We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Global Logistics and Risk
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • CSCMP EDGE 2023
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Global Logistics and Risk
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • CSCMP EDGE 2023
    • Upload Your Video
Home » time to lean up your act?
outbound

time to lean up your act?

May 1, 2005
Mitch Mac Donald
No Comments

Lean manufacturing's hardly a new concept. In fact, at this point, the concept is notable not so much for its novelty as for its staying power and name recognition. Ask someone to define Kaizen, Six Sigma or Total Quality, and you're apt to get a blank stare. But ask them if their operation is "lean," and you'll likely get an intelligent answer. They may not be up on all the details, but they'll almost certainly know that going lean has nothing to do with selections in the company cafeteria or a human resources boondoggle involving employee fitness.

At its most fundamental level, a lean approach to manufacturing entails just what you'd expect: stripping away the excess. Going lean means cutting costs and boosting efficiency at every stage of the manufacturing process. By now, it's fair to say that lean manufacturing—or simply "lean," as it's more commonly known today—is well rooted in global manufacturing operations. It's proved particularly popular among manufacturers trying to fend off emerging low-cost competitors.

Given the close ties between manufacturing and the supply chain function, no one should be surprised to hear that now, leading-edge logistics operations are going lean too. In a new report on the lean movement, researchers and analysts from Georgia Southern University, Supply Chain Visions and Oracle Corp. define the term in the context of logistics and supply chain operations. The report's authors write: "Lean is a systematic approach to identifying and eliminating waste (non-value-added activities) through continuous improvement by flowing the product at the pull of the customer in pursuit of perfection."

The authors also point out that although it's billed as a "cutting edge" approach to manufacturing, the edge really isn't all that sharp. In fact, they note that the basic concept of lean can be traced all the way back to Henry Ford's assembly lines circa 1920, when the notion of continuous flow was first introduced. Still, as with so many business management concepts, what's old has become new again. And so, it seems, lean is all the rage.

If you're a logistics professional and all of this comes as a surprise, we have some bad news and some good news for you. First the bad. If you haven't been looking at ways to extend your company's lean manufacturing practices into your logistics functions, you are, I'm afraid, behind the curve. The lean movement has advanced to the point where many big thinkers are already looking at ways to extend the movement beyond logistics to the total supply chain, right down to the point where the customer actually picks up a product and tosses it in the shopping cart. (Think in terms of that utopian scenario in which inventory at the store shelf level is precisely in sync with buyer demand Ö no more, no less.)

The good news is that if you've been working in logistics for a while, you're probably already familiar with the underpinnings of a lean logistics operation. In all probability, you've already spent a lot of time thinking about improving demand management, reducing waste, standardizing processes and crossfunctional collaboration. If so, you may be "leaner" than you think.

Still, it's all too evident that Corporate America has a ways to go. As the authors of the Georgia Southern report write, "...it is clear from the survey results that many organizations have yet to transfer [what they've learned about lean from the manufacturing operation] to the supply chain. Yet, while the adoption rate is low, the benefits are seen as quite high." As for those benefits, it seems the main one is the ability to improve the company's bottom line. That's not an opportunity you want to miss.

Supply Chain Services Business Management & Finance
    • Related Articles

      It’s time to up your marketing game

      Today is the time to act on creating a sustainable supply chain

      Heavy-duty truck orders in July to set all-time record, ACT data predict

    Mitchmacdonald
    Mitch Mac Donald has more than 30 years of experience in both the newspaper and magazine businesses. He has covered the logistics and supply chain fields since 1988. Twice named one of the Top 10 Business Journalists in the U.S., he has served in a multitude of editorial and publishing roles. The leading force behind the launch of Supply Chain Management Review, he was that brand's founding publisher and editorial director from 1997 to 2000. Additionally, he has served as news editor, chief editor, publisher and editorial director of Logistics Management, as well as publisher of Modern Materials Handling. Mitch is also the president and CEO of Agile Business Media, LLC, the parent company of DC VELOCITY and CSCMP's Supply Chain Quarterly.

    Recent Articles by Mitch Mac Donald

    20 years later, the question remains the same: Are you up to SPEED?

    Hail and farewell: interview with Gail Rutkowski

    Thought I’d something more to say …

    You must login or register in order to post a comment.

    Report Abusive Comment

    Most Popular Articles

    • Warehouse renters could see “significant” rate increases in 2024, Prologis says

    • MercuryGate acquires cross-border customs clearance specialist ITS

    • A new outlook that’s a lot like the old outlook

    • DHL Supply Chain to add five more AS/RS installations from AutoStore

    • Yes, your SMB can afford AMRs

    Now Playing on DCV-TV

    9cdfb17d c221 47fc 9019 0c776954de15

    Silmid Utilizing Automation with a Human Touch

    DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    Join us in this insightful overview as we explore how Lucas Systems, with its cutting-edge AI technology and expertise, transformed Silmid, a leading aerospace and aviation chemical consumables distributor. Silmid, a key player for 40 years, faced challenges in order fulfillment speed and accuracy, threatening to...

    FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

    • Exploring Forklift Energy Solutions for Maximum ROI

    • Identifying How Sortation Automation Can Address Challenges for Parcel Processors

    • Unlocking efficiency and growth

    • Quarterly Freight Data Report: Q3 2023

    View More

    Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

    GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
    • SUBSCRIBE
    • NEWSLETTERS
    • ADVERTISING
    • CUSTOMER CARE
    • CONTACT
    • ABOUT
    • STAFF
    • PRIVACY POLICY

    Copyright ©2023. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing