IMPLEMENTATION OF LEAN MANUFACTURIN

Abstract

Lean manufacturing refers to a manufacturing improvement process based on the fundamental goal of Toyota production system (TPS) in order to minimize or eliminate waste while maximizing production flow (Tapping, 2002). Many manufacturing organizations realize the importance of practicing lean techniques. However, few organizations apply lean techniques with the necessary knowledge and proven tools to achieve it. A value stream includes all the operations and processes to transform raw materials into finished goods or services, including non-value adding activities. Value stream management is a management tool for planning a production process involving lean initiatives through systematic data capture and analysis (Tapping, 2002). It is a proven process for planning the improvements that will allow companies to develop lean practices. The purpose of this study is to develop a value stream map for a manufacturing company in Manesar. This particular tool allows the company to document current lead time, inventory Levels and cycle times to determine the ratio of value added to total lead time of the product line being analysed. The first step will be to create a current state map to make a picture of the production flow and understand the company’s current cycle times, process communications, and machine equipment capacity. This provides the information needed to produce a future state map by creating a vision of an ideal value flow, although that will not be done in this study. The goal is to identify and eliminate the waste, which is any activity that does not add value to the final product, in the production process.