lean manufacturing - thomasnet lean... · 931 n. ridge avenue, lombard, il 60148 phone:...

931 N. Ridge Avenue, Lombard, IL 60148 Phone: 630.268.9292 • Fax: 630.268.9393

[email protected] • www. helandermetal.com

How Helander Can Improve Your Supply Chain

Sort > Set in Order > Shine > Standardize > Sustain > Safety

Lean Manufacturing




[email protected] • www. helandermetal.com2

Success in modern manufacturing means more than developing ideal products; to ensure reliability and efficiency, businesses must focus on employee and consumer safety, workplace cleanliness, and quality assurance.

Developed by Hiroyuki Hirano and famously adopted by the Toyota Company in the 1970s, modern lean manufacturing is guided by the 5S approach. This Japanese method of workplace organization is divided into five components (all beginning with the letter “S”) that assist in the optimization of efficiency and safety.

1. SortIn its native Japanese, the first of the five lean manufacturing pillars is “seiri,” or “sorting.” This involves decluttering and streamlining the tools in a workspace: Everything essential for manufacturing processes should be easily accessible, and anything unnecessary should be removed. If an item won’t be used within a day or two, it should be stored elsewhere, as should infrequently used tools and supplies.

At Helander, our team removes all obstacles from our workspaces in order to ensure optimal order and cleanliness while streamlining our processes.

2. Set in Order“Seiton,” or “set in order,” is the organizational step. After decluttering, it’s essential to organize a space — ordering, setting, and arranging all tools, supplies, and other critical items for easy selection and use. This will allow for a smooth, streamlined workflow.

For example, some departments may keep equipment in drawers for optimal accessibility, while others may find it easier to organize tools in flat workspaces or on boards.

Clear accessibility and organizational standards should be established and regularly maintained.

3. ShineThe third step in the lean manufacturing system, “shine,” or “seiso,” in Japanese, focuses on all inspection, cleaning, and finishing processes needed to ensure the highest-quality manufacturing capabilities. A regular, thorough cleaning schedule should be established, and all machinery and equipment should receive frequent maintenance services and inspections.

At Helander, we clean and paint all of our machines to make for easier visual inspections. We also created a regular floor cleaning schedule, during which we clear everything out of the workspace to tidy every floor.

Lean Manufacturing: How Helander Can Improve Your Supply Chain

The Five Pillars of Lean Manufacturing





The staff is responsible for daily visual checks of each and every area to maintain order, and, four days a month, employees take part in dedicated department cleanups.

4. Standardize“Seiketsu,” the “standardizing” step, assists in the development and constant improvement of a company’s best practices; manufacturing processes are managed, ordered, standardized, and held to the highest level of performance at all times. Every object has a place, and every process has a standard.

For example, every department at Helander is color themed, with machines painted to match. This helps to ensure optimal organization and clarity throughout our processes.

By standardizing and developing best practices, company departments are better able to work together to improve overall operations. The Helander milling and turning departments, for instance, used to maintain their drill bits and perishable tools in different ways, so the teams collaborated to work out the best possible method — it is now the standard company-wide.

5. SustainThe traditional final step of the five lean manufacturing components is “shitsuke,” or “sustain,” which encompasses training, process discipline, and constant evaluation and improvement in order to maintain lean processes. This involves collecting relevant data and feedback on existing processes, keeping up with the other steps of lean manufacturing, and, of course, striving for continual success.

The Helander team performs both simple daily audits and more in-depth weekly audits to evaluate our work from top to bottom. We cycle new auditors in and out regularly for fresh perspectives and assign a specific point person to address issues as needed.

Helander’s Sixth S: Safety Our team’s wellbeing is a top priority at Helander, so we’ve added a sixth “S” to the lean manufacturing system — “safety.”

While cleanliness, order, and standardization of processes automatically improve our workplace safety, we also maintain full OSHA safety checks and industry standards. Accidents can be avoided, and we take every precaution to ensure that our employees remain safe and healthy.

How Lean Production Helps Supply Chains Lean techniques such as Helander’s 6 S’ not only help to improve manufacturing and production operations, but also processes throughout the entire supply chain. The underlying principle of these techniques is not simply to reduce waste, but to find opportunities to add value for the end user.



Our Commitment to Quality

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Besides adhering to the lean manufacturing system, we maintain our commitment to quality in various other ways. Helander has been ISO 9001:2008 registered since Nov. 5, 1999, and we’ve also acquired the AS9100 Rev. C, Nadcap, and ITAR certifications. We’re also ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel certified.

The Helander Metal Spinning team strives for continual improvement in everything we do, and our systems are constantly being updated to ensure optimal efficiency and safety.

As such, organizations must seriously evaluate and prioritize which of their activities – from the early stages of prototyping and design to the final product launch and delivery – are valuable and which are wasteful. Identifying opportunities to reduce this waste, such as cutting down on part turnaround time, stopping product defects at their source, and eliminating costly labor expenditures, will optimize your efficiency and enhance the overall value stream for the customer.

Our commitment to lean manufacturing and a safe work environment benefits everyone in our business family — especially our customers. To learn more about the benefits of working with a lean manufacturer, contact us today.

http://metalspinning.helandermetal.com/contact-us

lean manufacturing - thomasnet lean... · 931 n. ridge avenue, lombard, il 60148 phone:...

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