Toyota Production System

Question 1

What caused the American industrial decline?

Answer 1

Firms became lax, took quality for granted and lacked innovation due to no competition.
They continued to pursue MRP while Japan moved on to other methods

Question 2

What is MRP?

Answer 2

Materials Requirements Planning:
Schedules release of work based on actual or forecasted demand
‘Push’ system based on info outside of production process and can lead to lots of costly inventory

Question 3

TPS structure

Answer 3

Two pillars, JIT and Jidoka (automation with a human touch) with the aim of achieving highest quality at the lowest cost and lead time through elimination of waste

Question 4

Who developed the TPS

Answer 4

Taiichi Ohno

Question 5

Overview of JIT

Answer 5

Making what the customer needs, when it is needed, in the quantity needed
Must use the minimum resources of manpower, material and machinery

Question 6

3 elements of JIT

Answer 6

Takt time
Flow Production
Pull System

Question 7

Definition of Takt Time

Answer 7

Available Time/ Product Demand

e.g Automobile assembly line :
Available time =7.5hrs X 3 shifts = 1350mins/day
Demand = 1600 cars/day
Takt time =51s

Question 8

What is ‘waste’ and what are the benefits of its elimination

Answer 8

Anything not adding value to the product
Exposes problems and bottlenecks caused by variability
Achieves streamlined production

Question 9

7 types of waste

Answer 9

Over-production
Wait time
Transportation
Processing
Inventory
Motion
Defects

Question 10

Kanban definiton

Answer 10

Japanese word for card
Authorises production from downstream operations via some sort of signal

Question 11

Heijunka definition

Answer 11

‘Levelling’/’smoothing’ production schedule using mixed model sequencing
Reduce ripple effect of small schedule variations
production quantities evenly distributed

Question 12

Who pioneered SMED

Answer 12

Dr Shigeo Shingo, a consultant who has proven the effectiveness of SMED by reducing setup times from hours to less than 10 mins

Question 13

Advantages of SMED and quick setup

Answer 13

Reduce lot size
Makes production more agile

Question 14

Jidoka philosophy

Answer 14

Doing it right first time
uses traffic light system to allow workers to stop the line poka yoke to prevent defects
visual controls to make spotting problems easier
under capacity scheduing (~80%) to allow maintenace and room for error

Question 15

Main manifestation of Visual Management

Answer 15

Andon Lamp (traffic light system)

Question 16

Kaizen definition

Answer 16

Kai=change, Zen= good
i.e. change for the better
Philosophy of continuous improvement and breaking apart a problem and putting it back together to make it better

Question 17

Gemba definition

Answer 17

Japanese word for ‘real place’
It is where the real action adding activities to satisfy the client take place
It concerns the physical sites for designing, producing and selling
Stresses that real improvement can only take place after observation of the current conditions of where the work is being done

Question 18

5 rules of GEMBA

Answer 18

1 - Go to GEMBA! (spec. location) when a problem arises
2- Check with gembutsu (relevant objects)
3- Take temp countermeasures on the spot
4- Find the root cause
5- Standardise to prevent reoccurrence

Question 19

5s’s of workplace housekeeping/organisation

Answer 19

Seiri (simplify or sort)
Seiton (straighten)
Seiso (Sweep)
Seiketsu (Standardise)
Shitsuke (sustain)

Question 20

Method used to enforce 5s’s (Shitsuke)

Answer 20

‘Red Tag attack’