Making Lean Work: “In-the-Trenches” Help from a World-Class Expert

Lean manufacturing can improve productivity and quality, shorten lead times, reduce costs, and improve competitiveness. However, succeeding with lean is not easy. Chris A. Ortiz, one of the country’s most respected lean implementers, shows you exactly how to overcome obstacles, drive value from lean, and sustain success for the long term.

Ortiz draws on his experience leading many successful lean transitions and more than 150 kaizen events. He shows you how to prepare for a lean shop floor environment, implement best practice procedures and standards, build executive support, lead kaizen within the factory, and deal with the ups and downs you will inevitably encounter.

Forget theory: This is a step-by-step, what-to-do guide for professionals in the trenches—plant and engineering managers, lean managers and directors, Six Sigma practitioners, and working engineers.

Topics covered include

• Seven reasons lean can fail—and how to overcome them
• Establishing successful kaizen programs: champions, events, teams, goals, tracking, and scheduling
• Avoiding early stumbling blocks in data collection, waste removal, and process design
• Getting your operators and supervisors to “buy into” lean
• Training managers, engineers, and new employees
• Promoting flexibility and cross-training
• Using lean to drive growth, not just save money
• Lean leadership made simple: twelve practical techniques, five simple rules—and ten things not to do
• Sample audit, tracking, and time study forms