Author : Nitin Pandhi and Sanjeev Verma

Value stream is a creative process for a part product. The concept of Lean has been introduced and popularized by the Toyota by the name Toyota Production System. Lean is a systematical approach to identify and eliminate waste through continuous improvement. The value stream initiates at the concept and ends when delivered to consumer. Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is an important tool for implementing lean philosophy. VSM is a method to describe the flow of material and information through the production system. The ratio of value added to total lead time is determined by documenting the current lead time, inventory levels, and cycle times. Value added activities make the product more closely to the customer requirement. Non Value added activities do not create customers value, and anything that does not constitutes to value is defined as Waste. In the present work, an attempt has been made to identify and eliminate different types of wastes with the application of Lean tools in an automotive industry. Gearbox Case machining has been selected due to high economic value and complicated processing cycle resulting into excessive rework, longer lead time, and high rejection rate.

Keywords: Lean Manufacturing; Value Stream Mapping; Gearbox Case Machining.

Article published in International Journal of Current  Engineering  and Technology, Vol.2,No.3 (Sept- 2012)