While there are a growing number of books based on the Toyota Production System, or lean, focused on healthcare, there are very few that detail the tools that make lean more than just a way of thinking and put the methodology into practice. Based on Hiroyuki Hirano's classic 5 Pillars of the Visual Workplace and modeled after the Shingo Prize-winning Shopfloor Series for Lean Manufacturers, 5S for Healthcare adopts a proven reader-friendly format to impart all the information needed to understand and implement this essential lean methodology. It provides examples and cased studies based on the experiences of the principals involved with the Rona Consulting Group, who were responsible for the groundbreaking implementation of the Toyota Production System at the Virginia Mason Medical Center. Written to readily assist with hands-on implementation efforts, this volume offers innovative features designed to improve understanding and support application. This includes helpful how-to-steps and practical examples taken directly from the healthcare industry.

Is it possible to be repetitive and flexible at the same time? Using proven examples and quantifiable evidence, Lean RFS (Repetitive Flexible Supply): Putting the Pieces Together demonstrates that repetitive flexible supply (RfS) is not only possible, but that its implementation can help you reach a new level of improved performance in manufacturing and across your entire supply chain.Winner of a 2013 Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award, this book is unique in that it clearly spells out the theory and practice originally published in the Shingo Prize winner, Breaking Through to Flow, with actual stories of Kimberly-Clark's experience in using them over the years with great success. These stories provide a real feel of how this learning-by-doing journey led to "aha!" moments for those involved. The book also explains why most planning systems in use today will result in a different plan every time, and that these plan changes are actually the cause of the fire fighting that is endemic in most companies.

A hands-on guide to adapting Lean principles and the Toyota Production System to high-mix/low-volume environments, Lean Production for the Small Company uses charts, pictures, and easy-to-understand language to describe the methods needed to improve processes and eliminate waste. It walks readers through the correct order of implementation and describes problems and pitfalls along with time-tested solutions. Explaining how to incorporate existing systems into a Lean strategy, the book starts with the fundamentals and builds on them to describe the full range of tools and processes needed to implement Lean. It outlines how to design factories for Lean manufacturing and demonstrates how to remove variations within business and manufacturing processes to achieve a smooth continuous flow of product that delivers your product on time to customers. The tools, methods, and ideals discussed are applicable in any industry and all parts of your business from manufacturing and sales to human resources. The text unveils new methods and tools that can help you reduce inventory, improve inventory turns, and facilitate raw material flow through the factory. It details how to use customer order demands to schedule the production floor, rather than using estimated production schedules. It also considers the accounting process and explains how to improve your cash-to-cash cycle time. Drawing on the author's decades of experience transforming high-mix plants to Lean, the text brings together coverage of the tools and processes that have made Toyota so successful. All the chapters in this book, when implemented, will result in a culture change that will transform your company into a learning organization that continuously eliminates waste and improves its processes.

Written by a recognized leader in the manufacturing industry with nearly two decades of experience working for Toyota, this book supplies a firsthand account of the realities behind implementing the Toyota Production System (TPS). The Toyota Kaizen Continuum: A Practical Guide to Implementing Lean presents authoritative insight on how to use the TPS to drive operational value and improvement across all segments of an organization.Highlighting valuable lessons learned directly from the TPS masters at the Toyota factories in Japan, John Stewart provides a time-tested approach for implementing a process of continuous improvement. Delving into his wide-ranging experience that includes time as a team member on the assembly line and managing the vehicle assembly division for Toyota's largest European operation in the United Kingdom he explains how to get the process started, how to get senior management excited about the possibilities, and details a process for implementing the TPS in your organization. Written by an industry veteran named one of the Top 10 Automotive Executives by Automotive News in 2007 Unveils the methods used within the walls of the worlds premier manufacturing organization Illustrates valuable lessons learned with real-world examples of TPS implementations Describes five simple steps for executing change in any organization The book includes case studies that illustrate real-life successes and failures behind the walls of the worlds largest automobile manufacturing organization. Detailing a five-step process for executing improvement initiatives, it supplies you with the tools and understanding of the core principles of the TPS needed to implement and sustain a culture of continuous improvement in your organization.

The benefits of advanced manufacturing methods can't be realized until they're practiced consistently and proficiently by your entire workforce. Here's a simple, low-cost way to get everyone on board quickly. This small book presents the basic methodology of TPM and focuses on hands-on activities for shopfloor teams to maximize equipment effectiveness. Feedback from our customers indicates that this book has been used primarily by shopfloor supervisors to lead operator teams in implementing TPM programs. For the most cost effective on-site education, every supervisor and team leader in your operation should read this book. TPM for Supervisors offers an overview of the basic features of TPM as well as the implementation process in an easy-to-follow presentation. It focuses on the important role of supervisors in maximizing equipment effectiveness. For the most cost-effective on-site education, every supervisor in your operation should read this book. It presents the basic methodology of TPM in clear, accessible language and will help supervisors implement TPM improvement activities on the shop floor. It's the best way to ensure a companywide understanding of TPM.

The Value Stream Management System simplifies the planning process for lean implementation, ensuring quick deployment and greater success. It links the metrics and reporting required by management with the lean tools needed on the manufacturing floor. The central feature of this illustrative and engaging book is the value stream management storyboard, a tool representing an eight-step process for lean implementation. The storyboard brings together people, tools, metrics, and reporting into one visual document. The authors stress the importance of reaching beyond single-point kaizens to ensure a sustainable lean implementation process. Many people use the value stream map as an individual tool, but not within the context of a proven overall system. Value Stream Management: Eight Steps to Planning, Mapping, and Sustaining Lean Improvements shows you how to use mapping as part of a complete system for lean implementation. The final outcome of Value Stream Management is the creation of a complete, visual plan for lean transformation - and the mastery of the skills required to implement that plan. Instead of just using Toyota Production System Tools, the authors encourage you to create your own lean production system. Value Stream Management will help you to complete your process and sustain it! Along with this book you receive downloadable resources containing a lean assessment tool, a storyboard template, useful charts, a team charter, forms, reports, and worksheets.

The powerful knowledge contained in this book can make your workplace more productive, your job simpler, and everything more satisfying. It's about how to do equipment or product changeovers in record time--often in less than 10 minutes. The method you'll learn here is called SMED, short for "Single-Minute Exchange of Die" (the "single" here means a single-digit number of minutes). Developed from a longer book, A Revolution in Manufacturing: The SMED System (cat no. PP9903), written for managers, this book is written for frontline production and assembly associates. It presents an overview of the reasons why SMED is important for companies and employees, sets out the three basic stages of SMED, and then devotes a separate chapter to each of these stages. The first chapter of the book is like an "owner's manual" that tells you how to get the most out of your reading time by using the margin assists, summaries, and other features of the book to help pull out exactly what you need. One of the most effective ways to use this book is to read and discuss it with other employees. The authors planned the book so that it can be used this way, organizing the book into chunks of information that can be covered in a series of short sessions. Each chapter includes reflection questions to stimulate group discussion. A Learning Package is also available (catalog no.PP7126), which includes a leader's guide, overhead transparencies to summarize major points, and color slides showing examples of SMED applications in different kinds of companies.

Featuring strategies employed in Lean, this volume describes the experiences of organizations using TWI more than 60 years after the Training Within Industry program turned the U.S. into the industrial giant that won World War II. Based on their experience implementing TWI in organizations as diverse as Virginia Mason Medical Center and Donnelly Manufacturing, Shingo Prize Winners Patrick Graupp and Robert Wrona prove why many consider them the most successful TWI trainers in the world. Their hands-on manual provides the tools and templates that can turn your company s employees into a skilled and invested workforce capable of realizing unprecedented profits. Praise for: If you want to get from interesting displays to true standardized work, read this book. Jeffrey K. Liker, author, The Toyota Way uses cases to explain how to create no-nonsense culture change by teaching people how to do work differently, and how to relate to each other differently in order to work more effectively. Robert "Doc" Hall, Editor-in Chief, Target Magazine Graupp and Wrona bring many examples of companies that [improved] competitiveness by improving their capacity to fully engage their workforce . Steven Spear, Sr. Lecturer, MIT Sloan School of Management

Winner of a 2013 Shingo Research and Professional Publication AwardThis practical guide for healthcare executives, managers, and frontline workers, provides the means to transform your enterprise into a High-Quality Patient Care Business Delivery System. Designed for continuous reference, its self-contained chapters are divided into three primary sections: Defines what Lean is and includes some interesting history about Lean not found elsewhere. Describes and explains the application of each Lean tool and concept organized in their typical order of use. Explains how to implement Lean in various healthcare processes providing examples, case studies, and valuable lessons learned This book will help to take you out of your comfort zone and provide you with new ways to extend value to your customers. It drives home the importance of the Lean Six Sigma journey. The pursuit of continuous improvement is a journey with no end. Consequently, the opportunities are endless as to what you and your organization can accomplish. Forty percent of the authors profits from this book will be donated to help the homeless through two Baltimore charities. Praise for the book: well-timed and highly informative for those committed to creating deep levels of sustainable change in healthcare. Peter B. Angood, MD, FACS, FCCM, Senior Advisor Patient Safety, in National Quality Forum the most practical and healthcare applicable book I have ever read on LEAN thinking and concepts. Gary Shorb, CEO, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare ... well written ... an essential reference in the library of all healthcare leaders interested in performance improvement. Lee M. Adler, DO, VP, Quality and Safety Innovation and Research, Florida Hospital, Orlando; Asso

Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) is a crucial measure in TPM that reports on how well equipment is running. It factors three elements ---the time the machine is actually running, the quantity of products the machine is turning out, and the quantity of good output - into a single combined score. Directly addressing those who are best positioned to track and improve the effectiveness of equipment, OEE for Operatorsdefines basic concepts and then provides a systematic explanation of how OEE should be applied to maximize a piece of equipment's productivity and recognize when its efficiency is being compromised. Features

The Lean Office: Collected Practices and Cases is a compilation of articles previously published in the Productivity Press newsletter, Lean Manufacturing Advisor. These articles discuss lean implementations in non-manufacturing operations, from design to processing invoices to customer service. Most articles are written in the form of case studies. Highlights include - Practical, in-depth description of lean implementation, written in a conversational, easy-to-read style A large quantity of case studies unavailable from any other single source Responds to your desire for real-world lean office information

Are you ready to implement a just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing program but need some help orienting employees to the power of JIT? Here is a concise and practical guide to introduce equipment operators, assembly workers, and other frontline employees to the basic concepts, techniques, and benefits of JIT practices. Like all Shop Floor Series books, Just-in-Time for Operators presents concepts and tools in simple and accessible language. The book includes ample illustrations and examples to explain basic JIT concepts and some of the changes people may encounter in a JIT implementation.Key definitionsElimination of process wasteLeveled production, kanban, and standard workU-shaped cells and autonomationJIT support techniquesThe JIT approach is simple and universal -- it works in companies all over the world. Educating employees ensures their full participation and allows them to share their experiences and ideas more effectively.

Anderson and Whitcomb pick up where they left off in DOE Simplified with RSM Simplified -- a practical tool for design of experiments that anyone with a minimum of technical training can understand and appreciate. Their approach is simple and fun for those who desire knowledge on response surface methods but are put off by the academic nature of other books on the topic. RSM Simplified keeps formulas to a minimum and makes liberal use of figures, charts, graphs, and checklists. It offers many relevant examples with amusing sidebars and do-it-yourself exercises that will lead readers to the peak potential for their product quality and process efficiency.

A must-read for all managers, leaders, and change agents, Performance Hubs: Engaging Teams in Focused Continuous Improvement supplies a proven system for engagement that allows teams to use their own data, understand the need for performance improvement, and drive improvements at their own level. Highlighting common pitfalls in improvement initiatives, it provides the tools to help you avoid the disinterested cultural response to improvement efforts that is all too common in organizations suffering from initiative overload.The book details a comprehensive solution to help all employees visualize operational performance. It explains how to cascade the right metrics across all levels of your business to trigger the appropriate use of Lean/Six Sigma tools and techniques into strategic process areas. Demonstrating how to link all continuous improvement activities to address the key issues affecting performance, the book: Explains what a performance hub is and provides the clarity needed for full organizational deployment Describes the four key headings under which a performance hub is configured Follows the natural implementation sequence of events for successful deployment of Performance Hubs Includes Top Tips in each chapter to aid in smooth implementation and to enable sustained results This book and electronic tool kit available on the book's page at https://www.crcpress.com/9781439861349 provide all the working documents including project management aids, templates, and slides you and your teams will need to get started. Clarifying how to make continuous improvement a daily habit across all segments of your organization, the authoritative advice provided in these pages will help you align all improvement activities with the current and future needs of your business.

Packed with international case examples and clearly delineating principles as they apply to public sector organizations, Lean for the Public Sector: The Pursuit of Perfection in Government Services demonstrates that Lean in the public sector is neither rocket science nor a typical profit-driven improvement program. The book begins with coverage of the basic philosophy of Lean before detailing specific methods for improving processes in the public sector. It addresses concerns specific to the public sector environment and considers the role of the citizen, not only as customer, but as a voter, taxpayer, and community participant. The author provides a clear explanation of methods such as 5S, kaizen, standardization techniques, and Value Stream Mapping shaped to Lean Government. His approach provides a reality-based view of value-added services and waste in the public sector. Written specifically to address the application of Lean practices in government and the public sector, this how-to workbook gives you the wherewithal to combat the 'We don't make widgets' mentality. Providing the tools to manage the entire Lean transformation process, the book helps you immediately integrate the Lean way of thinking and its tools into your improvement program.

This book provides the much-needed, no-nonsense guidance crucial for project managers - that is, the type of guidance that is missing from every major body of knowledge and educational offering for working project managers. This very practical book identifies the activities that influence project success and focuses the limited time and energy available towards just those activities. The Project Management Institute (PMI) and most literature on project management discusses all aspects of project management under the assumption that project managers will narrow down focus because they cannot be expected to use every process outlined by PMI to manage every project. This book uses the concept of "hacking" our standard conventions of project management and outlines a standard path identified by conventional wisdom, an evil path that project managers frequently resort to under time/quality pressures, and a hacker path that provides a better way to look at the challenge. This book equips project managers with streamlined approaches to refocus their efforts on factors that matter while spending less time doing it. Project management is a demanding discipline with a growing body of knowledge with few instructions on how to do it all. The author provides humorous anecdotes and examples while teaching readers how to save time, improve quality, and advance their career. The primary sections of the book cover how to approach the most common certifications in project management; continuing education; leading project teams; initiating, planning, executing, monitoring, and controlling projects; general life skills; and taking on additional responsibilities. Hacking project management is about focusing the limited bandwidth a project manager can give a project towards the activities that drive success.

Welcome to the world of McDonald's Happy Meal*r collectibles. These two books(USA and Worldwide)present a thorough list and complete Price Guide for the thousands of toys and collectibles distributed with Happy Meal*r boxes and bags. Together, they are the most authoritative references. Thousands of all-color photographs show the toys, boxes, bags, advertising materials, buttons, pins, and variations given out both in the United States (one book) and in all the other countries around the world(another book). The authors have established a definitive numbering system to identify each and every item distributed with an alphabetical/numerical listing, and a cross-reference superseding numbering systems in other books. This set of books gives a time line of McDonald's Corporation history, check-off boxes to help you organize your collection, and the catalog of the items distributed with a Happy Meal*r in the USA and worldwide. Read along and enjoy the fun!

At last, this much anticipated book has been published and provides a much needed breath of fresh air. The Strategos Guide to Value Stream and Process Mapping has helpful tips on facilitating group VSM exercises and helps put VSM in the greater Lean context. With photos and examples of related Lean practices, the book focuses on implementing VSM, not just on drawing diagrams and graphs. This is the most comprehensive and practical book on the subject to date.

This comprehensive book presents a methodology for continuous process improvement in a structured, logical, and easily understandable framework based on industry accepted tools, techniques, and practices. It begins by explaining the conditions necessary for establishing a stable and capable process and the actions required to maintain process control, while setting the stage for sustainable efficiency improvements driven by waste elimination and process flow enhancement. This structured approach makes a clear connection between the need for a quality process to serve as the foundation for incremental efficiency improvements. This book moves beyond talking about the value contribution of tools and techniques for process control and continuous improvement by focusing on the daily work routines necessary to maintain and sustain these activities as part of a lean process and management mindset. Part 1 discusses process quality improvement with an understanding of variation and its impact on process performance. It continues by stressing the importance of standardizing a process to achieve process stability. Once process stability is reflected in a consistent and predictable output, attention is turned to ensuring the process is capable of consistently meeting customer requirements. This series of activities sets the foundation for process control and the sustainable pursuit of efficiency improvements. Part 2 focuses on efficiency improvement by eliminating waste while improving process flow using proven tools and methods. Although there is a clear relationship between waste elimination and process flow, these activities are discussed separately to allow those more interested in waste elimination to work independently from those looking to optimize value stream flow. Part 3 explores the principles, practices, systems, and behaviors required to maintain process control while creating a mindset of continuous incremental improvement. It considers the role organizational structure, discipline, and accountability play as essential components for long term operational success. This book will: Provide readers with a clear roadmap for establishing, achieving, and maintaining process control as the foundation upon which to pursue efficiency improvements. Establish direction and methods for continuous and sustainable process improvement Define the practices, systems, and behaviors required to realize desired results and develop a culture of process control and continuous improvement along the road to operational excellence.

Unlike other books that promote a specific process and performance improvement discipline, this book shows organizations how to achieve success by fixing basic operational issues and problems using a broad and wide-sweeping process-based toolkit. In addition, it helps individuals who have worked in stale- or siloed-thinking enterprises make the transition to a process or improvement-oriented culture and teaches those who are unfamiliar with process tools to look at their work with a new lens and adopt a continuous improvement and analytical-thinking mindset. The authors have successfully used the various methods, tools, and concepts found in this book to overcome practical, daily problems at various organizations. This book will surely help operators, managers, practitioners, and executives, who are charged with improving processes and workplace culture, produce better products and services.

The Product Wheel (PW) design process has practical methods for finding the optimum sequence, minimizing changeover costs, and freeing up useful capacity. So much so, that the DuPont Company and Exxon Mobil are just a few companies that have used the product wheel concept to achieve and sustain a competitive advantage.Breaking down a fairly complex design process into manageable steps, The Product Wheel Handbook: Creating Balanced Flow in High-Mix Process Operations walks readers through the process for designing and implementing the PW technique. It includes a case study taken from actual practice that illustrates the design process and its benefits. Describing how to apply the product wheel technique to any manufacturing operation, the book: Details the steps required to implement product wheels Explains why certain traditional manufacturing metrics should be reevaluated so they don't inhibit product wheel performance Defines the cultural foundation necessary for smooth product wheel design and implementation Includes a real-world case study and several examples of product wheels being used by successful manufacturing companies including BG Products, Inc., the DuPont Company, the Dow Chemical Company, and Appleton Many of the steps in wheel design described in this book are not new. What's new is their application to production planning and scheduling problems, and more importantly, a clear roadmap explaining how and when they should be used in product wheel design.Supplying you with the tools to reduce the chaos often found in production scheduling, the book outlines a disciplined structure that will allow you to spend less of your time resolving schedule problems. Most importantly, it provides your organization with a stable platform to deal with abnormal events in a less stressful and more logical manner.

Part of the Toyota Production System, Kamishibai boards are simple and flexible visual controls for performing audits within a manufacturing process. When used properly, they are powerful tools for performing, managing, and auditing tasks of specific duties. Kamishibai Boards: A Lean Visual Management System That Supports Layered Audits explains how to use this visual management system to identify normal conditions versus abnormal conditions in your organization. Filled with easy-to-follow instructions that require minimal training, it outlines a layered audit system for sustaining continuous improvement that can be applied to any organization in any industry. The book includes downloadable resources with master forms you can use to create your own daily, weekly, or monthly Kamishibai cards for any subject. The downloadable resources also include electronic copies of all examples in the book. Helping you focus on resolving abnormal situations, the book supplies the understanding required to make problems, abnormalities, and variations from the standard visible so corrective actions can be made right away-so you can spend more of your valuable time on achieving sustainable improvement.

Encouraging efficiency, clarity, and disciplined thinking, A3 Problem Solving identifies a problem, describes the objective, and summarizes fact finding and action steps, all on a single A3-sized piece of paper. This approach provides all employees at all levels with a method to quickly identify a problem, analyze it to root cause, select appropriate countermeasures, and communicate necessary actions to decision makers. The A3 Workbook: Unlock Your Problem-Solving Mind is designed to teach A3 Problem Solving to workers at every level of an organization. Uniquely qualified to author this workbook, Daniel Matthews is an expert trainer with 30 years of training experience including Lean implementation and Training within Industry (TWI). Fourteen of those years he spent with the Toyota Company, which created and made use of the A3 as a core component of continuous quality improvement. This workbook provides a practical tool for solving specific problems or for making a specific proposal, while also encouraging the development of a corporate culture that empowers all employees to support continuous improvement. The workbook follows the progression of a basic A3 Problem Solving format, offering instructions every step of the way. To reinforce learning, it includes Case studies that readers can use to complete A3s Tips on how to improve the readability of A3s Examples of Problem Solving A3s, and a Proposal A3 Exercises to reinforce what's learned Worksheet templates that can be reproduced for future problem solving An effective problem-solving process is a critical part of implementing efficient business practices and a problem-solving culture is a fundamental component of empowering employees to support business improvements. Both of these components, taken together, can help any organization make continuous improvements on the long journey to creat

These 20 essential keys have helped many manufacturing companies integrate the top manufacturing improvement methods into a coordinated system for drastic and continual improvement in involvement, quality, and productivity. This program provides the strategies necessary to achieve ambitious goals through a five-level scoring system. The revised edition is improved with upgraded criteria for the system to guide your company to world-class status. New material and updated layout make implementation even easier. Two valuable case studies demonstrate effective use by both a Japanese company and an American manufacturer.

Bring Lean Improvements to the Administrative Areas of Your Organization! Extending their eight-step process to the realization of a lean office, Tapping and Shuker use a customer service case studyto illustrate the effectiveness of the value stream storyboard.This popular volume provides organizations with a proven system for implementing lean principles in the office. In addition to providing a thorough overview of basic lean concepts, this book details methods for identifying the administrative activities in need of attention. To address these, it applies the eight-step process for removing waste and reorganizing workflow. Accompanying the book are downloadable resources containing a lean assessment tool, a storyboard template, charts, a team charter, and worksheets. Along with this book you receive downloadable resources containing a lean assessment tool, a storyboard template, useful charts, a team charter, forms, reports, and worksheets!