New 5S Store Offerings
There are some new offerings from our sponsor, The 5S Store (www.5sstore.com). I’ve ordered items from them and am happy to report that you get very personal service from folks at The 5S Store. First, we now have a TPM…
Month April 2007
My Stack of Books: Raw Material and WIP
I love books. I’d also love to have more time to read books, or finish books. People often ask me what I’m reading. Here’s what I’m trying to read or am wanting to read: “WIP” — started, but haven’t finished…
Seth Godin Got "Kanban" Wrong
Seth’s Blog: In praise of a blank page I don’t expect “lean expertise” from marketing blogger Seth Godin (it’s nice he often mentions lean concepts), but he got some details about lean wrong and he doesn’t allow reader comments on…
Thoughts on Handwashing in Healthcare from David Mann
Some good discussion was raised in my original post, where I was thinking out loud about what Lean management methods you should use to get clinical healthcare providers to wash their hands 100% of the time, in the name of…
L.A.M.E.: Thinking Lean = "Zero Inventories"
When inventory is not waste – The Manufacturer.com It’s unfortunate that one of the early (1983) popular books about lean (or “just in time,” as was the fashion of the day) was titled “Zero Inventories.” Many people who didn’t read…
100% is the Only Goal for Hospital Hand Hygiene
Ledger-Enquirer | 03/27/2007 | Campaign’s goal is to reduce infections To those who might have thought I overstated the situation with hand washing in hospitals, here’s another article about maintaining proper hygiene among hospital staff and caregivers. One particular risk…
Training Within Industry Article
IndustryWeek : TWI Promotes Quick Training, Standard Work Here’s an article about the Training Within Industry program, a key foundation of the Toyota Production System. The article features Jim Huntzinger and mentions his upcoming TWI Summit. You can listen to…
Industry and Health Insurance
Heath Care – New York Times Long, but interesting, piece in the Sunday Times about the history of how we got to the point of companies providing healthcare. No, and it’s not an article calling for a single-payer system (nor…
Greatest Asset, My…
Circuit City’s harsh layoffs give glimpse of a new world First off, Circuit City is not a “Lean” company. So when people ask “is Lean always good for employees?,” you can also ask “when is traditional management always good for…
Challenges to "Respect for People"?
UAW, Toyota workers to talk We often talk about Toyota and “respect for people” as one of their main pillars. I’m sure most of us paint a pretty idealistic picture of Toyota when we talk to others: Safety and Quality…
Mark on the “Better Process” Podcast
PodcasterNews – Industry Report Mark and Dwight for a Lean Roundtable I am appearing again on Ken Rayment’s “Better Process” Podcast, the link is above. In the podcast, Dwight Bowen (of the Lean Thinking Network) and I both discuss Lean…
Workers, Supervisors, and Respect
The End of the Line as They Know It – New York Times The link above is an article about “Detroit Three” employees taking voluntary buyouts. There are some insights into the working world of the plants these employees leave…