What is Lean Manufacturing and why DuraStripe is such a great Lean Manufacturing Tool ?

One way of defining Lean Manufacturing is to produce value (a product or a service) with less of everything (inventory, human effort, equipment and tools, plant floor, design and development, total cost, etc.) to maximize the profit, while delivering a product of highest quality, in the right quantity and on time.

The focus, then, is on seeing and eliminating the waste from all the aspects of the job. To eliminate waste is based on the Japanese concept ''Muda'' (which means waste !). In other words for a company, Lean Manufacturing is a commitment to minimize the total cost (a waste-free operation) while offering a product or service that is focused on your clients success and preferences.

To achieve the lowest cost you will have to simplify and improve continually all the processes and relationships in an environment of trust, respect and full employee involvement. This is where DuraStripe plays an important role : by defining work spaces, you will eliminate time wasted looking for items or time wasted between shifts (items always placed in the same place, regardless of the person or the shift).

Once a process works well, for instance on the assembly line, it can be defined with DuraStripe Signs so that anyone working the line will immediately understand the process of this specific line (less time wasted explaining the process, less chances of lesser quality products by human error, etc.).

The key to success lies in the ability to be able to continuously improve and be able to implement changes fast and easy. DuraStripe is easily removed and you can reconfigure the process rapidly, within seconds, all done when production is ongoing, eliminating the need for a shutdown or specialist labour, as DuraStripe is the ideal KIS product and everyone can apply DuraStripe.

DuraStripe can also prevent accidents ; clear indications throughout facility eliminates risks such as human / forklift encounters or indicate emergency exits (phosphorescent signage) in case of power failure due to natural disaster. It is critical that the emergency route are kept clear and are easy to find even without electricity (ex. a yellow DuraStripe which is phosphorescent at the same time).