Lean Tools in Project Management
This article is an overview and summery of which available lean tools you might use in project management. The purpose of this article is to give an overview of lean and how to approach lean in project management. This article will cover the background of lean, lean in project management and what lean tools and techniques are used to make the quickest duration of a project with reducing quality defects and boost productivity levels. The crucial for a p.....
Background
Introduction to Lean
Lean has been adopted by manufacturing companies in the past thirty-years. The philosophy is from the Japanese automotive industry and was introduced in the very late 1930’s as the Toyota Production System (known as TPS). Lean is basically about creating value for the costumer by eliminating waste and the principles seeks to have an effective and efficient production. The TPS system was in the beginning dedicated to the manufacturing industry, but during the past years have lean been established as an overall optimization philosophy for all kind of business’.
The five principles of the philosophy:
- Identify value
- Identify the value stream
- Create Flow by eliminating waste
- Establish Pull
- Seek Perfection
Description of Principles
Identify value is mainly about realizing that only small amount of spend time in the company that adds value for the customer. The purpose of the first principle is to eliminate the non-value activities (waste) and identify the activities which make value for the product or service.
Identify the value stream or value stream mapping is typically when the product from the very beginning of its lifecycle and across all activities to the end process to the customer. By identifying the value stream and create an overview of all the activities in the process, the overview of non-value activates will be apparent.
Create flow by eliminating waste ensures service/product flows to the customer with only value added activities. With only value-added activities, the waste has been removed and the seven different kind of waste are eliminated. Activities described as waste; defects, overproduction, waiting, non-utilized talent, transportation, inventory, motion, extra processing. The different kind of waste will not be described more detailed, otherwise go to “The 8 wastes”.
Establish Pull is a part of the Just in Time (JIT) principles. Understanding customers demand and only produce what customer wants when the customer wants it. By creating the value-added activities to respond to that pull has been established.
Seek Perfection is the fifth and last principle in the philosophy. After achieving the first four steps continuous improvements must be a part of the philosophy in the company. The aim must be zero waste although it’s impossible. Involve every employee within your company which is a part of the value stream.
