Inventory management Kaizen

What is Kaizen? Basically, Kaizen is a Japanese philosophy that means continual, incremental improvement. KAI = Change and ZEN = Good or for the better. This report is an illustration of how Kaizen can be used to remove MUDA (waste) from processes, in this case the process of inventory management. The rational that drives the necessity for MUDA removal is discussed as a precursor to the discussion of the Kaizen event. These include the idea of a lean enterprise, design for six sigma manufacturability (DSSM) and demand flow.

Introduction

Kaizen, pronounced Ky Zen, is a Japanese philosophy that means continuous, incremental improvement. “Kai” translates as Change and “zen” translates as good or for the better. When applied to the work place, it means continual improvement that involves managers and works alike. At BAE SYSTEMS, we have adopted the Kaizen philosophy to help us to achieve our goal to become as “Lean” as possible. To become Lean is to eliminate waste (the Japanese term is Muda) from all areas of your business. There are seven types of Muda: waste from over producing, waste of time, waste from transporting, waste from over processing, waste from inventory, waste from motion, and waste from producing defects and rework.