Flow in Job Shops
It is commonly thought by Job shop management that "Lean isn't for us". "We build to order" and "We don't build 1,000 widgets a day every day".
Lean Is Not For Us
It is commonly thought by Job shop management that "Lean isn't for us". Comments such as "We build to order" and "We don't build 1,000 widgets a day every day". In contrast, lean techniques work extremely well in these environments.
Advanced Lean Techniques
Using advanced techniques in lean, mixed model product families are developed. These product families are based on process (it doesn't matter who you sell the product to, they can still be in the same family). Multiple products can be produced each day in the same production cell to meet customer demand. Any mix of the family can be made each day.
Once Implemented
Once implemented, the mixed model flow cell creates a lean manufacturing engine that eliminates the need for marketing to forecast the volume on individual products. Only the total product family volume needs to be forecast. The mix may vary each day, but the mixed model flow cell was designed to manufacture any product in the mix at any volume. Therefore any mix of the product family can be made each and every day as orders are received.
Flexibility
The result is a flexible system that specializes in small lot size, flexibility to customer demand, short lead times, on time delivery, and quality built into their processes.
In Job shops, some equipment is monument equipment, and may still run in a batch mode. Equipment such as furnaces, washing tanks, plating, and others may be process driven produce components that are common to many products. These are considered to be shared resources within a factory. In lean manufacturing, the parts produced from these resources will be signaled in through supermarket buffers. Developing kanban pulls to signal shared resources is the key in a job shop environment.
Typical Results
Typical results from a lean implementation in a job shop environment are:
Lead time reduced 50%
Setup times reduced 75%
WIP Inventory turns increased 50%
Capacity increase 20%
The bottom line is satisfying more customers with the same capital resources.
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