, customer delivery time reductions, faster turn-around
on customer repairs, improved product quality, improved utilization of factory space, improved
customer satisfaction on any number of product/service issues, faster order entry, etc. Process
improvements are candidates for the application of Lean tools and techniques for analyzing the
performance of processes and for correcting them.
If one or more of the strategies involves the improvement of customer satisfaction - on any number of
issues, some of the following activities may be necessary:
Determine customer needs, wants, desires, demands, requirements, and complaints. Utilize
customer analysis approaches, such as:
• Kano Model
• Order qualifiers versus order winners
• QFD (Quality Function Deployment)
• Customer surveys
• Customer problem reports
• Salesmen reports,
• Etc.
Determine which customer expectations should be met.
Also, obtain, maintain, and continuously update information on competitors
• Their products
• Technologies they use
• Price, quality, delivery, services, etc that competitors offer their customers
• Customer satisfying features of the competitor's products
When specific customer requirements or expectations have been identified, determine which company
and supply chain processes should be improved to meet those expectations.
Level 1 (Strategic processes) Main processes that drive the company
Level 2 (Non strategic processes) Typically company supporting processes or some supplier
processes
Prepare paper/computer layouts or maps of the processes to be improved. Use:
Process flow diagrams
Value stream maps
Brown paper diagrams
Block diagrams
Cross-functional maps
Other maps as appropriate, etc
Collect process data
Process data can include quantities of items being handled, queue times, equipment setup times,
run times, wait times, move times, throughput rates, distances material and products move in the
factory, space utilized, quality issues, process efficiencies, history of past problems, etc.
Analyze the data and list all the individual improvement opportunities and anticipated benefits in
declining order of the magnitude of the benefits
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Prepare a chart showing the improvement opportunities and anticipated benefits for presentation
to management
Select specific improvements to work on. Start with improvements offering the greatest benefits.
Specific improvement examples:
Reductions in long process lead times
• Equipment set-up time reductions
• Use of right sized equipment
• Lot sizes reduced - ideally to one
• Introduce load and line balancing
• Improve material availability - right material at right place at right time
• Operations information available in real time and current, complete and accurate
• Introduce parts presentation approach where practical to do so
• Implement pull systems and Kanban approaches where practical to do so
Reductions in product travel distances
• Introduce cellular approach or production layout changes in work areas where practical to
do so.
• Use smaller lots of WIP, aiming for lots of one where practical to do so.
Reduce process variabilities. Utilize Six Sigma to analyze, resolve, and reduce excess variability
in the following areas:
• Equipment
• Tooling
• Equipment set up
• Material
• Labor
Reduce occurrences of manufacturing errors
• Introduce or upgrade standard work practices and procedures
• Introduce Polka Yoke devices where practical to do so
• Introduce Jidoka (autonomation) where practical to do so
Improve availability of current, complete, and accurate operations data
• Include schedule and production status information, planned versus actual
• Use visual production information display boards for displaying production status
Improve timely delivery of raw materials from suppliers and from the stockroom to individual
work stations
Assure employee training on performing specific tasks is current, effective, and available as
needed
Introduce process efficiency improvements in product design and development, such as use of
DFMA (Design for Manufacturing and Assembly)
• Introduce value engineering as appropriate
• Consider benefits of flattening bills of materials, etc.
Integrate improvements in product and process design (IPPD) (Integrated Product and Process
Design)
Improve housekeeping in production areas, stock rooms, offices, storage areas, warehouses, etc.,
by introducing the 5Ss approach
Introduce employee cultural changes as deemed necessary, oriented towards increasing worker's
personal responsibility in their daily efforts
Assure effective work support from supporting departments, such as stockrooms, maintenance,
accounting, scheduling, Quality Control, tooling crib, etc.
Improve schedule stability (minimize schedule changes, etc.) as well as stable customer orders.
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Introduce TPM (Total Productive Maintenance)
Analyze performance of company's supply chains and improve where necessary. This can be a
major activity in itself.
Implement the selected approaches to process improvements starting with the most beneficial ones.
Measure performance of the processes periodically, present results regularly to management and
employees.
Adjust performance as necessary for continuing improvements.
Update the list of desired process improvements on a regular basis.
Repeat this entire process periodically. Customer and competitor surveillance should be performed
continuously however.
What in the above improvement approach can be construed as being a Lean program, and exactly what is a
Lean program? Different people will undoubtedly have different definitions but one suggestion is that Lean, or
a Lean program, is not so much a program on how to become Lean, whatever the definition of Lean is, but
instead, a problem identification and resolution activity.
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