Lean Manufacturing Principles Training Course

Participants can observe work at the source and identify operational waste objectively.

• Gemba observation records actual work rather than reported process descriptions
• TIMWOODS categorises transport, inventory, motion, waiting, overproduction, overprocessing, defects, skills
• Waste walks distinguish isolated incidents from recurring process conditions
• Observe operator movement, material travel, queues, interruptions, and rework loops
• Spaghetti diagrams reveal unnecessary travel by people, products, and information
• Document observations using facts, timings, photographs, and defined process boundaries

Participants can translate customer needs into measurable operational requirements.

• Voice of customer data converts needs into measurable delivery requirements
• Critical-to-quality characteristics connect product specifications with process controls
• Internal customers define handoff requirements between production and support functions
• Quality, cost, delivery, safety, and morale measures expose competing priorities
• Operational definitions prevent inconsistent interpretation of quality and productivity measures
• Create a problem statement using customer impact and baseline evidence

Participants can establish a reliable baseline for a Lean improvement opportunity.

• Baseline measures define current performance before selecting improvement countermeasures
• Cycle time, lead time, touch time, and waiting time compared
• Capacity calculations identify bottlenecks, constraints, and available production hours
• Collect production data using check sheets and operational definitions
• Run charts separate routine variation from special-cause process changes
• Pareto analysis prioritises defects, delays, downtime categories, and loss sources

Participants can map process steps, handoffs and information flows at an appropriate level of detail.

• SIPOC defines suppliers, inputs, process boundaries, outputs, and customers
• Swimlane maps clarify responsibility across production, quality, maintenance, and planning
• Process maps capture decisions, inspections, rework loops, and approval delays
• Material flow analysis traces product movement from receipt through dispatch
• Information flows identify schedules, signals, reports, and manual communication points
• Map boundaries prevent improvement teams from analysing an unmanageable process scope

Participants can create a current-state value stream map using observed production data.

• Value stream mapping connects material flow, information flow, and performance data
• Process boxes record cycle time, changeover, uptime, operators, and scrap
• Inventory triangles quantify queues between production and storage points
• Timeline analysis separates value-adding time from total production lead time
• Customer demand establishes the reference point for mapping production flow
• Current-state maps expose bottlenecks, push scheduling, and excessive work-in-progress

Participants can determine demand-driven production pace and identify balancing actions.

• Takt time converts available production time into customer-demand production pace
• Compare cycle times against takt time to identify capacity gaps
• Yamazumi charts display work content and imbalance across operators
• Line balancing redistributes tasks while preserving safety, quality, and ergonomics
• Bottleneck management protects constraint time and reduces starvation and blocking
• Pitch defines a practical production interval for paced flow control

Participants can design improved flow using product families, cellular concepts and controlled batch sizes.

• One-piece flow reduces waiting, transport, inventory, and defect concealment
• Product-family analysis groups items with similar routing and processing requirements
• Cellular layouts shorten travel distance and improve cross-process visibility
• U-shaped cells support flexible staffing, communication, and balanced work allocation
• Batch-size reduction exposes process instability and improves response to demand
• Flow design considers safety, ergonomics, quality checks, and material presentation

Participants can design a basic pull system with clear replenishment rules.

• Pull systems authorise production from actual downstream consumption signals
• Supermarkets decouple processes while controlling inventory and replenishment frequency
• Kanban cards specify part number, quantity, source, destination, and signal rules
• Kanban calculations use demand, replenishment lead time, container size, safety factor
• FIFO lanes control sequence, queue limits, and material ageing
• Withdrawal and production Kanban coordinate internal material replenishment loops

Participants can establish workplace organisation standards that improve safety, quality and productivity.

• 5S establishes sort, set in order, shine, standardise, and sustain
• Red-tag campaigns distinguish essential items from obsolete tools and materials
• Point-of-use storage reduces search time, motion, and handling errors
• Visual controls show normal conditions, abnormalities, ownership, and response actions
• Shadow boards, floor markings, labels, and photographs support workplace standards
• Audit criteria measure adherence without turning 5S into housekeeping alone

Participants can document repeatable work methods that meet takt, quality and safety requirements.

• Standard work combines takt time, work sequence, and standard in-process inventory
• Work combination tables show manual, machine, walking, and waiting elements
• Standard work charts locate operator movement, machine positions, and material points
• Job instruction breakdowns identify major steps, key points, and reasons
• Standardisation captures the best currently known safe and capable method
• Revision controls ensure work instructions reflect approved process changes

Participants can analyse changeovers and develop actions to reduce setup time.

• SMED separates internal setup tasks from external preparation tasks
• Changeover observation records task sequence, elapsed time, motion, and waiting
• Convert internal activities into external activities through advance preparation
• Quick-release fixtures, preset tools, and visual settings reduce setup duration
• Parallel operations reduce elapsed changeover time when safety permits
• Setup reduction plans define owners, trials, standards, and verification measures

Participants can analyse equipment losses and define maintenance-based improvement actions.

• Overall equipment effectiveness combines availability, performance, and quality losses
• Six big losses structure analysis of equipment-related productivity problems
• Planned maintenance reduces failure risk through scheduled inspection and replacement
• Autonomous maintenance assigns basic cleaning, inspection, and lubrication activities
• Downtime coding distinguishes breakdowns, minor stops, setups, and waiting
• OEE dashboards connect equipment losses with production and maintenance decisions

Participants can design controls that prevent defects or detect them at the point of occurrence.

• Jidoka stops abnormal processes before defects progress downstream
• Poka-yoke methods prevent errors through physical, sensory, sequence, and information controls
• Source inspection verifies error conditions before a defect can occur
• Successive checks provide rapid feedback between adjacent process steps
• Andon signals trigger defined escalation when safety, quality, or flow fails
• Control plans link critical process conditions with reaction plans

Participants can structure a problem-solving effort from condition definition through follow-up.

• A3 thinking structures problem definition, analysis, action, and learning
• Five Whys tests causal logic beyond the first visible symptom
• Fishbone diagrams organise potential causes across people, methods, machines, materials, measurement
• Cause-and-effect validation uses evidence rather than assumptions or opinion
• Countermeasures address verified causes while avoiding unsupported solution preferences
• Follow-up measures confirm results, unintended effects, and standardisation needs

Participants can plan a focused Kaizen event with clear scope, roles and follow-through.

• Kaizen events concentrate cross-functional effort on a defined operational problem
• Event charters specify scope, target condition, measures, team, and constraints
• Rapid experiments test countermeasures before permanent process changes are approved
• Action registers record tasks, owners, due dates, dependencies, and status
• Daily report-outs maintain alignment between frontline findings and leadership decisions
• Post-event plans assign standardisation, training, auditing, and benefit tracking

Participants can assess production scheduling practices and propose methods for reducing variation.

• Heijunka levels production volume and mix within available capacity
• Production levelling reduces schedule instability, overtime, expedites, and inventory swings
• Heijunka boxes sequence work using fixed intervals and product mix rules
• Frozen zones protect near-term schedules from unmanaged order changes
• Demand patterns distinguish predictable variation from exceptional customer requirements
• Scheduling rules align finite capacity, material availability, and customer priorities

Participants can create a daily management routine for detecting and responding to performance gaps.

• Daily management links strategic targets with frontline operational control
• Tiered meetings escalate unresolved abnormalities through defined management levels
• SQDCP boards display safety, quality, delivery, cost, and people measures
• Visual performance boards compare actual results against targets and trends
• Leader standard work assigns recurring checks, coaching, and escalation responsibilities
• Response plans specify containment, owner, timing, and confirmation for deviations

Participants can establish ownership, controls and review practices that sustain Lean improvements.

• Control plans define measures, frequencies, limits, owners, and response actions
• Standard work audits verify method adherence and identify emerging drift
• Training matrices show competence requirements for each process role
• Change management addresses concerns, participation, communication, and supervisor support
• Benefit tracking compares realised results with baseline performance and targets
• Periodic reviews reassess risks, assumptions, and next improvement priorities

Participants can build, review and present a complete Lean improvement plan for a selected operational process.

• Define the selected process, customer requirement, scope, and baseline condition
• Present current-state mapping, waste evidence, constraints, and performance measures
• Design a future-state flow using takt, pull, standard work, and controls
• Prioritise countermeasures through impact, effort, risk, and implementation readiness
• Build an implementation roadmap with owners, milestones, resources, and governance
• Specify benefit measures, control methods, escalation routes, and review cadence
• Peer review tests operational feasibility, data quality, and sustainability assumptions