Lean Pull Design Workshop

 

Everyone has heard of Kanban systems for "pulling" products through the plant based on product orders and replenishment of set levels of inventory for work in progress (WIP). The Pull system works better than pushing products through the factory as fast as possible based on predictions of orders.

 

Problems sometimes develop with using the Kanban Lean Pull system when the factory has a high mix of products. This is not the fault of Lean Pull but only that Kanban may not be the best method of Pull solution for the high mix plant.  There are altnerative Pull methods like CONWIP or Drum-Buffer-Rope.

 

Sylution's Pull Design Workshop is conducted in conjunction with our partners at Invistics. The workshop is an excellent beginning for your team to learn the best information about Lean Pull systems. The workshop can be performed at various levels from and introduction to Lean Pull Design to a multi-day workshop that begins with a site assessment by a LEAN expert.  The workshops are designed to help the client buy a solution that works best for their site rather than to be sold a system.

 

 

 

Pull Design Workshop Goals

1. Building organizational consensus on how lean best practices can be successfully implemented in your high-mix environments. This marries Invistics’ experience in high-mix industries with the organization’s need to understand how to make lean successful in their non-automotive environment.

  • Execution: What type(s) of pull is best for your company?: Kanban, CONWIP, Drum-Buffer-Rope, etc.? Should postponement be utilized? Can simple physical cards be used to communicate replenishment signals, or is Lean Execution software required? If software is required, where will the data come from?

  • Planning: What is the optimal inventory levels for each raw material, work in process, and finished goods part/item? What are the optimal lot sizes/batch sizes/campaign sizes/rhythm wheel frequencies, and how can these rhythm wheels be synchronized across the supply chain? Can simple rules-of-thumb be used to optimize these planning parameters, or is Lean Planning software required? If software is required, where will the data come from?

  • Scalability & Sustainability: What processes will ensure the benefits scale across the company and are sustained for years to come? Can manual, home-grown tools like Excel, or existing software packages like Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) meet this need?

2. Constructing a compelling business case showing the benefits and costs of implementing these best practices. This motivates the organization to begin the change process.

3. Designing a pilot project to implement the best practices and prove the business case in a rapid, 3-4 month pilot. This builds confidence in the scalable, sustainable business case prior to a full roll-out to the entire business.

No obligation. The workshop outcome may be education, or it may help the client begin manual use of a new tool.

 

The custom Pull Design Workshop is affordable and an excellent start to training a large number of attendees. We can schedule this upon issue of PO or payment by credit card.

Click here for a PDF on the Pull Design Workshop.