At NTMA, we’ve heard it all. And recently, we’ve listened to a lot of members chatting about how they’d like to get started in Lean manufacturing. Our reaction is twofold:
- Great! We’d love to guide you in the right direction.
- What are you waiting for?!
Getting started can be the hardest part. Especially with something as multifaceted as Lean manufacturing, it can be tough to figure out where to begin.
That’s where NTMA comes in. We’ll explain why a Lean approach is beneficial and walk you through some best practices to consider when starting your Lean journey.
The Importance of a Lean Approach
When it comes down to it, Lean manufacturing is about two things:
- Waste reduction
- Increased efficiency
Waste Reduction
Waste in your shop is like dirt in your home. When it first gets tracked in, it’s so noticeable that you must drop everything, grab a broom or mop, and get rid of it as soon as possible. But once it sits around for too long, that dirt starts to get into the nooks and crannies, so you might walk by it and hardly register how much has been collected there. Before you know it, you waited so long to address all those cracks that taking care of it becomes a huge production with a lot of elbow grease – instead of something that could have taken less than a minute if you had swept it up right away.
Increased Efficiency
Lean manufacturing is about making changes over time, all to yield the best results possible. What shop wouldn’t want that?!
How to Start Your Lean Manufacturing Journey
In Lean manufacturing, the possibilities are endless. While this is a great sentiment, it can be daunting for manufacturers wondering how to approach Lean manufacturing in their facilities.
Here are some possible places to begin:
Don’t Just Make the Plan, Take Action
When manufacturers declare they want to become a Lean shop, that’s the starting point. It’s not enough to want to be Lean without purpose and focus. Making a Lean manufacturing plan is helpful, but the sooner you follow through on it, the faster you’ll reap the benefits.
Find Your Lean Manufacturing “Champion”
Is there an individual within your organization who has been trying to get the rest of the team to drink the Lean manufacturing Kool-Aid? Or perhaps there’s a leader on the shop floor that your machinists look up to? It could be worthwhile to make that person your Lean manufacturing “champion,” encouraging others to embrace Lean principles and coming up with solutions based on what they experience in their day-to-day.
Keep in mind that having a Lean “champion” doesn’t let everyone else off the hook. Think of that individual as a director or a coach. The director isn’t the one in the movie, and the coach isn’t the one playing the game; they’re instructing others on what they can do to build the scene or run the play. For Lean approaches to build momentum in your shop, it needs to be an all-hands-on-deck approach.
Embrace a Continuous Improvement Mindset
Continuous improvement is a crucial step in the ongoing process of making your shop Lean. There are plenty of courses and certifications you can get involved with, including:
- A Lean Six Sigma certification course for individuals within your organization.
- Quality Control / SPC / Inspection, an NTMA-U course that introduces Lean manufacturing to enhance quality and process control.
If you’re not ready to sign up for any programs, you can simply do your own independent research to learn more about the major principles in Lean manufacturing.
Bring in an External Resource
Sometimes, bringing in an outsider offers a different perspective of your shop floor. Plenty of consultants specialize in working with shops to develop step-by-step Lean manufacturing plans based on their unique bottlenecks and priorities.
Start Small
Becoming a Lean manufacturer doesn’t happen overnight; it takes time and consistency. Rather than making enormous changes in the hopes of improving faster, you can incorporate plenty of small steps without disrupting your team members’ day-to-day operations. For instance, you might start reorganizing your tools to make them easier to locate. Or maybe you might begin rethinking where to place the new machine you’re expecting for better part flow throughout the shop. A few minutes of each day spent making your shop more efficient make a world of difference over time.
Remember, there’s no hard stop to Lean manufacturing. There’s always something that can be done to improve your business. So be sure to delegate and take it slowly to avoid overwhelm in this ongoing process.
Learn from Your Peers
Don’t hesitate to connect with your manufacturing community to learn best practices from your peers. Leverage your online NTMA Connect network and chat with fellow manufacturers to discover what has worked and hasn’t been quite as successful. Or attend an event run by your local NTMA chapter and discuss the matter face to face. There’s a good chance someone else has experienced (or is currently facing) any of the speedbumps or challenges you might be dealing with.
Whether you’re just embarking on your Lean journey or have already done your homework, NTMA offers support at every stage. Join today to access invaluable resources to propel your Lean manufacturing journey forward.
