Lean Systems – OM in the News

Mobile Vaccine Factories to Increase Capacity in Africa

German vaccine manufacturer BioNTech has a plan to roll out mobile factories, housed in shipping containers, which will produce 50 million doses of mRNA vaccine in Africa.

Each factory has two separate modules called BioNTainers that are transportable by road, rail, air, or sea. The modular design offers scalable production of shots for COVID-19, malaria, tuberculosis, and cancer treatment.

The mobile factory is a step towards sustainable vaccine production and access for communities […]

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2022-03-26T22:53:52+00:00March 27, 2022|Tags: lean, lean operations, sustainability, sustainable supply chain, triple bottom line|

Time for a New Just-In-Time in the Auto Industry

Is Just-In-Time (JIT) going away?

Increased uncertainty and shortages have challenged the belief that JIT production systems are mistake-proof. The auto industry has widely and thoroughly embraced the systems for several decades. However, recent events have highlighted their limitations and the need to make them more resilient. This new imperative is consistent with the lean philosophy of continuous improvement.

Video Spotlight: Canada Trucker Protests Impacting U.S. Manufacturing (February 10, 2022, NBC News)

This post is based on the […]

By Corinne M. Karuppan, Ph.D.|2022-03-09T21:36:01+00:00March 10, 2022|Tags: continuous replenishment, flexible-manufacturing, insourcing, inventory management, JIT, lead time, product design, safety stock, shortage|

Why Murata’s Plant Closure Did Not Disrupt Supply Chains

Previous OM in the News posts have discussed shortages of semiconductor chips caused by the leaning of supply chains. Supply chain disruptions of even a few days can lead to shortages if companies run too lean. During the pandemic, planning for supply chain disruptions has assumed increasing urgency.

Murata Manufacturing supplies about 40% of the world’s multilayer ceramic capacitors. MLCCs are used in everything from smartphones, appliances, cars, to data centers. The company closed its Fukui plant for […]

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2021-10-31T07:26:44+00:00October 30, 2021|Tags: aggregate planning, chase demand strategy, coronavirus, covid-19, lean production, pandemic, supply chain disruption|

Auto Industry’s Relationships With Chip Suppliers

Previous OM in the News posts have looked at the chip shortage and automotive production, and how Tesla, for one, is responding. We’re back with an update.

Semiconductor shortages go beyond an increase in demand for autos, port slowdowns, and other pandemic-related issues.

Part of the problem is that the auto industry traditionally has dealt with their suppliers in such a way as to allow short-term changes to their orders. Whereas most chip makers want guaranteed […]

By Ross L. Fink, Ph.D.|2021-10-24T03:03:04+00:00October 23, 2021|Tags: JIT, product design, shortages, supplier relationship, supply chain management|