lean

Lean in Modular Construction

The modular construction market is projected to grow from $75.89 billion in 2021 to $114.78 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate of 6.1% during 2021-2028 mainly due to the benefits of reduced waste, building speed, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. Lean methodologies are playing a part in helping that growth. We’ll take a look [...]

Cause and Effect Diagrams Follow On

There are many articles on constructing a cause-and-effect diagram. But what’s next? How do you prioritize what to focus on first? There are many approaches to this usually termed cause and effect analysis. We’ll focus on four examples ordered from the simplest to the more complex.   Simple Approach to Analyzing Cause and Effect Diagrams: [...]

Lean Six Sigma in the Apparel Industry

Everyone wears apparel. We would expect the apparel manufacturing market to be large. In fact, according to IBISWorld, the global apparel manufacturing market size reached $825.7 billion in 2021*. Lean and Six Sigma applications in the industry serve to improve processes, reduce defects and waste. We’ll take a look at several cases focusing on the [...]

Lean Six Sigma in Paint and Coatings Manufacturing

Lean and Six Sigma are used in the paint and coatings manufacturing industry to reduce defects, improve flow, and reduce waste. We’ll look at three cases from Saudi Arabia, DuPont, and United Arab Emirates. We’ll finish with an interesting video on the paint manufacturing process.   Using Lean Manufacturing Techniques in Paint Manufacturing: Saudi Arabia [...]

Lean Six Sigma in the Insurance Industry

The insurance industry is an excellent example of non-manufacturing where Lean and Six Sigma are applied for process improvement and waste reduction. We’ll look at four case studies from Germany, India, Northern Ireland, and Brazil.   Lean and Six Sigma Applied to a Large Insurance Company: Germany   In a paper titled “A Lean Six [...]

Lean Six Sigma in College Admissions

College admissions is a great non-manufacturing example for the application of Lean and Six Sigma. We’ll look at three examples: one from the United States, another from Nigeria, and a final one from Canada. Admissions Application: United States This is a project presentation titled “Applying the Six Sigma Methodology to Improve the Admissions & Financial [...]

Lean and Six Sigma in Blood Services

The process of giving blood, separating it into its vital components, and storing and shipping it are all processes that lend themselves to improvement through Lean and Six Sigma methodologies. We’ll take a look at Lean and Six Sigma in transfusion services, blood bank management, and blood donor flow. Finally, we include a short video [...]

Six Sigma, Lean, and Agile: Understanding the Connection and Benefitting from It

At the outset, it might seem that the Six Sigma, Lean, and Agile methodologies are all quite different from each other. True, they are all powerful techniques to increase process efficiency in industries. However, they are actually connected in ways you might not have realized. While the core idea of the Lean philosophy is to [...]

Go to Top