Thursday, January 24, 2008

OHNO CIRCLE ' LEARNING THROUGH GENCHI GENBUTSU '

Data is important , but go direct to the problem place that accured ( go and see ) is more important. And Gemba will develope your thinking way ,analysis and Lean eyes.
Problem analysis methodology in the Toyota Production System (TPS) requires participants to "step inside the circle." Those manufacturing companies that accept Toyota's offer of help in optimizing production processes with TPS will encounter the phrase during the genchi genbutsu ("go and see") step in problem solving. It is a reference to the shop-floor focus of the company's TPS pioneers, Taiichi Ohno and Eji Toyoda.
For example, Ohno, when teaching TPS, would take his students to a problem area and draw a circle on the production floor where they could observe, think, and analyze, says Teruyuki Minoura, president and CEO, Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America Inc. "He wanted us to watch and ask 'why' over and over again. If we did that, he knew the better ideas would come. Mr. Ohno realized new thoughts and new technologies do not come out of the blue -- they come from true understanding of the process."
Toyota began its TPS missionary efforts soon after it dispatched Fujio Cho, now president, to Kentucky to initiate manufacturing in the U.S. "The idea was to offer North American manufacturers the benefits possible by focusing on internal logistics," says Hajime Ohba, vice president and general manager of the Toyota Supplier Support Center (TSSC) in Erlanger, Ky. Cho, Ohba, and Minoura all were trained by TPS guru Ohno. Since the operation's start-up in 1992 TSSC's crew of consultants has worked with 88 companies. Participants outside Toyota's supplier circle include companies with products as varied as toys, home kitchenware, and premium leather goods, says Ohba.
Like a religion, converting to TPS takes time (about two years or more), an organ izational commitment to cultural change, and the acceptance of new values by everyone -- especially management. In return the process optimization that TPS makes possible can lead to huge paybacks in inventory reduction, increased product quality, and a relentless elimination of any waste that hinders efficiency. If not a religion, TPS is at the very least a rigorous philosophical approach to organized activity, says Christine Parker, TSSC's assistant manager of research and training. (Jan, 2001 )

" Let start now ,,

  1. Draw a circle in center of your processes
  2. Don't forget bring a pencil , A3 blank paper and stopwacth
  3. Also , for your drink
  4. Stand up in the circle
  5. Watch your enviroment
  6. See, people, motion, process, flow, layout, machineries, ect.
  7. Write on your paper improper or ubnormal things
  8. Get solving those kinds of no.7

I suggest to stand up for 4 hours every learning.


The importance of “Gemba”
• Go to see the actual place
• Make first hand observation
• Talk to the people
• Know the real situation-don’t rely on old data or reports.
• Insist problems are defined from facts.
• Look for current measurement tools and methods

" GEMBA TIME DON'T WAIT UNTIL YOUR COMPANY GET BLEEDING "