TABLE OF CONTENTS It was stated in Chapter 1 that the most basic or underlying premise of Lean Operations is the elimination of waste. As a basic premise, or basis of operations, it is also a governing principle, or ideal of Lean Operations. Governing principles are the applied standards for defining policy, direction and objectives for the lean enterprise. There are three governing principles behind Lean Manufacturing:
Waste Elimination Actively seek to identify and eliminate waste, which is anything (any part, practice, process, design element, work environment, organization element or policy) that does not add value to or for the customer.
Focus on Customer The operation is focused on what the customer values, which in general are related to low cost, product quality and reliability, timeliness and demand for a product/function.
Quality Generated at the Source Quality is built in, not inspected and/or tested in. That is, the production equipment and manufacturing processes generate first quality components and products the first time through; rejects, rework and work-arounds do not exist.
If these are the governing principles of a Lean Manufacturing plant, what are the governing principles of the Maintenance Organization in the Lean Manufacturing Plant? Since the function of maintenance is to support operations, do the same underlying standards apply?
The governing principles of every organizational element must be the same as those of the parent organization or corporation. In diversified enterprises that include, for example, manufacturing, service operations (e.g., financial services), facility operations (e.g.,...
