| The concepts of lean originated from Japanese | | | | feedback |
| culture where balance, harmony, discipline and | | | | |
| group organisation are central themes – it is | | | | The Business Improvement Layer |
| not enough to use one element, they are more | | | | The next layer is the business improvement layer |
| effective when used all together. Similarly, in | | | | which includes elements regarding improvement |
| manufacturing the use of lean manufacturing | | | | and enhancement. This includes six elements: |
| beyond one department such as the plant floor | | | | 1. Eliminating waste |
| that make a lean initiative more effective. | | | | 2. The Five S's (organising, cleaning, developing and |
| Having an organisation wide lean initiative can be | | | | sustaining work environment) |
| viewed as using all the different elements of lean. | | | | 3. Visual Cues |
| There are three different elements, these include: | | | | 4. Documented procedures and instructions |
| 1. The business value stream layer | | | | 5. Error proofing |
| 2. The business environment layer; and the | | | | 6. Six Sigma and lean quality |
| 3. Business strategies and tools layer | | | | The Business Strategy Layer |
| | | | | The top layer is the business strategy layer which |
| The Business Value Stream Layer | | | | includes specific applied methodoligies. It is used to |
| According to Womack and Jones 1996 definitions | | | | monitor the business transitions which include: |
| of the business value stream later, there are five | | | | customer order placement, customer order |
| main steps to achieving lean transition for | | | | production, customer order fulfilment, customer |
| organistions. These steps are the base layer to | | | | service order taking, and material receipt and |
| the holistic approach and it sets the tone for how | | | | insection. |
| organisation plan to serve its customers. The five | | | | Once an organisation begins to embrace the lean |
| steps are: | | | | philosophy, each department can realise the |
| 1. Defining value based on the customers point of | | | | significant benefits. |
| view | | | | That is why Infor Enterprise Resource Planning |
| 2. Record the value streams for all processes | | | | Software can help you to apply all the different |
| serving internal and external customers | | | | elements of lean to reduce your operational costs, |
| 3. Make the activities flow efficiently | | | | eliminate waste, improve efficiency and adopt lean |
| 4. Respond to customer demand | | | | manufacturing processes in your organisation. |
| 5. Continuously improve the processes based on | | | | |