Unfortunately manylean transformationprojects are done thisway, and only a verylimited number have theluck of Columbus ofdeveloping a reallysustainable new systemthat represents a break-through in results.

Based on Kaizen Institute's 25 years ofexperience implementing KAIZEN andLean we developed what we call theTFM Total Flow Management model, adetailed model that allows the smoothimplementation of the Toyota ProductionSystem, not only inside manufacturingplants but over complete supply chains.TFM is then defined as an integratedconcept to increase Process Flow andEffectiveness (Pull) across the Totality ofa Supply Chain. The Scope is the SupplyChain with you in the middle. The targetsare the reduction of the total lead time inthe SC. Reducing lead time also

eliminates muda of waiting and reallymeans creating a material flow. Thesystems, processes and standardsnecessary to create and maintain thisflow, require a high level of rigor andbring about very important results interms of: Cost Reduction; IncreasedProductivity; Increased Quality; Increa-sed Customer Service and Satisfaction.This is achieved by creating a flowacross the entire supply chain, startingwith the customer. Physically it isnecessary tocreate one pieceflows, one con-tainer flows andone pallet flowsand to acceleratethis flow by usingthe concept ofmilk run loops intransportation.Forecasts will notbe used for crea-ting production or

The TFM Management Model

Electrolux Italy: Creating theflow for Competitiveness

Siteco: Success is a Question ofStrategy and Priorities

Masaaki Imai: The Flow isEssential to Become Lean

KAIZEN College India

Introduction: Paul Xanthopoulos

International KAIZEN Congress

A Breakthrough in Performance

The Total Flow Management Model

From Euclides Coimbra

Many people talk about a lean transformation where flow is created and pulled by the

customer. In fact this is described in a number of “Lean” books and is known to many

people as the Toyota Lean Model orThe Toyota Production Model. Many Lean

Projects and Lean Transformations are done following the Christopher Columbus

Syndrome as Masaaki Imai says: “when he set out he didn't know where he was

going, when he got there he didn't know where he was, when he returned he didn't

know where he had been and he did it all with borrowed capital”.

Total Flow Management (TFM)

distribution orders but they will serve thepurpose of Capacity Management.

is based on the mudaelimination concept. For most people it isreally easy to accept and truly believe inthe mudas of defects, people waiting,people moving and over processing.This is something quite obvious thatrepresents big opportunities forimprovement. But when we start talkingabout material waiting (another way ofsaying inventory), over production

The TFM Model

Topics

INFOS IMPULSES IDEAS. . Global Edition 03 / 2008

KAIZEN FORUM®

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Euclides Coimbra,CEO, KAIZEN InstituteConsulting Group ltd.

Copyright © 2008 KAIZEN Institute Ltd. All rights reserved.KAIZEN and GEMBAKAIZEN are trademarks of KAIZEN Institute.

Strategy

Strategy

II. Production Flow

Smed

Borderof Line

Line and

Layout Design

StandardWork

Low CostAutomation

II. Production Flow

Smed

Borderof Line

Line and

Layout Design

StandardWork

Low CostAutomation

II. Production Flow

Smed

Borderof Line

Line and

Layout Design

StandardWork

Low CostAutomation

III. Internal Logistics Flow

Production Pull

Planning

Synchronization

(KB/JJ)

Supermarkets

Mizusumashi

Leveling

III. Internal Logistics Flow

Production Pull

Planning

Synchronization

(KB/JJ)

Supermarkets

Mizusumashi

Leveling

I. Basic ReliabilityI. Basic Reliability

V. Supply Chain Design (SCD)V. Supply Chain Design (SCD)

IV. External LogisticsFlow

Logistics Pull

Planning

Deliver Flows

Source Flows

Milk Run

Storage and

Warehouse Design

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(probably transformed in materialwaiting or work in process inventory)and material moving, then we enter therealm of the paradox (something thatlooks impossible).So most of the concepts we use in TFMto eliminate muda of material waiting, toomuch production and material movinglook like paradoxes. Concepts like onepiece flow, elimination of forklifts,frequent transportation using milk runsand many others are really difficult toaccept and at first sight they lookimpossible.One of the goals of the TFM Model is todemystify the words and to make whatlooks a paradox seem like a workableconcept that will boost companyperformance.The TFM Model is composed of thefollowing Pillars: Basic Reliability,Production Flow, Internal Logistics Flow.External Logistics Flow and Supply ChainDesign. The Supply Chain Design is

TFM - Total Flow Management Model

requirements of the owner. TFM is amodel that can trigger a breakthrough inthe performance of any Supply Chainand that embodies the power of acomplete lean transformation.Get more information from your localKaizen Office.

based on Value Stream Mapping andValue Stream Design.Each company has its own uniquefeatures and requirements, hence why itis so important to design the Pull FlowSupply Chain. Just like an architect whodesigns a property suited to the

Less Inventory of Material at the Line

Before Electrolux started implementing KAIZEN the inventory ofmaterial at the line was for 1 to 2 days (left). Now, after creating theflow, it is for 1 to 2 hours (right).

KAIZEN Team Italy at Electrolux

Creating the flow toincrease competitiveness

Carlo Ratto and his colleagues fromKAIZEN Institute Italy have beensupporting the Electrolux Company inPordenone. By working with theElectrolux representatives, Waldo Paganiand Andrea Bet, they developed theElectrolux Production System (EPS). Thecompany's Food Service departmentproduces approximately 7000 different

products. However, due to increasedcompetition, pricing pressure, qualityissues and the short life cycle of pro-ducts, they needed to speed up productdevelopment whilst reducing costs andlead time, increasing profit and reducingdelivery time.Targets were based on the main pro-ducts and the 'KAIZEN building site'was opened with the common goal ofeliminating muda (waste). 5S andstandardisation built a solid foundationto create a flow. Most importantly

people were involved at every step in theprocess through training, motivation,communication and teamwork. Theprogress achieved by the improvementswas measured by audits and the resultsspeak for themselves.Response time to market was reducedfrom 21 days to 8 days, the productionline was shortened from 80/90 meters to20/30 meters, inventory at the linereduced from 2-3 weeks to 4-8 hoursand the supply at the line decreasedfrom one week to two hours. The nextstep will be a reduction in time for theproducts to reach the market from 8days to 3 days. The number of KAIZENactivities being undertaken is continuallyincreasing and was recently extended toinclude administration and the wholesupply chain.Personal experiences of the consultants:The devil is in the detail. To understandalways go to 'gemba'. Do not demand acomplete solution - a 70 % instant solu-tion is better than a100 % approachwhich will never be implemented.

Continually changing things one step at a time for the better ... that'sKAIZEN. One improvement made by Siteco GmbH was to design a newmanufacturing island for tunnel lights. Ergonomics and standards formthe basis for introducing one piece flow. The goal is to eliminate inven-tory and to create the pull flow. It is a prerequisite that managementpromotes and supports continuous improvement and gives peopleopportunities to learn the skills and the time to practice them.

worktables, creating a new manufactu-ring island and implementing ergonomi-cally designed work stations. The fourthday was used to create standards, mar-king places for material, creating onepoint lessons and training team mem-bers to measure and estimate thesuccesses.Finally the workers presented theirachievements to management, thisoccurred at 'gemba' to best demon-strate the results in situ. This short work-shop provided remarkable results:The team removed 15 machines, 3 work-tables, 1 switch cabinet, 1 packagingtable, leftover materials and antiquatedpapers. A lot of the suggested improve-ments could be implemented; such as,

Siteco GmbH Germany

Success Is a Question ofStrategy and Priorities

Siteco Beleuchtungstechnik GmbH is aninternational manufacturer of professio-nal indoor and outdoor lighting solutionswhich has its headquarters in Traunreut/Germany. In accordance with their motto'success is a question of strategy andpriorities' the company has whole-heartedly adopted the KAIZEN philo-sophy. Manfred Pfeiffer, KAIZEN Consu-ltant and flow expert, assisted thecompany with the ergonomic design of amanufacturing island for tunnel lights.They decided to run a four day work-shop to simultaneously train people andmake improvements.Prior to implementing Kaizen, the tunnellights were assembled in a warehouseon different work tables. The shopfloorhad no specific design features and fewstandards for the flow of material.The workshop began by gathering andpresenting data regarding the layout,work in progress, packaging systems,machines, production equipment andexcess motion, so the employeesunderstood the current situation. On thesecond day they developed an improve-ment plan, this included designing a newlayout, a to do list and plan for 5S activi-ties. The third day was spent on 5Sactivities, changing the configuration of

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Basic Elements for creating the One Piece Flow

Masaaki Imai: The Flow is Essential for a Company Becoming Lean

clearly marked places for tools andmaterials, ergonomic workplace design,one point lessons, transparency of pro-cesses, definition of min/max quantities,space for a kanban shelf and standardsfor packaging. The production area wasreduced from 291 m² to 200 m², set-uptime was reduced from 60 minutes perday to 30 minutes per day, walkingdistance for machine setters was redu-ced by 25 %, productivity increased by15 % and leadtime was reduced by 20 %.Now flexible island mounting and onepiece flow is achievable.The workshop was a huge success andstrengthened the business relationshipbetween the customer and KAIZENInstitute Germany.

The flow is an integral part ofmaking products and services.Whenever a smooth flow is main-tained across an entire system,the process is under control.Whenever an abnormality occursin the flow, it is easy to detect theproblem if we go to gemba andlook at the flow. It’s easy becauseit is visual and immediate coun-termeasures can be employed tobring it back to normality.Hence, the axiom: “Go to gembawhenever abnormality occurs”.Materials and services passthrough various stages beforereaching the customer. Once the

flow has beenestablished byconnectingseparateprocesses, thenext task is tominimize theflow.Minimizing theflow hassignificant

benefits: The product or servicecan be delivered more promptly tothe customer providing a compe-titive advantage.Since minimal resources areused, such as manpower, mate-

rials, utilities, space and time, thecost of making the product orproviding the service will also beminimized. Most importantly,quality improves when the flow isminimized and minimal resourcesare employed, in particular, whenless people are involved fewermistakes occur.Standardization and 5S activitiesare the foundation of good flowmanagement. The managementstructure should also be revisedcross-functionally to manage theentire flow of products andservices.

Masaaki Imai, founderof KAIZEN Institute

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human interaction, which is the secretsuccess factor within any serviceoriented business; hotels/resorts, banks,hospitals, sales, retails, call centers, orwherever human interaction occurs.Of course, Paul does not forget theimportance of “Flow” in the serviceoperation. He says the lack of clientsatisfaction can be easily improved, ifthe management focuses on twoaspects of improvements; 1) IntenseTraining of Guest Relations: which isdesigned to attain the customer-centered culture, and 2) Seamless Flowand Lean Processes: to take all varian-ces and defects out of the system torealize the perfect experience for allclients … and by default, their guests!

On October 1 and 2, 2008 therewill be an International KAIZENCongress in Prague. The key notespeaker is Masaaki Imai.The range of KAIZEN experts willdiscuss the way to world classperformance with effective andsustainable practices.For registration and more infor-mation please contact

KAIZEN Congress with Masaaki Imai in Prague

IMPRESSUMPublisher:

KAIZEN Institute

BahnhofplatzCH-6300 ZugTel.Faxinfo@kaizen.comEditing

Consulting Group Ltd.

+41 (0)41 725 42 80+41 (0)41 725 42 89

: Sabine Leikep

We train your employees inKAIZEN, TPM, JIT, total service

management, value streamdesign, total flow management.

Qualifications available: KAIZENPracticioner, KAIZEN Coach and

KAIZEN Manager.We offer Benchmarking with

world class companies

More information, schedule andprice list available from our

service hotline:

� +41 (0)41 725 42 84www.kaizen.com

Page 4

Service Excellence

Customer Centered Cultureand Flow

As Kaizen Institute Consulting Group(KICG) strives to provide a consistentworld class level of consulting services,many world travelers also expect worldclass service excellence. The servicesector and in particular the hospitalityindustry, continues to grow rapidly,regardless of the geographic location.A new member of the KICG team is PaulXanthopoulos, coming from a Serviceand Hospitality background, bringingtremendous 'value-add' to all of ourclients in the service sector. Paul spent10 years with Destination Hotels andResorts (DH&R), specifically the Royal

Palms Resort andSpa in Scottsdale,Arizona, USA, andwas instrumental inproviding andmaintainingconsistent andmeasurable actions in guest relationstraining. Paul believes in creating adeeply ingrained aware-ness thatbecomes second nature, realizing thatthe only way to “embrace theopportunity” given to us by theguest/customer is through teamworkand mutual respect. He believes thatevery person we meet can enrich ourlives … if we allow them the opportunityand that is the way we capture therelationship. This is our philosophy of

A successful start for KAIZEN College India

KAIZEN Institute India has founded it's own KAIZEN College with thesupport of Carsten Otto and Euclides Coimbra from the InternationalKAIZEN team. The new College is led by Mr. Vijay Rai, assisted by theIndia Business Unit Leader Ashok Puri. KAIZEN College India has twoinitial locations in Khandala and Delhi. During 2008 KAIZEN CollegeIndia will offer 4 seminars and the first two ('JIT Basics' held inKhandala in May and 'KAIZEN Basics' held in New Delhi in June) havebeen very successful. At both seminars Carsten Otto shared his Kaizenexperience with the participants through theoretical discussions andpractical activities. Feedback from the first seminar participants hasbeen very positive for the new College.

Céline Achermann,phone: +41 41 7254280,email: cachermann@kaizen.com