article thumbnail

Learning to See in 2023

The Lean Thinker

A plant manager asked me to build a map of the flows in his factory. With all of that information, I mapped out the factory’s flows. I learned a lot , not only about mapping a process, but about the way this factory functioned, and had pretty compelling evidence that the bottleneck was not what the common knowledge said it was.

article thumbnail

Reflections and Lessons From 1997

The Lean Thinker

to Rick from the factory where I had spent a week working with Mr. Shimura of Shingijutsu and Reiko, his interpreter. I was making the transition from teaching classes and running simulations to making real change in real factories (that weren’t mine!). MONDAY: 2 PERS 1 MACHINE. TODAY: 1 PERSON 2 MACHINES.

Factories 243
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Using OEE and MOM with older manufacturing equipment

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

The problem is that many factories are limited in this area because they have older legacy equipment. In the first blog, it was pointed out that any project to optimize manufacturing operations should start with a value stream mapping (VSM) exercise.

article thumbnail

Key challenges and solutions for the fabricated metals industry

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

The shift from oversupply to the current worldwide shortage has impacted raw materials, inbound logistics, the factory floor, and the outbound warehouse. Challenge: Skills gap on the factory floor. The metal fabrication industry faces challenges in finding and keeping qualified welders, finishers, and assemblers.

article thumbnail

How OEE and MOM can be used to streamline manufacturing

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

It involves using data to uncover and unlock value in different areas of a factory, such as: reducing inventory holding costs; increasing labor productivity; reducing machine downtime; increasing manufacturing throughput. In other words, VSM was an exercise, not part of a plan for improvement with a deployment strategy.

article thumbnail

The Russian Invasion, Cyber War, and Global Supply Chains

Logistics Viewpoints

In 2018 it was reported , for example, than an iPhone is assembled by workers at Foxconn’s factory in the Chinese city of Zhengzhou; and made of raw materials and components sourced from 43 nations. That reality makes one best practice particularly important; companies should have emergency plans in place.

article thumbnail

How to secure your ERP system

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

Physical security — A server in an office or a factory can be accessed, damaged or even stolen. The IT team responsible for the ERP application should also be an integral part of practice exercises for cyberattack response. That is why the cloud is a better security solution.

ERP 105