‘Lean’ refers to a set of principles, and supporting tools and techniques to improve the Positive Jaws in a process.
To make more profit the aim is to add value and reduce waste within a process.
A process is defined as :
“a series of actions that you take in order to achieve a result” Cambridge English Dictionary
Each process has several characteristics:-
- Suppliers
- Inputs
- Individual steps
- Start and finish points
- Outputs
- Customers – internal or external
Note: Each process can feed into the next internal process OR can output to the customer
Every operation is made up of processes – no matter how special or bespoke an operation is, if you are honest, it can be thought of as “a series of actions that you take in order to achieve a result” ….
Now lets talk about the 5 Lean Principles that will guide us on our journey to Operational Excellence…..