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Clearing Out My "WIP"
October 8, 2007

Every so often, I do a blog post that "cleans out the backlog," if you will.  These are articles I meant to blog about, but didn't get to. These are also articles that don't demand too much commentary.... so enjoy:

Where is Gary Convis going now that he's retired from Toyota?

Gary Convis, who we've written about a lot here, is joining up with a private equity firm that is looking to acquire and consolidate auto suppliers. It will be interesting to see who will contribute more for Lean in the auto world, Convis, Jim Press (at Chrysler) or Alan Mulally (at Ford).

Lean Thinking Network | Competing Podcast » Dr. Steven Spear interview, Part 2: Healthcare

This is another outstanding podcast from Dwight Bowen, his second with Professor Spear, this time focusing on healthcare. But, I'd encourage everyone to listen, as Prof. Spear does such a good job of articulating the thought processes behind Toyota Production System thinking.

Hudson company goes to the 'Extreme' - Hudson, MA - Hudson Sun

Here's a story about a company using Lean. Not too much detail, but this quote struck me as odd (and inaccurate):

``Lean manufacturing - it's like McDonald's - make it fresh, ship it fresh,'' said Savage, as nearby workers stacked multi-colored cubicle panels to be shipped

For one, McDonald's lets product sit in finished goods inventory... which means it's not really fresh, right? I'd use Subway or Quiznos of a better example of "fresh" since the sandwiches are build-to-order. Secondly, is McDonald's the first example people think of when trying to describe Lean to people? Odd.

Posted by Mark Graban on October 8, 2007 | Comments (0)