Six Sigma Benefits Exceed Expectations

Benefits are accelerating in Six Sigma government implementation. ...

... "Deputy County Executive Al Hammonds said the program will have met that goal, and then some, by years-end. " ...

Via wgrz Buffalo: Erie County Six Sigma

Erie County: "Al Hammonds is currently the Director of Six Sigma, a position that was created in January through an efficiency grant from New York State. The key initiative of the Collins' administration, Six Sigma is being implemented in county departments to help cut waste and drive efficiency. "

JIT Lean Supply Chain

Leadership appointment bring lean experience to the supply chain. ...

... "Under Ms. de Souza’s leadership, EI is developing and executing direct and indirect materials procurement strategies utilizing lean principles including JIT and Consignment as well as streamlining EI’s Supply Chain through full implementation of the SAP toolset. " ...

Via Endicott Interconnect: Jennifer de Souza

Six Sigma for Service Companies

Six Sigma can be applied successfully to non-manufacturing, or service firms. The process, the committment, and the passion is the same. The defects are different. ...

... "Six Sigma can be implemented by companies of any type and size. No matter what kind of company you run, the process for implementing Six Sigma is the same. " ...

Via Inc: Ask Bob Galvin

Roadmap for Lean Implementation

Insights on lean implementation process to prepare for and sustain the transformation. ...

German Lean Manufacturing MNPS

MAN Nutzfahrzeuge implements lean manufacturing techniques in pilots and commits to enterprise implementation of a common production system. ...

... "Closely modeled on the well-known Toyota Production System (TPS), the development of the MAN Nutzfahrzeuge Produktionssystem—christened, inevitably, MNPS—was intended to standardize the adoption of lean thinking right across MAN ... " ...

Via Manufacturing Business Technology: German industrial giant pioneers Toyota lean manufacturing

Lear Lean Manufacturing Implementation Drives Operational Efficiency Gains

Lear Corporation's lean manufacturing processes have driven productivity and operational efficiency for the company. Lear's lean implementation concentrates on the work environment, quality, the layout, and the flow of materials. ...

... "Tony Coomer, the company's vice president of Advanced Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement-Seating Systems, said lean manufacturing techniques have been deployed throughout the company's global manufacturing network.

Lear employees are trained on LMS during a three-week workshop. The training is conducted at all Lear plants by a lean manufacturing leader and employees receive LMS certification upon successful understanding of LMS principles and validation of model line projects which deploy LMS.

Product design is another key element in Lear's Lean Manufacturing System. Product design teams rely on LMS principles to ensure products can be manufactured in a lean environment. Approximately two thirds of product costs are locked into the initial design of the product, Coomer noted, so any effort to reduce cost after the initial design stage can only influence the remaining one third of the product's overall cost. At one facility, for example, product design teams incorporating design for lean principles in a model year change realigned workstations, changed production flows and made other assembly line changes to boost productivity.

Plant layout also plays an important role in Lear's approach to lean manufacturing. Lear uses Value Stream Mapping (VSM) to understand work flow and identify waste. In addition, extended VSM allows Lear to eliminate waste from the entire value stream -- from supplier to customer. VSM encompasses items such as freight costs, inventory controls and production changes. " ...

Via Lear Corp: Lean Manufacturing System Hikes Productivity and Reduces Costs

Six Sigma Integrated with Creativity

Starwood integrates Six Sigma into a creative environment to achieve profitable growth. ...

... "Today, by harnessing Six Sigma processes to the creativity that bubbles up from its hotel units, Starwood is able to quickly turn concepts into reality. Hundreds of projects have been done this way, including a menu engineering program that rejiggers the contents of an in-room refrigerator based on their popularity to drive higher profits ... " ...

Via Business Week: Six Sigma at Starwood

Equipment and Automation Support Lean Manufacturing

Specific manufacturing equipment can support a lean implementation. ...

... "Achieving the beginning stages of lean is fairly easy; it's taking it to the next level that requires hard work, dedication, and in many cases, the right equipment. " ...

Via Hoist: Lean Technology