Next Course - Sept. 7th & 8th, Carton House, Maynooth.
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Lean Thinking - An improvement Methodology for all Industries/Services
Ireland was once an ideal manufacturing base, close to Europe, with highly skilled people, and an economically viable cost base. Today, as a country, we need to offer alternatives to ensure ‘Ireland Inc.’ is the country of choice for future investment. Innovation and creative thinking are key attributes we need to strive towards in the future. To remain competitive, companies must improve their processes, eliminating non-value-added waste and reducing variation.
Many organisations are exploring ways to identify improvements in financial performance, quality performance, customer services, productivity performance, delivery times, etc. Irrespective of your industry, there are several methodologies that deliver sustainable results. Lean Sigma is a combination of two philosophies (Lean thinking & Six Sigma) that focus on eliminating waste and reducing process variability. This workshop demonstrates both concepts and identifies how simple principles can deliver significant gains. Interactive workshops demonstrate process mapping, waste identification, 5S, Kanban, as well as the DMAIC cycle.The programme also outlines different implementation strategies depending on the size of your business.
Lean Thinking and Six Sigma are two concepts that can work hand-in-hand to improve processes, increase quality, drive out costs, and make organisations more profitable, irrespective of the industry.
What is Lean Thinking?
Lean Thinking focuses on eliminating non-value added activities from the company’s processes, including defects. Six Sigma is a customer-focused methodology that incorporates a formal process and a variety of tools, including statistical analysis, to reduce the variation that causes defects.
Simply put, if I was a golfer, Lean Thinking would get me to focus on reducing the number of shots I take to get the ball into the hole. I may not be a consistent hitter, but I would be good at recovering and getting the ball on the green and holing out. Six sigma would get me focusing on reducing the variability of my game, every time I hit the ball it would always end up in the same place. It may take too many shots, but I would be consistent. Lean Sigma thinking drives reducing the number of shots and the variability of each shot. Hence, I optimise distance and accuracy.
Can Lean Sigma help my industry?
Every industry/service will benefit from being able to deliver a high quality, low cost product/service to a customer as soon as possible with little or no variation, minimum waste, and high reliability. Lean Sigma started out in manufacturing but can be applied to every industry or service, Retail, Manufacturing, Financial, Medical, Construction, etc.
How does it work?
The key principles of Lean are:
• Specify value from the customer’s point of view.
• Identify all the steps in the value stream.
- Eliminate every step that does not create value.
• Make the product flow smoothly to the customer.
• Let the customer pull value from the next upstream activity.
• Pursue Perfection.
- Eliminate waste through continuous improvement.
Lean defines different type of activity as Waste: Transportation, Inventory, Motion/Movement, Waiting, Over-processing, Over-production, Defects, Reprioritisation, and Inappropriate use of Skills.
Any Lean exercise would start by mapping the process flow of your products/services (Value Stream Map) and then identifying the wastes associated with each process step.
Six Sigma use a statistical approach to continuous improvement by focusing on adding value and preventing defects. It measures performance compared to customer requirements and provides a set of tools to drive improvement. It uses a 5 step methodology to address problems:
• Define the problem/opportunity.
• Measure the current performance, map the process.
• Analyze the root cause of the problem.
• Improve the performance by implementing a solution.
• Control the new process.
What about the culture of the organization?
Having a supportive culture is key to making any initiative sustainable. If you do not believe in it, you will not continue it willingly. If your culture is continually looking to eliminate waste then you will be more successful that one looking for a series of quick wins. It’s the different between going on a diet and changing your lifestyle.
What do you need to get started?
Many organizations invest heavily in developing Black Belts to drive improvements. Significant improvement can be obtained by developing a critical mass on the fundaments of Lean Thinking and Six Sigma. Start with a few specific improvement programmes. Educate the teams on Process Mapping, Root Cause Analysis, Creative Problem Solving Techniques. Ensure the culture supports the strategy.
Could you use Lean Sigma to reduce you Energy costs?
Value Stream Mapping is the technique used to map the process of making a product or providing a service. You can extend this concept to map energy streams and understand how much energy is being used and hence map the carbon footprint of that product/service.
Course Content
Lean Thinking Concepts & Principles
Waste Identification
- Value Stream Mapping
- Energy Stream Mapping
- Creativity & Innovation
Innovation Concepts
SMED
Kaizen
Kanban
TRIZ
Principles of Six Sigma
DMAIC Cycle
Yellow / Green & Black Belt Programmes
Developing a Lean Sigma strategy for your organisation
Who Should Attend?
This programme is designed for team leaders, supervisors and managers who are involved in identifying and implementing improvements in their natural work areas and processes.
Course Duration
This programme is designed as a 2 day introduction. More detailed programmes can be delivered over extended periods if required.
Course COST
The course cost is €590 for the two days. Currently, if you pay for one seat you will get another seat for free.
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