Mar 17 2013
Toyota’s history rests on key textile invention | Long Island Newsday
See on Scoop.it – lean manufacturing
It was a single thread that gave a man a dream, created a little history and displayed the talents of a remarkable mind and a family with resourcefulness in its genes.
Sakichi Toyoda wasn’t all that interested in fast-moving machinery, just machines in motion. It’s how the Toyota Production System began. It’s how an inventor with a sharp eye and even sharper mind built an empire…
Michel Baudin‘s insight:
A summary of Toyota history with the usual omissions:
- Automatic shuttle change. The ability to stop when thread broke was not the only innovation of Toyoda looms. Automatic shuttle change was equally important, not just to looms but as a forerunner of autonomation, the Toyota approach to automation.
- The German connection. Toyota learned much about car technology from Germany through Kazuo Kumabe and his research team, in particular reverse-engineering a 1936 DKW. The concept of Takt also came from the German Junkers company via the Mitsubishi Aircraft plant in Nagoya.
See on www.newsday.com
Mar 17 2013
Visitors see ‘lean’ during RUH tour | Star Phoenix
See on Scoop.it – lean manufacturing
Technology is often touted as the cure for many of our modern afflictions.Funny, then, that a whiteboard in the staff room could make such a difference in how the city’s busiest emergency department runs.”It’s very low-tech,” says Jon Schmid, the registered nurse manager for Royal UniversityHospital’s emergency department. “But the impact it has on our organization is huge.”…
The text of the article is informative, particularly about the use of a white board, but the picture does not show this white board. In fact, it seems unrelated to the article, as if the newspaper just slapped on a stock photo from a hospital.
As it is, however, this photo is a good reason for the quotes around the word “Lean.” It is an encyclopedia of work space design mistakes, with work surfaces at uneven and ergonomically inappropriate heights, causing people to stoop, or even squat to access the refrigerator. Not to mention empty space in the center and chairs.
See on www.thestarphoenix.com
Share this:
Like this:
By Michel Baudin • Press clippings 0 • Tags: Ergonomics, Health care, Lean, Lean Health Care