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All posts from Mark Graban’s LeanBlog.org, including podcasts, announcements, articles, and more.

Toyota’s Huge Profits and a "Dark Side?"

Detroit News: Toyota posts $14B profit Catching up on the news from last week. “We believe our continuous efforts have steadily contributed to our record net revenues, operating income and net income,” said Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe. The quote about…

LeanBlog Podcast Survey

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As the LeanBlog Podcast reaches its 25th episode, I wanted to get some feedback from the listeners. About 1000 people download each Podcast, which is exciting and humbling at the same time. I appreciate y’all (or “you guys,” to my…

Are YOU Looking to Get Started?

Shop Management Lean Manufacturing – The Lean Question: How Soon Can I Get Started? – 04/07 From the not-so-widely read “Moldmaking Technology” magazine (no offense to mold makers)… Here’s a good “get going” kick-in-the-butt for those who are only considering…

Standard Work for Ice Cream

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No, not for home consumption, but I ended up with a 3 gallon tub of ice cream (used for a Lean batching vs single-piece flow demonstration in a work setting). I was a bit surprised to see such specific “standard…

Reminder: Contest Ending May 18

Here’s an update on the current LeanBlog Contest on visual management. There are three outstanding entries so far, ranging from a factory, a healthcare setting, and a home setting (visual methods for error proofing a pet’s daily shots). This really…

Is There "Standard Work" for Clinical Care?

Marketplace: Better health care through better information This commentator points out some shocking waste in the healthcare system: Although cancer doctors work long hours, they still fail, frequently, to provide therapies the medical evidence says the patient needs. Sometimes the…

We Need "Creativity Before Capital" in Hospitals

RFID tracks hospital’s devices Dallas Morning News News for Dallas, Texas Business This article was in the Dallas paper a week ago. It talks about a local hospital that is implementing fancy cabinets and an RFID tracking system for inventory…