Lean Approach as a Process Innovation

Abstract

In 1990, Womack and Jones introduced the lean manufacturing plan in their book "The Machine That Changed The World". Three years later (and in the affect of this book round the world) Lean Aerospace Initiative (LAI) established with the aim of studying the implementation of lean manufacturing in the aviation field. Company A, a manufacturing company, has been implementing the lean approach concept since the year 2013 and in this study, gradually progressing through 7 stages. This article discusses the progress of lean implementation as a process innovation and the outcomes it has achieved in Company A. To gain a comprehensive understanding of the process, a comparison was made with existing literature on lean implementation in the HMLV (High-mix-low-volume) industry and specifically in the aerospace industry. Company A had to make modifications to certain lean tools before applying them, while also utilizing some tools directly. Overall, the application of lean manufacturing (in other words process innovation) in Company A has resulted in a 70% increase in production effectiveness, a 60% reduction in production lead time and defects, and a 60% decrease in inventory.