Only the ability to change makes lean manufacturing success

Lean Production
Lean production and material flow principles are booming. Often in
the implementation of such strategies, however, made mistakes, they
make a success strongly questioned. The MM-We talked to the lean
experts Benno Löffler, Managing Partner of Vollmer & Scheffczyk GmbH
in Hanover.
Mr. Loeffler, there are key data, such as the minimum or maximum size
of a company that make a change you "diet" makes sense or nonsense?
Benno Löffler, Managing Partner of Vollmer GmbH & Scheffczyk: "It's
important for a sustainable improvement is that the ability to change
is rooted in the company." Image: Vollmer & Scheffczyk
Loeffler: Yes. At most, the opinion of top management, that should
any other difference. There is no company, which harms a broad
improvement culture. As a rule, but in particular needs to change his
habits, the top management and leadership tools.
What expectations these companies approach you, and how realistic do
you think this one in general?

Loeffler: In most cases it involves a combination of cycle time
reduction, inventory reduction, quality improvement, productivity
increase and change from medium-term improvement of their own culture.
The expectation of us is as implementation consulting then to change
along with the processes involved to achieve the goals and the
employees - to teach the craft improvement - quite incidentally.
How do you rate the knowledge of your customers in touch with you?
Loeffler: There are companies with little knowledge but great
implementation skills and go on the Lean journey. But unfortunately we
are seeing far too often the exact opposite: a lot of knowledge, but
without visible effect implementation. Especially in the latter case,
we work with our clients on a concrete management system to allow for
improvement work to be routine.
And how do you usually go to such a task?
Loeffler: At the beginning of each trip is a lean value stream
analysis. Only after that is completely clear what changes are
necessary to achieve expected benefits.
Where do you experience the most common mistakes made by the
restructuring of enterprises according to lean principles, where there
is the experience that the greatest difficulties to overcome on the
business side?
Loeffler: Since there are quite typical pitfalls: Lean is often
understood as a project and it is implemented a number of tools. The
management system remains the same, however. Then the people are
frightened by too much information and education.
Is also of little help that individual tools such as 5S, Kanban or
cell formation, are interpreted as "lean", but with a continuous
improvement remains sidelined. Is far too little but also thought that
Lean Benchmarking can and should replace thinking: Just by copying
company in the world has not yet reached a head start!
In addition, many companies to improve labor is viewed as the task of
a few who use Lean as a tool for continuous reduction of the team. And
finally, the management effort and the patience grossly underestimated
- in the worst case, Lean delegated to staff positions