Customer Reviews

The Lean Manufacturing Pocket Handbook

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Skimpy.

Kenneth Dailey has written a mini book that takes apart the deep production philosophy of lean and reduces it to a series of definitions, a grab bag of techniques, and an acronym soup.

It's hard to visualize how this can be useful for any serious seeker of improved manufacturing practice. Lean is a journey of production transformation from the inside out. The surface treatment afforded by this book suggests something quite different - the possibility of a quick fix that follows from being able to disentangle the meanings of Kanban, Poka Yoke, and Value Stream Mapping.

Some of the book's content is worse than unhelpful. For example, in talking about Kaizen, Dailey writes, "The team members themselves should implement the no-brainer and quick-turn changes". This dismissive assessment of the problem solving capability of workers will not foster the level of employee involvement on which any successful lean implementation ultimately must depend.

The book ends (page 40) with the author admitting, "You should consider the information inside this pocket handbook to be the baseline minimum". This certainly is not an understatement.

For those seeking a succinct overview of the essence of lean, I would recommend The Spirit of Manufacturing Excellence, by Ernest Huge.

If I had to give a 1-2 day seminar on the subject, this would be a handy handbook. For that purpose, it should be used, not as a general reference on lean manufacturing.

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The book is a great primer for the beginner.
Simple organization and straight to the point.

Good balance of theory and application.
Uses straight-forward, common sense approach.

Pound for ounce this may be the best book out on Lean Manufacturing. It is exactly what the publisher's book description says it is. This is a good deal, superior value at a low price.

When I first saw it I got disapointed for the size of the book. I realized how good it was when I started reading it. It's amazing how much information was placed into such a little thing!

The pocket books like this help us too much thanks to its size, which let us to carry them to anywhere. We can carry them in our briefcases or in the baggage when we travel and always we can count with information at the hand and too fast.

Best regards.

My company gave everyone a copy of this little book. If you're new to Lean, this is the first book you should read. It's jam-packed, has lots of visual aids, covers everything, and is easy to read. It's a lot of knowledge in a little book.

I purchased this handbook to be used as a quick reference guide and as part training aid when I talk to my Clients in the manufacturing sector. It has completely satisfied these requirements and the other factor that appealed was its true "pocket" size.

I have worked in the field of Lean and Kaizen for over 20 years and have a degree in Industrial Engineering. This book is a waste of money. Too thin and not very informative. You can boil down green beans until they are mush. This is mush.