100 on-site manufacturing workshop diagnosis for Lean manufacturing criteria

★Organization In Manufacturing Workshop

• Consumables, tools, fixtures, meters and other useless or temporary items on the workbench should be removed
• No extra items and no fallen parts should be placed on the production line
• The floor should not be placed directly on the finished products, parts and dropped parts
• Defective products should be placed in the defective products area
• Work area should be marked and distinguished
• The items in the work area should be placed with a sense of integrity
• Items of different types and purposes should be managed separately
• Personal items should not be present in the work area
• Power cords should be well managed and should not be disorganized or left on the ground
• The colour of the marking tape should be clear (green for fixed, yellow for mobile, red for bad)
• Plastic boxes should be placed in parallel and vertically
• Unused jigs, tools and edged objects should be placed on the tool rack
• Moulds, tools and edges that are not used for a long time should be separated from the items that are used regularly.
• No other items should be placed on the measuring tools.
• No extra items should be placed on the equipment of the assembly machinery
• Whether the method of placing work tools is easy to place
• Unnecessary tools should not be placed at the work station
• No miscellaneous items other than jigs can be placed on jig racks
• Parts racks, workbenches, cleaning cabinets, bins should be placed at right angles to the horizontal in designated sign places

★Tidy up In Manufacturing Workshop

• Consumables, tools, fixtures, measuring devices should be placed at right angles to the horizontal in the designated sign place
• Trolleys, carts, carts, forklifts should be placed at right angles to the horizontal in designated sign places
• Parts and parts boxes should be placed neatly at right angles to the horizontal at designated sign places
• Finished products and boxes of finished products should be placed neatly in the designated sign place
• Parts should correspond to the code, and the code should not be covered
• Empty boxes shall not be placed in a disorderly manner, but shall be neat and attractive and shall be collected in time
• Base plate items should be placed at right angles to the designated sign place
• Drop wire machines, samples, inspection equipment should be placed at right angles to the designated sign place
• The storage of documents should be separated and detailed according to the different contents
• Tape for signs should be free from damage and wrinkles at right angles to the horizontal
• Signage, instruction book, standard and engineering signs should be placed at right angles to the designated sign place
• Whiteboard and bulletin board content should be replaced in due course, and the responsible department and the name of the person in charge should be marked
• The chairs in the rest area should be reorganized after the rest.
• Cleaning utensils should be put into the cleaning cabinet or designated place after use
• Items should not be placed on the passage
• Places where objects are not allowed to be placed (except for the passage) should be marked
• The place where various cabinets and shelves are placed should be clearly marked
• Placement of semi-finished products should be clearly marked
• Finished products, parts can not be placed directly on the ground
• Defective products placed in the area should be clearly defined
• Defective products placed on the site should be red and other colours to distinguish
• Defective products placed in the site should be set in an obvious place
• Repair products should be placed in the production line outside
• Parts should be placed in the place of the sign to indicate complete
• The name of the plastic box or bundle should be marked on the material
• The location of work tools cannot be placed by walking or bending down.
• Efforts should be made to place work tools in a position where they can be placed by letting go of them.
• Tools should be placed with a margin
• Tools and tools should be coded on the shelf
• The code should be clearly distinguishable in front of the rack
• The jigs and tool racks should be distinguished by different colour codes
• Is the jig placed according to the frequency of use, the higher the frequency of use, the closer the placement
• The jigs and tools should be placed in sets according to the type of finished products
• The placement of finished products should be distinguished according to the specifications and models
• The access and placement of finished products should be distinguished by drawing lines
• The finished products should be coded (number) and the quantity should be indicated
• Measuring tools should be placed in a dust-proof and rust-proof way
• Fixture racks should be placed in such a way that they can be easily removed.
• No unidentified bad measuring tools should be used (precision check colours are indicated by stickers)

★Cleaning In Manufacturing Workshop

• The floor should be kept free of dust, debris, paper and other debris
• Corners, baseboards and under equipment should be the key cleaning areas
• Stains on the floor should be cleaned
• The working surface of the assembly line should be kept neat and tidy
• The conveyor belt of the assembly line should not be sticky with glue and other stains
• The ends of the line should be kept clean

★Clean In Manufacturing Workshop

• Workbenches, filing cabinets, fixtures, cabinet shelves, doors and windows should be kept free of dust and oil
• Equipment, accessories box should be kept free of dust, oil and dirt
• The floor should be cleaned regularly to keep it free of dust and oil.
• Work shoes and work clothes should be neat and clean, no scribbling and painting
• The body of the assembly machinery should not have rust and paint flaking, and the cover should not fall off
• Cleaning cabinet and cleaning utensils should be kept clean
• Do not do things that are not related to work
• Strictly abide by and implement the company’s rules and regulations
• Go to and from work on time, clock in and out on time, do not leave early, do not be late, do not miss work
• Tie your hair according to the rules and requirements

★Quality In Manufacturing Workshop

• Wear work shoes, work clothes and work permits as required
• Smoking should go to the prescribed place, not in the work area
• Wash your hands before work and before eating, punch your time card and eat in line and do not jump the queue
• If you need to wear gloves, put them on as required
• Maintain basic manners to your supervisor
• Do not spit, do not throw rubbish, pick up rubbish and put it away immediately when you see it
• No eating during working hours, such as breakfast, snacks and other things
• Should pay attention to good personal hygiene
• Whether the desktop stationery and documents are placed in a neat and orderly manner
• Are desks, computers and other office facilities clean and dust-free?
• Are all items necessary?
• Whether rubbish is dumped in time

★Safety In Manufacturing Workshop

• Dangerous goods should be clearly marked
• There should be no accumulation of items in front of each safety exit
• Fire extinguishers should be placed in designated locations and in working condition
• No items should be placed in front of or under the fire hydrant
• The amount of flammable materials should be within the allowed range
• All fire fighting facilities should be in normal operation
• No objects are sticking into or occupying the passage
• The switch and use of large facilities and equipment such as air conditioners and lifts should be assigned to a person in charge or relevant regulations should be formulated
• Is there any abnormality in power supply, wiring, switches and sockets?
• Unauthorized operation is strictly prohibited
• Protection measures should be taken to prevent dumping of easily dumped items
• Is there any fire left behind?

Lean Diagnosis: The “Look, Listen, Ask, Reason” Diagnostic Method

Lean production is an important idea and methodology for improving efficiency and competitiveness in the manufacturing industry. This is why many Lean consulting companies have emerged. Most Lean consultants are hands-on practitioners from a wide range of industries with extensive Lean knowledge and project experience. Lean consultants are the doctors of the business, so how do they diagnose manufacturing companies in a short time, find the disease and prescribe a good solution? After visiting and diagnosing many manufacturing companies in various industries and production modes, I have come up with some tips to discuss with you: In the old days, there was the “look, smell, ask and cut” method of the magpie.

“The most intuitive way to get an impression of the overall efficiency of the factory is to look at the pace of work of the staff and the way they work.

• Look at the rhythm and expression of the employees. The employee’s work rhythm represents the level of time analysis and site management, and the employee’s relaxed expression means that he is working smoothly and is less likely to be interrupted by anomalies.
• Look at whether the staff walk around frequently and leave their posts, indicating how many abnormalities occur in the workshop and the utilisation of staff. If employees leave their posts frequently and there are more people walking around the site, then it can indicate that there are problems with the process design and poor management.
• Look at whether the product is flowing and whether the process is waiting and flowing well. If there is waiting between processes it means that the production line is not well designed to balance the rate and the process is not stable.
• Look at whether the work-in-process inventory is controllable, the amount of work-in-process and raw material inventory between processes is calculated by design and is controllable, preferably with physical limits (Poka-yoke), uncontrollable is done by worker experience or how much flows through. The quantity and controllability of work in progress is a very visual and representative indicator of lean. Note: Very often when you find zero stock on site like a clearing, it is likely to be for show.
• Look at the equipment start-up rate, which indicates the factory’s capacity utilisation and order quantity, to get an initial idea of whether management is concerned about “staying alive” or “getting fatter”.
• Look at abnormal products, which include in-process products or materials with uncertain status, and in-process products and materials with quality defects.
• On the other hand, it refers to the distribution of materials, whether there are distribution rules and routes, and the standard work of logistics personnel.

An efficient lean factory should have good 5S on site, smooth flow, controlled and well organised inventory, and employees working in their respective roles and with ease. By observing this, you can probably tell how well the company is managed at this stage. A simple summary is: look at the table accurately, find the problem and chase the real cause.

“Listen”: visualise the stability of the process.

• Listen to the workshop for strange noises. Sometimes when you suddenly hear clanking noises in the factory, you generally either have a product rework or a problem with the tooling process. If the noise is loud, you also need to be concerned about employee safety and occupational health protection.
• Listen for the sound and frequency of the safety light alarm. If a safety light is installed on site but nothing happens for half a day, it is most likely that the light is not working as it should, it is a decoration. If the lights alarm frequently (once every three or five minutes), it can also indicate that the site is more fire-fighting events, the overall process is not stable enough.
• Listen for the sound of employees shouting and yelling. What often happens: “Calling material basically with shouting, control people basically with yelling.” “Calling the support department does not come half the time, and when it comes, it is like a quarrel.” This is all very typical of a site where lean production has not been introduced.

Here we can further confirm our earlier judgement of the management level of the company. It is simply summarised as follows: listen for abnormalities and recognise the state of affairs.

“Asking”: Get comments and feedback from the participants of the company on the current situation of the company and understand the company culture.

• Ask the workers on site, ask them a few questions and guide their answers to get the information we are looking for. Are you satisfied with your current job? Expect complaints and appreciation. (Look at employee satisfaction) Do you often make suggestions to your supervisor? Do you get feedback from your supervisor on the suggestions you make? Expect YES OR NO, and why. (to see if there is good communication between supervisors and supervisors, and if employees have the channels and willingness to participate in company improvements); Do you find your job difficult? Expect YES OR NO, and why. (look at the level of standardisation of operations); What do you think needs to be improved about your process? Expect a long list of problems to be solved or already solved. (See if the engineers are deep in the production line and what they can do); Do you find the job tiring? What is particularly tiring? Expect YES OR NO, and why. (Look at the level of ergonomics of the production line design)
• Ask the foreman what he deals with on a daily basis, what takes up the most time in his day and what is the most difficult. Through observation and conversation, we were able to understand the level of competence of the first level of management, the foreman. As manufacturing is basically at the end process of a manufacturing company, usually, the more complex the foreman line leader deals with, the better his ability is, indicating that the support department of the company is weak and the process is chaotic, resulting in the field managers having to deal with any abnormality, and therefore training the first level management cadre to be superbly competent.
• Ask the manager in charge to find out the experience experience capability of the people in charge of the manager level and how much they know about Lean. Observe their overall quality, attitude towards the company and their mental attitude. This is because this level of personnel plays a very important role in the promotion of Lean, as the so-called “ChangeAgency”, and their level of recognition and involvement in Lean will have a direct impact on success or failure. It is also possible to understand the management style of the company’s top management, whether it is a “one-man” or “one-woman” culture, whether it is a “family business culture” or a “partnership culture”. This will help you to determine the resistance to Lean implementation and the support for it.
• When asking the general manager, the key point to observe is why the leadership wants to implement Lean, and what are his expectations of Lean? How committed is he to Lean, is it 2000%, 100%, 80% or 50%, or is it negative? Leadership is the sponsor of the drive for Lean and at the beginning of the drive it is often a top-down drive, it is only at a later stage when a Lean culture has developed that bottom-up strength can be expected. Gaining the commitment of leadership is therefore a key point in the success or failure of Lean.

By purposefully ‘interviewing’ employees at all levels of the organisation, you can initially determine the resistance and support you are likely to encounter in implementing lean manufacturing in the organisation. By understanding the pain points and concerns at each level, you will have a good idea of what to expect. This can be summarised as follows: the top level asks about the business, the middle level asks about the heart, and the bottom level asks about the methods.

“Reasoning”: by walking and taking a first look at the data, the four streams and management indicators of the company’s logistics, information flow, time flow and capital flow are sorted out to take the pulse.

Combine with the observations of the previous three methods to further corroborate the judgement.

• First, sort out the logistics. Focus on the process flow and production layout. From the time materials enter the factory to the time finished products leave the factory, walk through each workshop along the process flow and draw a complete map of the entire logistics in your mind. In the process of walking, look at the process design, fixtures, equipment condition, the general layout of the line and the small layout of the stations to understand the overall level of the process. Initially measure the production line design beat, understand capacity bottlenecks, in-process stacking points, understand information transfer methods, key quality risk points, production planning points, material supply flow, finished product retreat, waste retreat routes, etc.
• Secondly, sort out the flow of information. Understand the information flow inside the whole value stream from order taking to delivery, the parallel relationship between each link, the frequency and method of communication of each link, the system modules used (ERP, SAP, MES, etc.), understand the traceability of product quality, understand the information acquisition points and content of acquisition in process control.
• The third reasoning, sorting out the time flow. Visit raw material warehouses and finished product warehouses to outline the time flow in your mind. Raw materials take a few days, processes take a few days, finished products take a few days, and roughly estimate the end-to-end cycle time from order taking to delivery. Find out what percentage of the quantity of stagnant goods (materials and finished goods) is in the warehouse and why.
• Four-pronged approach to sorting out financial flows. Understand the cost structure of the product (personnel, materials, maintenance, operations and other components of costs). Understand the company’s financial statements, focusing on the percentage of inventory, overheads, labour costs, material costs and other details that can be studied before visiting the factory.
• Five reasons to sort out management indicators. There are a number of management indicators used by factories in general, such as output value per capita, output value per unit area, productivity, yield rate, scrap rate and so on. Understanding why companies choose these indicators and how they are calculated, the many indicators and their trends can help us quickly understand how the company ranks in the industry, provided we have a metric in mind, of course. It can be simply summarised as: sort out the process, cut to the core and give the solution.