Six sigma is a manufacturing process that your manufacturing business can use to help improve their processes. Six sigma is a great choice for your business because it has certain benefits over other manufacturing processes because it is designed to focus on improving your manufacturing processes through a quality measurement program. With six sigma rather than focus on increasing products that are manufactured it focuses on the quality of the products that are being manufactured.

Knowing how six sigma works is still not enough information to help you decide in choosing six sigma for your manufacturing process. To make the best decision possible you are going to want to find out the best reasons that other companies use six sigma for their manufacturing process rather than some other manufacturing process.

Another popular reason that manufacturing companies implement six sigma is because it is a great way for their business to save money. One of the best ways that six sigma helps your manufacturing company save money is because it reduces the amount of waste your company is creating. Six sigma is going to reduce the amount of time your manufacturing company is spending on manufacturing products because it is going to examine your entire manufacturing processes one at a time to see what you can do to improve your manufacturing processes.

By improving your manufacturing processes your business will be able to produce more quality products, which means you will be able to increase your sales through the increased productivity. You can also save money on operational costs because six sigma will reduce the number of defects that are produced in your products, which means the more products you will have to sale. You can also use six sigma to reduce the amount of time it takes your business to manufacture products, which again increases your productivity.

Six sigma is a great choice to implement because everybody from upper management down to the janitors is going to be trained in six sigma. With everybody being trained in six sigma, this means that everybody is going to be on the same page when it comes to doing things for the business because everybody will have received the same type of training for their job. For example, an employee who works during the day and an employee who works the night shift might have two different methods of producing the same product. By receiving six sigma training them will both learn the best way to produce their product and both will use the same method in manufacturing the products.

With six sigma, the one thing that you need to keep in mind is that it provides you with a narrower view than other manufacturing processes. The reason for this is that it takes a closer look at the manufacturing processes, by examining them one at a time, rather than looking at the bigger picture.

In the 1980's Motorola developed a manufacturing process called Six Sigma. Six sigma is an approach that is specifically used by manufacturing companies to improve the quality of their manufactured products, by eliminating any waste that is found and by improving all of their manufacturing processes. Six sigma improves a manufacturing company's processes because it examines each process one at a time to see where improvements are made; it provides your business with a narrow focus rather than a broad focus.

The focus of six sigma is on quality, but the definition of quality for six sigma is not going to be the company's definition of quality. Instead, with six sigma the definition of quality is going to come from the customer. Six sigma is going to look at how your customer is viewing your product, meaning what they consider the value of your product to be. Six sigma is also going to take into account the manufacturing processes that your business uses to achieve the results that your customers are seeing.

With six sigma, one of the most important aspects of the program is to improve your overall customer satisfaction. The reason for this is that if your customers are happy with what you have to offer they are going to be more likely to come back and pass on to their friends and family how wonderful your business is.

Not only will six sigma look for any defects in your products and manufacturing processes, six sigma will also look for any variations in your manufacturing processes, if any variations are discovered, they will need to be dealt with.

The six sigma concept is something that was designed based on a statistical thinking approach because the six sigma process views every business process in a statistical manner. Everything that is analyzed with six sigma is based on the statistics of the business. To understand the six sigma approach you need to understand the fact that the approach was designed based on three simple rules.

The first rule of the six sigma approach is that everything is a process, not just your manufacturing processes; payroll is a process that needs to be viewed statistically to ensure that everything is working, as it should.

The second rule to six sigma is that all of the processes are going to have variability because variability is considered unavoidable. The reason variability is unavoidable is because humans are programming the machines or running the processes, so things will not always happen the same way repeatedly.

The third and final rule that six sigma follows is that in order to understand the variability that is involved in a process you are going to need to gather data. In addition to gathering data you are also going to need to analyze and understand the data that you have gathered because, it is this data that is going to help you determine which processes need to be improved and how you are going to go about improving them.

Lean manufacturing is a quality control program for your manufacturing plant that focuses on cost reduction in your manufacturing plant. Lean manufacturing also focuses on any increases in turnover that your manufacturing company is dealing with. When it comes to dealing with the increases in turnover what lean manufacturing does is eliminate any activities that are causing the increase in turnover time and by eliminating any activities that are not needed in your manufacturing process. What lean manufacturing is doing is eliminating and reducing any waste that is associated with your manufacturing processes, whether it is wasted time or wasted materials.

One of the most important tools that is used in lean manufacturing is visual controls because visual controls can be applied anywhere in the workplace, including the sales office and the shop floor. Visual controls are tools that you can use to look at the manufacturing plant to see what is going on. When looking at what is going on you are going to want to see what things might need to be improved or what things are broken.

Using visual controls will allow you to spot problems before they occur, which means you can head off the bigger problems sooner rather than later. Using visual controls in lean manufacturing is important because it allows you to manage any variances in your manufacturing processes, but it also allows you to control the outcome of your manufactured product. Visual controls work the best because they allow you to respond faster to any potential problems that might arise when compared with other lean manufacturing tools.

Another thing to be aware of when implementing lean manufacturing in your manufacturing plant is you do not want to implement it in every area of your manufacturing plant at one time.

What you want to do is choose a small area and use that area to introduce lean manufacturing to your plant. Doing it this way enables you to determine if lean manufacturing is going to be best choice for your manufacturing plant without incurring a lot of cost. Only implementing it in one area will also allow you to implement another quality control system, so that you can compare the two systems to see which one works better for your manufacturing business. Something else to think about when it comes to choosing an area for lean manufacturing is to choose an area that is going to provide you with quick results, this way you can show your employees the rewards of converting to lean manufacturing almost immediately. Showing your employees the rewards of implementing lean manufacturing can help to motivate your employees to use it in other areas of your manufacturing plant before you decide to fully implement it because they will see the benefits of using the quality control system.

The primary characteristic of Batch Production manufacturing is that all components are completed at a workstation before they move on to the next one. Batch production is mostly popular in bakeries and in the manufacture of sports shoes, pharmaceutical ingredients, inks, paints and adhesives. In the manufacture of inks and paints, a technique that is called a color-run is used. A color-run is where the production process manufactures the lightest color first, such as light yellow followed by the next increasingly darker color such as orange, then red and so on until reaching black and then starts over again.

This helps to minimize the cleanup and reconfiguring of the machinery between each batch. White (by which is meant opaque paint, not transparent ink) is the only color that cannot be used in a color-run due to the fact that only a small amount of white pigment can adversely affect the medium colors.

It is important to note that there are inefficiencies that are associated with Batch Production Manufacturing. The production equipment must be stopped, re-configured, and its output tested before the next batch can go on to be produced. The time between batches is known as "down time" and can be costly for a manufacturing company.

Batch Production Manufacturing does have many "pros" and "cons" but is effective and used worldwide, mainly by larger businesses on higher profit margins.

One of the major advantages of Batch Production Manufacturing; is that it can reduce initial capital outlay because a single production line can be used to produce several products. Batch Production Manufacturing can be useful for small businesses who cannot afford to run continuous production lines. Also, many companies can use Batch Production Manufacturing as a trial run. Then if a retailer buys a batch of a product that does not sell then the producer can cease production without having to sustain huge losses.

A major disadvantage of Batch Production Manufacturing is the lack of flexibility in production. All production equipment, employees and other resources will be focused on completing the current batch of production. Should an unforeseen complication come up it becomes very difficult for manufacturers to switch everything over quickly. The lack of response time can potentially affect the bottom line and adversely effect overall profitability.

In order to make any manufacturing process successful there are key components. Some of these are:

• Participative management-This refers to the involvement of every member of your company in the management process. In other words, in order to be successful managers will set your important policies and make important decisions with the input of those that have to adhere to those policies. This helps improve the motivation of company workers as they feel a part of the whole process, and helps upper management successful carry out their operation tasks.
• Continuous process improvement-This characteristic is simply recognizing the small incremental gains towards your goal of reaching total quality. This is also reflective of a manager's willingness to invest in the small things now in order to reap larger benefits in the future. It is considered to be a long-term approach.
• Utilization of teams-Team work is also a necessity for the success of any company, and it is no different with Batch Production Manufacturing. By taking this approach workers will be better able to understand their roles with the problems at hand, share knowledge, and align their work goals with the entire company.

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a business management strategy that is aimed at embedding awareness of quality in all organizational processes. This process has been widely used in manufacturing, but is also used in education, hospitals, call centers, government, and service industries, as well as NASA space and science programs.

Total Quality Management is considered to be the organization-wide management of quality. The management process consists of planning, organizing, directing, control, and assurance.

Manufacturers often refer to this process in order to help achieve more cost efficient and timely results. Total quality is called total because it consists of two different qualities: quality of return to satisfy the needs of the shareholders, and quality of products.

• Total: Meaning involving the entire organization, supply chain, and/or product life cycle


• Quality: To achieve the highest level of production.


• Management: The system of managing with steps like Plan, Organize, Control, in reference to production of goods or services

Total Quality Management is an approach for an organization that is centered on quality, based on the participation of all its members and aiming at long-term success through customer satisfaction, and benefits to all members of the organization and to society.
One of the major aims is to reduce variation from every process so that greater consistency of effort is obtained.

In Japan, Total Quality Management is comprised of four process steps:

• Kaizen-This fact focuses on "Continuous Process Improvement", to make processes visible, repeatable and measurable.


• Atarimae Hinshitsu-This is the idea that things will work as they are supposed to.


• Kansei-Examining the way the user applies the product will lead to improvement in the product itself.


• Miryokuteki Hinshitsu-This is the idea that things should have an aesthetic quality.

It is interesting to note that the origin of the expression Total Quality Management is unclear. Noted Author Bill Creech claims to have coined the phrase in his book "The Five Pillars of TQM", comparing the functionally centralized approach to organization with the team-oriented, decentralized approach pioneered in Japan after World War Two.

However it evolved the expression Total Quality Management started to appear in the 1980s and there are two theories of its origin. One theory is that Total Quality Management was created as a misinterpretation from Japanese to English since there no difference that exists between the words "control" and "management" in Japanese. The other theory states that The American Society for Quality says that the term was used by the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command in 1984 to describe its Japanese-style management approach to quality improvement since they did not like the word control in Total Quality Control.

Total Quality Management has not functioned independent of its environment. In the context of management accounting systems it has been n that incentive pay enhanced the positive effects of Total Quality Management on customer and quality performance. It has also been demonstrated that product focused Total Quality Management was linked to timely problem solving information and flexible revisions to reward systems. Manufacturing experts summarize the findings from contingency-based research concerning management control systems and Total Quality Management by noting that that process is associated with broadly based manufacturing operations including timely, flexible, externally focused information; close interactions between advanced technologies and strategy; and non-financial performance measurement.

While many people assume that small businesses are often not associated with manufacturing, in the U.S. small manufacturers can be found in all fifty states. Organizations such as the American Small Manufacturers Coalition (ASMC) exist solely to promote small manufacturers and to lobby government to assist with legislation and federal programs.

Small manufacturers offer specialized and personalized products that larger manufacturers cannot make profitably. Niche manufacturing by small manufacturers can allow them to operate in areas that have little or no competition from larger companies.

When small businesses are involved in manufacturing, there can be a number of manufacturing methods that are employed. These methods are known as flexible, continuous, intermittent and custom manufacturing.

• Flexible Manufacturing-This type of manufacturing is extremely suitable for most small manufacturer. Flexible manufacturing uses equipment that is controlled by a number of Computer Numerical Control (CNC) computers. This is an interesting type of production since it relies more on robotic cells than manufacturing personnel which allows the business owner to change the products manufactured to react to customer or market needs. The use of automation produces a product that is manufactured to highly precise specifications which in turn improves the quality of the product. The major disadvantage (and some say only) of this type of manufacturing is the high initial cost of the manufacturing equipment.
• Continuous Manufacturing-When small businesses manufacturer a single product, then continuous manufacturing is a method that most companies choose to use. The process is basically an assembly line that produces a single finished product rather than a number of products or products that are made specifically for a customer order. The assembly line is made up of a number of work stations or work centers where individual operations are made on the product as it passes along the line. This manufacturing method is ideal for small businesses that do not manufacture items that can be customized. This type of process allows every finished good that is produced to be sold to any customer without modification.
• Intermittent Manufacturing-If a small business is going to manufacture products that are of a similar type; they can adopt an intermittent manufacturing process. Businesses that manufacture items that are similar in nature, but have variations, are the most suitable for intermittent manufacturing. For example a company that only manufacturers tires for bicycles will sell tires that are of different sizes to fit a variety of bicycle wheels. Businesses will manufacture batches of the same product depending on demand and then will manufacture a batch of the same or another type of product. This type of manufacturing is good for products, which are heavily based on fluctuating demand.
• Custom Manufacturing-This is a method that is used by a large number of small businesses. This method allows business owners to fully customize their finished product to the exact requirements of the customer. Many items can only be manufactured in this method due to their complexity or the skills that are required in manufacture cannot be replicated by a machine. Small business owners that work alone will often specialize in items that are made using custom manufacturing.

Manufacturers are finding it very difficult to stay competitive in the world market for several reasons. Some of the most common reason is:

1. The ever increasing costs of raw materials
2. Global competition particularly with China
3. The difficulties that are associated with finding, recruiting, training and retaining skilled employees
4. A real lack of confidence in the world market when it comes to goods made in the U.S.
5. An ever increasing number of government regulations
6. The day to day problems and demands that go along with managing complex supply chains

New technologies are often left out of conversations about how to address today's manufacturers' everyday concerns. This can be incredibly unfortunate because while no technology is going to be able to address all of a manufacturer's concerns, it has the potential to at least eradicate a number of them.

That said the reluctance towards adopting new technology is understandable. Immediately, one must think of the costs that are associated with implementing new technology, the research involved in finding the right technology, the in-house processes that will potentially be required to install and maintain any new technology, and the training that will be required in order to even use the new technology.

Some manufacturers may also be concerned with the impact that new technology could have on jobs. They may be asking if the technology will replace their workforce or even make their own job obsolete.

It is important to understand that the potential costs associated with implementing new technology must be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. There is simply no way to get around taking the time to research new technologies in order to find exactly the right one for your company or particular department. The good news is that during your initial research, you can determine the exact perimeters that will eliminate many of your other cost concerns.

For example, a business owner may decide not to look at technologies that are hardware based and that will require constant maintenance by their company's IT department, and instead, to consider only those solutions that are web-based and governed by a trusted outside firm. Making initial decisions like these can eliminate your concerns regarding installation and maintenance hassles, as implementing web-based technologies rather than hardware usually requires very little interaction with your company's IT department.

The truth is that while there are examples throughout history of technology replacing workers (in the automotive and agriculture industries, in particular), it happens much less than one might think. In fact, implementing new technology does not often result in mass unemployment; more often, it does the opposite, and creates many more jobs!

So, as reluctant as manufacturers may be to adopt new technologies in the manufacturing industry, they should give serious weight to the idea that they might have little choice but to adapt in order to remain, or in some cases, become, competitive. As society becomes more technology-based, there simply may be no other choice.

Luckily, most manufacturers do have plenty of choices when it comes to the technology they choose to implement. Once businesses have created the parameters that will eliminate certain cost concerns prior to comparing different technologies, they can then begin to make other comparisons. Assuming that you are looking for a big picture solution rather than a quick fix, you will likely want to ask your potential technology provider the following types of questions:

• Will the technology provide me with a global view of all of my company's shipments?


• How much visibility will I have when it comes to individual shipments?


• How will the technology enable me to take control over the cost of each shipment within my supply chain?


• Will the technology assist me in ensuring that my team follows my company's current logistics guidelines?

Because of the changing market OSHA has implemented more stringent guidelines and increased spontaneous monitoring visits to eliminate fraudulent trainers. This is following the market wide trend of cost cutting and improving efficiency.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Outreach Training Program is a nationwide network of more than 16,000 independent trainers who are qualified to teach workers and employers about workplace hazards and to provide OSHA 10-hour course-completion cards, that signify an employee has received training in specific core elements of safety and health.

This has allowed the use of independent trainers and has allowed OSHA to significantly extend its training capabilities. But OSHA has stated that they will not tolerate fraudulent activity or unscrupulous trainers when workers' health and lives may be at stake.

Experts feel that the rapid growth of the training program and certain city and state regulations that are requiring workers to earn an OSHA 10-hour safety course-completion card for employment has prompted the fraudulent activity. This has led to some trainers having not been provided the appropriate training in accordance with the program or was falsifying information.

From 2004 through 2008, 2.3 million workers have received outreach training, and this has doubled the number of workers who have been trained. In 2008, records show that OSHA distributed almost 680,000 student cards and trainers held more than 43,000 classes, averaging 850 classes per week.

Because of some of the legislative requirements for workers to have 10-hour OSHA cards, 10-hour classes comprise more than 80 percent of the overall program. Construction outreach training is another highly sought-after training class that comprises 80 percent of outreach training. In addition 30-hour construction safety training courses still tripled from 2005 to 2008. Records show that on any day, 2,700 workers attend OSHA outreach training classes.

Experts felt hat strengthening the integrity of the Outreach Training Program will help ensure that workers receive quality training, help them gain employment and most importantly return them home safely at the end of their workday. OSHA began implementing these more stringent guidelines in 2008, requiring trainers to certify their classes and ensure the training documentation is in keeping with OSHA guidelines before they are given course completion cards to give to their students. OSHA also has revised its trainer courses to include more rigorous exams for authorizing new trainers and added an ethics module to all trainer courses.

To become an authorized trainer, interested parties must complete a week-long course that is either in the construction industry, in general industry or both at the OSHA Training Institute or at any OSHA Training Institute Education Center, which has locations nationwide. Once they are authorized, trainers can train for four years and are required to take an update course before the end of the four years to renew their authorization.

Along with the 2008 changes, OSHA has further revised its training program guidelines this year, adding extra mandatory hours for both the construction and general industry courses. Trainers must also now maintain class files for five years and before teaching classes with 50 or more students, trainers must first obtain approval from the OSHA Education Center.

Additionally, OSHA has increased making unannounced monitoring visits to verify that trainers are in compliance with program requirements. Trainers who are caught falsifying information will also be subject to criminal prosecution.

Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor that are used to make things for use or sale. This term can refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are then transformed into finished goods on a large scale. Such finished goods may also be used for manufacturing other, more complex products, such as household appliances or automobiles, or sold to wholesalers, who in turn sell them to retailers, who then sell them the consumers.

Manufacturing is known to take turns under all types of economic systems. In a free market economy, manufacturing will usually be directed toward the mass production of products for sale to consumers at a profit. In a collectivist economy, manufacturing is more frequently directed by the state in order to supply a centrally planned economy. In free market economies, manufacturing occurs while under some degree of government regulation.

In the United State the manufacturing sector is closely connected with engineering and industrial design. Examples of major manufacturers include but are not limited to: General Motors Corporation, Ford Motor Company, Chrysler, Boeing, Gates Rubber Company and Pfizer. Examples of manufacturing in Europe include: Airbus, Daimler, BMW, Fiat, and Michelin Tyre.

Manufacturing Process Management (MPM) is a collection of technology and methods that are used in the manufacturing and defines when it is to be made. Manufacturing Process Management also defines how it will be made. A cornerstone of MPM is the central repository for the integration of all these tools and activities. MPM aids in the exploration of alternative production line scenarios; making assembly lines more efficient with the aim of reduced lead time to product launch, shorter product times and reduced work in progress inventories as well as allowing rapid response to product production or product changes.

Scheduling is an important tool for manufacturing and engineering and is an integral part of Manufacturing Process Management. Scheduling can have a major impact on the productivity of a process. In manufacturing, the purpose of scheduling is to minimize the production time and costs. This is done by telling a production facility what to make, when, with which staff, and on which equipment. Production scheduling aims to maximize the efficiency of the operation and reduce the costs.

Today's production scheduling tools greatly outperform older manual scheduling methods. These can provide the production scheduler with powerful graphical interfaces which can now be used to visually optimize real-time work loads in various stages of production, and pattern recognition allows the software to automatically create scheduling opportunities which might not be apparent without this view into the data. For example, an airline might wish to minimize the number of airport gates that are required for its aircraft, in order to reduce costs, and scheduling software can allow the planners to see how this can be done, by analyzing time tables, aircraft usage, or the flow of passengers. Companies can also use backward and forward scheduling to allocate plant and machinery resources, plan human resources, plan production processes and purchase materials.

Forward scheduling is planning the tasks from the date resources become available to determine the final shipping date or the due date. Backward scheduling is planning the tasks from the due date or required-by date to determine the start date and/or any changes in capacity that will be required.

The benefits of production scheduling can include:

• Process change-over reduction


• Inventory reduction, leveling


• Reduced scheduling effort


• Increased production efficiency


• Labor load leveling


• Accurate delivery date quotes


• Real time information

When understand manufacturing processes it is important to understand what manufacturing indicators really mean. By understanding what the manufacturing indicators are showing business owners can better grasp the needed concepts of manufacturing process.

The three key measurements of manufacturing health are:

• Business Inventories


• Industrial Production


• Capacity Utilization

• Business Inventories-This is a measurement of the inventories that are carried by retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. In a slow economy, inventory will not move as quickly and levels may rise dramatically. As a result, businesses may not be able to order as much and production decreases. When the economy begins to pick up, businesses then can turn over inventory faster and reorder. High inventories can also mean prices at the respective levels will remain flat or in some cases fall. For example, clothing retailers want to move this season's styles off the shelves to make room for not only new styles, but also the changes that come with moving from summer to fall. Auto dealers want to get rid of the older models to make room for the new ones. Conversely when businesses let inventories fall too low because of weak demand they must then scramble when the economy begins an upturn to rebuild their stocks. The bottom line is that you can not sell it if it's not on the shelf. It is important to keep in mind that inventory rebuilding spurs the other two markers in this article. Economists look for trends and changes in inventories as indicators as to what will happen in the manufacturing sector.
• Industrial Production-This indicator looks at the country's manufacturing aggregate hours and is related to whether the cycle is trending up or down in terms of production. If the users of their output are carrying big inventories then manufacturers will cut back hours of production. Industrial Production is reported as a change from the previous month and usually falls in the less than one percent range. Growth in this number reflects a trend of continued orders and inventory replenishing or rebuilding. Negative or flat numbers indicate manufacturing customers are just not turning their inventory.
• Capacity Utilization-This indicator refers to the amount of usage of manufacturing output.
  It gives you an idea of how much more the manufacturing sector can do. One of the really crucial pieces of information coming from this report is how much pressure (or how little) for price increases in the manufacturing sector can you expect. The reported number is usually a whole percentage. As a general rule of thumb the closer the number is to 80%, the higher the pressure is for price increases at the manufacturing level. That's not to say price increases will be automatic or across the board in all industries, however once the number hits 80%, economists begin to work about price hikes.

These three indicators will signal important positions in the business cycle and may give a boost or put a damper on market activity depending on their results.

In today's tighter economy certain trends that were once put by the wayside have come to back to the forefront of manufacturing. One of these trends is lean manufacturing. In a manufacturing environment that must know produce under tightening costs lean manufacturing is once again moving to the top of many companies production methods.

Lean manufacturing or lean production, which is often known simply as "Lean", is a production practice that considers the expenditure of resources for any goal other than the creation of value for the end customer to be wasteful, and thus it becomes a target for elimination. The idea is that working from the perspective of the customer who consumes a product or service, "value" is defined as any action or process that a customer would be willing to pay for.

Basically, Lean is centered on creating more value with much less work. Lean manufacturing is considered to be a generic process management philosophy derived mostly from the Toyota Production System (TPS) (the term Toyotism is also prevalent) and identified as "Lean" only in the 1990s. The process is renowned for its focus on reduction of the original Toyota seven wastes in order to improve overall customer value, but there are varying perspectives on how this is best achieved. The steady growth of Toyota, (from a small company to the world's largest automaker) has focused worldwide attention on how it has achieved this.

Lean principles originated from the Japanese manufacturing industry. For many, Lean is considered to be the set of "tools" that assist in the identification and steady elimination of waste. The theory being that as waste is eliminated quality then improves while production time and cost are reduced. Examples of such "tools" are the Value Stream Mapping, Five S, Kanban (pull systems), and poka-yoke (error-proofing).

There is also a second approach to Lean Manufacturing, which is promoted by Toyota, in which the focus is upon improving the "flow" or smoothness of work, thereby steadily eliminating mura ("unevenness") through the system and lessoning the focus upon "waste reduction". Techniques to improve production flow include production leveling and "pull" production. This is a fundamentally different approach to most improvement methodologies.

The difference between these two approaches is not the goal itself, but rather the approach to achieving it. Proponents of the process feel that the implementation of smooth flow exposes quality problems that already existed, and thus waste reduction naturally happens as a consequence. The advantage that is claimed for this approach is that it naturally takes a system-wide perspective, whereas a waste focus sometimes wrongly assumes this perspective.

The overall principles of Lean include: Pull processing, Perfect first-time quality, Waste minimization, Continuous improvement, Flexibility, Building and maintaining a long term relationship with suppliers, Automation, Load leveling and Production flow and Visual control.

The disconnected nature of some of these principles may spring from the fact that the Lean has grown sporadically since 1948 as it responded to the problems it saw within production facilities. Thus what one sees today in viewing Lean is the result of a "need" driven learning to improve where each step has built on previous ideas and not something based upon a theoretical framework.

As predicted the drop in export demand has hit countries other than China and Japan. Many analysts, however, do predict much of Asia's growing consumer base will play a major role in a global recovery.

As with China, Japan and the rest of the world, India, and South Korea are also suffering from declining economic and industrial growth that is mainly due to decreased export orders. Although economists' numbers show reduced growth, many analysts are also optimistic about Asia's ability to bounce back. Experts also report that Asian countries are hit by plummeting exports, from the double-digit growth of the past decade to double-digit declines, declining domestic demand and rising unemployment.

In February, however, the drop was much less severe for most countries, except China. China's export decline has increased to 26 percent. This is important to note because over 60 percent of China's imports come from the rest of Asia and about half of the components assembled in China are now sold to wealthier nations. This becomes a problem because if China's exports to the U.S., Europe and Japan decline, it will buy less imports of parts that are used in making the exports.

In addition given the regionally integrated nature of the production base in Southeast and East Asia, these import declines may reflect the beginning of an industrial crisis. Countries that rely on manufacturing exports are going to be the worst hit.

Experts also project that economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region's developing countries to fall from 5.8 percent in 2008 to -0.7 percent in 2009. Economist predict a more depressing 2009 with an economic growth forecast for Malaysia at -3 percent, Singapore -7.5 percent, Thailand -4.4 percent, Indonesia -1.3 percent, South Korea -5.9 percent and Taiwan -6.5 percent.

India is the only one among this group of Asian countries to have positive growth that is expected in the range of 4.5 percent, to 5 percent. Still, India's economy is suffering from lack of investment, which has accounted for 39 percent of its GDP in fiscal year 2008. In the last quarter of 2008, foreign loans and direct investment were down by nearly a third.
It has become apparent that the sudden slowing in the flow of foreign funds will make it harder for the country to grow fast enough to pull hundreds of millions of people out of stifling poverty.

Yet despite all the pessimism, analysts are predicting a recovery, with improvements in the economic situation already being seen. For the first time in five months, Indian manufacturing has recently expanded. Manufacturing makes up about 16 percent of India's GDP, and the Reserve Bank expects its economy to pick up at around 6 percent in late 2009/early 2010 which is somewhat higher than economist's expectations. Standard & Poor's says India's economy will grow by 5.8 percent in 2009, making it the second-fastest growing economy should China only grow at 8 percent. As far as jobs go, more than 60 percent of companies in India are still hiring with salaries that are expected to increase by 8.2 percent in 2009.

Despite the slowdown, foreign companies are still investing in India, although considerably less than in previous years. Pepsi Co plans to spend $500 million, Universal Success Enterprises of Singapore is injecting $17.5 billion in infrastructure projects, Norway's Telenor is investing $3.2 billion in Indian telecom and Marriott International plans to build 24 new hotels throughout India. This also does not include domestic companies investing in their country and all kinds of outsourcing firms looking to India for growth.

Trends will show the way and often dictate what direction businesses should make their next move. Industrial trends are no different. Based on responses from vendors, consultants and buyers, new research has provided insights into manufacturing and supply chain developments that are expected for 2009. While many experts say that the coming year will be challenging to say the least however, many manufacturing companies are viewing this pause that is coming after six years of fairly steady profitable growth, as an opportunity to recalibrate their business models and invest for the inevitable recession.

Industrial experts feel that overlooking new opportunities to reassess and "recalibrate" the business-as-usual approach to the supply chain is one of the biggest ways to waste this downturn. Recent reports show that many industrial trends will base their success on a company's ability to re-market during this uncertain economic time. Other industrial trends that will follow are:

• In an attempt to be come more profitable modern supply chain organizations will be scrutinizing expenditure budgets even more, and new investments will focus on cost savings, requiring shorter payback periods. Expenditures will also be made through the lens of cost/value. Employers will consider each expenditure as to how it relates to the overall financial picture of the company.
• Economic uncertainty that is present particularly for smaller suppliers in emerging economies, will lead manufacturer "brand owners" to consider strategic investments at critical supply points and financial support for their key suppliers. Many experts predict that in order to serve the value imperative, manufacturing companies will revisit past product investments and look to reuse existing designs, technology and knowledge. Companies that have placed themselves in a position to make a quick turn around will see the highest rate of success.
• Due to the high year-end inventory levels in 2008, manufacturers will be considering re-balancing supply and demand with a focus on strategic network optimization and multi-echelon inventory optimization tools and, where industry-relevant, price and trade promotion management will play a part as well. This will force key decision to made at the marketing level that balance cost versus value.
• Companies will realize that, given the challenging economic environment, effectively managing manufacturing assets can be a significant competitive weapon to help achieve better cost management. Manufacturers will put a renewed premium on production knowledge with the overall effect being higher utilization of manufacturing assets worldwide, greater flexibility in responding to demand and notable new challenges in managing the execution of production.
• Investments in digital manufacturing (preparation), modern execution platforms, product performance and manufacturing intelligence will all come together to begin supporting the factory network of the future. The need for tighter integration, data standards and better intelligence will become highly apparent. The application set begins with digital manufacturing and is tightly linked to engineering tools.
• Increasingly complex global supply networks will be combined with mounting economic pressures making risk management a more significant capability and a key differentiator for the supply chain.

No longer about PR or even regulatory compliance mandates, sustainability will discover metrics. Emerging standard measures and a desire to benchmark will affect sustainability initiatives significantly.

"While there is no shortage of bad news and indicators, the large manufacturing firms we speak with realize that with a downturn comes an inevitable recovery," Simon Ellis of Manufacturing Insights writes in the analyst firm's newsletter Theory & Practice. "It is practically certain that there will be more pain before we see evidence of a recovery."

"History shows that companies who stayed the course in improving important core capabilities enjoyed higher success when the good times came back," Ellis writes.

As businesses grow and their production volumes increase, the production process is often changed to a "batch method". Batch production methods require that a group of items move through the production process together, one stage at a time.

For example when a bakery bakes loaves of bread, a large ball of dough will be split into several loaves which will then be spread out together on a large baking tray. The loaves on the tray will then together be cooked, wrapped and dispatched to shelves, before the bakery starts on a separate batch of another bakery item. It is important to note that each loaf is identical within a batch but that loaves (or other items) can vary from batch to batch.

• Production of electronic instruments


• Small food vendors


• Paint and wallpaper manufacturers


• Cereal farming

The batch production method can be an advantage for businesses that produce a range of products. It is much cheaper to produce a number of each item in one pass because the machines can be used more effectively, the materials can be bought in bulk and the workers can specialize in that task. There are two major advantages of workers being able to concentrate their skills.

• They should become more expert at their tasks, which will in turn increase productivity (output per worker). This will result in lower costs, as fewer workers are needed to produce a set amount.


• There is a better quality product that is produced as workers are more familiar with the task and so can find ways of improving it.

An example of Batch Production Manufacturing shows how this process works-along with the potential pitfalls. Modern bicycle manufacture is now component based. The company first buys parts such as pedals from other manufacturers and puts the bicycle together on a production line. This is an example of how it works-

• The tube for the bicycle frame is cut to size. One person will do this job and they will cut enough tube for a batch of several hundred bikes in a week.


• The tube is then put together and prepared for welding. The tubes will be set up in a `jig' which holds the frame together. The frame then travels along the production line and the joints are preheated to save time. A gas torch is used to weld the frame together.


• The frames are then cleaned. A machine is used that shoots tiny particles of sand, at high speed, at the frame and cleans away the `residue' left behind by the welding process.


• All frames are then checked to ensure that they are straight. Small adjustments can be made at this stage.


• Paint is then sprayed on to the frames and forks. The frame then moves down the production line into a special oven which `bakes' the paint giving it a tough finish.


• The wheels are assembled by hand and they are then individually tested in a machine which automatically tensions each spoke to ensure that they are perfectly straight.


• The frames are machined so that other parts such as the handle bars and the bottom bracket (pedals) can be attached. While workers will operate the machine tools they will need some training before they can use the machines safely and efficiently.


• Other parts are then fixed to the frame.


• The bicycles are now ready for the shops where they will be viewed by customers and agents. Agents will buy "batches" of bicycles for larger stores.


• Before sending the bicycles to the shops, manufacturers will have agents view them and suggest changes for the next batch. This will help the manufacturer improve the design and production of bicycles in the next batch.

Batch production is used to produce any product in groups that are referred to as batches. A great example of batch production can be found in a bakery. The products that are sold in the bakery are made in batches of however many will fit in the baker's oven at a time. When that batch is completed, the baker will then start the process again with a new batch. Batch production techniques are also used in the manufacture of specialty chemicals such as active pharmaceutical ingredients, inks, paints and adhesives and many other items.

When choosing a method of production, there are several factors should be taken into account. Some of these are:

• The type of market-If large volumes of standard products are required then the manufacturing company will tend towards flow production, however, if demand is for bespoke goods, then job production will be more appropriate.
• Many firms would like the benefits from economies of scale with the ability to mass-produce a complete range of products. New technology is making it even easier for firms to produce multiple designs easily from the same machines.
• Job production can change the fastest with an evolving market, which allows small firms to stay ahead of competitors. This is often not possible with strict Batch production. However, large firms have the advantage of being able to afford flow production, and so they can produce many more products.

Batch Production is used most often when a demand for a product is more regular than one off; and it can be divided into a number of different parts or operations. Batch production is the process of any product of goods which can be grouped in batches. An example of this is a bike manufacturer which makes many bikes that are similar in size and color and then repeats the process again with a new batch once the old batch is made.

Another example of this is clothes (where a batch of size 12 clothes in blue might be made, then a batch of size 10 in red), or carpets. This is also used when there are highly defined techniques that are used in the manufacture such as the production of specialty chemicals such as active pharmaceutical ingredients, inks, paints and adhesives.

It is important to note that there are inefficiencies associated with batch production. These inefficiencies can happen frequently as the equipment needed for the production must be stopped, re-configured, and its output tested before the next batch can be produced. This is referred to as "downtime" and can be costly for a manufacturer since all output must be stopped.

There are also many advantages of Batch production manufacturing; it is faster, cheaper, and (generally) easier to make than job production, but on the other hand it could restrict a manufacturing company to certain goods and could be difficult to adapt. Batch production works best for smaller business who cannot afford to make continuous production lines.

Companies frequently also use batch production as a trial run. This is because if a retailer buys a batch of a product and cannot sell them he/her will not make huge losses while other types of companies would.

There are skeptics in the world of manufacturing that feel that Batch Production Manufacturing has had its day. Many experts feel that in the mass produced world of today there is not place for smaller production runs. Other experts argue that while small businesses still have foot hold in manufacturing Batch production will always have a useful place in the production of goods in a cost effective and timely way.