| Upcoming Events |
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January 24th -- Live Webcast: Rapid Plant Assessment
Register for Spring computer classes at the Downtown Education Center or Contact Stacy Boyle at 314-539-5041.
**Please note correction of date for the April seminar it will be held on the 10th not the 16th. |
| Joke Time |
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Change is inevitable. Except from a vending machine.
Robert C. Gallagher |
| A Lean Laugh |
Did you hear about the woman who was expecting a group of friends to bring dinner to her house for a "girls' night in"? Her house was a wreck, so she quickly tidied up the best she could. However, she didn't have enough time to get the dirty dishes washed. She had a brilliant idea and hastily put the dishes in her oven. Suddenly there was a knock on the door -- her friends had arrived. She opened the door and saw them standing there with dinner -- FROZEN pizza! |
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Quote of the Month |
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If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain.
Maya Angelou | |
| Greetings!
Happy New Year! At this time of year many people make the resolution to lose weight. We've got another idea -- How about if you resolve to help your organization "lose waste" by implementing the principles of Lean?
Never heard of Lean? You're not alone. Read on for a brief introduction. |
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Meeting the Challenge of Global Competition
 Does your organization find its very survival threatened by the ever increasing need to compete with China and India?
For the last three years, CBIL has been providing a 70 year old St. Louis tool and die company with training and consulting services relating to Lean Manufacturing, such as 5S and Value Stream Mapping.
The company's president noted that global competition had forced his customers to be more demanding of their supply base regarding quality standards, operating efficiencies, and pricing. He added, "Without such training through CBIL, I truly believe we would not be able to continue in what has become an extremely competitive, and certainly shrinking, manufacturing industry. Ongoing increases in efficiencies will be increasingly important."
CBIL's Lean Enterprise would welcome the opportunity to partner with you in helping you meet the challenge of global competition. The first step is to take a look at where your company is now.
CBIL's Lean Readiness Survey and Rapid Plant Assessment will help you get a measure of your readiness as a global competitor. You will learn two important things about your company:
- How closely the beliefs and practices shaping the behavior of employees match those needed to support the successful implementation of Lean work processes.
- A snapshot of how well your organization's work environment would be hospitable to the introduction and/or sustaining of Lean processes.
Wherever your organization is in its Lean journey, we are confident that you would find these tools valuable. Contact George Friesen at 314.539.5376 to schedule the Lean Readiness Survey and Rapid Plant Assessment for your organization. |
Meet the Practice Leader
 George Friesen, Business Practice Leader for CBIL's Lean Enterprise, has over thirty years experience in the performance improvement profession. He has served clients across a wide spectrum of industries, including New United Motors Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI), Texaco, Sigma-Aldrich, General Motors, Nestle, United Airlines and AT&T. For the last seven years, George has focused on services related to the Lean Enterprise.
His experience has taught him that more than anything else it is the energy, creativity, and knowledge of line workers that drive exceptional organizational performance. It also taught him that it is organizations whose managers and supervisors trigger this creativity and energy, while channeling it with the processes of Lean manufacturing, that experience world class improvements in performance.
George is a graduate of Washington University (AB), Webster University (MA), and United States Air Force Flight Training. |
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Pulling Lean Through a Hospital
Lean is NOT just for manufacturing companies. Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, began applying Lean methods in the emergency room, a common Lean launching point at hospitals. To make sure this effort did not become an isolated Lean island surrounded by healthcare status quo, the hospital began transforming other departments. To read about this Lean transformation view the article. |
 Lean Terminology
Lean is a method of organizing and managing work processes in ways that require less human effort, space, capital, material, and time to make products with fewer defects that meet precise customer requirements than previous systems. 5S - Usually the first step in Lean implementation, 5S is a process used to create unbreakable order and cleanliness in the workplace. The five S's are Sort, Store, Shine, Standardize and Sustain.
Value Stream Mapping - A tool used to create a visual representation of every process flow, both product and information. A future state map can then be designed to remove waste and create a better flow.
Kaizen - Japanese term for continuous improvement in the workplace.
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Thanks for reading. We hope this newsletter added value to your day, and maybe even gave you a laugh. Email Shayna with your comments and suggestions for future newsletters. This is your newsletter, so tell us what you'd like to see.
Sincerely,
The CBIL "Just Add Value" Team
Center for Business, Industry & Labor
St. Louis Community College | |
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