Kaizen – continuous improvement

The Japanese term ‘Kaizen’ may be translated as “the action to correct” or improvement. The term today has become synonymous with its use in the Toyota Production System (TPS) to denote a management philosophy where the entire workforce, from management to shop floor, is encouraged to identify and implement day-to-day improvements. In Japanese companies, Kaizen (a continuous process of change), is distinct from innovation (a more radical form of change).

Kaizen events are often used as an effective Lean technique for insuring that CI is a way of life. These events, often designed around a one week ‘blitz’ schedule, rapidly improve the targeted work centre or cell. Generally, the continuous improvement manager will provide the specific focus areas for each particular Kaizen to insure that the event addresses the problem areas. A successful Kaizen will find solutions for the assigned issues but will go much further by delivering additional improvements.

Continuous Improvement can only succeed when it is driven by reliable, consistent data sources and championed by senior levels. OEE software provides an essential foundation of data, helping to identify waste and delivering the tools to assess the impact of a potential improvement before roll-out to the wider organisation.

The resulting benefit of any Kaizen activities will be evident in persistent improving trends of the OEE metrics.