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What is Lean Manufacturing? Lean Manufacturing is the principle of increasing revenue not just by increasing sales but by reducing waste.

“Lean manufacturing or lean production, which is often known simply as “Lean”, is the practice of a theory of production that considers the expenditure of resources for any means other than the creation of value for the presumed customer to be wasteful, and thus a target for elimination. In a more basic term, more work with fewer people. Lean manufacturing is a generic process management philosophy derived mostly from the Toyota Production System.”
Source: Wikipedia

The Lean Manufacturing philosophy names seven major wastes that should be dealt with

• Over-production,
• Transportation,
• Waiting time,
• Processing,
• Motion,
• Inventory,
• Scrap.

The idea here is that when you are able to control the waste you will be able to control earnings and expenditure.

Lean, as in free from superficial baggage, aims to help manufacturers become more cost efficient and less wasteful. The principle follows a domino effect. If waste is reduced, the quality of the product is increased. If the quality of the product is increased, the production time and the production cost decreases. This whole scenario ends up with an increase in total revenue from sales.

If the process is able to minimize or eliminate any of the following listed below, then the production will be said to be “lean”. Also, with Lean Manufacturing follows greater income, greater quality, and less waste an interesting for any company whether they are already pulling down a good amount of revenue or if they are flagging in their sales.

Defects, Overproduction, Transportation, Waiting, Inventory, Motion, Processing

Process planning should adapt to current situations and should be critical of itself. Only then can there be any meaningful and productive change in the processing system.