Abstract
In response to increased competition in recent years, businesses have been pushed to adopt new procedures, such as establishing updated information and communication systems and creating more streamlined production processes. The potential for supply chains to facilitate the introduction of innovative management practices is seen as crucial to the sector's future success. Three ideas, “lean,” “green,” and “agile,” deserve serious consideration because of their potential to significantly improve supply chain efficiency. However, combining agile and lean principles to lessen environmental consequences is a relatively new issue that is not well-defined in terms of structure. Through a comprehensive analysis of the literature on lean, green, and agile paradigms, this chapter hopes to identify potential future lines of inquiry and identify knowledge gaps. This chapter is an effort to synthesize recent findings on the interconnectedness of lean, green, and agile practices in supply chain management.
TopBackground
Lean enterprises, like other tenets of the quality movement, have their roots in the industrial sector. The origins of the Lean enterprise philosophy, which is more of a philosophy than a methodology, may be traced back to the 1960s Japanese automobile industry and the book ‘The Machine That Changed the World’ by James P. Womack et al. (1990). The story of the Toyota production method for automobiles is told in The Machine That Changed the World. Since Henry Ford adopted the conveyor belt for producing cars in 1913, very little had changed in the production of automobiles until that point. It wasn't until Henry Ford invented the assembly line that mass production of the automobile became possible. Ford's conveyor belt (a.k.a. assembly line) method entailed having workers perform small, specialized tasks as the belt moved along. According to Ford, “the stupidest man could become an expert in two days” if the process of manufacturing were simplified to the point where even the most incompetent worker could pick up the necessary skills in that time. Using this moving conveyor belt method, Ford was able to manufacture 250,000 automobiles annually, with each car selling for $500. The car went from being something only the wealthy could buy to being a common household item.
Constraints included a high volume of routine work with little room for error, a rushed work schedule, and a constantly moving conveyer belt. The workers stopped thinking about the big vision and started treating the vehicle-building process like a series of useless tasks, like adjusting the tightness of bolts on a piece of metal that is in motion. Working on an assembly line is a horrible way to make a living, and I speak from experience when I say that. Use up a barrel containing ten thousand bolts while you stand next to it, and you'll know the meaning of disappointment. The next step is to take another 10,000 bolts and set them exactly where the original 10,000 were Walker (1952). After Ford's Model T was a smashing success, competitors immediately adopted the assembly line technology. In contrast to Ford's model exclusivity, competitors like GM and Chrysler began offering a wider variety of vehicles beginning in the 1920s. Ford stopped production for seven months as the company rushed out new models to meet the demands of the market.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Lean: A methodology for reducing operational inefficiencies. A set of guidelines for running a business efficiently that aims to boost productivity and minimize losses.
Total Productive Maintenance: It's an idea that establishes a coordinated network of people working together to increase the dependability of plants and machines through proactive measures as well as those used to avert potential problems before they occur.
Non-Integrated Supply Chain: A supply chain that is not integrated is one that operates in separate compartments. This could be the case for a company like one that uses a combination of truckload and less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments with their own dedicated milkrun route.
Integrated Supply Chain: Customers and vendors establish an integrated supply chain when they join forces to improve product development, distribution, and after-sales service through the application of management strategies.
Total Quality Management: Total quality management describes a methodical approach to managing a company or other group. Improving the efficacy and efficiency of a company's internal processes in order to raise product quality is the goal of this strategy.
Supply Chain: The supply chain of a product includes every entity (individuals, organizations, materials, procedures, and equipment) involved in producing and distributing that product. The supply chain encompasses the entire process from the initial shipment of raw materials to the manufacturer to the final shipment of the finished product to the customer.
5S: Sort, Straighten, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain are the five steps in the 5S process for building a more organized and productive workplace. The 5S methodology lays the groundwork for introducing subsequent levels of lean production equipment and techniques.
Green: Green manufacturing is one that reduces its environmental impact as much as possible.
Agile: Agile is an iterative methodology for managing projects and creating technology, which allows groups to provide more value to consumers in less time and with fewer problems. Agile teams avoid risky “big bang” launches in favor of more frequent, smaller, and more manageable product releases.