The Lean Methodology is a framework that evolved from the Toyota Production System (TPS), a system based on the philosophy of achieving the complete elimination of waste in pursuit of production efficiency. TPS was developed out of the need to build efficient and globally competitive vehicles. It was developed by Sakichi Toyoda (Founder of Toyota), his son Kiichino Toyoda, and Toyota engineer Taiichi Ohno.
The Toyota Production System (TPS) is embodied in the Toyota Way, which is a set of principles and behaviors that defines the fundamental values of the Toyota Corporation. The Toyota Way is supported by two main pillars: ‘Continuous Improvement’ and ‘Respect for People’.
One of the pioneers of the Toyota Production System, Taiichi Ohno writes about the genesis of the TPS in his 1988 book, Toyota Production System: Beyond Large-Scale Production:
“The Toyota production system was conceived and its implementation begun soon after World War II. But it did not begin to attract the attention of Japanese industry until the first oil crisis in the fall of 1973. Japanese managers, accustomed to inflation and a high growth rate, were suddenly confronted with zero growth and forced to handle production decreases. It was during this economic emergency that they first noticed the results Toyota was achieving with its relentless pursuit of the elimination of waste. They then began to tackle the problem of introducing the system into their own workplaces.” 1
Just In Time Production
The basis of the Toyota production system is the absolute elimination of waste. The two pillars needed to support the system are:
• just-in-time
• autonomation, or automation with a human touch.
Just-in-time means that, in a flow process, the right parts needed in assembly reach the assembly line at the time they are needed and only in the amount needed. A company establishing this flow throughout can approach zero inventory.
The other pillar of the Toyota production system is called autonomation - not to be confused with simple automation. It is also known as automation with a human touch. At Toyota, a machine automated with a human touch is one that is attached to an automatic stopping device. 1
The customer is the most important part of the production line. - W Edwards Deming
Lean Production System
In his 1988 MIT Sloan Management Review article titled “Triumph of the Lean Production System”, former CEO of Waymo (Google’s autonomous driving technology company) John Krafcik coined the term “Lean” as a researcher in the MIT International Vehicle Program. He writes:
For most of the period after World War II and before the early 1980s, there were clear differences between the production systems of Toyota and most Western producers. Recently these differences have begun to diminish, as many Western producers have returned to partially Western roots by adapting Toyota’s interpretation of pure Fordism. 2
Rather than continuing to refer to the different paradigms as recent Fordism and TPS, I would like to introduce two new terms here - buffered and lean production system.
The research findings from the MIT International Vehicle Program were documented in James P. Womack’s ( The Lean Enterprise Institute founder) 1991 book “The Machine That Changed the World”. The book popularised lean production/manufacturing worldwide. James P. Womack and his co-authors, identified five key principles of lean thinking, they are: precisely specify value by specific product, identify the value stream for each product, make value flow without interruptions, let the customer pull value from the producer, and pursue perfection. 3
Lean is a way of thinking about creating needed value with fewer resources and less waste. It is a practice consisting of continuous experimentation to achieve perfect value with zero waste. 4
The Lean Methodology has been adopted widely across industries beyond manufacturing. Lean principles and thinking are used to efficiently provide value for customers by eliminating waste. The Lean Methodology Framework allows organizations to test iteratively, continuously improve and get rapid feedback from the marketplace.
Famous Lean methodology adoptions include Lean Software Development, Lean Entrepreneurship/Startup (Steve Blank/EricReis), Lean Engineering, Lean Analytics, Lean Product Development, Lean UX to name but a few. Lean is a methodology that can be utilized in most industries as the primary aim is to eliminate waste and produce elegant and efficient products.
In his 2021 autobiography: Invention: A Life, the founder of Dyson - James Dyson makes a strong case for Lean methodology as a guiding principle for Dyson’s Product Development
“For me, as for all Dyson engineers, lightness − lean engineering and material efficiency − is a guiding principle. Using less material means using less energy in the process of making things. It also means lighter products that need less energy to power them and are easier to handle and so more pleasurable to use”. 5
“Lean engineering was, perhaps, built into me right from the beginning – long-distance runners need to be lean, too, of course − and I think it is built into most engineers. It’s in our genes.”
How are you adopting Lean Principles in your business?
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