5.3 (HL-Only) Lean production & quality management Flashcards
Lean Production
involves streamlining operations in order to reduce all forms of waste (waste of anything) and to achieve greater efficiency
getting things right the first time and using fewer resources, both of which help to reduce wastage of resources (as a bonus, this also reduces costs!).
5 Sources of Waste
O-Overprocessing
T- Time
H- Human Effort
E- Energy
R- Resources & Materials
O-Overprocessing
adding more features than a customer wants or needs, adds little value but increases costs
T- Time
Delays in the production process or the delivery process, includes excess movement by employees as they complete their tasks
H - Human Effort
Having to redo a task that was done incorrectly
Benefits of Adopting Lean Production
Waste Minimisation- making the best use of what you have and cutting out any unnecessary processes.
‘Right the First Time’ Approach- Zero defects or problems leads to higher efficiency
Flexibility- Resources and staff should be adaptable
Continuous Improvement- You’re always trying to be better and more efficient
Supply Chain Management- Streamline the supply chain, maintain good relationships with your suppliers.
E- Energy
Leaving lights or the heat on, etc
R- Resources & Materials
Things that were not used efficiently, including floor space. Also includes underproduction & overproduction.
JIT is a highly complex system and requires strong communication and ‘buy-in’ of multiple stakeholders.
To function effectively it needs:
-Excellent relationships with suppliers
-Reliable and well-trained employees
-A flexible workforce
-High capital investment to tie the above three together to to further increase efficiency
Just-In-Time (JIT)
A Lean Inventory Control System that relies on stocks (inventories) being delivered only when they are needed in the production process.
Deliveries of stocks such as raw materials and components are made a few hours prior to their use by the purchaser.
This eliminates inventory costs and Buffer Stocks (5.6) are not required.
Methods of Lean Production (AO2)
Kaizen (continuous improvement)
A method of lean production, involves all workers committing to improving quality standards by making small, incremental progress (rather than infrequent radical changes) to improve productivity and efficiency
Limitations of Lean Production
- HR requirements are high. Employees need to be adaptable and flexible in order to deal with any small changes in the system. (Self Actualization)
- Additionally, staff in Lean Production have High Power as they are essential and often unionized.
- External factors: traffic congestion, natural disasters, etc. can completely disrupt lean production systems as well, making the training and capital investment worthless during these times.
Cradle to Cradle Design & Manufacturing
All material inputs in C2C must be either technical (recyclable or reusable with no loss of quality) or biological (consumable or compostable in an ecologically friendly way).
Quality Control (QC)
Refers to the traditional approach to quality management by inspecting a sample of products.
It involves quality controllers checking or examining a sample of products in a systematic way.
Quality Assurance (QA)
Involves the prevention of mistakes in the production process, e.g. defective output, poor customer service or delays, evaluating the steps in the quality control cycle, etc.
Quality Circles
quality circle is a small group of employees who voluntarily meet regularly to identify, examine and solve problems related to their work in order to improve the quality of output.
Benchmarking/ Best Practice Benchmarking (BPB)
The systematic process of comparing a business or its products to its competitors, using a set of standards (called ‘benchmarks’), such as sales revenue, profits, labour turnover or brand loyalty.
This is a continuous process that should involve all members of the organization.
Total Quality Management (TQM)
A quality management approach that aims to involve every employee in the quality assurance process. It involves organization-wide approaches to quality improvements in products, processes, people and philosophy.
The Primary Objective of TQM is Zero Defects
