Lean Operations

Question 1

What are the two types of scale production?

Answer 1

Craft production

Mass production

Question 2

What constitutes craft production?

Answer 2

Highly skilled workers

Simple flexible tools

Small quantities

Customised goods

Question 3

What constitutes mass production?

Answer 3

Low skilled workers

Specialised tools

Large quantities

Standardised goods

Question 4

What is lean operations?

Answer 4

Eliminate waste

Involve everyone

Continuous improvement

Question 5

What are the advantages of mass production over craft production?

Answer 5

Large quantities of goods

Cost per unit reduces as volume increases

Replacing parts is easier

Economies of scale are applicable

Question 6

How does lean operations improve business?

Answer 6

Removes waste

Reduces timeline

Question 7

What is the AUTOMATION economy of scale?

Answer 7

Standardise and automate

Reduce manufacturing costs

Lower, more competitive prices

Growth in market share

Increase scale of production

Question 8

What is the INTEGRATION economy of scale?

Answer 8

Continuous improvement and more integration

Reduced cost and higher quality/flexibility

Market growth through responsiveness

Greater demand for product variety and fewer small batch sizes

More intelligent technology and operating data

Question 9

What are the market requirements?

Answer 9

Shorter time to market

Shorter development time

On time delivery

High quality and reliability

Reduces cost

Increased variety and complexity

Question 10

What are the market conditions?

Answer 10

Markets are uncertain and unpredictable

Need to organise to thrive

Question 11

What are the strategic focusses?

Answer 11

Achieving a balance between stability in uncertain circumstances and responsiveness to change.

Achieving continuous improvement, profitability, and growth.

Adaptability in proficiency when subject to disturbances.

Question 12

What is JIT?

Answer 12

Just in time

Meet demand instantly

Perfect quality

No waste

Question 13

What are the production flow activities and their shapes?

Answer 13

Operation - circle

Movement - arrow

Inspection - square

Delay - D shape

Storage - inverted triangle

Question 14

What are the seven types of waste?

Answer 14

Overproduction
Waiting time
Transport
Process
Inventory
Motion
Defects

Question 15

What is operations waste?

Answer 15

Producing more than is immediately needed by the next process.

Question 16

What is waiting time waste?

Answer 16

Time lost waiting for tools, materials, or other resources.

Question 17

What is transport waste?

Answer 17

Movement which does not add value to the product.

Question 18

What is process waste?

Answer 18

Processes which are not necessary but are part of product design.

Question 19

What is inventory waste?

Answer 19

Ineffective operations functions being hidden by excess inventory.

Question 20

What is motion waste?

Answer 20

Operators being, or appearing to be, active but not actually performing value adding processes.

Question 21

What is defective goods waste?

Answer 21

Products which do not match specification, which must be re-worked or scrapped.

Question 22

What are the three focal points of continuous improvement?

Answer 22

Employee involvement

Flow of production

Quality

Question 23

What is the JIT approach to capacity utilisation?

Answer 23

Focus on producing only when needed

Low capacity utilisation means no surplus in inventory

Low inventory means problems are exposed and solved

Fewer stoppages due to product defects

Question 24

What are the lean/JIT objectives for production (related to seven wastes)?

Answer 24

Zero rejects
Zero setup time
Zero inventory
Zero handling
Zero breakdowns
Zero lead time
Batch size of one

Question 25

What are the types of production layout?

Answer 25

Line
Cell
Fixed

Question 26

What are the criteria for cell design?

Answer 26

Maximum visibility
Maximum flexibility
Maximum co-ordination
Maximum use of volume
Maximum accessibility
Minimum distances
Minimum handling
Minimum discomfort
Maximum security
Inherent safety
Unidirectional flow
Visible routes

Question 27

What is TPM?

Answer 27

Total productive maintenance

Question 28

What does TPM achieve?

Answer 28

Operators care for processes - correct operation, detection of problems, perform maintenance, collect data

Maintenance’s roles change - training operators, long-term planned maintenance, condition monitoring

Emphasis change - reliability, operator involvement, equipment care

Question 29

How are layouts designed?

Answer 29

Arranged to achieve logical flow

Equipment is close to reduce movement needed

Shaped (such as U) to improve visibility and teamwork

Emphasising simplicity, flow, visibility, and morale

Question 30

What are the lean manufacturing types of production?

Answer 30

Continuous

Repetitive

Intermittent

Question 31

Why does JIT prefer small machines for operations?

Answer 31

Easier to move

Faster setup

More flexible scheduling options

Cheaper tools

Planned maintenance is easier

Fewer setups needed

Question 32

What are the basic working practices of JIT?

Answer 32

Disciplines and standards
Flexibility of processes
Equality of conditions
Creativity
Quality of working life
Development of personnel
Ability to intervene

Question 33

What are the 5 “R”s?

Answer 33

Redesign

Reduce

Recover

Recycle

Remanufacture