Lean Management Based Sustainable Transport System for Surat Metropolitan Area in the Context of Industrial Development

Surat city is continuously expanding with industrial development. Despite several flyovers, traffic congestion continues in the heart of city. Therefore, fresh transportation planning is at anvil. Simultaneously, further expansion plan is under consideration to create yet another, the 10th industrial zone. Purpose of this paper is to explore lean management based sustainable transport system for meeting the increasing needs of people and supply-chain. The research examines different mode of transportation like; vehicles on road, rail on the land, and steamers through the sea route to provide connectivity. This study may support the planners of the smart city. The study intends to find how lean management can be integrated to sustainable transport system meeting objectives of lean and sustainability both. Lean management system claims to be capable of eliminating all type of wastes including those associated with transport system. On the other hand, sustainable transport claims to meet the needs of people in personal economic lives, importantly respecting the need of future generations. Therefore, this applied research aims to find a lean and sustainable transport solution. This research work can be seen as descriptive type as it includes survey of location and fact finding enquiries.

The Practical Application of Lean Management Model to the Production and Operation of China＇s Small and Medium- sized Apparel Enterprises

In this paper, the prospect and advantages of applying prospect and advantages to the production and operation of China＇ s small and medimn-sized apparel enterprises, the main waste parts in the apparel production and operation process are systematically analyzed, an efficient production, management, and operation model meeting the characteristics of the small and medium-sized apparel enterprises is explored according to the solutions in lean management, and also the technical transformation in the key positions is fully implemented, so that the production efficiency of the sewing workshop is improved, the bottlenecks of the backward production management way to restrict the development of enterprises are broken, the vitality of the enterprises is restored, and also significant economic and social benefits are achieved.

Study on Tobacco Leave Lean Production Management System

In recent years, tobacco lean production infrastructure is almost full-fledged through development, and professional service scope expands accordingly. Hence, the developing emphasis has transformed from hardware facilities improvement to software updating of lean management and precise work. With related documents released by China Tobacco and Guizhou Tobacco, the achievement of comprehen- sive lean management probably becomes one of the key goals for the future devel- opment of tobacco business. The construction goal of tobacco leaves lean produc- tion management system is to internalize technology, information, human resources, material and other production elements into value stream of flue-cured tobacco pro- duction, and strict control value stream of input costs and output benefits, and then create management profit, promote enterprise, core competitiveness. The lean pro- duction management is both extension and expansion of modern tobacco agriculture, closely related to agricultural standardization and GAP management, which is based on professional service training and production machinery upgrading, with team management and station working as carriers, and information feedback, key quality monitoring and benefit evaluation as assessment references.

The Impact of Lean Transformation on the Organizational Performance: The Case of Public Utilities in Greece

Purpose: Lean Management concerns a strategy or philosophy aiming at saving resource practices and curtailment of public expenses, with ultimate objective of the enhancement of the organizational performance. By extension, the successful integration of the Lean Management leads to positive organizational results, such as higher quality, along with improved financial, environmental and business market performance. Although a lot of studies related to the effect of Lean production on the organizational performance have been conducted, empirical findings that examine the case of the public sector are absent. Additionally, there is no precise mechanism through which the Lean Management determines the organizational performance of the public utility companies. The above mentioned research gap is examined with this research, given that it investigates the influence of the Successful Lean Management on the Organizational Performance (Environmental Performance, Financial Performance, Business Performance) in public utilities in Greece. Research Methodology: The research method combines bibliographic research and empirical—with quantitative method—through a case study. More specifically, via quantitative approach, which was based on sample research with standardized questionnaire, performed in two of the biggest and most important public utilities in Greece, the Public Power Corporation S.A. (PPC S.A.) and the Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company (EYDAP S.A). Findings: Quantitative findings from this illustrated that the successful transformation towards the Lean principles/saving resources affects positively the Business Market Performance, the Environmental and the Financial Performance. Limitations: Main restrictions of the current study are the capitalization of random sample and the strict focus on Greek public utilities that function under conditions of competition. Consequently, whichever generalizations for the whole Public Sector as well as for businesses of the private sector it would be better to be avoided, as they differ concerning their structural and functional features and their organizational culture.

A Framework Analysis for Lean Transformation: A Case Study of a Public Utility in Greece

Purpose: Nowadays, the worldwide economic recession has created numerous challenges in the Public Sector of Greece, which in turn affect the sustainability of public enterprises. Overall, there is a high pressure to increase productivity and reduce operating costs. The need to adapt to the new environment is pushing public organizations to implement Lean Management strategies in accordance with Private Sector standards. However, the limited budget, public deficits and debts, bureaucratic culture, political dependence and lack of transparency present several issues. These pose a serious threat to successful implementation of Lean practices in the long-run. Lack of relevant research and dichotomous role of public service organizations make this study very interesting. This research paper is aiming at exploring and highlighting the impact of the most important Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for the effective integration of Lean Management principles in Public Utility organizations in Greece by combining bibliographic research and empirical—with the quantitative method-research through case studies. Research Methodology: The research method combines bibliographic research and empirical—with the quantitative method. Quantitative method was employed on a sufficient sample of public employees from two of the largest public companies of Greece: Public Power Corporation (PPC S.A.) and Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company (EYDAP S.A.) in order to investigate the impact of the most important CSFs on successful Lean Transformation of them. Findings: Quantitative findings from this research illustrated that the most important CSFs that have a positive impact on successful Lean Transformation on Greek public organizations/utilities are: Effective Communication, flexible Organizational Infrastructure, Customer Focus, Linking Lean to Suppliers, Business Plan and Vision, competent Change Management, Top Management Support and Commitment, Training and Education, as well as Selection of Staff. On the contrary, the existence of a bureaucratic Organizational Culture has a negative effect on successful integration of Lean Management. Limitations: Important limitations of this study are the utilization of a convenience sample and the strict focus on Greek public organizations operating in a competitive environment.

Kanban System Design for Hospital Pharmacy - Case study

This is a brief overview of principles, views and methods, of the Kanban system for the pharmacy of a general hospital. The main goal is the reduction of stores managed by the pharmacy, as well as improvement of the mode of operation. Solutions to problems, such as inadequate storage space, delay in serving patients or clinics and the expiration of various pharmaceutical formulations, stored for so long time, are provided. The philosophy behind the Kanban procurement system and specifically its applicability to a pharmacy underperforming in terms of efficiency, in Greece, are described. Based on the analysis of stock requirement, item stock prices and demand, it is concluded that a significant percentage of the stocked drugs can be procured using the Kanban System. Significant cost savings and operational advantages following the Kanban System will take place. The challenging endeavor is the analysis, design and application of a system that supports the proposed procurement method. Hospital pharmacies in Greece and in other countries that face an economic crisis may largely benefit after using the Kanban System. Moreover, the system is applied on a hospital pharmacy of a 250 bed Greek General Hospital estimating a monetary annual benefit about 50% lower overall cost for medicines and consumable health material.

Improving Clinical Laboratory Quality through Reduction of Tests’ Turnaround Time in Democratic Republic of the Congo: Key Strategies

In Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the laboratory TAT is significantly very long and do not comply with either international standards or the suggestions of customers. However, there is neither a national nor a local strategy to improve the laboratory TAT. The aim of the present study is to develop practical management strategies to shorten clinical laboratory tests’ TAT. This was a qualitative study conducted in Kinshasa. Focus groups and Lean tools were used respectively to generate a wide range of views from a variety of laboratory staff and to eliminate several form of waste in the laboratory flow process. Based on the identified root causes of delay, focus groups participants reported that there is a lot of scope for the improvement of TAT in DRC. Consistent attendance and punctuality are essential. The hospital management should implement the Laboratory Information Systems (LIS) and install Middleware. Total laboratory automation, inventory system for all reagents and supplies used in the laboratory, expansion of the sampling area, sufficient number of high-power machine and a clear job description are indispensable. LIS, 3.5 mL BD vacutainer BarricorTM tube and point-of-care testing (POCT) are necessary for workflow improvement. A reduction of 312 minutes was achieved by eliminating or decreasing non-value-added activities. Applying the suggested key strategies, and particularly the new workflow process, is a basis for improving the laboratory tests’ TAT. The algorithm presented can be easily implemented in other laboratories that face this type of problem.

Managing Complexity and Speed of Processes in the Organizations—A Philosophical and Practical Approach

The business challenges of today are managing complexity and the speed of changes with processes and systems since there are continuously new requirements from market, consumers, suppliers, employees, government etc. For example, when product and service innovations are launched on the market, the relevant processes, policies, people, systems, and technologies should have been prepared and set up in advance. Depending on the business sector, the implementation of new processes and systems as well as their continuous improvement can be easy to very complex and of course very costly. Responding to those challenges, there are several methodologies and approaches like Continuous Improvement Process, Lean Management and Kaizen etc. On the other hand, the application of these methodologies to other industries like service and technology companies is not always successful since their conditions and requirements are different than those of manufacturing organizations. Because of these reasons, the management needs to find out （new） ways of working and to implement new solutions in order to master those challenges and problems. This is not always easy and successful. There are different types of solution options that can be applied situational in every organization. Philosophy can help essentially by asking and answering critical questions in order to provide with solution options to reduce the complexity and to increase the speed of processes. There are several proven and new governance concepts, frameworks, and tools which follow their philosophies. This paper demonstrates how those challenges can be responded and managed as well as how a philosophical approach can help primarily to provide with appropriate solutions.