Academic literature on the topic 'Lean operational performance'

Mestrado em Gestão e Estratégia Industrial<br>São vários os desafios que as empresas enfrentam nos dias de hoje. Além dos resultados operacionais comuns e transversais a todas as empresas, com o aumento da procura por produtos e serviços mais ecológicos, a degradação do meio ambiente e o cumprimento de regulamentações governamentais, existe a necessidade de implementar estratégias que sejam compatíveis com a preservação do meio ambiente, tornando as decisões operacionais cada vez mais complexas. Nesse sentido, a implementação de práticas lean e green de manufatura têm sido amplamente discutidas na literatura. Este estudo pretende avaliar o efeito destes dois tipos de práticas na performance operacional e ambiental. As práticas de manufatura sustentável analisadas foram as relacionadas com o desenvolvimento e design dos produtos, com os processos de produção, com a gestão ambiental da cadeia de abastecimento e com a gestão ambiental de fim de ciclo de vida dos produtos. As práticas Lean estudadas foram relacionadas com fornecedores, clientes, produção, produção puxada, fluxo continuo, setup, envolvimento dos empregados e manutenção preventiva. Neste caso, não foi avaliado o efeito individual de cada uma das práticas na performance. Foi igualmente avaliado o efeito da performance ambiental na performance operacional. O modelo conceptual proposto foi testado utilizando 426 respostas a um questionário aplicado online às PME portuguesas de manufatura. Os resultados obtidos demonstraram que as práticas lean, têm um efeito positivo e significativo na performance operacional. No entanto, o efeito destas práticas na performance ambiental não se mostrou significativo.<br>There are many challenges that companies face today. Beyond the common operational and transverse results to all companies, with an increase demand for greener products and services, environmental degradation and compliance with usage regulations, there is a need to implement environmentally friendly applications, making operational decisions increasingly complex. In this sense, an implementation of lean and green manufacturing practices have been widely discussed in the literature. This study proposes to evaluate the effect of these two types of practices in operational and environmental performances. The sustainable manufacturing practices analysed were related to sustainable product design and development, sustainable manufacturing process, sustainable supply chain management and sustainable end-of-life management. The Lean practices studied were related to suppliers, customers, pull practices, continuous flow, setup, statistical process control, employee involvement and preventive maintenance. In this case, the individual effect of each of the practices on performance was not evaluated. The effect of environmental performance on operational performance was also assessed. The proposed conceptual model was obtained from 426 responses to a questionnaire applied online to Portuguese SMEs. The results showed that lean manufacturing practices had a significant positive effect on operational performance. However, the effect of these practices on environmental performance was not significant.<br>info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004.<br>Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xvii, 220 p. : ill. (some col.). Advisor: Peter T. Ward, Dept. of Business Administration. Includes bibliographical references (p. 197-203).

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado.<br>This paper proposes the application and implementation of the lean thinking methodology at a company dedicated to selling vehicles, spare parts, and post-sales services. For these purposes, tools such as process maps, flowcharts, indicators, system layout planning tools, and 5S implementation are used, supported by training sessions for process participants. As a result, customer complaints were reduced by 0.13% per month, and the number of work orders handled by the site increased by 0.38% per month. Moreover, a 0.32% increase in man/hour productivity was reported, leading to a 44.32% decrease in Duster vehicle delivery times.

Additive manufacturing is an industrial process, developed in the early 1980s and currently used in several industries such as the medical, aircraft and automotive industries. In the first place,additive manufacturing was mostly usedby manufacturing industries to produce prototypes, models and patterns. Nowadays, this technology can be used at any point in the lifecycle of a product from pre-production(rapid prototyping and rapid tooling) to production (direct manufacturing). This technology is especially adapted for the production of limited series of small and geometrically complex components.The purpose of this study is to identify howadditive manufacturing affects operational performance during the development and production phases, specifically in the case of the automotive industry.With this purpose in mind, I have collected primary and secondary data through a qualitative study using both in-depth semi-structured interviewsand archival records found on automotive companies’ websites. The objective of collecting multiple sources datawas to gain a reliable and comprehensive perception of the situation and understand the effects of additive manufacturing on operational performance, and more precisely on the seven production wastesdefined on lean practices, to be able to answer my research question. The data are analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis approach and testthe presupposition that emerged from the empirical findings. Through the analysis of the data collected, I came to the conclusion that additive manufacturing is mostly used during the prototyping phase and sometimes also used for rapid tooling. But it appears that this technology is only used for direct manufacturing in some specific niche markets such as luxury carmakers. Another interesting finding concerns the use of additive manufacturing for marketing purpose. Concerning operational performance, the impacts of additivemanufacturing remainlimited, and contrary to what some authors said, the use of this technology is still marginal in the automotive industry compared to traditional manufacturing.

Os princípios e as práticas de Produção Enxuta e de Produção mais Limpa contribuem para a geração de valores com perspectivas diferentes. São valores focados respectivamente em sustentabilidade econômica e em sustentabilidade ambiental que, alcançados complementarmente podem contribuir para a satisfação dos stakeholders de forma mais sustentável. Estudos apresentam compatibilidades entre a Produção Enxuta e as diferentes abordagens de Sustentabilidade Ambiental, contudo, poucas pesquisas exploram empiricamente as relações entre estes constructos, mostrando uma lacuna a ser preenchida no meio acadêmico e empresarial. O objetivo deste trabalho foi identificar e analisar as relações entre as práticas de Produção mais Limpa e as práticas de Produção Enxuta e seus impactos no desempenho da empresa. Para este objetivo foi proposto a realização de uma pesquisa empírica baseada na triangulação entre dois métodos: estudos de caso múltiplos, contando com 6 (seis) estudos de casos; e uma pesquisa do tipo survey, realizada com 208 (duzentos e oito) indústrias de manufatura brasileiras. Observou-se que há sinergia e complementaridade entre as práticas de Produção mais Limpa e de Produção Enxuta e que estas, empregadas de forma combinada, maximizam o desempenho ambiental, operacional e econômico da empresa. Contudo, observou-se que o desempenho ambiental fomentado pelas práticas de Produção Enxuta é limitado aos aspectos ambientais de consumo de recursos e de geração de resíduos.<br>The Lean Production and Cleaner Production principles and practices contribute to the values generation with different perspectives. Values are focused respectively on economic sustainability and environmental sustainability, achieved complementarily can contribute to the satisfaction of the stakeholders in a more sustainable way. Studies presents compatibilities between Lean Production and the different Environmental Sustainability approaches, however, few researches have explore empirically the relationship between these constructs, showing a gap to be filled in academia and industry. The objective of this study was to identify and analyze the relationships between Cleaner Production and Lean Production practices and their impact on company performance. For this purpose, it was proposed the accomplishment of an empirical research based on triangulation between two methods: multiple cases studies, with six (6) case studies; and a survey research carried on 208 (two hundred and eight) of Brazilian manufacturing industries. It was noted that there is synergy and complementarity between production practices Cleaner and Lean Production and these, used in combination maximize environmental performance, operational and economic enterprise. However, it was observed that the environmental performance promoted by Lean Production practices is limited to environmental aspects of resource consumption and waste generation.

In the last few decades, the natural environment has increasingly received attention among policy makers, media and the international community. In such a context, firms have approached the environmental issue by developing different strategies and adopting practices that contribute to pollution reduction, resources savings and, more generally, to green efficiency. The present Ph.D. dissertation blends together the natural environment and operations management. As plants are the major responsible of pollution in the industry, this thesis aims at investigating their environmental choices and actions within the framework of manufacturing strategy. The thesis consists of three papers, each corresponding to a chapter. The first one addresses the environmental issue from a general perspective and defines the role of environmental strategy as long as the drivers underlying higher proactiveness; the second one deals with the environment as a competitive priority to understand which firm-related characteristics affect environmentally oriented manufacturing strategies; and the final one analyses the implementation of green and lean practices and the effects on plant performance. More precisely, the first chapter investigates the concept of proactive environmental strategy (PES). The literature has defined this strategy as a set of voluntary practices that go beyond mere compliance with regulations. In order to examine this concept and provide a narrower definition of PES, I first propose that PES is composed of two dimensions: the technical/organizational dimension and the embeddedness dimension. Second, I propose a theoretical framework that allows identification of different typologies in a firm’s environmental strategy. I finally outline the dynamics that drive shifts among PES typologies. In such a way, my final intention is to show that proactive environmental strategy is multidimensional and that there is not a unique definition of it, thus recommending an in-depth investigation of its position within the firm’s strategy. The second chapter allows understanding the role of the natural environment within the manufacturing strategy. Particularly, I analyse the effects of the organizational context on the emphasis that plant managers place on the environmental priority compared to the competitive priorities of cost, quality, delivery, flexibility and innovation. A multinomial logit model is used to explore whether and to what extent the organizational context, proxied by plant- and supply chain-related characteristics, influences three clusters of different manufacturing strategic patterns: environmental-oriented group, balanced set group, and cost-oriented group. Data is collected from a survey of manufacturing plants from Canada in the fabricated metal products, machinery, electronics, and electrical appliances industries. The results highlight that the organizational context affects the emphasis managers put on the environmental issue. In particular, they show that an international supply chain leads the plant to adopt an environmental oriented strategy. This might be explained by arguing that plants are more exposed to environmental risks caused by their international stakeholders, thus threatening their image or raising the chances to monetary fines. The final chapter analyses environmental management from a more operational perspective. Specifically, it contributes to the exploration of how lean and green practices might fit together to improve competitiveness. The relationship of lean manufacturing and environmental performance on the one side, and environmental management and operational performance on the other side, has widely been investigated but final benefits are still uncertain. Anyway, several researches have shown that some lean and green practices actually synergistically interact to improve plant performance. Using a case study methodology, the present paper aims to understand how the two sets of practices interact together and how they affect operational and environmental performance. Based on the analysis of three successful projects of two Italian plants, I find that the timing of implementation, i.e. sequential vs simultaneous, defines modes of managing lean and green practices, i.e. planning vs mutual adjustment, that ultimately affect plant performance. Finally, the findings identify what drivers foster lean practices and green practices to be synergic and jointly produce a positive impact on both environmental and operational performance<br>Negli ultimi decenni, l’ambiente è stato al centro di un crescente interesse tra regolamentatori, media e comunità internazionali. In tale contesto, le aziende si sono ritrovate ad affrontare la questione ambientale attraverso lo sviluppo di strategie e l’implementazione di pratiche atte a ridurre l’impatto inquinante, l’uso di risorse e, in generale, ad accrescere la propria efficienza in ottica green. La presente tesi di dottorato ha lo scopo di analizzare congiuntamente la questione ambientale e le operations. Questo tema è particolarmente interessante perché prende in considerazione le fabbriche, ovvero le principali responsabili di inquinamento, allo scopo di investigarne le scelte e le azioni ambientali nell’ambito della strategia manifatturiera. La tesi è formata da tre articoli, ognuno dei quali corrisponde ad un capitolo. Il primo tratta della questione ambientale partendo da una prospettiva generale e definendo qual è il ruolo della strategia ambientale e quali sono i fattori determinanti per accrescerne la proattività; il secondo considera l’aspetto ambientale come una possibile priorità competitiva e cerca di individuare i fattori legati alle caratteristiche dell’azienda che incidono su una strategia manifatturiera orientata alla protezione dell’ambiente; infine, l’ultimo capitolo esplora il processo di implementazione di pratiche lean e green nelle fabbriche e l’effetto che questo produce sulle performance. In particolare, il primo capitolo analizza il concetto di strategia ambientale proattiva (SAP). La letteratura ha definito questa strategia come un insieme di pratiche volontarie che non si limitano ad applicare le norme in materia ambientale. Allo scopo di formulare una puntuale definizione, dapprima identifico le dimensioni di SAP: una dimensione tecnica e organizzativa e una dimensione di intensità relazionale. Secondo, propongo una struttura teorica che permetta di individuare differenti tipologie di strategia ambientale. Infine, provo a delineare le spinte dinamiche che sono alla base dei cambiamenti tra una tipologia di SAP e l’altra. In questo modo, metto in evidenza che la strategia ambientale proattiva è multidimensionale e che non può essere definita univocamente, rendendo pertanto opportuno capirne il ruolo all’interno della strategia aziendale. Il secondo capitolo affronta il tema dell'ambiente naturale nell'ambito della strategia manifatturiera delle aziende. In particolare, lo scopo è analizzare gli effetti del contesto organizzativo sull'enfasi che i managers pongono sulla priorità ambientale con rispetto alle tradizionali priorità competitive di costo, qualità, consegna, flessibilità e innovazione. Grazie a una regressione logistica multinomiale, indago la relazione tra il contesto organizzativo, espresso in termini di caratteristiche dell'azienda e della catena di fornitura, e tre diverse possibili strategie manifatturiere: strategia orientata al sostegno ambientale; strategia orientata alla riduzione dei costi; e strategia con simile enfasi su tutte le priorità competitive. L'analisi empirica si basa su un campione di aziende manifatturiere canadesi operanti nei settori dei metalli, dei macchinari, dell’elettronica e delle apparecchiature elettroniche. I risultati dell'analisi evidenziano che il contesto organizzativo influisce sull'enfasi che i managers decidono di dare alla sostenibilità ambientale. Infatti, essi mostrano che quanto più la catena di fornitura si estende internazionalmente, ovvero i clienti e i fornitori sono dispersi in diverse aree geografiche, tanto più l'azienda adotta una strategia manifatturiera che pone enfasi sulla protezione dell'ambiente naturale. Questo è probabilmente motivato dal fatto che un'azienda ha maggiore difficoltà a controllare i potenziali rischi ambientali causati dai propri stakeholders operanti in diverse aree geografiche, dai quali possono derivare sanzioni pecunarie su pezzi importati non conformi alle norme e/o un danno alla propria visibilità a livello globale. L’ultimo capitolo affronta il tema della gestione ambientale da una prospettiva esclusivamente operativa. Nello specifico, questo articolo contribuisce a esplorare come le pratiche di lean management e le pratiche di green management possono essere implementate insieme per migliorare la competitività. La relazione tra lean manufacturing e performance ambientale da un lato, e tra gestione ambientale e performance operativa dall’altro, è stata ampiamente studiata ma senza arrivare a una visione univoca dei benefici che ne derivano. Tuttavia, un certo numero di ricerche hanno mostrato che alcune pratiche di lean e green sono complementari. Basandosi sulla metodologia dello studio di caso, il presente articolo ha lo scopo di capire come i due insiemi di pratiche interagiscono tra di loro e producono effetti sulle performance operative e ambientali. Attraverso l’analisi di tre progetti di successo di due aziende italiane, identifico che il timing di implementazione, sequenziale vs simultaneo, definisce le modalità di gestione delle pratiche da adottare – pianificazione vs mutuo aggiustamento. Questo aspetto ha un effetto significativo sulle performance dell'azienda in quanto l'approccio simultaneo porta a risultati maggiori rispetto all'approccio sequenziale. Infine, l'analisi dei casi mi permette di individuare i drivers che influenzano la relazione tra pratiche green e lean nell'implementazione di progetti ambientali

To remain competitive in a global market, many organizations are transforming their operations from traditional management approaches to the lean philosophy. The success of the Toyota Production System in the automotive industry serves as a benchmark that organizations continually seek to emulate in search of similar results. Despite the abundance of lean resources, many organizations struggle to attain successful lean transformation. To facilitate investigation of the failure mechanisms and critical success factors of lean transformation, this dissertation addresses the following research questions: (1) Why do transformations from traditional organizational philosophies to lean fail? (2) What are the critical factors for lean transformation success? (3) What is the role of an organization’s human resource performance management system during the lean transformation journey? This dissertation utilizes a multi-method, multi-essay format to examine the research questions. First, managers from organizations in various stages of lean transformation are interviewed to establish a foundational research framework. Subsequently, a theoretical model is empirically tested based on data gathered from a survey of industry professionals with expertise in lean transformation. Data analysis techniques employed for this dissertation include: Partial Least Squares (PLS) regression, case descriptions, and case comparisons. Very few studies of lean transformation investigate behavioral influences and antecedents. This dissertation contributes to practitioners and researchers by offering a refined understanding of the role that human resource performance management can play in the overall lean transformation process. In an effort to characterize organizational outcomes resulting from lean transformation, this research introduces a new construct, Lean Transformation Success, to the literature.