For that reason, processes in traditional lean companies tend to improve incrementally.ĭigitization helps companies take scientific thinking to a new level of sophistication. But the analytical tools available to most lean practitioners force them to focus their attention on just a few variables at a time. Lean has always relied on rigorous, fact-based decision making. Scientific thinking is the principle that inspires lean companies to use hard evidence and experimentation to continually improve their operations. Technology is generating real operational value Those principles have guided the redesign of processes, management systems, and organizations to make truly effective use of technology.
Such companies have adapted some of the core principles underlying lean production to suit an environment where advanced technologies are applied in everyday operations. The benefits include year-on-year improvements in productivity, environmental protection, safety, employee engagement, and customer satisfaction (Exhibit 1). The combination of lean and technology is allowing these companies to create new augmented production systems that capture the full value of digital at scale in a sustainable manner. The next stepĪ handful of heavy-industry companies have found a new way to operate that is revolutionizing the way they create value in operations.
The experiences of those few point the way to a new kind of technology-informed operational excellence. While many companies have run successful pilots or local deployments, only a few managed to scale up their initiatives to take full advantage of the new technologies across the enterprise. The trouble for many organizations, however, is that so far results from these technologies have been mixed. The next phase of operational excellence has arrived: Industry 4.0 technologies such as advanced analytics, AI, and connected equipment help heavy-industry leaders to increase the productivity, flexibility, resilience, and sustainability of their operations. But a lot has changed since lean was conceived. In heavy industries, such as mining, pulp and paper, and oil and gas, today’s leaders can point to decades of operational improvement thanks to lean practices and principles. By the end of the 20th century, lean-management techniques had migrated from their birthplace in Japan to remake the operations of manufacturing and process industries across the world.
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