Methods for process improvement within your company

Methods to improve a process

Lean manufacturing

Lean Manufacturing is originally often applied to improve the process within organizations whose production proceeds through a series of successive steps. Within these processes and procedures there are various sources of waste that can be eliminated, especially if the organization is part of a logistics chain. The goal of Lean Manufacturing is to ultimately optimize the value stream within the organization.

MES

Manufacturing execution systems or MES-systems are information systems that allow information to be exchanged between the business and production layer. On the one hand it ensures a paperless distribution of order and product description administration and on the other it collects production data that makes process optimization possible.

OEE

OEE is a practical tool for structurally mapping production losses. OEE makes employees aware of their part in process optimisation. MyPlantFloor, a production management system with OEE functionalities that can be configured through configuration in any process environment or any type of machine and can be expanded modularly, offers support for improvement methods such as TPM, SMED and Lean Manufacturing.

SMED

SMED is originally a Japanese method to improve a process. With this improvement method, the changeover of machines can be optimized. Significant time savings can thus be achieved. The method was first successfully applied at the Japanese company Toyota. The essence of the SMED method is that the changeover is streamlined, operations are eliminated or simplified. A distinction is made between internal (requires machine downtime) and external (machine active) activities.

Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 (also called Smart industry) is a trend name for the next revolution in industrialization. It describes the automation and data exchange of manufacturing companies of the future. It consists of autonomous cyber-physical production systems, the Internet of things (IoT or IIoT), cloud computing and systems that can partially or completely take over our thinking process (cognitive computing). The revolution lies mainly in the self-regulating capacity of the production line. The idea is that factory machines and processes “communicate” independently via the cloud. Some of the functionalities of MyPlantFloor already covers the Industry 4.0 requirements.

Six Sigma

Six Sigma is an international methodology that is applied to improve the process in a sustainable way with regard to the operating result. The focus at Six Sigma is on the customer, because what do they really think is important? The Six Sigma approach will eventually lead to cost savings, higher customer satisfaction, shorten lead time and, of course, process optimization. It concerns an approach in which investments are made in employees and their knowledge and skills.

TPM

Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) is originally derived from the Japanese improvement method Total Productive Maintenance (TPM). At TPM, small-scale multidisciplinary teams evenly improve the performance of certain assets and thus the process. Measuring the OEE is a guideline. OEE is also a means of revealing hidden disconnections.

Kaizen

Kaizen is an approach to productivity improvement and process optimization through the elimination of wastes (mudas i.e. activities that add costs but no value). It is a daily activity and a process that can make the organization more humane. It eliminates redundant work and teaches people to see and eliminate waste.