Everyone who has worked in a big company knows it: You have a good idea and want to see it become reality. What do you do? You take CIP formulary and fill it out. Write in your name, department, describe the current situation and what should be changed. You take this formulary and place it…
Some might look at things the way they are, and ask why? Others imagine things the way they could be, and ask why not? Some might collect many ideas and implement the ones that best fit the target, others define the best target and reach it with many ideas. Someone might do things right the…
You finished the project within time. That’s great! Well, it was really a team effort. Thanks to the detailed master plan we could achieve success delivering the project as expected. How did you manage to predict the exact duration of each task so well in advance? Actually the estimated times for each activity have differed…
Its astounishing how much a well designed Kaizen board is able to move in the Shopfloor. A clear visualizualization can boost the problem solving and problem prevention by making sure the management attention is at the right spot. To create a perfect shopfloor board, 3 levels should be considered. 1st the process transparency should be…
Stopped at a crossroad, completely alone. The traffic light is red. You can clearly see that there is no other car on the street. Not even a cyclist or pedestrian and yet, you wait… You wait for that little red lamp to turn off and another little lamp to turn on. “I am sure I…
In the videos below, two very different situations are shown: In the first video a crossroad with a traffic light is shown. The movement of the cars is quite well organized and a clear standard, traffic rules, is in place. In the second video another crossroad is shown. In this crossroad no traffic light or…
Last week, returning from work, I found myself stuck in traffic, waiting and waiting. Nothing seemed to go forward. Surprisingly when we reached and passed a traffic light, all the cars speeded up again.What just happened? Was it really only the traffic light that caused all the jam? It seemed like the road was able…
The only thing worse than seeing something done wrong is seeing it done slowly. But is there really reason to be upset? My boss once told me I lack passion and intensity. I guess he hasn’t seen me alone with a Big Mac. It’s just, I don’t work well under pressure or any other circumstance.…
The biggest kind of waste is needing to repair something after a mistake has been done. Therefore you need to do it right the first time! With this argumentation and thinking pattern I was confronted many times in my career. But is making a mistake really that bad? Is it worth o spend so much…
When someone says Lean Manufacturing, we often hear continuous improvement, optimization, cost reduction, efficiency increase, stock reduction, lead time reduction and many others. However, how many of us hear fun and joy? For what reason ever, Lean is not always linked to fun and joy. Of course, those who frequently practice Lean know very well……