“Poka Yoke:”

Poka-yoke is a Japanese term that means "mistake-proofing" or "inadvertent error prevention". The key word in the second
translation, often omitted, is "inadvertent". There is no poka-yoke solution that protects against an operator's intentional
sabotage. A poka-yoke is any mechanism in any process that helps an equipment operator avoid (yokeru) mistakes (poka). Its
purpose is to eliminate product defects by preventing, correcting, or drawing attention to human errors as they occur. The
concept was formalised, and the term adopted, by Shigeo Shingo as part of the Toyota Production System. It was originally
described as baka-yoke, but as this means "fool-proofing" (or "idiot-proofing") the name was changed to the milder poka-yoke.

Usage;

More broadly, the term can refer to any behavior-shaping constraint designed into a process to prevent incorrect
operation by the user.
A simple poka-yoke example is demonstrated when a driver of the car equipped with a manual gearbox must press on
the clutch pedal (a process step, therefore a poka-yoke) prior to starting an automobile. The interlock serves to
prevent unintended movement of the car. Another example of poka-yoke would be the car equipped with an
automatic transmission, which has a switch that requires the car to be in "Park" or "Neutral" before the car can be
started (some automatic transmissions require the brake pedal to be depressed as well). These serve as behavior-
shaping constraints as the action of "car in Park (or Neutral)" or "foot depressing the clutch/brake pedal" must be
performed before the car is allowed to start. The requirement of a depressed brake pedal to shift most of the cars with
an automatic transmission from "Park" to any other gear is yet another example of a poka-yoke application. Over
time, the driver's behavior is conformed with the requirements by repetition and habit.

History;

The term poka-yoke was applied by Shigeo Shingo in the 1960s to industrial processes designed to prevent human
errors. Shingo redesigned a process in which factory workers, while assembling a small switch, would often forget to
insert the required spring under one of the switch buttons. In the redesigned process, the worker would perform the
task in two steps, first preparing the two required springs and placing them in a placeholder, then inserting the springs
from the placeholder into the switch. When a spring remained in the placeholder, the workers knew that they had
forgotten to insert it and could correct the mistake effortlessly.
Shingo distinguished between the concepts of inevitable human mistakes and defects in the production. Defects occur
when the mistakes are allowed to reach the customer. The aim of poka-yoke is to design the process so that mistakes
can be detected and corrected immediately, eliminating defects at the source.

Implementation in manufacturing;

Poka-yoke can be implemented at any step of a manufacturing process where something can go wrong or an error can
be made. For example, a fixture that holds pieces for processing might be modified to only allow pieces to be held in
the correct orientation, or a digital counter might track the number of spot welds on each piece to ensure that the
worker executes the correct number of welds.
Shigeo Shingo recognized three types of poka-yoke for detecting and preventing errors in a mass production system:

1. The contact method identifies product defects by testing the product's shape, size, color, or other physical attributes.
2. The fixed-value (or constant number) method alerts the operator if a certain number of movements are not made.
3. The motion-step (or sequence) method determines whether the prescribed steps of the process have been followed.

Either the operator is alerted when a mistake is about to be made, or the poka-yoke device actually prevents the
mistake from being made. In Shingo's lexicon, the former implementation would be called a warning poka-yoke,
while the latter would be referred to as a control poka-yoke.
Shingo argued that errors are inevitable in any manufacturing process, but that if appropriate poka-yokes are
implemented, then mistakes can be caught quickly and prevented from resulting in defects. By eliminating defects at
the source, the cost of mistakes within a company is reduced.

A methodic approach to build up poka-yoke countermeasures has been proposed by the Applied Problem Solving
(APS) methodology,[8] which consists of a three-step analysis of the risks to be managed:

1. Identification of the need (Identify)

2. Identification of possible mistakes (Root Cause)
3. Management of mistakes before satisfying the need (Counter-Measure)

This approach can be used to emphasize the technical aspect of finding effective solutions during brainstorming
sessions.

Benefits of poka-yoke implementation;

A typical feature of poka-yoke solutions is that they don't let an error in a process happen. But that is just one of their
advantages. Others include:[9]

 Less time spent on training workers;

 Elimination of many operations related to quality control;
 Unburdening of operators from repetitive operations;
 Promotion of the work improvement-oriented approach and actions;
 A reduced number of rejects;
 Immediate action when a problem occurs;
 100% built-in quality control.

“Lean manufacturing:”
Lean manufacturing or lean production, often simply "lean", is a systematic method for waste minimization
("Muda") within a manufacturing system without sacrificing productivity, which can cause problems. Lean also takes
into account waste created through overburden ("Muri") and waste created through unevenness in work loads
("Mura"). Working from the perspective of the client who consumes a product or service, "value" is any action or
process that a customer would be willing to pay for.

Lean manufacturing attempts to make obvious what adds value, through reducing everything else (because it is not
adding value). This management philosophy is derived mostly from the Toyota Production System (TPS) and
identified as "lean" only in the 1990s.[1][page  needed], [2] TPS is renowned for its focus on reduction of the original Toyota
seven wastes to improve overall customer value, but there are varying perspectives on how this is best achieved. The
steady growth of Toyota, from a small company to the world's largest automaker,[3] has focused attention on how it
has achieved this success.

Lean manufacturing is based on a number of specific principles, such as Kaizen, or Continuous Improvement.

Lean manufacturing was introduced to the Western world via the 1990 publication of The Machine That Changed the
World, which was based on a five-year, $5 million MIT study of the future of the automobile that detailed Toyota's
lean production system. Since that time, the lean principles have profoundly influenced manufacturing concepts
throughout the world, as well as industries outside of manufacturing, including healthcare, software development and
service industries.
The benefits of lean include reduced lead times, reduced operating costs and improved product quality, to name just a
few.

Five principles of lean manufacturing;

A widely referenced book, Lean Thinking: Banish Waste and Create Wealth in Your Corporation, which was
published in 1996, laid out five principles of lean, which many in the field reference as core principles. They are
value, the value stream, flow, pull and perfection. These are now used as the basis for lean implementation.

1. Identify value from the customer's perspective. Value is created by the producer, but it is defined by the
customer. In other words, companies need to understand the value the customer places on their products and services,
which, in turn, can help them determine how much money the customer is willing to pay.
The company must strive to eliminate waste and cost from its business processes so that the customer's optimal price
can be achieved at the highest profit to the company.

2. Map the value stream. This principle involves recording and analyzing the flow of information or materials
required to produce a specific product or service with the intent of identifying waste and methods of improvement.
The value stream encompasses the product's entire lifecycle, from raw materials through to disposal.
Companies must examine each stage of the cycle for waste -- or muda in Japanese. Anything that does not add value
must be eliminated. Lean thinking recommends supply chain alignment as part of this effort.

3. Create flow. Eliminate functional barriers and identify ways to improve lead time to ensure the processes are
smooth from the time an order is received through to delivery. Flow is critical to the elimination of waste. Lean
manufacturing relies on preventing interruptions in the production process and enabling a harmonized and integrated
set of processes in which activities move in a constant stream.

4. Establish a pull system. This means you only start new work when there is demand for it. Lean manufacturing
uses a pull system instead of a push system.
With a push system, used by manufacturing resource planning (MRP) systems, inventory needs are determined in
advance and the product is manufactured to meet that forecast. However, forecasts are typically inaccurate, which can
result in swings between too much inventory and not enough, as well as subsequent disrupted schedules and poor
customer service.
In contrast to MRP, lean manufacturing is based on a pull system in which nothing is bought or made until there is
demand. Pull relies on flexibility and communication.

5. Pursue perfection with continual process improvement, or kaizen. Lean manufacturing rests on the concept of
continually striving for perfection, which entails targeting the root causes of quality issues and ferreting out and
eliminating waste across the value stream.

Steps to achieve lean systems;

The following steps should be implemented to create the ideal lean manufacturing system:[29]

I. Design a simple manufacturing system

II. Recognize that there is always room for improvement
III. Continuously improve the lean manufacturing system design

I. Design a simple manufacturing system

A fundamental principle of lean manufacturing is demand-based flow manufacturing. In this type of production
setting, inventory is only pulled through each production center when it is needed to meet a customer's order. The
benefits of this goal include:[29]

 Decreased cycle time

 Less inventory
  Increased productivity
 Increased capital equipment utilization

II. Continuous improvement

A continuous improvement mindset is essential to reach the company's goals. The term "continuous improvement"
means incremental improvement of products, processes, or services over time, with the goal of reducing waste to
improve workplace functionality, customer service, or product performance. Lean is founded on the concept of
continuous and incremental improvements on product and process while eliminating redundant activities. "The value
of adding activities are simply only those things the customer is willing to pay for, everything else is waste, and
should be eliminated, simplified, reduced, or integrated" (Rizzardo, 2003). Improving the flow of material through
new ideal system layouts at the customer's required rate would reduce waste in material movement and inventory.

III. Measure

Overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) is a set of performance metrics that fit well in a lean environment. Also,
PMTS, methods-time measurement, cost analysis and perhaps time study can be used to evaluate the wastes and IT
effectiveness in the operational processes. For example, Jun-Ing Ker and Yichuan Wang analyze two prescribing
technologies, namely no carbon required (NCR) and digital scanning technologies to quantify the advantages of the
medication ordering, transcribing, and dispensing process in a multi-hospital health system. With comparison
between these two technologies, the statistical analysis results show a significant reduction on process times by
adopting digital scanning technology. The results indicated a reduction of 54.5% in queue time, 32.4% in order entry
time, 76.9% in outgoing delay time, and 67.7% in outgoing transit time with the use of digital scanning technology.[30]

The 07-Wastes of Lean Production;

The Toyota Production System laid out Seven Wastes, or processes and resources, that don't add value for the
customer. These seven wastes are:

1. Unnecessary transportation;
2. Excess inventory;
3. Unnecessary motion of people, equipment or machinery;
4. Waiting, whether it is people waiting or idle equipment;
5. Over-production of a product;
6. Over-processing or putting more time into a product than a customer needs, such as designs that require high-tech
machinery for unnecessary features; and
7. Defects, which require effort and cost for corrections.

Although not originally included in the Toyota Production system, many lean practitioners point to an eighth waste:

 Waste of unused talent and ingenuity.

Seven lean manufacturing tools and concepts;

Lean manufacturing requires a relentless pursuit of reducing waste. Waste is anything that customers do not believe
adds value and for which they are not willing to pay. This requires continuous improvement, which lies at the heart of
lean manufacturing.

Other important concepts and processes lean relies on include:

 Heijunka: production leveling or smoothing that seeks to produce a continuous flow of production, releasing work to
the plant at the required rate and avoiding interruptions.
 Kanban: a signal -- either physical, such as tag or empty bin, or electronically sent through a system -- used to
streamline processes and create just-in-time delivery.
  Jidoka: A method of providing machines and humans with the ability to detect an abnormality and stop work until it
can be corrected.
 Andon: A visual aid, such as a flashing light, that alerts workers to a problem.
 Poka-yoke: A mechanism that safeguards against human error, such as an indicator light that turns on if a necessary
step was missed, a sign given when a bolt was tightened the correct number of times or a system that blocks a next step
until all the previous steps are completed.
 5S: A set of practices for organizing workspaces to create efficient, effective and safe areas for workers and which
prevent wasted effort and time. 5S emphasizes organization and cleanliness.
 Cycle time: How long it takes to produce a part or complete a process.

Lean vs. Six Sigma;

Both lean and Six Sigma seek to eliminate waste. However, the two use different approaches because they see the
root cause of waste differently.

In the simplest terms, whereas lean holds that waste is caused by additional steps, processes and features that a
customer doesn't believe adds value and won't pay for, Six Sigma holds that waste results from process variation.
Still, the two approaches are complementary and have been combined as Lean Six Sigma.

What is the difference between lean and Six Sigma?

Lean focuses on analyzing workflow to reduce cycle time and eliminate waste.
Lean strives to maximize value to the customer while using a few resources as possible. ... To summarize the main
difference between Lean vs Six Sigma, lean looks at ways to increase flow while Six Sigma focuses on achieving
consistent results.
Lean manufacturing is a systematic way of eliminating waste and creating flow in the production process, while Six
Sigma is a set of techniques that strive to greatly reduce the rate of defects.

DMAIC;

One of the main differences between Lean vs Six Sigma is each method implements process improvement. Six Sigma
does this primarily by using DMAIC. DMAIC stands for define, measure, analysis, improvement, and control. Here
is a more in-depth look at each step of the process:

 Define: In this first step, you will define the problem and how it is affecting the current process.
 Measure: During this step, you will measure the current data. By examining the process that is already in place and
identifying what isn’t working you can begin finding ways to make improvements.
 Analysis: Now that you have measured all of your current data, you can begin analyzing it to get to the root of the
problem.
 Improvement: This is the step where you will come up with solutions, test your solutions, and make improvements as
needed.
 Control: Once you have implemented a new process you must continue to make improvements over time. These
changes will only last if employees continue to refine and maintain the process.

Want to learn how, exactly, you can carry out each step? Check out our article on DMAIC

Conclusion; (Lean vs. Six Sigma)

We often hear about the exciting transformations businesses have seen using with either Lean or Six Sigma.
However, the reality is that most companies that adopt either will fail. 60 percent of all Six Sigma projects fail and
40-60 percent of lean projects fail to achieve the desired results. Why does this happen?
Whenever a new Lean or Six Sigma project is started there is always an initial wave of momentum and excitement.
But over time, most businesses simply don’t have the ability to sustain the changes made from and often they revert
back to the former inefficient processes they had when they started.

Using the right process tracking software, however, can significantly increase your chances of success. Tallyfy’s
Business Process Management Software allows you to create digital processes which you can track, automate and
improve.

“Kanban:”
Kanban (signboard or billboard in Japanese) is a scheduling system for lean manufacturing and just-in-time
manufacturing (JIT). Taiichi Ohno, an industrial engineer at Toyota, developed kanban to improve manufacturing
efficiency. Kanban is one method to achieve JIT. The system takes its name from the cards that track production
within a factory. For many in the automotive sector, kanban is known as the "Toyota nameplate system" and as such
the term is not used by some other automakers.

Kanban became an effective tool to support running a production system as a whole, and an excellent way to promote
improvement. Problem areas are highlighted by measuring lead time and cycle time of the full process and process
steps. One of the main benefits of kanban is to establish an upper limit to work in process inventory to avoid
overcapacity. Other systems with similar effect are for example CONWIP.[5] A systematic study of various
configurations of kanban systems, of which CONWIP is an important special case, can be found in Tayur (1993),
among other papers.

A goal of the kanban system is to limit the buildup of excess inventory at any point in production. Limits on the
number of items waiting at supply points are established and then reduced as inefficiencies are identified and
removed. Whenever a limit is exceeded, this points to an inefficiency that should be addressed.

A (Very) Short History of Kanban;

In the late 1940s, Toyota found a better engineering process from an unlikely source: the supermarket. They noticed
that store clerks restocked a grocery item by their store’s inventory, not their vendor’s supply.

Only when an item was near sellout did the clerks order more. The grocers’ “just-in-time” delivery process sparked
Toyota engineers to rethink their methods and pioneer a new approach – a Kanban system – that would match
inventory with demand and achieve higher levels of quality and throughput.

So, how’d they do all that?

In simplest terms, by better communication through visual management.

Kanban is Japanese for “visual signal” or “card.” Toyota line-workers used a Kanban (i.e., an actual card) to signal
steps in their manufacturing process. The system’s highly visual nature allowed teams to communicate more easily
on what work needed to be done and when. It also standardized cues and refined processes, which helped to reduce
waste and maximize value.

A new application of Kanban emerged for knowledge work as early as 2005, and an inquisitive community formed in
2007 around the leadership of David J. Anderson, Jim Benson, Corey Ladas and others. Their resulting body of
knowledge was influenced not only by the Toyota Production System but also by the work of management and
statistics experts including W. Edwards Deming, Eliyahu Goldratt, Donald Reinertsen and other thought leaders.
How Kanban Works;

Today’s workforce is armed with retina-worthy smartphones and tablets, but plenty of information still comes our
way as words on a screen. Emails, spreadsheets, task lists – text is everywhere. While it fits certain scenarios, textual
information is not a one-size-fits-all communication vehicle: Its effectiveness is lower than you might think. Why?

It starts with your brain.

A picture is worth a thousand words for scientific reasons: The brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster
than text. 40 percent of all nerve fibers connected to the brain are linked to the retina. Visual information comprises
90 percent of the data that comes to our brain, suggesting that our neurological pathways might even prefer pictures
over text.

“Kanban helps you harness the power of visual information by using sticky notes on a whiteboard (or an electronic equivalent)
to create a “picture” of your work.”

Seeing how your work flows within your team’s process lets you not only communicate status but give and receive
context for the work. Kanban takes information that typically would be communicated via words and turns it into
brain candy.

Four Core Kanban Principles:

Unlike other workflow management methods that force change from the outset, Kanban is about evolution, not
revolution. It hinges on the fundamental truth that you must know where you are before you can get to your desired
destination.

Kanban is gaining traction as a method of smoothly implementing Agile and Lean management in technical and non-
technical enterprises around the world. Throughout this fresh take on Toyota’s manufacturing process, Kanban’s core
elements have remained rooted in the following principles. (Note: There are many ways to define Kanban; the intent
in listing the core elements in this manner is not to introduce a new definition but to distill the common principles.)

1. Visualize work

By creating a visual model of your work and workflow, you can observe the flow of work moving through the
Kanban system. Making the work visible, along with blockers, bottlenecks, and queues, instantly leads to increased
communication and collaboration. This helps teams see how fast their work is moving through the system and where
they can focus their efforts to boost flow.

2. Limit work-in-process

By limiting how much unfinished work is in process, you can reduce the time it takes an item to travel through the
Kanban system. You can also avoid problems caused by task switching and reduce the need to constantly reprioritize
items. WIP limits unlock the full potential of Kanban, enabling teams to deliver quality work faster than ever in a
healthier, more sustainable environment.

3. Focus on flow

Using work-in-process limits and team-driven policies, you can optimize your Kanban system to improve the flow of
work, collect metrics to analyze flow, and even get leading indicators of future problems. A consistent flow of work
is essential for faster and more reliable delivery, bringing greater value to your customers, team, and organization.
4. Continuous improvement

Once your Kanban system is in place, it becomes the cornerstone for a culture of continuous improvement. Teams
measure their effectiveness by tracking flow, quality, throughput, lead times, and more. Experiments and analysis can
change the system to improve the team’s effectiveness. Continuous improvement is a Lean improvement technique
that helps streamline workflows, saving time and money across the enterprise.

Getting Started with Kanban;

To move your team from visualizing your work to improving your process, you’ll need to:

1. Map your current workflow

2. Visualize your work
3. Focus on flow
4. Limit your work in process
5. Measure and improve

A Kanban Roadmap can help you transition from basic visualization to a true Kanban system.

 Responsible for Preparation and Implementation of Process Re-Design, Mapping and Evaluation.
 Derive Quality Acceptance Criteria's within defined deviation Limits for all Process.
 Understanding and Assessment of all Quality Standards for assurance and testing accordingly with respect to
requirements.
 Review raw material quality requirements as generated on Purchase order and lead team to perform
tests/inspections accordingly for all vendors.
 Approval to guarantee Quality assurance inspection at every stage of Manufacturing.
 Review of Quality Approval and Rejection Reports.
 Suitable Decision making in case of above tolerance variations in Quality.
 Responsible for Implementation of TPMS in Manufacturing Unit.
 Collection and Review of Product Feedback Report from marketing team.
 Ongoing Support in IMS for Ongoing Activities.
 Root cause analysis tpm poka yoke
 Kanban
 5S implementation kaizen
 Lean and six sigma