What Is Lean Manufacturing?
Lean manufacturing is a systematic approach to eliminate waste in the production process with the end
goal of satisfying customers.
1 waiting for machines to process
2 unnecessary processing
The focus of lean manufacturing is to minimize the consumption of resources that adds no value to a
product. The concept of lean manufacturing originated in Japan where, after WWII, it was necessary for
manufacturers to develop a new, low cost manufacturing process.
The first leaders to create lean manufacturing systems were Eiji Toyoda, Taiichi Ohno and Shingeo
Shingo of Toyota Motor Company.
This depicted essential elements which are used in lean manufacturing systems. Lean manufacturing
systems recognize the fact that the value of a product is defined solely by the customer. Transition to a
lean manufacturing system does not happen overnight. Lean manufacturing requires every level of
organization to have a complete understanding of its basic principles and execution processes. The
number of manufacturers attempting to become lean is increasing fast. Companies that have fully
implemented lean manufacturing systems are rare.