The Benefits of Lean

[J]

Well said nemo. And the shortest post by far on this thread. You must be a lean process black-belt for sure! ;-)

John

[David Dodd]

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I feel that there are significant differences between Manufacturing (which is Lean's home turf) and Printing, which make Lean's tools, as they are currently constituted and implemented, less effective in Printing.

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Printing is also largely a Customer Service business, not a manufacturing one.

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In summation, Lean has some very good points, but it is not a cookie cutter solution to all industries and processes. Lean itself is a process, and it is a process that should learn from those it is trying to help. Someone who wants to promote Lean in a Print environment should learn about the Print industry and it's specific challenges before falling back on the well worn and ready made "solutions". Lean has been around a long time, and it is true it does not seem to be a fad; but Printing has been around a lot longer and those who work in Printing now are the most productive and efficient Print workers ever. It would serve the process better if both sides listened and adapted to the other.

Mike,

Welcome to the conversation! I agree with many of your points. I said much the same thing in my first column about lean manufacturing at WhatTheyThink when I wrote, "Lean manufacturing cannot be viewed as a set of ready-made tools and techniques that will work equally well in all kinds of businesses. As lean manufacturing has grown in popularity and use, it's become easy to forget that the methodologies we now call lean were developed by one company to address a specific set of business issues in a specific historical context. To reap the full benefits of lean manufacturing, printing company managers must develop a deep understanding of the fundamental principles of lean and then select and use the tools that are appropriate for their specific circumstances." It is certainly not a good idea to treat lean as an "off-the-shelf, plug-and-play" solution.

However, it would be just as wrong to conclude that lean tools and methods won't work in printing becasue printing is "different." The printing business does have characteristics that set it apart from other kinds of businesses. But we can make the same statement about almost any kind of business. A machine shop is different from a custom cabinet maker, which is different from a sheet metal fabrication company, which is different from a plastic injection molding operation. Yet, despite the differences, lean has been used successfully by all these kinds of companies and by many other kinds of businesses as well. It would be highly unusual for lean to work well in such a wide varlety of business operations and not to work in a printing company.

I disagree with your statement that, "Printing is also largely a Customer Service business, not a manufacturing one." Of course, customer service is an important part of the operations of any printing company, but so are the manufacturing activities and processes that all printing companies perform. Printing can be described as a custom manufacturing or a make-to-order/build-to-order business. MTO/BTO businesses are different from manufacturing companies that produce standard products on a make-to-stock basis. But lean has been successfully used by many MTO/BTO businesses.

I'm harping on this point because, all too often, the greatest barrier to making significant improvements in business is our tendency to accept "the way things are" as "the way they have to be." When the leaders of Toyota began to develop and use lean practices in the 1950s, most people in the car business "knew" that, to succeed in the automotive industry, you had to produce vehicles and vehicle parts in large batches using specialized, high-speed equipment. The real genius of Toyota's leaders was that they refused to accept that the conventional wisdom was inevitably true.

So, lean is not a "cookie-cutter" solution that can be applied without thought to ANY kind of business, including printing. Some of the "classic" lean tools work extremely well in printing companies (5S, Total Productive Maintenance, and SMED/Quick Changeover come to mind). Others have to be adapted to work well in printing companies, and a few can be difficult to use at all. But with this caveat, lean can be a powerful business improvement tool for printers.

[WikiOne]

My view is that lean manufacturinq is a stupidity. It inherently leads to a loss of quality. It is a concept generally used to increase temporarily the profitability at the cost of employee and customer frustration and finally market share loss. Thinking that Toyota success is based on this is a joke.
In the technical world, success is mainly based on ingenuity which is augmented by the creative employee enthusiasm. Cut his wings and start managing a dying business.

I have applied lean to the creative side and to the mfg. side... both with exceptional results. You and I have a different definition of lean. I understand and share your belief that creativity should not be harnessed, you are right it can kill that very process....but, there are ways to apply different shades and layers of lean to the creative process which opens the door to even more creativity than before. The excellent managers of a creative team are difficult to come by, and that's where I think your belief comes from. Point/counterpoint.

[mkeif]

My view is that lean manufacturinq is a stupidity. It inherently leads to a loss of quality. It is a concept generally used to increase temporarily the profitability at the cost of employee and customer frustration and finally market share loss. Thinking that Toyota success is based on this is a joke.
In the technical world, success is mainly based on ingenuity which is augmented by the creative employee enthusiasm. Cut his wings and start managing a dying business.

Toyota's success is certainly multifaceted but I think most would agree that their Toyota Production System has been a big part of it. The problem I see is that TPS is both a production system and a management and leadership philosophy. Manufacturers, and printers in particular, are always looking for a quick fix and throwing a few tools at production is as quick as it comes. 5S, TPM, etc. by themselves will come and go with minimal (though perhaps some) benefits. Lean IS effective (and not stupidity) when approached the way Toyota has approached it -- by developing, empowering, and instilling values in their employees that include focusing on customer-defined value. Expecting employees to think differently than standard convention has always been a tenant of Toyota. They have been at it for sixty years, and they still stumble and have to refocus at times. Lean is a fad. We like to say "don't do lean, be lean". A lot of people are doing lean but when times get tough, out it goes.

[Erniek]

What are some ways to start employees thinking into a lean direction? Many do not like to accept such changes. To me it is easy to see the benefit (see Gorelicks pictures in another thread) . When someone goes to a store or restaurant and sees the difference which one are they more likely to spend time and money? One good comment already made is about starting lean then tossing it out when times are rough or bad. A disciplined focus that is continually monitored is what is needed but I find it hard to continually work it over time. Any suggestions on where to start or implement this process would be appreciated.

[David Dodd]

What are some ways to start employees thinking into a lean direction? Many do not like to accept such changes. To me it is easy to see the benefit (see Gorelicks pictures in another thread) . When someone goes to a store or restaurant and sees the difference which one are they more likely to spend time and money? One good comment already made is about starting lean then tossing it out when times are rough or bad. A disciplined focus that is continually monitored is what is needed but I find it hard to continually work it over time. Any suggestions on where to start or implement this process would be appreciated.

Ernie,

As I said in another post, the support of company leaders is critical to any lean implementation. In addition, company leaders must make a compelling case for lean with employees. Once the case has been made, the next step is to act - go do something. Lean does require some training, but the best way to really "learn" lean is to "do" lean. I usually recommend that a printing company begin its lean effort with 5S. There are several reasons for this. First, in most companies, a successful 5S project creates an immediate visual impact. Second, 5S is an important prerequisite for the successful use of other lean tools. But, just as important, 5S is a good way to get employees involved in lean. The immediate objectives of 5S are easy to understand, and the steps involved in the 5S process are easy to grasp. Don't worry if your first 5S project doesn't produce results that are "perfect." One of the core principles of lean is continuous improvement. You should expect to go back and make it better.

So, in short, once you have management support, and once your company leaders have made the case for lean, go out and get started and learn by doing.