2011 | Page 4 of 13 | Gemba Academy

Snowflakes, Structural Collapse and the Simplification of Lean

By Jon Miller - September 19th, 2011

A snowflake is a delightfully complex object when rotated in the three spatial dimensions. Collapsed into two dimensions, it is a pattern of jagged lines. Reduced to a single dimension a snowflake becomes merely a connected series of p

With New Technology, Where Should We Go?

By Jon Miller - September 15th, 2011

According to a Wall Street Journal article from September 15, 2011, With New Technology, Start-Ups Go Lean start-ups are purportedly adopting a lean approach with the aid of new technology. However, this claim can be deceptive if we in

The Importance of Thinking About the Box

By Jon Miller - September 12th, 2011

Leaders interested in innovation or breakthrough improvement often speak of the importance of “thinking outside the box”. By this we mean discarding existing limitations on our thinking (the box) to generate new ideas, prod

Designing Better Hospitals with 3P: Video

By Jon Miller - September 11th, 2011

The Production Preparation Process (3P) is a method for bringing together a team to evaluate the requirements of a design, apply lean principles and use low-cost rapid prototyping (a.k.a. cardboard engineering) to achieve breakthrough

Applying 3P to Healthcare & Beyond

By Ron Pereira - September 7th, 2011

Gemba Academy’s 3P course (which stands for Production Preparation Process) demonstrates the application of this lean tool within the healthcare world. Although the course has a healthcare focus, the 3P principles taught apply to

Junaid’s Learning from a TPM Workshop

By Jon Miller - September 6th, 2011

Our friend S.M. Junaid sends us occasional dispatches from his experiences with applying lean and kaizen at his company in Pakistan. Recently he shared his learning from a TPM workshop. An Operator’s Relationship to a Machine is

Lean Government Example: Defect Display Board

By Jon Miller - September 3rd, 2011

Here is a photo I took while on a hike through a state park with some family members one summer. Whether through an individual initiative by a park ranger or as part of a lean government initiative by Washington State, it is a great ex

Knowledge Workers Stand Up for a Healthier Workplace

By Jon Miller - September 2nd, 2011

The use of standing desks by knowledge workers is starting to go mainstream, according to an article by the Wall Street Journal titled Standing Desks Are on the Rise. Focusing mainly on Silicon Valley firms such as Google and Facebook,

Training Wheels

By Ron Pereira - August 30th, 2011

My son, who just turned 5 years old, recently taught me a valuable lesson. Like most young people my boy was itching to take the training wheels off his bicycle. We had told him that Daddy would take the training wheels off this weeke

Lean Kitchen – Fastcap Style

By Ron Pereira - August 24th, 2011

Here’s a great example of lean in action within a non-manufacturing situation! Oh, and for the record, my kids figured some of this stuff out months ago! 😉

Year: 2011