Title: Case study on identification and elimination of waste through lean implementation in an automotive part manufacturing industry

Authors: Ajit Kumar; R. Girish Kumar; N.S. Narahari; K.M. Mithilesh

Addresses: Synthesis Winding Technologies, Bengaluru, India ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, R.V. College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India ' Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, R.V. College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, P.E.S. College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India

Abstract: Lean manufacturing is an operational strategy oriented towards achieving the shortest possible throughput time by eliminating wastes (Muda). The research investigation addresses the application of lean manufacturing in an auto part manufacturer which manufactures critical components of an IC engine. The main objective of this research investigation was to identify key areas of non-value added activities by utilising 'value stream mapping' (VSM) and then to propose required changes to reduce throughput time based on the principles of lean manufacturing. Three different improvements were suggested as solutions for non-value added activities that were identified in the current state map, which accounted for 250 hrs of throughput time. A reduction of 140 hrs in the throughput time was estimated by incorporating the improvements.

Keywords: value stream mapping; VSM; continuous improvement; productivity improvement; lean manufacturing; case study; waste identification; waste elimination; automotive parts manufacturing; automobile industry; automotive components; non-value added; throughput time.

DOI: 10.1504/IJLER.2015.071741

International Journal of Lean Enterprise Research, 2015 Vol.1 No.3, pp.253 - 265

Accepted: 21 Oct 2014
Published online: 17 Sep 2015 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article