AstraZeneca Improves with Lean Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 6 January 2010 | 8:02 pm
AstraZeneca, one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies, is starting the year 2010 right. Already, it is working with Genpact to improve its processes and service.
According to an article on CIO, Genpact will be focusing on “processes affecting procure-to-pay, record-to-report and order-to-cash functions. It will implement Lean Six Sigma management and development methodology.”
Graham Russell, head of global transactional finance at AstraZeneca, said that streamlining business processes would enable the company “to improve the effectiveness” of its finance function “in driving, measuring and reporting business performance”. It would also cut operational costs.
Filed under: Lean Six Sigma, Pharmaceuticals, Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, AstraZeneca
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Ten Commandments of Lean Manufacturing & Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 20 December 2009 | 7:57 pm
Filed under: Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma
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Driving Lean for Year-end Savings
Posted by: meikah | 14 December 2009 | 9:04 pm
An article on Industry Week talks about how to achieve savings at the end of the year, and as you close your books. The formula is:
Minimizing Tax Liabilities + driving Lean Manufacturing = Year-end SavingsÂ
Opportunities for tax savings have never been better. In fact, many manufacturers are minimizing tax liabilities by identifying depreciation and R&D tax credits as they continue their pursuit of lean initiatives.
*Photo from iStockPhoto
Filed under: Benefits and Savings, Finance, Lean Manufacturing, Lean, Six Sigma
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The SixSig Roundup
Posted by: meikah | 14 December 2009 | 8:17 pm
It’s time again for some link-loving and see what other blogs are saying about Six Sigma, Lean, Lean Six Sigma and other quality improvement processes.
Jeff Pruit of Fort Wayne Politics online writes that Indianapolis takes Six Sigma to its illogical conclusion. Read on…
Over at Lean Manufacturing Blog, the role of Six Sigma in supply chain is discussed. A manufacturer can provide a quality which is highly dependent on – The Suppliers and the suppliers of suppliers. Read on…
Today’s Six Sigma features the most FAQs about Six Sigma. Many companies have heard of Six Sigma, but most have no idea what it actually is or how it works. Read on…
Over at Management Care: Project Management blog, Aaron Gonzalez writes about using Six Sigma to improve productivity by Wafer Fab. Read on…
Going Beyond Lean Six Sigma and the Balanced Scorecard blog shares the one-day Integrated Enterprise Excellence (IEE) business management system Strawman creation to share with executives. Read on…
Filed under: Lean Manufacturing, Project Management, Six Sigma
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Six Sigma and Lean Manufacturing
Posted by: meikah | 30 November 2009 | 10:14 pm
The Waste Handling Equipment blog points out what happens when you integrate Six Sigma and Lean Manufacturing. The benefits are:
- improved quality and reduced errors
- reduced waste
- improved productivity
- reduced inventory
- flexibility
- safe work environment
Filed under: Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma
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Accenture Launches Lean Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 29 October 2009 | 8:19 pm
Accenture, a global management consulting firm, will be launching Lean Six Sigma to boost productivity.
The firm will introduce the Lean Six Sigma program to the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
According to Mr. Yemi Adetunji, Senior Director, Energy at Accenture, says,
“the programme, when embedded into the oil and gas industry would poise the firms for more efficiency, as reduces input because it requires less cost on labour, material, capital equipment and power/energy and ultimately increase productivity.”
Filed under: Lean Six Sigma, Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, Accenture
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Lean and Beer Production
Posted by: meikah | 11 October 2009 | 7:42 pm
Molson Coors Brewing Company has under a year of operation yet. But, perhaps due to the economic slump and stiff competition, the technicians of the company realize that there is a better way to make beer: to be leaner, operationally.
If employees were to work 10- to 12-hour shifts for four days straight (and earn Fridays off), they found there would be at least a quarter less time wasted starting up and winding down operations, allowing brewing to take place 24-7.
“They’ve come back and said if we were to run our brewing operation with two guys, around the clock for the amount of time it takes to brew, then we would be more productive than if we were to do it with eight-hour windows,” said Tim Farley, packaging team leader at the Moncton brewery.
“The decision making and empowerment really came from the shop floor.”
Filed under: Manufacturing, Lean Manufacturing, Lean
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Application of Lean Manufacturing to Software and IT Development
Posted by: meikah | 17 September 2009 | 7:59 pm
Over at Evolving Excellence is a good discussion on how to apply lean manufacturing principles to software and IT development.
The discussion was an interview of Mary and Tom Poppendieck with Matt Heusser. Some of the insights from the interview:
- Get all workers deeply involved in analyzing feedback from the market and rapidly figuring out how to act on that feedback.
- Lean provides the theory behind Agile practices. Lean is a set of principles, ways of thinking, from which Agile practices are derived
- An underlying concept of Lean is that if you can’t create small independent-thinking teams, you can’t respond rapidly in the face of continuous change.
- Try to put in constant improvement. Try to get closer to the customers. Look at the big picture, not just software.
Read the post on Evolving Excellence and read the interview.
Filed under: Software/Technology, Lean Manufacturing, Lean, IT
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Hospital CEOs Improve Health Service Through Lean and Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 10 September 2009 | 8:48 pm
In the face of U.S. President Barack Obama’s proposed health care reform, CEOs take it as a time to improve their services. The task may be daunting and costly, but the CEOs believe that they can do it with the help of Toyota Productions System, Lean Manufacturing, and Six Sigma.
An article on USA Today reports:
Criticism came from almost every corner leading up to Obama’s speech before Congress on Wednesday night, yet many hospital CEOs aren’t complaining, at least not publicly. They say that the hospitals they run are rife with inefficiency and that they are optimistic that the $155 billion in savings is do-able with the help of business disciplines, such as the Toyota Production System, lean manufacturing and Six Sigma.
Via: iSixSigma News
Filed under: Healthcare, Lean Manufacturing, Lean, Six Sigma
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Lean Accounting at Watlow Electric
Posted by: meikah | 23 August 2009 | 8:01 pm
From the word, Lean, we can assume that Lean Accounting is putting lean iniatiatives to accounting tasks or better yet, incorporating lean principles with accounting principles.
An article on IndustryWeek online discusses how Lean Accounting is making a big difference in the operations of Watlow Electric. The company calls it value stream management.
Some of which are:
- A simpler accounting methodology
- Business units have been identifying their value streams and posting simplified operational and financial data for each value stream on a weekly basis.
- Even though right now the economy is down, Watlow-Hannibal is growing the business because people understand the costs better.
Ed Grinde, business unit controller for Watlow Electric Manufacturing Co.’s Hannibal, Mo. operations, suggests nine ways to implement Lean Accounting or value stream mapping.
- Get the support from upper management.
- Make everyone understand that lean is a growth strategy-not a cost-cutting strategy.
- Identify properly the value streams.
- Don’t try to attain perfection before setting up your value streams.
- Keep metrics and methods simple and manual in the beginning.
- Do not set hard goals.
- Value stream leaders need autonomy to be “little general managers.”
- Put as much of your costs as possible directly into the value streams.
- Use the five principles of lean as your criteria to make decisions.
