Glossary

This glossary is intended to provide a very brief description of some of the Lean terminology you may encounter during your Lean journey.  Although we have added some of the more common and maybe not so common Japanese terms to our list, be reminded that Lean is not about learning a new foreign language.

1. Agile – a company that is able to quickly adapt to rapidly changing customer requirements and market conditions.
   • Wikipedia:  Wikipedia Definition:  Agile
2. Availability Factor:  Percentage of Net Available Time that the equipment was available (Uptime or Effective Operating Time). It is used to calculate the Net Operating Time that was available for production.
   • Availability Factor x Net Available Time = Net Operating Time
     • Net Available Time = Scheduled Operating Time – Planned Downtime
     • Net Operating Time = Net Available Time – unPlanned Downtime
   • Availability Factor = Net Operating Time / Net Available Time
   • (See also, Performance Factor, Quality Factor, OEE, and TEEP)
3. Chaku Chaku – Literally means “Load Load”.
4. Chokotei – unplanned idling and minor stops.
5. Cycle Time – The ideal or optimum (by design) time required to produce one part or one machine cycle.  For manual operations dependent on human effort, one button-to-button cycle.  May also be referred to as standard machine rate, or simply as rate.
6. DMAIC – (6 Sigma Model):  Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control.
7. Effective Operating Time:  Available Time – (Planned Downtime Events such as PM, Breaks, Meetings, Clean Up).
8. FMEA – Failure Mode and Effects Analysis.
9. Gemba – Production floor.
10. Gembutsu – The actual Product.
11. Genchi Genbutsu – Go and see to understand.
12. Genjitsu – Reality.
13. Hanedashi – Auto-unloading or Automatic part ejection after completion of the machine cycle.  Operators only have to concern themselves with the task of loading.
14. Hansei – Reflection.
15. Heijunka – Leveling.
16. Hoshin Kanri – Policy Deployment.
17. Ideal Operating Time – The time required to produce quantity of parts at the optimum or design cycle time of the machine or process.
    • Ideal Operating Time = Performance Factor x Net Operating Time
    • Ideal Operating Time = Total Quantity of Parts Produced x Ideal Cycle Time
    • Ideal Operating Time = Net Operating Time – Lost Cycle Time
      • Lost Cycle Time = Net Operating Time – (Quantity Produced x Ideal Cycle Time)
    • Ideal Operating Time = Scheduled Operating Time – Planned Downtime – UnPlanned Downtime – Lost Cycle Time
18. Jidoka – Autonomation.
19. Jishu Hozen:  autonomous or self maintenance where small maintenance tasks are performed by production operators such as cleaning, inspecting, and lubricating their equipment.
20. Jishu Kanri – Self Management.
21. Jishuken – It literally means “Self-Study”, however, it pertains to collaborative problem solving strategy after all internal efforts have been exhausted and external resources are deployed with “fresh eyes” to share knowledge and attempt to achieve resolution.
22. JIT – Just In Time Inventory Systems.  The American Production and Inventory Control Society(APICS) defines JIT as follows:
    • “A philosophy of manufacturing based on planned elimination of all waste and continuous improvement of productivity.  It encompasses the successful execution of all manufacturing activities required to produce a final product, from design engineering to delivery and including all stages of conversion from raw material onward.  The primary elements include having only the required inventory when needed; to improve quality to zero defects; to reduce lead time by reducing setup times, queue lengths and lot sizes; to incrementally revise the operations themselves; and to accomplish these things at minimum cost.
    • JIT offers the following benefits to your operation:
      • Reduction of Stockouts
      • Reduction of Inventory Levels
      • Reduction of need for material handling equipment
      • Reduction of time frames between delivery and production
      • Significant quality improvement
      • Employee engagement in continuous quality improvement
23. Jujitsu – Actual facts / data.
24. Kaikaku – Major / Significant corporate policy or operational change.
25. Kaizen – Improvement Activity / Continuous Improvement.
26. Kata – Routine, training method, drill, procedure.  Per Mike Rother in his book “Toyota Kata” (page 16), Kata can also be defined as “A way of keeping two things in alignment or synchronization with one another.”
27. Lean – A systematic approach to eliminate waste and sources of variation in the organization.
28. Mura – Uneveness, unbalanced process flow.
29. Muda – Unproductive activities.
30. Muri – Overburden, system strained, excess demand imposed.
31. Nemawashi – The practice of reaching consensus and maintaining harmony with everyone prior to meeting and making a decision.  In other words, laying out the groundwork, talking to people, and getting their approval before presenting an idea or concept. Concerns can be addressed and resolved prior to moving forward. When the meeting does occur, all the players are on board and objections have already been resolved. A more direct translation is “Prepare the Soil” or “Prepare the Roots”
• This process may involve many indepth meetings
• Many iterations may be required before arriving at a final solution
• The process of achieving consensus in this manner is typically very slow.
32. Net Available Time is the actual time that is available to produce parts.  This becomes relevant when you consider automated versus human controlled processes.  Automation is not subject to mandatory break periods and as such are able to run for periods of time that otherwise NOT available.
    • Net Available Time  = Scheduled Operating Time – Planned Downtime
    • Planned downtime includes statutory or regulatory break periods
33. Net Operating Time is the operating time available to produce a quality part at rate.
    • Net Operating Time = Availability x Net Available Time
    • Net Operating Time = Net Available Time – UnPlanned Downtime
    • Net Operating Time = Scheduled Operating Time – Planned Downtime – UnPlanned Downtime
34. Obeya – Big Room.
35. OEE – Overall Equipment Effectiveness measures how effectively available equipment time is used to produce a quality part at rate.  In more technical terms, OEE measures how effectively the Scheduled Operating Capacity of your equipment is being utilized. OEE is also used to calculate the total equipment effectiveness performance or TEEP.  See also, TEEP below.
    • Although OEE is expressed as percentage, time is the base unit of measure.
    • OEE is comprised of three metrics:
      • Availability
      • Performance
      • Quality
    • OEE measures how effectively available equipment time is used to produce a quality part at rate.
    • See also, definitions for Availability Factor, Performance Factor, Quality Factor, and TEEP
36. OODA – Observe, Orient, Decide, Act (Captain John Boyd – US Air Force Fighter Pilot).
37. OTIF – On Time In Full.  Measure of delivery or shipping performance.  How many orders were shipped complete and on time.
38. Performance Factor:  Percentage of the Net Operating Time required to produce ALL parts at rate (ideal or design cycle time) and is used to calculate the Ideal Operating Time.
    • Performance measures the actual time to produce parts against the Ideal, or design, cycle time:
      • = Ideal Parts per Minute / Actual Parts per Minute
      • = Ideal Cycle Time / Actual Cycle Time
    • Performance x Net Operating Time = Ideal Operating Time
    • (See also, AvailabilityFactor, Quality Factor, OEE, and TEEP)
39. PDCA – Plan, Do, Check, Act (W. Edwards Deming).
40. PDSA – Plan, Do, Study, Act (Walter Shewhart).
41. QDC – Quick Die Change.
42. QTC – Quick Tool Change.
43. Quality Factor:  Percentage of the Ideal Operating Time used to produce a quality product at rate and is used to calculate the Value Added Time and is often referred to as the Yield or First Time Through rate.
    • Quality Factor measures the time required to produce a quality part at rate against the Ideal Operating Time to produce all parts.
    • Quality Factor x Ideal Operating Time = Value Added Time
      • Preferred – Recommended Formula, specifically for weighted calculations
        • = Good Parts x Ideal Cycle Time / Ideal Operating Time
          • This is the correct way to calculate the Quality Factor, especially when you consider multiple parts and different yields.
          • Good Parts x Ideal Cycle Time = Value Added Time
          • The Weighted Quality Factor for a Group of Parts = Total  VALUE ADDED Time / Total IDEAL Operating Time
      • Alternative – Not Recommended, does not work for weighted calculations
        • = Good Parts / Total Parts
          • Caution:  To calculate the weighted Quality Factor for a Group of Parts, you must use the time based formula = Value Added Time / Ideal Operating Time
          • Remember, OEE measures how effectively available equipment time is used to produce a quality part at rate.
          • A quick and easy way to calculate OEE is given by the formula
            • OEE =Value Added Time / Net Available Time
    • Quality Factor x Ideal Operating Time = Value Added Time
    • (See also, AvailabilityFactor, Performance Factor, OEE, and TEEP)
44. Quick OEE:  The Back of the Envelope method for calculating OEE
    • OEE = Value Added Time / Net Available Time
      • Value Added Time = Good Parts Produced x Ideal or Design Cycle Time
      • Net Available Time = Scheduled Operating Time – Planned Downtime
    • (See also, Availability Factor, Performance Factor, Quality Factor, OEE, and TEEP)
45. SARA – Scan, Analyze, Respond, Assess.
46. Seiryuka – Streamlining “Pull”.
47. Shitsujitsu goken – Use money and time wisely and avoid waste
48. Shojinka – Labour Optimization as required for balancing production in real time.
49. SIPOC – (6 Sigma Model):  Supplier, Inputs, Process, Outputs, Control.
50. SMED – Single Minute Exchange of Dies.
51. SPC – Statistical Process Control.
52. TEEP – Total Equipment Effectiveness Performance.  Measures how effectively the total calendar capacity for your equipment is being utilized.
    • TEEP = Loading x OEE
    • Loading is calculated as follows:
      • Calendar Capacity = 24 hours per day x 365 days per year = 525,600 minutes / year
      • Scheduled Operating Capacity = 465 minutes / shift x 2 shifts x 240 days per year = 223,200 minutes / year
      • Loading = Scheduled Capacity / Calendar Capacity = 223,200 / 525,600 = 42.47%
    • TEEP = Loading x OEE
      • From our example, if OEE 85% then,
        • TEEP = Loading x OEE = 42.47% x 85% = 36.10%
    • See also, definition for OEE above
53. TRIZ – Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (Genrich S. Altshuller).
54. Value Added Time – Measures the percentage of Ideal Operating Time to produce a quality part at rate (or ideal / design cycle time)
    • Value Added Time = Quality Factor x Ideal Operating Time
    • Value Added Time = Total Quantity of Quality Parts Produced x Ideal Cycle Time
    • Value Added Time = Ideal Operating Time – Lost Quality Time
      • Lost Quality Time = Quantity of Defective Parts x Ideal Cycle Time
      • Lost Quality Time = Ideal Operating Time – (Quantity of Quality Parts x Cycle Time)
    • Value Added Time = Scheduled Operating Time – Planned Downtime – UnPlanned Downtime – Lost Cycle Time – Lost Quality Time
55. Velocity – Lean metric for prioritizing cycle time improvement opportunities .
    • Velocity = Value Added Steps / Process Lead Time
    • Little’s Law and Process Lead Time = # of items in process / completions per hour
56. Waste:  There are 8 types of waste (7 of which are commonly referred to):
    • Overproduction – Producing more than is needed
    • Waiting Time
    • Transportation – Excess handling (Internal and External)
    • Processing (Sequences / Steps)
    • Inventory – Excess or Unnecessary Inventory
    • Motion – Including those required to “find” materials
    • Defects – Nonconforming product
    • Resources – Overqualified or Underutilized resources
57. Yamazumi – Chart or Board indicating work load / process times – used for line balancing.
58. Yokoten – Knowledge Transfer.
59. 3P – Production Preparation Process.
60. 5S – Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize, Sustain.
61. 5S – Japanese Terms (Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu, Shitsuke.
62. 5S + 1 – Includes SAFETY as part of the 5S program.

To successfully execute your Lean Strategy, it is important that the members on your team embrace and understand the Lean concepts.  Often times concepts may be difficult to comprehend and require the utmost of patience for the true Lean Practictioner.  Learning a foreign language is not the focus of your Lean implementation – taking action to eliminate waste is.

IDEAS:  Investigate, Develop, Execute, Assess, Standardize

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