Since the end of the 21/22 campaign, Lean Manufacturing or continuous improvement began to be implemented in the Alzira and Alhama facilities, but what is Lean?
Lean Manufacturing is a management philosophy focused on maximising value not only for the customer but for the whole company and the people who make it up, through the reduction or elimination of waste and the continuous improvement of processes. In addition, an important point is the digitisation and reliability of information.
It originated in the Japanese automotive industry in the 1950s and was popularised by Toyota in the 1970s. The main focus of Lean Manufacturing is to improve quality, reduce costs and increase efficiency.
The wastes it seeks to eliminate or reduce are:
Overproduction: producing more than is needed, which generates unnecessary costs and the rest of the waste.
Defects: producing defective products that must be reprocessed or eliminated.
Waiting: any downtime waiting for a task to be completed or materials to be received.
Overprocessing: performing operations or tasks that are not necessary to produce the final product.
Transport: moving materials or products from one place to another without adding value.
Movements: unnecessary movements of people that are not ergonomically optimised and do not add value.
Inventory: holding large amounts of inventory to meet demand, which generates storage costs and possible obsolete material.
In summary, Lean Manufacturing has many benefits for the company, including reduced costs, improved quality, increased efficiency, improved lead time, greater flexibility and staff involvement. These benefits can help us improve profitability, become more competitive and increase customer satisfaction.