Amplify Lean performance gains with Digital Lean management

In a digitally changing world, manufacturers must systematically improve the effectiveness and flexibility of their operations to maintain or elevate their competitiveness. Lean management is a proven practice to establish a continuous improvement culture and drive organizations towards higher operational performance. Today’s emerging technologies offer to digitize Lean practices and empower employees with a new level of actionable, relevant information and workforce engagement to continuously improve effectiveness and productivity. This whitepaper discusses how digitalizing Lean practices through Industry 4.0 concepts helps drive operational performance in manufacturing, accelerating the performance gains and cost savings compared to traditional Lean management initiatives. Manufacturers are constantly challenged to lower costs, improve productivity, and increase their manufacturing flexibility while securing product quality and customer satisfaction. This challenge has been addressed through both automation and digitalization of business and manufacturing processes, and by applying continuous improvement and operational excellence practices such as Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma. Where process automation targets improving the speed and enforcing repeatability of processes for higher throughput performance and consistent quality, Lean management principles focus on process simplification and responsible, knowledgeable employees as the keys to continuous improvement. Lean management aims for the systematic elimination of non-value-added activities and the reduction of unnecessary seven (or eight) forms of lean “waste” to reduce the costs, time, and resources to satisfy customer demand while maximizing value to the customer. Digital Lean uses digital technologies for increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of Lean management principles and methods.