Kanban (Visual Controls)

Type: Class lectures, practical exercises
Number of sessions: 6 sessions
Length of sessions: 4 hours
Total hours: 24 hours

Target audience:

The course is designed for employees from all organizations, profit or non-profit, public or private, service or manufacturing. The skills learned apply to set-up operators, mechanics and maintenance technicians, business owners, company executives, local, state and federal officials, health care professionals, financial professionals, middle managers, administrative personnel, and employees of manufacturing and service organizations. These skills have also been successfully used in various office environments to greatly reduce procedures.

Summary of content:

• Understanding the seven cardinal time wasters and the importance to daily workflow and productivity.
• Process inputs and outputs – Value Stream Map and flow analysis
• Virtual Factory Tours of other successful Kanban implementations
• Video: Effective Kanbans
• Target Area review. Flow and bottle-neck analysis. Dance Charts, Spaghetti Diagrams of various flows: people, information, materials.
• Data collection methods and establishing potential target goals.
• Red Tagging & Yellow tagging and implementation including: painting lines, establishing staging areas, inbound/outbound, shadow boards, cleaning stations, and other basic and advanced visual controls, including super markets and other “pull” systems.
• Establishing short-term and long-term disposition areas.
• First round of improvements: Analyzing the “new current state” and implementing second round of flow or “pull” improvements.

Objectives and benefits:

The objectives are for participants to significantly reduce “down time” and increase flow through visual communications in any part of the organization and establish new standards which lead to a reduction of internal costs. Benefits include a reduction of internal costs and increase in competitive advantages, market share, and profits and achievement of long-term business goals. Benefits also include an increase in both employee and customer satisfaction.