It starts with a question: “What’s the worst that can happen?” Sounds like the sentiment underlying any over-the-top movie centered on a buddy’s bachelor party.

Lean manufacturing was originally focused on the manufacturing floor, but its methodologies have reached all levels of operations, from procurement to marketing. It has been adopted across a range of industries, from healthcare to hospitality.

Many manufacturers still rely on manual or paper-and-spreadsheet data management. The real value of their richest information source—plant floor data—remains untapped.

How LVHN used Lean Six Sigma tools and Minitab statistical analysis to achieve improvements in patient-centered care.

Lean manufacturing (or thinking) can help companies gain a competitive advantage. The core idea is to maximize customer value while minimizing waste (and not compromising productivity).

Lean approaches are helpful for the development and maintenance of documentation compliant with ISO Management System Standards (MSS). These standards include ISO 9001, ISO 13485, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, and many others.

Jeopardy! has been in the news lately. The iconic game show has spent some time choosing a new host since the passing of the legendary Alex Trebek.

When researching material for my thesis many years ago, I discovered there was no “silver bullet” for the organizational model for a continuous improvement effort. There is no single model that works for everyone; it varies from organization to organization.

I’ve been pleased to see so many organizations embrace a robust approach to quality improvement through methods like Lean and Six Sigma. There are indeed some detractors out there, but for the most part these are people that have observed failed deployments of quality initiatives. 

The single most important thing manufacturing leaders can do to engage their employees is to share the ‘why’ behind their daily work, says Kathleen Skarvan, CEO at New Prague, MN-based Electromed—Quality’s 2021 Plant of the Year.