The Consequences of Not Doing Jidoka

Jidoka is very popular with the product quality inspectors, who check items at the end of the production process. That’s because Jidoka ensures that a defect is identified and corrected immediately and not at the end of the process. This, therefore, reduces the pressure on a process engineers relying on final inspection.

So what happens if you don’t employ Jidoka? Here are four consequences of not doing so:

1) Risk of Overproduction
Take a factory not using the Toyota Production System. The machinery maybe is state-of-the-art, but as the company hasn’t embraced Jidoka, there is a risk that it may produce more parts that is actually needs to.

Why? Well, imagine that a brake crank case assembly line develops a tiny defect. The problem is so small that it doesn’t stop production, but at the same time the machinery can no longer be relied upon to produce quality components. Worse still, because the machinery is not programmed to identify faults, the issue only comes to light after stringent testing at the end of the production process. All the components that have been produced have to be consigned to the bin at considerable cost to the company.

2) Lost Labor
There are other costs to consider too. Not only has the company lost money on its defective stock, it has also had to pay machine operators to carry out the work, which is additional waste.

3) Transportation Time
Imagine all the components that go into manufacturing a brake crank. Now imagine all the different journeys each defective component would have made before finally being scrapped.

4)  Re-Processing Time
Without a Jidoka system in place, it could be that the machinery cannot be used for a day or two until the original supplier sends one of its people to the plant to fix the faulty apparatus. Once back on line, there is no guarantee that the machinery won’t break again.

However, if the Jidoka method had been used, the facility project manager would have been able to access a database which would have helped him or her to identify why it malfunctioned in the first place, and when it is most vulnerable to break-down.

The sooner the problem is detected, the easier it is to fix and the smaller the impact.  Thus, one of the important parts of Lean is to be able to detect problems, raise them quickly, analyze and fix.
What are some of the other consequences of not using Jidoka to control quality?

Improve Quality Control with Intelligence (Jidoka)

Courtesy of Lean.org

There is no room for compromise in Lean when it comes to quality. Jidoka incorporates quality checks into every step of the production process by providing machines and operators the ability to detect when an abnormal condition has occurred and immediately stop work. This enables operations to build in quality at each process and to separate men and machines for more efficient work.

The term Jidoka used in TPS (Toyota Production System) can be defined as "automation with a human touch." At Toyota this usually means that if an abnormal situation arises the machine stops and the worker will stop the production line. Autonomation prevents the production of defective products, eliminates overproduction and focuses attention on understanding the problem and ensuring that it never recurs.

It is a quality control process that applies the following four principles:

1. Detect that something has gone wrong.
2. Stop.
3. Fix the immediate condition.
4. Investigate the root cause and install a countermeasure.

Jidoka highlights the causes of problems because work stops immediately when a problem first occurs. This leads to improvements in the processes that build in quality by eliminating the root causes of defects. In this way, Jidoka is often used in conjunction with structured problem-solving tools.

The implementation of Jidoka relies on a mix of cultural concepts and Lean tools that are summarized below.

Developing a Jidoka mindset. Many people are trained to react to problems and to put in place quick fixes. The concept is to keep things running for as long as possible and work around problems as quickly as possible. A Jidoka mindset is different in that it says that, in the long run, efficiency will come from addressing the root cause of problems and that investing time in solving problems is a valuable investment.

Empowering staff to ‘stop the line’. Do your staff feel that they are empowered to say ‘stop’ when they see an unsafe act or a problem occurring? Many organizational cultures, through the words and actions of managers, disempower staff from stopping a process. Developing a culture where people feel that they are able to raise a real issue – and that far from being penalized they will actually be thanked for raising the issue – is very important in jidoka.

Installing andons. Andons are audible, or more commonly visual, signals that something has happened.  The aim is that andons quickly alert managerial and technical staff to a problem having arisen so that they can get to the source of the problem and begin to investigate it.

Solving the root cause. Quick fixes are typically just that. Jidoka relies on the implementation of an immediate fix to stem the potential damage and on the longer-term fix that comes through root cause analysis.

Utilizing standard work. Having implemented the changes it is vital to document what has been done and to carry out any training required on the new process.

Selective automation. Selective automation is about investing in technology to detect – and more ideally prevent – errors arising wherever there is a business case to do so. This means wherever there is either a high probability that things will repeatedly go wrong, or where a problem arising has significant impact (such as the ability to cause harm), then it means investing in sensors and other systems to enable you to control the process and detect problems as early as possible.

As you can see, Jidoka combines the concepts of mistake proofing, TPM, standard work, structured problem solving and the creation of a Lean Culture – the clustering of concepts under one heading is a feature of many higher level Lean tools and concepts. Jidoka is about quality at source, or built in quality; no company can survive without excellent quality of product and service and Jidoka is the route through which this is achieved.

Lean Quote: Enjoyment Should Always Be The Goal

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"Live and work but do not forget to play, to have fun in life and really enjoy it." — Eileen Caddy

Enjoyment should always be the goal. Work can be play.

We get so caught up in busyness that we forget to enjoy what we’re doing. Even when we focus on working smarter, we’re still often too focused on getting things done.

This should never be the point. Always ask yourself: What can I do to spend more time enjoying what I’m doing?

The goal should be to arrange your commitments in a way that you’re happy living out the details of your daily life, even while you’re working.

This may sound like a pipe dream, but it’s more possible than ever in today’s world. Be curious. Be open to opportunity. Know yourself. Embrace your passions.

Wonderful things will happen.

 

The Missing M & M

In today's economy many companies are looking for cost savings.  Eliminating muda (waste) is the focus of most lean manufacturing efforts.  But two other M's are just as important to making lean work.  In fact, focusing on only the eight wastes of muda can actually hamper productivity.  Lean is about the elimination of muda, muri, and mura.

The three M's are:

Muda – Non-value-added activities associated with the 8
              wastes

Muri  – Overburdening people of equipment

Mura – Unevenness in your system

Focusing on muda is the most common approach to implementing lean because it is easy to identify and eliminate waste.  Unfortunately, those companies fail to understand the connection of the three M's.  Stabilizing the system and creating balanced flow is essential to eliminating the three M's

Unevenness happens when volumes move up and down temporarily.  This is created by changes in the production schedule, previous processes "pushing" material to the next process, or perhaps empty containers stacking up at processes.  Customer orders, machine breakdowns, quality problems, and large production lots are all causes of mura.  Leveling out the schedule, heijunka, is fundamental to eliminating mura, which is fundamental to eliminating muri and muda.

Systems that have starts and stops, overutilization then underutilization, do not lend themselves to quality, standardization of work, productivity, or continuous improvement.  Taiichi Ohno explains this point from the tortoise and the hare fable:

The slower but consistent tortoise causes less waste and is much more desirable than the speedy hare that races ahead and then stops occasionally to doze.  The Toyota Production System can be realized only when all the workers become tortoise.

You can start eliminating muri and mura in your process today through the same observations for eliminating muda.  As you watch your process try to understand what is happening to cause the fluctuations resulting in the unevenness.  Look for signs of overburdening people physically (muscles tightening, gripping tightly, straining, excessive reaches, and others) and mentally (watch employees' eyes, frowning, squinting).

As you look for more gains in your process don't focus just on muda but all three M's.  Hopefully with your new eyes for improvement you will not forget the other M's.  Muda, Muri, and Mura are all interconnected and eliminating all sources of inefficiencies will produce the most gain.  

Yokoten, Best Practice Sharing Across Everywhere

Yokoten is a Japanese term that can be roughly translated as "across everywhere." In the Japanese lean system, it is used to mean "best practice sharing." Yokoten, the term Toyota adopted to capture the idea of horizontal transfer of information and knowledge across an organization. Yokoten encourages sharing of data across the organization.

To Yokoten is to spread across or propagate. This is like the multiplying of saplings in nature from a large tree to many new trees. The new trees will grow in the proper soil and weather conditions. However, each new tree will grow and adapt differently to their unique environment. They are not clones, but take on a life of their own. This is true of Yokoten as well. It is not just a “go and see and then copy.”

Yokoten is horizontal, or more peer-to-peer, with the expectation that people go see for themselves and learn how another area did kaizen. In Yokoten at Toyota there is an expectation that copying a good idea will be followed by some added kaizen to that idea.

Inside of organizations, there is so much untapped knowledge. To combat this, over the past two decades, companies have invested millions of dollars in knowledge management systems. The objective has been to capture the company’s knowledge. Yokoten is a form of knowledge management. It encompasses the methods of documenting and distributing knowledge about what works and what doesn't. As a knowledge management device, Yokoten makes knowledge organizational, not individual. Yokoten is a two-way street, requiring proactive effort from both those acquiring and developing the knowledge and those who could benefit from greater understanding of the requirements for success.

If others are doing well, people tend to be interested in what they are doing and how they're doing it, so that they, too, can be successful. Sharing best practices is a key part attributing to the success of any organization. Similar to the old saying, "Learn from other's mistakes," it's important to learn from individual experiences, but it's much easier and more effective to learn from the experiences, mistakes and successes of others.

Much of best practice knowledge is tacit - held in people's heads and not always easy to document. Therefore, most best practice programs combine two key elements: explicit knowledge such as a best practices database (connecting people with information), and methods for sharing tacit knowledge such as communities of practice (connecting people with people). Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly. These two approaches are complementary. A database can provide enough information for a potential user of the best practice to find it and decide if it is worth pursuing further. However, the best way of sharing best practices is 'on the job' and so communities and personal contact with others who have used the best practice is key.

Yokoten is an essential part of long-term success in a lean culture, but can also have a big impact on short-term results. Yokoten is a success multiplier. Senior leaders must actively go see, recognize good work and require others to go see. Management must organize presentations of successful kaizen projects and invite colleagues to attend and learn. Team and department leaders must actively engage members in studying kaizen examples, motivating them to start kaizen on their own. Project leaders and continuous improvement professionals must put Yokoten on their checklists and follow up rigorously.

Regardless of your path on the Lean journey, focusing on the accumulation and transfer of knowledge and learnings as embodied in the concept of Yokoten can have a tremendous impact on the overall results and success of the Lean programs.

Lean Quote: Happiness Is An Attitude

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same." — Francesca Reigler

Most people believe that happiness arises from suitable conditions, and that to be happy requires one to find, for example: a good job, a nice house, a new car, etc. However, it is actually more effective to rely on intrinsic ways of finding happiness, rather than through these extrinsic, object-oriented ones. Being happy is actually achieved mostly through one’s behavior and outlook rather than material, situational means. This is why it’s important to start cultivating healthy habits.

No matter what type of business you run, you’re going to need your employees to perform well in order to be successful. If you get the most out of your employees, there is no limit on how far you could go. In order to get the most out of your employees, making them happy should be a priority. Here are five ways that you can help your employees be happy about work.

1.     A sense of meaning: Whether on the widget-line or in the executive suite, every employee feels happier knowing that their hard work benefits not just the business but the larger world.

2.     Opportunities for growth: People are happier when they are learning, and they are happier doing their jobs when they feel that they are enjoying continuous opportunities to grow.  A lot of those people are even happier when they know that growth is helping them get to the next rung on their desired career ladder… or lattice.

3.     Offer autonomy to workers: Allowing workers to perform tasks related to their jobs in their own way will not only make workers happier. It will also make them more productive since they will not have to waste time waiting for approval from superiors.

4.     Offer a good training program: Employers shouldn't underestimate the impact training has on employees and their future happiness. A company-sponsored mentorship or structured training sessions are likely to lead to engagement among employees.

5.     Create a favorable office environment: Employees are happier if they like where they work. Simple things such as reducing the length of meetings, providing food to employees in the office, and recognizing employees after a job well done make employees happier. Communication with employees also helps to alleviate many concerns they may have about their job since it helps workers feel happier and more secure at work. Communication either in person, in an email or with a handwritten note all helped to make workers feel better at work.

In general, workplaces that make us feel included, valued, cared for, and competent bring out our best efforts. And while happiness alone may not cause productivity, it’s a pretty solid start. Happier workers stick around longer, bring more energy and enthusiasm to their tasks, and help maintain organizational morale.

 

Lean Roundup #93 – February, 2017

A selection of highlighted blog posts from Lean bloggers from the month of February, 2017.  You can also view the previous monthly Lean Roundups here.

Why Do People Fail to Adopt Better Management Methods? – John Hunter shares an example to illustrate why better methods are not adopted sometimes.

Strategy is Not About Doing What’s “Important” – Pascal Dennis says strategy is about detecting changes and deciding action based on the plan.

Cartwheels – Bruce Hamilton discusses the waste of transportation in your factory.

Three Management Lessons from the 2016 NFL Season – Jon Miller shares three management lessons from the 2016 NFL season learned from successes and failures of various teams.

What Does It Mean to Have a “Lean Management System?” Nate Hurle says in a Lean management system, as we get closer to the frontline, the metrics become process measures and leading indicators.

Standardization is not for its own sake – Jamie Flinchbaugh describes where to focus when standardizing.

5 Lessons Every Manufacturer Can Learn From Taiichi Ohno – Mike Pedro put together a list of some of his favorite lessons we can all take away from the father of lean manufacturing.

Lean – So ‘Easy’, It’s Hard – Pascal Dennis explains why Lean fundamentals are really life fundamentals – simultaneously easy & hard.

What are We Trying to Accomplish? – John Hunter says the answer to “what are we trying to accomplish?” can indicate the type of change your making.

What’s Another Word for “Problem”? – Jon Miller explains why facing our problems requires asking questions.

From Kaizen Live! 2016: Gemba Walk Dos and Don’ts for Leaders – Mark Graban shares some Gemba “Dos and Don’ts” to help your organization’s leaders during their Gemba experiences.

Lean in One Drawing – Dave LaHote shares his concept of thinking about lean as a system and demonstrates the linkage between lean tools and how the system can create organizational advantage.

Lean Roundup: 5S – Tom Ehrenfeld discusses how 5S is a tool to develop the kaizen mindset in every employee.