Time for a 'Lean Diet'

Reading time ( words)

In the drive to continuous improvement, while Lean is one of the most powerful tools available to organizations, it is also one of the most underutilized. What follows is a primer for companies considering the Lean journey.

We strive to decide our own fate. We act with self-reliance, trusting in our own abilities. We accept responsibility for our conduct and for maintaining and improving the skills that enable us to produce added value.

—from Toyota Motor Corporation’s internal document, “Toyota Way.”

For whatever reason, PCB fabricators as a whole have yet to truly embrace the Lean manufacturing philosophy that has permeated OEM and EMS factories. My clients often push back; contending that Lean is just another “flavor of the month” quality initiative that will soon fall by the wayside. They ask, “If I am providing product on-time and of a high quality, why should I care about Lean?” My answer is simple: price and flexibility. The former is about dollars (and by the way, it’s always about the dollars). One way or another, your customers are paying for your process inefficiencies. The latter is about lead-time. In the highly dynamic environment that we all play in today, one of the major drivers is flexibility, and the biggest constraint on flexibility is lead-time.

The opening quote captures the values and ideals of Taiichi Ohno, one of the inventors of the Toyota Way that were tasked with transforming Toyota into the world-class manufacturing enterprise that it is today. This column is intended to provide an overview of Lean and the potential benefits of it as a differentiator. 

Read the full column here.


Editor's Note: This column originally appeared in the January 2014 issue of The PCB Magazine.

03/27/2023 | Nolan Johnson, PCB007

Twenty-plus years is a long time to lead a business during a long decline in the industry, but IMI President and CEO Peter Bigelow remains quite confident about the future. The company is in a strong financial position, running well, and looking at new technologies. So, what’s his biggest challenge? It’s not much different than any other manufacturer you talk to, and while he may not have all the answers, he’s clearly got insight to share.

03/24/2023 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007

It’s almost as if upheaval is the new normal. We often describe slow-moving but unstoppable change as moving in “geologic time.” But occasionally–like an earthquake–geology shifts suddenly. Here in my office, tracking the news of the industry, things are moving faster than geologic time, but more slowly than the jolt of an earthquake. The wave seems almost surfable, where before it seemed overwhelming. In this week’s list, we bring news from five different, high-vibration areas in our industry. If you read nothing else this week, these five items will keep you informed.

03/21/2023 | Christopher Bonsell, Chemcut

This year, I had the great opportunity to come to IPC APEX EXPO in San Diego as a contributing member in Chemcut’s booth. Being an exhibitor is always interesting because you never know what you will learn or who you will meet. Truly, it seems that every IPC APEX EXPO is an eye-opening experience. This was the second show I attended, and last year I was amazed to see how in-depth and interconnected the electronics industry is. Seeing how many different companies contribute to manufacturing today’s core technology never fails to impress me.