Construction Context
Sowards stated (2004) the priority for all construction work is to:
keep work flowing so that the crews are always productive installing
product;
reduce inventory of material and tools and
reduce costs.
He developed a simple set of objectives for the design of the production system:
Produce a car to the requirements of a specific customer, deliver it instantly, and
maintain no inventories or intermediate stores.
Rework due to errors could not be tolerated as it reduced throughput, the time to
make a car from beginning to end, and caused unreliable workflow.
Ohno also decentralized shop floor management by making visible production
system information to everyone involved with production. Transparency allowed
people to make decisions in support of production system objectives and reduced
the need for more senior and central management.
LEAN CONSTRUCTION
Lean construction accepts the Ohnos production system
design criteria as a standard of perfection.
What is waste??
Examples of waste??
WASTE
Anything that Consumes Resources but Does Not Provide Value for the Customer
1. Overproduction
4. Movement
2. Waiting
5. Effort
3. Inventory
6. Rework of Errors
7. Processing
WASTES IN CONSTRUCTION
1. Over production:
* Putting as much work in place as possible, making it harder to do priority
work.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Waiting.
Construction is full of this waste, including when a crew waits for instructions or
materials at the job site, when a fabrication machine waits for material to be
loaded, and even when payroll waits for the always-late timesheets.
Overprocessing.
This waste includes overengineering, requiring additional signatures on a requisition,
multiple handling of timesheets, duplicate entries on forms, and getting double
and triple estimates from suppliers.
Motion/movement.
These treasure hunts happen when material is stored away from the job or when
workers look for tools, material, or information. This waste also occurs in the office
or job site trailer, when looking for files, reports, reference books, drawings,
contracts, or vendor catalogues.
Overproduction / Inventory .
This includes uncut materials, work in process, and finished fabrications.
Some contractors claim that they have no inventory because they job-cost all material.
While this may work for accounting, if the material is not yet installed and isnt
being used by the customer, its waste. This waste includes spare parts, unused
tools, consumables, forms and copies, employee stashes, and personal stockpiles.
One could argue that the unfinished facility is inventory and is waste until
operational.
5S
Kanban,
Kaizen events,
quick setup/changeover,
Poka Yoke,
Visual Control
Five Whys
JIT
SCM
5S/5R
5S
Phase 1 - Seiri () Sorting:
Go through all tools, materials, etc., in the plant and work area.
Keep only essential items.
Everything else is stored or discarded.
5S
Phase 3 - Seis () Sweeping or Shining or Cleanliness
(Systematic Cleaning):
Keep the workplace clean as well as neat.
At the end of each shift, clean the work area and be sure everything is restored to
its place.
This makes it easy to know what goes where and insures that everything is where
it belongs.
A key point is that maintaining cleanliness should be part of the daily work - not
an occasional activity initiated when things get too messy.
5S
Phase 4 - Seiketsu () Standardizing:
Work practices should be consistent and standardized.
Everyone should know exactly what his or her responsibilities are for adhering to
the first 3 S's.
5S
A sixth phase, "Safety," () is sometimes added.
It is reasonable to assume that a properly planned and executed 5S program will
inherently improve workplace safety, but some argue that explicitly including
this sixth S insures that workplace safety is given primary consideration.
Kaizen
Kaizen (Japanese for "improvement" or "change for the better")
It refers to a philosophy or practices that focus upon continuous
improvement of processes in manufacturing, engineering, supporting
business processes, and management
Just-in-Time (JIT)
Just-in-Time (JIT) : A philosophy of manufacturing based on planned
elimination of all waste and on continuous improvement of productivity.
It encompasses the successful execution of all manufacturing activities
required to produce a final product, from design engineering to delivery,
and includes all stages of conversion from raw material onward.
Principles:
minimizing waste in all forms,
continuous improvement of processes and systems,
maintaining respect for all workers
Just-in-Time (JIT)
Poka-yoke
Poka-yoke (?) [poka yo-ke] is a Japanese term that means "failsafing" or "mistake-proofing".
A poka-yoke is any mechanism in a lean manufacturing process that helps
an equipment operator avoid (yokeru) mistakes (poka).
Its purpose is to eliminate product defects by preventing, correcting, or
drawing attention to human errors as they occur.
The concept was formalised, and the term adopted, by Shigeo Shingo as
part of the Toyota Production System.
originally described as baka-yoke, but as this means "fool-proofing" (or
"idiot-proofing") the name was changed to the milder poka-yoke.
Designing LC system
Womack and Jones (1996) identified five key principles that need to be
observed when lean construction systems are designed.
1.
2.
3.
Value: There is a need to clarify the customers needs, and the agents involved in
all stages from inception to the delivery process, in order to clarify activities or
products that signify value.
Value stream: By mapping the whole value stream, establishing cooperation
between the participants, and identifying and eliminating waste, the
construction process can be improved.
Flow:
4.
5.
Pull: The efforts of all participants stabilize pulls during the construction process.
Perfection: Work instructions and procedures are developed, and quality
controls are established.