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Cost reduction and quality improvement through Lean-Kaizen concept using value stream map in Indian manufacturing firms

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Abstract

As customer’s demands are continuously hiking for low price quality products, Indian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are struggling and facing challenges in order to meet these demands at the lowest cost. This research paper demonstrates the process for significant cost reduction and quality improvement in an Indian SME by applying Lean-Kaizen concept using a popular lean tool named value stream map (VSM). A current stream state map of ‘gear sector’ was prepared from data collected by taking personal visits to the selected manufacturing industry. After carefully investigating the current situations, a future state map was developed in which non-value add activities (NVAs)/waste were identified and eliminated. The 5-why method was used to identify root causes of these waste in the process. One Kaizen event was proposed to bridge the gap between the current and future state of selected industry. Through Kaizen event, a major quality problem which significantly contributed to rejection cost of nearly 1250/- INR per day was eliminated. The data obtained after Kaizen event was analyzed and reported benefits such as quality improvement, cycle time reduction time saving, customer satisfaction and zero defects are presented as finding. Through the present work, it is evident that the implementation of Lean-Kaizen concept helps to tackle inefficiencies in the processes and provide opportunities for reducing cost by applying small–small changes across the organization.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University Institute of Engineering and Technology, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, 124001, India

    Ashwani Kumar Dhingra & Sunil Kumar

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering and Technology, Sharda University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, 201306, India

    Bhim Singh

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  1. Ashwani Kumar Dhingra
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  2. Sunil Kumar
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Correspondence to Ashwani Kumar Dhingra.

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Appendix: Takt time and pitch calculations

Appendix: Takt time and pitch calculations

The average customer demand of GS = 28000 units per month, Numbers of effective days in a month = 25 days, Customer demand per day = 1120 units, Average numbers of working hours per shift = 7 h [Excluding two lunch breaks and two tea breaks], Available working time per day = 840 min. Takt Time = Available working time per day (minutes)/Customer demand per day (Items) = 840/1120 = 0.75 min per unit i.e. 45 s per unit.

$${\text{Pitch}} = {\text{Takt time}} \times {\text{Tray size}} = 45 \, \left( {{\text{seconds}}/{\text{pieces}}} \right) \times 50 \, \left( {{\text{pieces}}/{\text{tray}}} \right) = 2250\,{\text{s}}/{\text{tray}}.$$

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Dhingra, A.K., Kumar, S. & Singh, B. Cost reduction and quality improvement through Lean-Kaizen concept using value stream map in Indian manufacturing firms. Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag 10, 792–800 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13198-019-00810-z

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