Lean Manufacturing Tools for Operations Management Based on PDCA Cycle

Abstract

Processes management allows improvement in management and productivity since it allows to have a global vision of the entire organization, at the same time, lean manufacturing tools help to improve production/administrative systems and encourage continuous improvement. This work proposes a continuous improvement model that brings together the two aforementioned approaches, taking the PDCA cycle as a starting model. The methodology used in this work begins with a bibliographic review of the topics of interest, process management and lean manufacturing tools, then an analysis of the PDCA improvement cycle is carried out, focusing on the scope and objective of each stage. Finally, an improvement management model is presented that suggests which lean manufacturing tools are the most appropriate to develop each of the stages of the PDCA cycle. The results show that the proposals effectively combine these tools, and their implementation is feasible in companies of all kinds, regardless of their size and activity. The proposed model was tested through a pilot test in a footwear manufacturing industry located in the city of Cuenca-Ecuador with results consistent with the philosophy of continuous improvement.