Customer Reviews

Lean Production Simplified

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have been a Lean Practitioner for over twenty years and have had the privilege of learning from some of the original teachers of Lean in the United States. "Lean Production Simplified" is simply the BEST introduction to the Toyota Production System and to LEAN Tools that exists today. If you have any responsibility for leading or implementing LEAN in your organization, this would be required reading. Lean Production Simplified is an excellent investment of your time and money.

If you are a company owner or President, I would recommend you start with "The Toyota Way to Healthcare Excellence", by John R Black (or his nonhealthcare text, "Lean Production"). To read the first CHAPTER of this book, perform an Internet search using the search terms: "open letter to healthcare executives John Black" and read the resulting pdf file.

Beyond that, find a real lean "sensei". AVOID using a consultant just because he is near your location. There are still only a handful (literally) of Lean practitioners who really kow what they are doing here in America. Also don't be fooled by those universities who have put their otherwise good name on a group of people (Lean charlatans) who really can offer you nothing of value except a great looking "certificate".

This is a very good introductory book. All components of lean manufacturing system have been explained. More importantly, the language is very simple and easy to understand. The sample templates are great. One aspect, I would like to see is the cost concept. Particularly, how an established factory can be transformed to lean system with respect to cell concept and layout change. The author has written about the cost benefit of lean system, however, no supporting evidence has been provided. But overall, this book is great.

I'll keep this book on my desk and make sure that it is part of changing the culture here. Thanks for making it easy to understand the whole sytem, instead of just some of the pieces.

While this book does briefly touch on most of the topics related to Lean I found it to be a very poor resource. The writing is disconnected due to the many references to other sources on the topic and the examples used are some of the worst I've seen (such as, a mom & pop restaurant and the Detroit Red Wings... I thought this was Lean "Production" Simplified).

This book is recommended reading for the SMEs Bronze Lean certification, but for anyone purchasing this book for that reason I'd recommend skipping it. There are far better books that cover the same information and if you have any experience with lean concepts the poor presentation of information and examples in this book will drive you nuts.

While it did receive the Shingo Prize I'm convinced it is because it regurgitates the tried-and-true concepts of Lean.

I've read many of the more popular lean books (see our other reviews), and have been doing lean full-time since 2000. In my view this book has the best, most complete field of view of them all, touching on several concepts that get no attention in any other lean overview text. It should be noted that as far a depth goes however, the name says it all... Lean Production Simplified.

Pro:
-Shingo prize winner
-Brief yet complete coverage of lean topics
-Coverage of several topics not found elsewhere, including the much ignored hoshin kanri
-Decent chapter summaries, ample examples and figures

Con:
-I guess about the worst you can say is there's too many misspellings for a 2nd edition.
-Perhaps too many sentences that start with, "At Toyota" which create some repetitive reading.

Bottom line: Highly recommended for exposure to the basics.

This is an execellent overview and introduction to TPS. It is clear and concise without all of the case studies but it covers all of the basics of TPS. It is an easy read for the novice and will give a good grounding an overview of the key elements of TPS as a system that it is and should be understood as.

In addition to the basic elements of TPS/Lean the author also adds the Toyota elements of the strategic planning process and roles played by the various levels of management. This is an added bonus and is an area of TPS that is not very well addressed in other literature I have read...at least not in any real detail.

If you really want a good solid quick overview of TPS/Lean without all of the case studies, then I highly recommend this book.

I found this to be an excellent book on Lean Basics. It does as it's title suggests - it simplifies the mystique behind lean so that beginners and people with a basic understanding can learn from it an increase their knowledge and comfort with Lean concepts.
I recommend it to everyone I know who is just starting out in Lean

Lean Production Simplified is a succinct and well organized guide to lean manufacturing concepts and a great resource for your employees as you launch and try to sustain a lean culture.

I thought this book did a good job in giving you an overview of the lean tools. It is a good reference point if you would like to further study lean activities.

Lean Production Simplified provides a great practical guide to the implementation of lean principles. The author gives enough history and background of lean production to put the concepts into context. He then covers all the basic concepts with a unified approach. We are using this book to orient several new team members to the concepts as we implement important lean projects.