for ways to do things better. Today, continuous improvement in manufacturing is almost synonymous with the advances made by Japanese heavy industry firms active after World War II. ‘Kaizen’, a Japanese word meaning ‘change for the better’ (or for our sake, ‘continuous improvement') is a household term in Japanese culture. When Kaizen was adopted into the world of modern manufacturing, it marked the beginning of a new era. Japanese automaker Toyota is the


heavy-hitting originator of many of the lean manufacturing practices used today. The well-known Toyota Production System (TPS) was developed to provide systematic and thoughtful solutions to some of the efficiency problems identified on factory floors.


Continuous Improvement and Lean Manufacturing Continuous improvement and Lean Manufacturing can be thought of as separate methodologies, but they have a lot in common. In fact, many Lean practitioners consider continuous improvement to be a basic tenet of Lean Manufacturing. While Lean comprises a larger set of tools and principles, its core aim is to bring about improvements in efficiency and quality.


Whether implemented as part of a broader Lean Manufacturing strategy or as a standalone process, continuous improvement is a constant and ongoing effort that usually progresses through incremental steps over time. It’s not generally seen as a complete system


®


change or overhaul, but rather a series of modifications (it’s more ‘evolution’ than ‘revolution’).


Continuous Improvement in Investment Casting: Eagle Precision’s Lean Manufacturing Journey The art of observation stands at the center of an effective continuous improvement program. There can be hundreds, even thousands, of places in the production process that are candidates for changes that could be beneficial to the overall workflow. In the case of Eagle Precision, we make sure key employees are trained in the principles and practice of continuous improvement. As part of their day-to-day activities, they perform regular production audits.


A production audit is a


comprehensive program of observation and system-tracking, where an employee conducts a holistic and detailed examination of the production processes and systems within a manufacturing facility.


A typical


production audit at a metalcasting foundry starts with a visual inspection on the factory floor. Here’s an example of how AJ Menefee, VP of Technical and Engineering at EPCP, conducts one of his factory walkthroughs: We’re doing a walkthrough until we see something and think, “Why are we doing it that way?” Then we start to investigate and see if there's a better way to do it. We start asking questions like, “Hey, have we looked at trying this to help reduce the gross weight so that we improve


the yield on that product?” Or we notice a certain common defect on a certain part all the time: what can we do to fix that, so we don't have to worry about it again?


and machine work


In continuous improvement, man closely


together


because team members must be trained to interpret and utilize data. Effective agents of continuous improvement are trained to study the entire production process with a keen eye, combining observations with hard data in order to support decisions that aim to better the production process. Continuous


improvement experts


like AJ are aided in their efforts by technology and systems that measure and report on various segments of the production process. For example, manufacturers can collect data on production


metrics like cycle times,


defect rates, and equipment downtime, in order to better predict delivery timelines as well as total production costs.


However, data alone doesn’t get the job done. Training personnel to appropriately utilize data and develop a sharp eye for snags in the production process is essential for success. By focusing on a particular machine to analyze metrics like its defect and downtime rates, a trained team can use a statistical approach to predict when a machine’s next downtime will likely occur. That knowledge can help


Eagle, Continued on pg 28 November 2024 ❘ 27


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