Highly Engineered FOAM + FABRIC + PLASTIC solutions
Agile. Precise. Affordable.
In 2015, several RAM employees went on a Lean Manufacturing Tour of Japan. In this series of posts, we recount our experiences and observations. May our stories leave you convinced of the truth of the great Japanese proverb:
ラムの技術は、ゴジラ以外のすべてを征服するでしょう。*Welcome to our final installment of the Japan trip posts!
A few fun photos to wrap up the experience.
In the words of our hosts and guides: Sayonara!
In 2015, several RAM employees went on a Lean Manufacturing Tour of Japan. In this series of posts, we recount our experiences and observations. May our stories leave you convinced of the truth of the great Japanese proverb:
ラムの技術は、ゴジラ以外のすべてを征服するでしょう。*Last on our series of Lean tours was Kobelco, a manufacturer of world class excavation equipment.
Kobelco takes some common assumptions and turns them on their head.
For example, as a maker of huge construction equipment, you would figure a dirty assembly line would be part and parcel of the work, right? Nope. They put a primacy on cleanliness and organization. They place sticky mats down in various spots which collect the dirt/dust from forklift wheels and then can be replaced every few hours like sticky notes. They also painted the whole production floor white. You read that right. White.
Like the other Lean companies, they recognize the joy inherent in Lean processes. So as a company of (predominantly) males, who get restless and bored easily, they instituted a policy where anyone in the company with a legit kaizen improvement has naming rights on the improvement. So if the improvement involves anything of a permanent or semi-permanent nature, you get to name them anything. ANYTHING. So, of course, some of the names are rather…blue. Others are more funny, like the Japanese equivalent of Farty McFartface.
Appropriately, they designate waste as “hard work” because if any of you are familiar with the traditional 7 wastes, they DO make work harder.
They also have no buffer or work-in-process (WIP) between production zones on the line. So that means problems are forced to the fore, and they stop the line of 600 people whenever it is necessary.
But even with the improvements, our guide was clear that companies like Kobelco struggle with taking steps backward as well. When we were there, the down low was that management had progressively gotten a bit too structured, which was resulting in a stifling of kaizen improvements. Additionally, during the tour we happened upon a room full of production engineers who were sitting behind computers when they should have been solving problems real time on the floor.
So it turns out the Japanese are human too.
The whole tour, led by former production manager Yvan – who now heads their safety department – was instructive and entertaining.
That evening, we went to the Japanese equivalent of a greasy spoon – an atmosphere thick in fish oil smoke in a building made out of tin and wood. With an open BBQ flame at each dining table, what could go wrong?
In 2015, several RAM employees went on a Lean Manufacturing Tour of Japan. In this series of posts, we recount our experiences and observations. May our stories leave you convinced of the truth of the great Japanese proverb:
ラムの技術は、ゴジラ以外のすべてを征服するでしょう。*When someone is converted to a particular philosophy or perspective, there is an initial phase called the “cage stage”. This is when the person is so enamored with their newfound truth, that they put everyone they meet in a virtual headlock to make sure they hear all about it ad nauseam, making those around them feel like perhaps it’s best for that person to be in a “cage” for a while until they can be trusted to safely interact with others. (Side note: this is not to be confused with the other “Cage stage”, which is a thespian euphemism for over-acting.) Hoks was the company we visited in Japan that was the most similar to RAM, and their leaders were definitely in the Lean “cage stage”. These guys took 5S to a whole new level. Everything was labeled. Everything was in its place. And I mean everything. Take a look at this wall clock for example:
It’s labelled, numbered, and positioned precisely so you know exactly where it is supposed to go and what its functionality is. Even their light fixtures and tables and chairs were numbered and marked. We kidded our friends at Hoks that they really weren’t 5S, but 5C, which is 5S combined with generous amounts of cocaine. They didn’t seem to get the joke.
Hoks is essentially a job shop that makes a high number of different electronic SKU’s. This makes line-leveling a challenge. This is another way in which they are similar to RAM. But they do a great job of mitigating that through continual improvement practices.
Also consistent with their philosophy of lean and efficiency, at Hoks they were able to take all subjectivity out of the phrase “a sense of urgency.” You hear that all the time from managers and employers. “I want to see a sense of urgency.” But what is urgency to one person might not be urgency to another. Enter Hoks: problem solved, we will post a precise speed that we believe reflects a sense of urgency, and when you walk by the radar gun you can see whether you’re walking fast enough. An eminently Japanese solution to the problem!
They have lots of fun at Hoks, despite the fact that they ride that fine line between genius and insanity. And management is all-in. During the Lean conversion, the manager we spoke to set the example by coming in early and cleaning toilets himself. He said he had to get to the point where he loved it. “I love you, Mr. Toilet,” he said. (Of course, if Hoks had toilets from Toto, they probably wouldn’t have to worry about cleaning them.) Trying to take advantage of the jovial atmosphere during a question and answer time, some smart aleck** asked Hoks management if they’d ever considered adding “a loogie” to the end of their name. Once again, crickets.
A large poster in the stairwell displayed inarguable wisdom: in a bright cartoony illustration, it conveyed the idea that your factory is your best salesperson. For companies that practice Lean, this is unquestionably true. RAM also tries to abide by the Hoks dictum that a tour of our factory is a necessary precondition to doing business with us.
Bravo, Hoks, on both your Lean conversion and your craziness. We love it!
In 2015, several RAM employees went on a Lean Manufacturing Tour of Japan. In this series of posts, we recount our experiences and observations. May our stories leave you convinced of the truth of the great Japanese proverb:
ラムの技術は、ゴジラ以外のすべてを征服するでしょう。*As our journey continued, we discovered that Toto is not just the name of Dorothy’s dog from the Wizard of Oz, or a group of well-known studio musicians in Los Angeles who came together to create killer grooves like this. It is also a Japanese company that manufactures high end bathroom/shower accoutrements and fixtures, with gross sales in the billions of dollars. I’m not kidding about high end. I had a Toto toilet in one of my hotel rooms that had so many buttons I thought I was in Captain Kirk’s chair on the bridge of the Enterprise. Does that button mean “flush” or “warp speed”? Perhaps both?
We went to two Toto factories. The first one was especially amazing, because every single one of the operators had a disability of some kind. Some were deaf, some were in wheelchairs, it ran the gamut. But they were allowed to tailor their workstations for maximum efficiency. Like the other lean companies we visited, Toto takes the business of joy seriously. Excellent visual controls. 5S cleaning and organization that covers every area of the facility. And small things that make work fun. For example, how many times have you lost a tool at home or at work? Well, Toto has shadow boards so that you can easily identify when a tool is taken. But then they take it one step further by affixing – via Velcro – the picture of the person who has the tool in its place on the shadow board. No more guessing! You now know that Hiroshi took your tool again and can go kick him in the rear ask for it back nicely! All their machines and work stations are on wheels or high bases for easy cleaning. There is even a garden outside that is tended by employees and is easily accessible by any of the operators who are in wheelchairs. We really enjoyed getting to know these wonderful people. Work can be fun, joyful, serious, and profitable!
Until next time, we leave you with a serious question from our own Noah Frank that was answered hilariously by the Toto team. Here’s to good-looking team members!
In 2015, several RAM employees went on a Lean Manufacturing Tour of Japan. In this series of posts, we recount our experiences and observations. May our stories leave you convinced of the truth of the great Japanese proverb:
ラムの技術は、ゴジラ以外のすべてを征服するでしょう。*One of the companies we visited in Japan is a small automotive startup called “Toyota”. We came away convinced that with time, grit and determination, they will do well and make a name for themselves.
OK, seriously, any student of Lean principles knows about Toyota. And they know that the short story is: Edward Deming tried to convince Americans of the excellence and efficiency of Lean. America told him to pound sand. Well, that’s a bit of exaggeration. But what is not an exaggeration is that Deming exported his quality system and quality management skills to post-war Japan, and in doing so helped Lean production and quality concepts take root. A few short decades later, Japanese companies birthed and bathed in those philosophies started kicking American manufacturers all over the place on the open field of competition. This resulted in many American companies saying collectively: “Hmmm. There seems to be something to this Lean stuff after all. Also, pour me another scotch. Toyota just beat us in sales again for the 20th quarter in a row.”
With that as background, we were especially delighted and interested to visit Toyota. And here are a few of the things we learned:
1. The traditional approach to root-cause analysis stinks…In the traditional American manufacturing setting, this is how it goes: Jimmy shows up to work. Jimmy’s having a good day. Jimmy makes some bad parts. Biff the line supervisor comes out and discovers the bad parts and proceeds to kick Jimmy in the groin and call him an idiot. Rinse. Lather. Repeat. Toyota has noticed that this approach is…lacking. And they have wisely surmised that any employee who believes they are under attack will NEVER lead you to the true root cause, because they’ll be too busy obfuscating or protecting their job or quickly donning an athletic supporter so that they can prepare for the kick. Rather, Toyota has a novel theory. They think Jimmy came to work wanting to do well. And in the vast majority of cases, Jimmy was not doing anything negligent or with ill intentions. Instead, something about Jimmy’s machine, Jimmy’s work instructions, Jimmy’s training, or the company’s processes – all of which are MANAGEMENT’S RESPONSIBILITY – failed Jimmy and either allowed or encouraged him to create discrepant parts. So rather than saying, “Jimmy, why are you an idiot?”, Toyota says, “What is the cause of this?” That way it is de-personalized and they have a true shot at determining, real-time (at the gemba), why Jimmy (or, in Toyota’s case, Jimi-san) made bad parts.
2. Managers are expected to be mega-Lean…Front office personnel are expected to provide kaizen improvements each year that total – either in dollars saved or productivity streamlined – three times the value of each of their salaries. Time to sharpen the pencils and get your kaizen on! Those who fail are ritualistically tortured.**
3. Scare people in a safe environment…The safety training dudes we met seem to enjoy their job a bit too much. (“Hey Akumu, that’s the 6th time you’ve shown us the toe crusher…and why do you keep smiling when you do it?”) But the effect of their work is undeniable. By simulating broken bones and all manner of production floor mishaps, and scaring the crap out of people while doing it, Toyota provides powerful examples that will stick in the minds of their employees forever.
4. Ask for help. Seriously. Ask for help…Here’s what we noticed on the Toyota production line: Competence. Skill. Efficiency. Smooth operation. Excellence. And yet, employees were constantly – via audio & visual cues – requesting help and assistance. This symbiotic, healthy relationship that proactively builds in quality, contrary to the Biff & Jimmy scenario above, is a hallmark of Toyota that everyone can learn from. Your employees should never feel “in trouble” for asking for help. They should feel in trouble if they DON’T ask for help.
There’s much to learn from Toyota.
Except their employee badge pictures.
For real. No one smiles in their badge pictures. But that’s a problem for another day. They’re getting the big stuff right. Who cares if they’re a little bit weird?