lean manufacturing: what is kaizen?

L E A N M A N U F A C T U R I N G

W h a t i s K a i z e n ?

改 善

M O N A R C H M E T A L . C O M

In Japanese, kaizen means 'change for good.'

In Japanese, kaizen means 'change for good.'

改 善Zen

Change

Kai

Good

In lean manufacturing, kaizen representsContinuous Improvement.

As a process, kaizen functions on thephilosophy that there is always room for

improvement.

Typically, kaizen calls for a ‘one team, one dream’kind of attitude.

The goal is to have all employees actively engaged inachieving incremental improvements over time.

Many companies hold kaizen events to identify areas wherebusiness and production can improve.

Kaizen events last 3 to 5 days and aretypically characterized by:

Kaizen events last 3 to 5 days and aretypically characterized by:

Sharp focus on specific processes

Focus on improving supplier-customer relationship & productionflow

Short bursts of intense activity thatadd value & eliminate waste

While these events take employees away from theirwork duties, they often foster a culture of

improvement and collaboration that’s good forbusiness.

To host these events,kaizen team members areappointed from within the

company with a kaizen expertleading the way.

The team works diligently to:

Identify opportunity &eliminate waste

Determine how to fix issues

Implement solutions

Standard kaizen teams are cross-departmentaland often chosen by the rule of thirds.

Standard kaizen teams are cross-departmentaland often chosen by the rule of thirds.

From within the area orprocess targeted for kaizen

1/3rd

Standard kaizen teams are cross-departmentaland often chosen by the rule of thirds.

From within the area orprocess targeted for kaizen

1/3rd

Fromupstream anddownstream

processes

1/3rd

Standard kaizen teams are cross-departmentaland often chosen by the rule of thirds.

From within the area orprocess targeted for kaizen

1/3rd

Fromupstream anddownstream

processes

1/3rdFrom areas

outside of thetargetedprocess

1/3rd

Having ‘outsiders’ on the team forces topicexperts to simplify explanations and thought

processes so a lay person can easilyunderstand.

This helps the team brainstorm new ideas aswell as identify how to simplify something that

might be over-complicating production.

Think!

There are many benefits of adopting kaizen principles.Here are just a few you can look forward to:

Production efficiency

Less waste, more output

Better customer service

Employee participation & satisfaction

Improved workplace safety

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