According to W. Edwards Deming, American companies require nothing less than a transformation of management style and of governmental relations with industry. In Out of the Crisis, originally published in 1982, Deming offers a theory of management based on his famous 14 Points for Management. Management's failure to plan for the future, he claims, brings about loss of market, which brings about loss of jobs. Management must be judged not only by the quarterly dividend, but by innovative plans to stay in business, protect investment, ensure future dividends, and provide more jobs through improved product and service. In simple, direct language, he explains the principles of management transformation and how to apply them.

Out of the Crisis

Purpose - This paper aims to investigate the definition of Lean Production and the methods and goals associated with the concept as well as how it differs from other popular management concepts. Methodology/Approach - The paper is based on a review of the contemporary literature on Lean Production, both journal articles and books. Findings - It is shown in the paper that there is no consensus on a definition of Lean Production between the examined authors. The authors also seem to have different opinions on which characteristics that should be associated with the concept. Overall it can be concluded that Lean Production is not clearly defined in the reviewed literature. This divergence can cause some confusion on a theoretical level, but is probably more problematic on a practical level when organizations aim to implement the concept. This paper argues that it is important for an organization to acknowledge the different variations, and to raise the awareness of the input in the implementation process. It is further argued that the organization should not accept any random variant of Lean, but make active choices and adapt the concept to suit the organization-s needs. Through this process of adaptation, the organization will be able to increase the odds of performing a predictable and successful implementation. Originality/Value - This paper provides a critical perspective on the discourse surrounding Lean Production, and gives an input to the discussion of the implementation of management models. Keywords - Lean Production, Definition, Construct Validity, Total Quality Management Paper type - Conceptual paper

https://www.ep.liu.se/ecp/033/025/ecp0803325.pdf

Defining Lean Production : Some conceptual and practical issues

This study aims to review the literature in green supply chain management (GSCM) published from 1998 to 2017 and presenting insights and directions for future research. The study collects data from Scopus and ISI Web of Science databases and objectively selects 880 papers and conducts metadata analysis. In addtion, 236 papers from ISI Web of Science is analyzed to present the insights along with the classifications of the literatures based on content analyses, which comprises of conceptual development, drivers and barriers, collaboration with supply chain partners, mathematical and other optimization models, and assessment of green supply chain management practices and performance. The study finds that research on drivers or barriers analysis of green supply chain management reveals a declining trend while there is a growing trend of applying mathematical optimization models for enhancing decision making in pursuit of environmental performance. Moreover, the study finds a consistent growth in the evaluation of green supply chain management practices and performance. Though, the concept of green supply chain management started gaining popularity among academicians from the beginning of the 20th century, this study finds a sharp growth of publications on the topic after 2010 until now. This study identifies influential authors, top journals, top contributing countries, top contributing institutions and contribution by disciplines. This study presents a comprehensive but straightforward conceptual model of green supply chain management. The findings and future research directions of the study offers a new avenue for further exploration and contribution to this discipline.

A literature review on green supply chain management: Trends and future challenges

Supplier selection among SMEs on the basis of their green innovation ability using BWM and fuzzy TOPSIS

Application of fuzzy VIKOR for evaluation of green supply chain management practices

This paper presents an exploratory study of lean manufacturing implementation in Malaysian automotive industries. A questionnaire survey is used to explore the extent of lean manufacturing implementation. This paper also examines the drivers and barriers that influence the implementation of lean ma nufacturing. The survey was performed on sixty Malaysian automotive components manufacturing firms. The respondents were chosen from those who are directly involved with lean manufacturing practices such as production and quality personnel. The findings show that most of the respondent firms are classified as in-transition towards lean manufacturing practice. These in-transition firms have moderate mean values for each of the five lean manufacturing practice categories. It is also found that these firms spend more attentions and resources in internal areas such as firms' operation and management, compared to external relationships with suppliers and customers. These firms believe that the factors that drive the implementation of lean manufacturing are the desire to focus on customers and to achieve the organisation's continuous improvement. The results from this survey also revealed the main barriers that prevent or delay the lean implementation. The main barriers to implement lean manufacturing system are the lack of understanding lean concepts and shop floor employees' attitude.

A survey on lean manufacturing implementation in Malaysian automotive industry

Lean manufacturing system has been widely applied in manufacturing companies worldwide. However, the low success rate of lean transformations in many countries has given a cause for concern. Much of the literature had pointed out that the main reason is due to the failure in managing the change process during a lean manufacturing transformation. This paper presents a thorough literature review for lean manufacturing approach in the context of organisational change management. Finally, the authors have proposed an organisational change framework for lean manufacturing implementation that would serve as the basis for further empirical research and validation. The framework will further expand the body of knowledge by linking organisational change management with the transition to implementing a lean manufacturing system.

A framework for organisational change management in lean manufacturing implementation

Problem statement: 5S practice is one of the techniques to improve qua lity environment, health and safety at the workplace. Evaluation of 5 S practice can be done through implementation of 5S audit at each division in the company. Approach: Through 5S audit, it enables each company to identify the potential level of quality improvement and at the same time can analyze their ability and weakness of each division in the company. Therefore, in order to assess the implementation of 5S practice, two manufacturing companies were involved in this study. Results: The study started with understanding background of the company, recognizing divisions to be assessed in the company and come out with the complete 5S checklist for each di vision for auditing process. Based on the result, both companies basically perform an excellent 5S pr actice, but there are a few weaknesses that still need to be considered such as arrangement of the do cuments, tool and equipment. Conclusion/Recommendations: Moreover, both companies agreed that the 5S pract ice is seen as an effective technique that can improve housekeeping, environmental performance, health and safety standards in their workplace. However, effort and p articipation from top management is a key factor that determines the success of the 5S practice.

Implementation of 5S Practices in the Manufacturing Companies: A Case Study

Problem statement: The study investigated the prevalence of Musculosk eletal Disorders (MSD) among workers who perform the Manual Material Handling (MMH) task in an automotive manufacturing plant in Malaysia. A cross sectional study was carried out among the workers in an automotive manufacturing plant. Approach: Respondents were selected through random sampling. Then, a Body Parts Symptoms Survey (BPSS) data sheets were given to the workers to obtain the prevalence of MSD among them. Later, a few workers were selected based on the In-House Clinic (IHC) visitations data for interviews. Results: Five hundreds workers showed that the highest prevalence of MSD was Low Back Pain (LBP). It was found from interviews of 17 workers who had 3 or more visitation times to the IHC that the main r eason of the ergonomic risk comes from the task tha t they perform. It was found that the highest prevale nce of MSD was lower back pain, followed by pain at feet/ankle and pain at upper back regions. Almos t one third of the study populations claimed to fee l uncomfortable to their upper back and lower back. Conclusion: It was concluded that the back pain the workers are experiencing may be a result of the ir ignorance in the correct and ergonomic techniques in materials handling.

/pdf/work-related-musculoskeletal-disorders-among-workers-ec94hhtisi.pdf

Baba Md Deros

Papers

A survey on lean manufacturing implementation in Malaysian automotive industry

A framework for organisational change management in lean manufacturing implementation

Implementation of 5S Practices in the Manufacturing Companies: A Case Study

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders among workers' performing Manual Material Handling work in an automotive manufacturing company

A Study on Ergonomic Awareness among Workers Performing Manual Material Handling Activities