《2016 Changes in the Planning and Control System during Implementation of Lean Production》.pdf

Changes in the Planning and Control System during Implementation of Lean Production. Peter Olsson and Mats I. Johansson Chalmers University of Technology, Division of Logistics and transport SE-412 96 Göteborg, Sweden. Abstract Many companies now rapidly try to adopt the philosophy and tools of lean production to improve their production performances. Many parts of the companies are affected by such a transition and it has a clear positive influence on the materials flow. The aim is to identify the required changes of the manufacturing planning and control system while moving towards lean. The paper first presents a theoretical background after which, empirical findings from two Swedish companies are presented. The study shows a number of examples where the planning system ought to be aligned to a transition in direction towards lean, but also that the present planning system in no way is hindering the start of a lean implementation. 1. Introduction Many companies now rapidly try to adopt the philosophy and tools of lean production to improve their production performances. Many parts of the companies are affected by such a transition from their traditional way of working to a system characterized by a focus on customer needs, on producing 179 in small batches at the same rate as the customer demand, and on continuous improvements in order to reduce waste. Lean tools have a clear positive influence on the materials flow in terms of, e.g., lead time, visibility, inventory levels and work in progress and, especially at the detailed planning levels, greatly simplify the planning and control process. The manufacturing planning and control (MPC) system, inc