If you manage inventory, you probably use MRPII, a system based on a push method that embraces work and purchase order execution. MRPII helps you plan and integrate data relevant to your entire organization. But, when you have shifts in demand, you have to: 1) Realign and cancel hundreds of open manufacturing and purchase orders, and then 2) issue new orders. Another system, kanban, is designed specifically to replenish inventory in just-in-time manufacturing. As consumption occurs, the kanban manual system triggers replenishment signals to the source of supply, so that both production and the supplier are constantly reacting to actual consumption. Compared to MRPII, kanban lowers inventory and minimizes shortages. But the manual process of recalculating every part number by hand, and triggering replenishment by faxing or calling suppliers, is time consuming and non-value-adding. Automating kanban by blending the planning strength of MRPII with manual kanban pull methods enhances your flexibility and competitive position. MRP's forward projection capability is used to: recalculate kanban lot size. perform a simulation to protect against non-linear demand. inform production areas and suppliers of the anticipated demand levels for resource planning. calculate staffing requirements for flexible work cells. This system: Automatically recalculates and triggers replenishment. Integrates suppliers into the manufacturing loop. Uses bar codes to enhance speed and accuracy of the receipt process. Before moving in this direction, preparatory work is required. Work cells should be constructed with material located at the point of use. Container options and transportation methods need to be selected, kanban lot size calculations, and work cell staffing modules to develop. This book will help you deal with these and other topics. You will be able to take advantage of the author's expertise in the design, implementation and evaluation of these systems.

Design and Implement a World-Class Replenishment System, Custom-Made to Meet the Needs of Your Organization!

In Custom Kanban": Designing the System to Meet the Needs of Your Environment," Raymond Louis helps you to develop and implement a correct and successful kanban system by selecting appropriate kanban techniques based on the specific environmental factors and needs of your company.

This book introduces the challenges to apply current methodologies to create a lean office. It describes the system enhancement options that lean practitioner can employ in automating the newly created lean processes and explains each of the seven steps necessary for creating a lean office.

Manufacturing and service related businesses are heavily dependent on office and administrative processes, which can add up to 60 percent to all the costs associated with meeting customer demand. Applying lean techniques to the office must begin with a new definition of waste, backed by a set of techniques designed to eliminate waste and streamline nonvalue-adding activities. In Creating the Ultimate Lean Office, the definition of waste in the office goes one step further than the lean manufacturing definition, because any office activity that adds value or is necessary to perpetuate the business is considered waste, if it is still manually performed when it can be cost-effectively automated. The technique employed to eliminate this waste of manually performing required activities is referred to as "administration automation," It permits users to design processes to meet the needs of their environments, which are then automated without, in the majority of cases, changing source code. This book, in the hands of a business process improvement team applying due diligence, can create a lean office that can compete vigorously against the best organizations in the world.