Leanix™ games

Tell Leanix™ designer Christophe Caberlon about a concept in manufacturing, and he will think up a game to teach it. And, if you ask him to, he will tweak his games to better match your business. This page introduces his most popular game Legotractor, originally developed for AGCO and used since worldwide to teach assembly line, in-plant logistics, and supply chain management concepts.

Leanix ™ is distributed directly by its owner, the Takt Times Group and its partners, whether alone or as part of a tailored training program. Click here to request more information.

An effective way of learning

Through games, participants acquire and retain know-how that they could not learn from lectures, spreadsheet manipulations, or software simulations for the following reasons:

• There are no words that an instructor could use to convey the experience of running and improving a production line.
• The numerical models in spreadsheets are too coarse to accurately reflect many aspects of manufacturing operations.
• Software simulations can be arbitrarily detailed, but the software requires extensive training, model development takes months, and the results do not give the feeling of reality that comes from manipulating physical parts.

From the supply chain to the assembly line

Leanix™ simulation games  demonstrate Lean in the following areas:

• Assembly
• Fabrication
• Internal Logistics
• Supply Chain Management

They are used in the following situations:

• Training, with the objectives of understanding and assimilation of the concepts of Lean.
• Line design, to validate ground planes and policies before implementing them.

Participants are manufacturing professionals at all levels, including:

• Leaders and managers
• Engineers
• Technicians
• Supervisors
• Production operators

Game facilitators take into account the perspectives of each category.

Performance through problem-solving

During each round, we measure:

• Quantities produced.
• Quality.
• Productivity.
• Work in progress.
• Delivery.

The teams review their results after each round, reflect on their performance and solve problems in a systematic way, by changing:

• The logistics of the production chain.
• Working methods.

A flexible system

During the game, each participant plays a different role than in life, for example:

• A manager assembles.
• An assembler inspects.
• An engineer becomes production supervisor.

Collectively, however, participants execute relevant scenarios for the services in which they work. The level of supervision of the game also varies with the needs of participants. In principle, participants must work together to find solutions for themselves. When they fail to do so, the framework of the game nudges them in the right direction. In most organizations, the first sessions with the games are run by an outside management, but it is soon replaced by coaches internal training during the first sessions.

An integral part of Lean Training

The Leanix games have been used in training repeatedly at:

• AGCO
• Renault/Volvo Trucks, France
• PSA, France
• KnAAPO (Sukhoi), Russia
• Asenta, Spain
• At the Russia Lean School in St. Petersburg, Russia
• As part of public courses by China Inno in Shanghai, China

They are most effective when used in combination with other teaching methods, including:

• Lectures.
• Analysis of video recordings.
• Discussion of case studies.
• Plant visits.

The technical and managerial content of Lean is too rich to be taught entirely by a single method. Besides a more varied experience for participants, the combination of approaches allows us to understand Lean from different angles.

Acquiring Leanix ™

Existing games are the quickest and cheapest way to start. In the long term, however, a set of custom games is more effective for every organization, and better suited to its activities as technical/managerial environment. The games are built as modules on common hardware platforms, each representing the appropriate physical infrastructure to a range of industries.

Different rules applied to the same set of Lego blocks help participants discover different aspects of manufacturing and order fulfillment. Each scenario is a lesson on Lean adapted to an audience and to the corresponding level of supervision and support. This approach allows a user to acquire the material once, and gradually expand its library of scenarios.

Leanix ™ is distributed directly by its owner, the Takt Times Group and its partners, whether alone or as part of a comprehensive training program tailored to your needs.