International Journal of Lean Six Sigma
Công bố khoa học tiêu biểu
* Dữ liệu chỉ mang tính chất tham khảo
Sắp xếp:
Measuring the Leanness of an organisation Purpose Existing audits fail to fully encapsulate the complexities of an organisation's value chain and the significance of culture and change to the success of Lean. The purpose of this paper is to identify precisely what is meant by the term, “a genuine Lean organisation” through the application of a comprehensive Lean audit focused at manufacturing firms in the UK. Design/methodology/approach An extensive audit was developed able to establish the juncture of an organisation's Lean journey. This was piloted within 20 manufacturing organisations in the UK. A total of 104 separate indices are used, which are grouped within 12 distinctive categories. Findings The audit provides an organisation with a Lean vision. Lean requires a considerable commitment and whilst successful implementations facilitate the improvement of numerous indices, the audit acquaints an organisation of the multifaceted requirements for Lean. Its real value is in identifying the juncture of Lean an organisation has accomplished. Research limitations/implications The audit has been tested in 20 manufacturing organisations; a natural extension would be to replicate the exercise within the service sector. Practical implications The audit results demonstrate how it is possible to split an organisation's Lean journey into seven evident phases. The feedback would improve the implementation records within the UK. Originality/value This paper tackles a void within the literature of a comprehensive Lean audit specifically examining: whether an organisation had adopted Lean as a philosophy, and to distinctively deduce the phase of a Lean journey the organisation had reached.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 2 Số 1 - Trang 55-74 - 2011
Prevention of industrial accidents using Six Sigma approach Purpose The purpose of this paper is to utilize the power of Six Sigma, a disciplined approach to improve quality of product, process or service quality, for accident prevention in the manufacturing industry. Design/methodology/approach This paper presents the basic features of DMAIC methodology of Six Sigma and its application for the purpose of accident prevention; illustrates the set of tools and techniques to be used at different phases of DMAIC for accident data analysis; and outlines the DMAIC methodology by analyzing accident data from a large process industry in India. Findings The systematic and logical approach of Six Sigma problem solving could identify many root causes for accident and identification and deployment of corrective actions horizontally to relevant processes. Originality/value Six Sigma has been successfully implemented in improving manufacturing processes but its application for the purpose of accident prevention is still limited. This paper demonstrates that Six Sigma principle can resolve such problems, and can be used by any plant to solve similar problems of accident prevention.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 2 Số 3 - Trang 196-214 - 2011
Selection of critical processes for “process improvement” Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a criterion for selection of critical sub‐processes when all the sub‐processes cannot be taken up simultaneously for improvement. There exist various methods but the practitioners get utterly confused because of the existence of these multiple options. In this paper, the goal is to assist practitioners in the selection of the critical sub‐processes. Design/methodology/approach The authors discuss various statistical methods such as correlation and regression, simulation, basic statistics such as average, standard deviation, coefficient of variation % (C.V.%), etc. for the selection and identification of the critical sub‐processes. The strengths and weaknesses of these methods have been compared through empirical analysis based on real‐life case examples. Findings The stepwise regression and simulation have been found to yield identical results. However, from the perspective of application, stepwise regression has been found to be a preferred option. Originality/value The roadmap thus evolved for the selection of the critical sub‐processes will be of great value to the practitioner, as it will help them understand the ground reality in an unambiguous manner, resulting in a superior strategy for process improvement.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - - 2011
Modelling of readiness factors for the implementation of Lean Six Sigma in healthcare organizations
Purpose
This paper aims to identify, analyze and categorize the major readiness factors for implementing Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in health-care organizations using total interpretive structural modelling technique. The readiness factors are identified would help the managers to recognize the areas that lack and provide importance to the successful implementation of LSS in those areas. The paper further intends to understand the hierarchical interrelationships among the readiness factors identified using dependence and driving power.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 16 readiness factors are identified from the literature review and expert opinions are collected from hospitals. The scheduled interview is conducted based on a questionnaire survey in hospitals in the Indian context to identify the relevance of the relations among the readiness factors. The expert opinions are used in the initial reachability matrix and interpretative interaction matrix. Matrix impact cross multiplication applied to classification (MICMAC) analysis uses dependence and driving power to understand the hierarchical relationship among the readiness factors identified.
Findings
The result indicates that customer-oriented and goal management cultures are the key readiness factors for LSS. The execution technique and training are given according to the current demand of customers and goal change of organization. The manager needs to concentrate more on readiness factors to formulate the execution process of LSS for continuous improvement of the health-care organization. The readiness level helps the manager to identify the target area for LSS execution.
Research limitations/implications
This research focuses mainly on readiness factors for the implementation of LSS in the health-care industry.
Practical implications
This study would be useful for researchers and practitioners to understand the readiness factors before starting the implementation process of LSS.
Originality/value
Many research studies are being done on the success and failure rate of implementation of factors. The present study identifies the readiness factors related to LSS, especially for the health-care industry.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 11 Số 4 - Trang 597-633 - 2020
A Six Sigma framework for marine container terminals Purpose This research uses an optimisation model, based on the Six Sigma methodology, which assists marine container terminal operators to minimize trucks' congestions, as a defect in the global containerisation and smoothing the gate activity to reduce trucks' turn‐around times. The main purpose of this paper is implementing the Six Sigma in the landside of marine container terminals to reduce the average number of trucks in queues and average trucks' waiting times in both entrance and exit gates. Design/methodology/approach This study examines the applicability of the DMAIC method along with the SIPOC, cause and effect diagram, and failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA). Findings In this paper, Six Sigma methodology is found as an accurate optimisation tool in marine container terminals. Risk Priority Numbers obtained from the FMEA analysis denote that additional control procedures and associated inspections are needed as monitoring tools on the working time and activity of weighbridge operators and truck's drivers. In addition, serious consideration should be given to operator's performance appraisal and improving the administrative systems. Research limitations/implications This study was carried out with some boundaries; like the complex operational system in marine container terminals, available data, time constraints, training the team members and controlling the implemented obtained results. Originality/value To date, no study has adequately examined the Six Sigma methodology in marine container terminals as an optimisation tool for reducing trucks' congestion. The challenging issues inherent this problem and the limitation of existing research, motivates this study.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - - 2011
Innovation in management system by Six Sigma: an empirical study of world‐class companies Purpose The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the effectiveness of Six Sigma as an innovation tool in management system. In this regard, the comprehensive impact of Six Sigma is provided based on Osada's management system model in terms of driver, enabler, and performance. Then, the causal relationship diagram is drawn among critical success factors to show how Six Sigma innovates the management system. Finally, the comparison between Six Sigma and total quality management (TQM) is discussed to reveal the strength of Six Sigma as an innovation tool in management system. Design/methodology/approach An empirical study of world‐class companies was undertaken. Several of the companies were analyzed intensively namely Sony and Du Pont by interviewing and circulating questionnaires to the key actors of Six Sigma. Findings The paper confirms that Six Sigma has a positive and comprehensive impact on changing the management system. Six Sigma has been harmonizing and synergizing people and processes by establishing a clear linkage among critical factors. This linkage, as a critical strength in innovation, is described by a causal relationships diagram using the system dynamics principle. By comparing with TQM, this paper has identified that Six Sigma has additional features named as disseminating commitment and sustaining spirit. Practical implications The findings suggest that Six Sigma can potentially be used as an innovation tool for leveraging organizational performance. This paper provides a comprehensive perspective on how Six Sigma should be perceived and implemented to gain maximum potential. Hence, this paper is expected to provide a significant contribution to academia and practitioners in understanding the application of Six Sigma. Originality/value The paper analyzes the impact of Six Sigma in a more organized approach than previous report. This approach categorizes the impact based on driver, enabler, and performance through an empirical study. Additionally, the relationship diagram and the comparison between Six Sigma and TQM are established in this paper. It is believed that such study is rarely published in academic journals.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 1 Số 3 - Trang 172-190 - 2010
Optimizing employee time in a purchasing department: a Six Sigma case study Purpose This paper aims to resolve a staffing solution for a purchasing department at the University of Miami to expand a service request bulk purchasing program that generates savings for the university and respective departments. Design/methodology/approach The well‐known lean Six Sigma methodology is applied to yield consistent results and eliminate unnecessary actions (steps/tasks) by the staff. Findings The university is able to reduce processing time for a service request from 168 hours to 2.27 by streamlining communication and service request and automating lengthy process steps using a proprietary built workflow intelligence system. Research limitations/implications There are limited publications in the field of lean Six Sigma as an approach to staffing solutions. Originality/value This paper provides an unexplored practical application of lean Six Sigma to yield a staffing solution.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 2 Số 2 - Trang 180-190 - 2011
Improving process improvement: executing the analyze and improve phases of DMAIC better
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 3 Số 3 - Trang 231-250 - 2012
Deploying LSS in a global enterprise – project identification Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide Lean Six Sigma deployment champions with a structured approach to identify and prioritize parts of their business that are conducive to the Lean Six Sigma methodology. Design/methodology/approach A five‐step approach to Lean Six Sigma project identification is presented in this paper. The approach utilizes a clustering technique to group similar processes based on seven process characteristics. The clusters formed are then evaluated and prioritized for their compatibility to Lean Six Sigma. Findings The clustering approach can be applied to any industry segment, including non‐manufacturing, healthcare and financial‐based organizations. A case study is presented in this paper in which the approach is applied to an IT based company. A total of 30 percent of the business processes were found to be Lean Six Sigma conducive. Research limitations/implications The current model does not have provision to consider the current performance of a process as an evaluation criterion. This requires the deployment champion to use the model in conjunction with a Balanced Scorecard. Future research will address this limitation. Originality/value There is a general lack of a mathematical approach to enable Lean Six Sigma practitioners to identify parts of their business that are conducive to the methodology. This research attempts to bridge this gap in the literature by using an unsupervised learning approach, using a clustering algorithm, to group processes based on seven process characteristics. The cluster evaluation helps the deployment champion identify key areas within the business to focus an LSS deployment.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 3 Số 3 - Trang 187-205 - 2012
Critical success factors of Lean Six Sigma for the Malaysian automotive industry Purpose The objective of this paper is to explore the critical success factors (CSFs) for Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in the Malaysian automotive industry. Design/methodology/approach Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to test the model drawing on a sample of 252 Malaysian automotive organisations. Exploratory factor analyses (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and reliability analysis empirically verified and validated the underlying items of CSFs of LSS. Findings The results of EFA, CFA, and reliability analysis show that two items for supplier relationship are recommended to be excluded from the analysis. The result indicates that LSS has identified 40 items as compared to the original questionnaire which had 42 items. Based on the survey of empirical data, the two factors of leadership and customer focus have been shown to be the extremely important factors for LSS implementation in the Malaysian automotive industry. Research limitations/implications Firstly, this survey is based only on the automotive industry in Malaysia, and therefore it is not generalisable to other industries. Secondly, there may be other CSFs for LSS such as culture change, project management skill, and employee involvement, which were not included in this study. Finally, for future research agenda, the authors are looking at the structural relationship between LSS practices and organizational performance in the Malaysian automotive industry. Originality/value The developed and tested content of this study fills the research gap by providing reliable and useful reference material on the CSFs of LSS. On top of that, the contribution for academic researchers and practitioners is to provide important guidelines for automotive and related companies to implement LSS strategic practices to improve organizational performance.
International Journal of Lean Six Sigma - Tập 4 Số 1 - Trang 60-82 - 2013
Tổng số: 16
- 1
- 2