Integrating Lean and Six Sigma for Breakthrough Process Improvement
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Continual Process Improvement
ISO 9001:2008 and ISO/TS 16949:2009 differ from previous quality system standards
in their strong emphasis on documenting and continually improving the organization's
product realization, management and supporting processes, which together make-up
all of a company's business processes. ISO 9001:2008 and ISO/TS 16949:2009 requires
organizations to define and document their business processes; and, to adopt a data
driven management process for achieving continual improvement of those business
processes.
As organizations study these new requirements for continual process improvement,
a few critical questions start to arise. How do we determine which business processes
should be included in our quality management system? How do we measure the effectiveness
and efficiency of those processes? What improvement methods should we adopt to achieve
continual improvement of those processes?
This paper will promote the idea that organizations should adopt an integrated approach
that deploys Lean Manufacturing principles combined with the Six Sigma quality improvement
methodology as the best in class process for achieving the continual improvements
required by ISO 9001:2002 and ISO/TS 16949:2009.
What is Lean?
Lean Thinking is a term coined by Jim Womack and Dan Jones to describe the underlying
concepts and principles of The Toyota Production System. Toyota has produced a paradigm
shift in the management of production processes when compared with the traditional
mass production model. Toyota has demonstrated that this new way of organizing and
managing production processes, now known as Lean Manufacturing, leads to breakthrough
levels of improvement in the productivity of labor, materials, facilities, tools
and equipment.
"Lean companies use less of everything when compared with traditional mass production
organizations, " lean companies bring into play:
- Half the human effort in the factory;
- Half the manufacturing space;
- Half the investment in tools and equipment;
- Half the engineering hours to develop new products in half the time;
- Less than 1/10th of the inventory;
- Far fewer defects;
- Much greater flexibility to respond to variations in customer demand.
Toyota has developed and refined its production system to achieve significant financial
advantage over more traditional mass producers. Toyota reported more profits for
the year 2002 than Ford, GM and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group reported in
combined profits. Toyota achieved this level of profitability with less than 10%
of the market while Ford, GM and the Chrysler Group, combined sales were approximately
60% of the market.
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