TABLE OF CONTENTS Key points that Iwata and Nakao emphasized again and again, and that also illustrate the necessity of thinking outside historical assumptions and typical patterns, are as follows:
The production line can move very slowly, perhaps so slowly that the motion is not apparent except over time, but make it move. Link independent work islands or "spots" into a line, and make goods move along it. Value is added as the line moves, so if it's not moving, no value is being added. In continuous flow operations, work never stops while goods are moving from one workstation to the next, so time is saved there. In addition, each worker will know what his or her own pace needs to be, and can match his or her speed to that of the line for constant output every day. In addition, every small piece of the process can then be timed, and you can begin to look for one-second improvements everywhere. If there are problems in production, ranging from parts supply issues to fixtures, they will appear or become more obvious when the line starts to move. Then you can fix them.
It's not easy to convert from batch production to a moving line, but it can be done. When you can, design lines for movement from the very beginning, even if you don't think your processes and standard work support it yet. There's little excuse for the design of a new factory today not...
