Standard Work

Manufacturing The Heavy Way: Unlocking Productivity Gains

7 min read

Disruption is the new status quo in heavy equipment.Supply chain challenges continue to impact production.Covid accelerated labor trends that impact every part of the...

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Standard Work

A Food Manufacturers Recipe for Quality

7 min read

The status quo for food and beverage manufacturing has some new ingredients.Consider several of the social, economic, and cultural trends impacting the industry: ...

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Standard Work

How Auto Manufacturers Can Avoid Production Potholes

6 min read

Automotive manufacturing has been a windy road. Here are a few of the social, economic and cultural trends currently impacting automotive manufacturing. But automotive...

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Standard Work

Quality Assurance in Manufacturing: An In-Depth Guide to Achieve Customer Confidence

23 min read

It’s time to talk about quality. In this industry, quality is everything, and competition between manufacturers is fierce. Table of Content 1. Key Principles of Quality...

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Standard Work

Best Methods to Reduce Human Error in Manufacturing

27 min read

In manufacturing, many factors need to be balanced and aligned for companies to be successful. And one of those factors includes the combination of humans and machines...

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Standard Work

Best Practices to Maximize Production Capacity in Manufacturing | 2023

24 min read

According to the numbers, manufacturing makes up around 12% of the U.S. GDP and provides jobs for 12.984 million Americans, or about 9.6% of all U.S. workers. In other words,...

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Standard Work

Best Practices of Food Manufacturing Hygiene Standards

32 min read

Food manufacturing companies have a responsibility to their customers to maintain high-quality control measures and hygiene standards. These practices are necessary to ensure...

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Standard Work

5 Ways To Improve Quality Control in Manufacturing

22 min read

In manufacturing, quality is everything. Businesses need to focus on creating products that are high quality enough to meet or exceed the customer's needs if they want to be...

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Standard Work

Understanding Corrective Action vs. Preventative Action in Manufacturing

20 min read

One of the most important aspects of a successful manufacturing organization is the ability to solve complex problems as they arise. In keeping with the continuous...

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Standard Work

How To Reduce Defects in Manufacturing in 2022

24 min read

Product defects are a pain at any manufacturing company. When all the time, energy, and money that is spent to produce a product is wasted due to defects in the final...

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Standard Work

11 Common Manufacturing Challenges & Solutions | 2023

25 min read

When it comes to industry, manufacturing might be one of the most challenging. Because of the high cost of doing business, the need for skilled workers, and an...

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Standard Work

4 Indirect Ways to Improve Safety on the Plant Floor

5 min read

Safety managers have a multitude of safety strategies to protect the health and safety of their workforce. From PPE guidelines, LOTO programs, fire exit signage, the list is...

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Standard Work

How to Reduce Changeover Time with Standard Work Instructions

8 min read

Many manufacturers see reducing changeover time as a golden opportunity to improve operational efficiency and reduce waste. For good reason, a simple reduction in changeover...

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Standard Work

What's Wrong with Standard Work?

8 min read

66% of companies fail in their attempts at Standard Work. This begs the question - what’s wrong with Standard Work? How can a seemingly simple methodology be so challenging...

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Standard Work

Free Standard Operating Procedure & Work Instruction Templates

4 min read

Standard operating procedure (SOP) and work instruction templates help standardize processes and present information consistently. We’ve seen thousands of examples of these...

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Continuous Improvement

What is Standard Work?

6 min read

Lean operations and manufacturers have used Standard Work for decades, yet many companies lack clarity when it comes to this fundamental lean methodology. How is Standard...

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Continuous Improvement

How to Establish a Lean Culture in 4 Steps

5 min read

An effective lean culture aims to reduce waste and inefficiency while improving the value delivered to customers. The lean organization is a model that’s been historically...

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Continuous Improvement

Kaizen and Standardization with Dr. Robert Maurer

7 min read

We spoke with Dr. Robert Maurer, author of “Spirit of Kaizen,” a leading expert in the field of psychology and organizational change, about Kaizen and the role of...

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Standard Work

11 Benefits of Standard Work

5 min read

Taiichi Ohno, a founder of the Toyota Production System (TPS), had this to say about Standard Work, “without standards, there can be no Kaizen.” As the foundation for all...

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Standard Work

Inside the Mind of an ISO Auditor

5 min read

Getting inside the mind of an ISO 9001 auditor is crucial to a successful ISO audit. Think of it like a gift — even the best of presents can be unappealing when wrapped in...

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Continuous Improvement

Embracing Waste in a Lean Culture

6 min read

These days, waste gets a bad rap. ‘Eliminating waste’ is such a common phrase among lean and six sigma practitioners, the two words are practically inseparable. The problem...

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Standard Work

In Conversation with John Allwood

6 min read

Standard Work is a concept that’s widely accepted among lean practitioners, yet doesn’t have a large body of text detailing its application. When used properly, Standard...

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Standard Work

Vienna Sausage: A Story of Standards and Tribal Knowledge

4 min read

Imagine that you lost the ability to make your key product. What if your core revenue driver was suddenly different... And you didn't know why. We recently came across a ...

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Standard Work

How to Perform a Time Observation

5 min read

Without Standard Work, documented processes are often not used, or so out of date, that following them could become problematic. Standard Work is the foundation for any...

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Standard Work

Top 10 Shigeo Shingo Quotes on Lean Manufacturing

1 min read

Shigeo Singo: The Ambassador of Lean Shigeo Shingo was an industry leader of Lean manufacturing principles and philosophies. Originally brought on by Toyota to update their...

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Continuous Improvement

Navigating Processes: Standard Work vs. Work Instructions

4 min read

The manufacturing industry is a professional arena with an overwhelming variety of industry terms and acronyms. We’ve tried to make a list of the most common Lean terms...

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Continuous Improvement

Why Standard Work is a Contradiction

4 min read

We recently wrote a popular article about a major mistake at a nuclear waste facility. In short, we cited poor standard revision processes as the root cause of the mistake,...

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Continuous Improvement

Implementing Continuous Improvement with Dozuki

3 min read

Is your company interested in reaping the benefits of continuous improvement (transparency, efficiency, cost reductions, etc.) but aren't sure where to begin? Dozuki has you...

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Standard Work

What Caused the False Missile Alert in Hawaii

5 min read

Apparently, it was a simple mistake that caused the false missile alert to be sent to phones across the state of Hawaii. And while citizens were still recovering from the...

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Product

Hidden Waste: The Unseen Inefficiency in Shop Travelers

4 min read

Travelers and build books are intimately related, however, with traditional methods they often function independently. This gap between the travelers and build books creates...

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Continuous Improvement

The Ultimate Lean Glossary

5 min read

The world of Lean Manufacturing is full of acronyms and industry buzzwords. No glossary could encompass the full breadth of terminology, but it’s always helpful to have a...

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Standard Work

Got Standards? The Million Dollar Grammar Mistake

6 min read

Maine based Oakhurst Dairy was recently sued by a handful of truck drivers seeking more than four years worth of overtime pay—but the suit wasn’t about milk distribution at...

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Standard Work

Skip the Busy Work and Focus on Improving

3 min read

Whether you’re implementing new software or a new machine on the factory floor, continuous improvement projects take time to get set up before they, well…improve things. ...

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Standard Work

Millennials, Vinyls, and Documentation

5 min read

Vinyl is in the midst of a comeback. Perhaps it’s due to the unpredictable whims of Millennial trends. Or, perhaps it’s the byproduct of a digital backlash from consumers...

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Standard Work

Lean Startups Need to Start Documenting to Scale

8 min read

For startups that have begun to establish themselves as a sustainable business, growing pains are only a matter of time. Any experienced entrepreneur will tell you that...

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Standard Work

How Sloppy Revision Control Cost WIPP Half a Billion Dollars

5 min read

In 2014 a nuclear Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, NM was the victim of poor revision control practices that lead to a half-billion dollar mistake; shutting...

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Continuous Improvement

Upgrading Processes with Continuous Improvement

7 min read

Many companies implement formal versions of Lean or Agile methods, but others have grown with the flexibility that continuous improvement provides, giving them the freedom to...

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Standard Work

Electronic Work Instructions for Field Technicians

2 min read

Who is Sterling Bank Services? Sterling Bank Services is a consultative solution, based in Montana and designed for the maintenance and security of bank equipment...

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