Application of Lean Tools in a Machine Shop Environment

The machine shops that comprise the varied tiers of the aerospace manufacturing supply chain range from large corporations with hundreds of employees and multiple sites to small mom-and-pop shops with a handful of machines. Regardless of the size or complexity of the organization, they are all potential victims of disorganization and waste. Orders get lost, parts are run in huge lots to achieve a perceived economic break-even with long set-up processes, and extra material is consumed while the same mistakes are made each time a part is set up for production runs. Most organizations never escape the effects of this kind of waste because the fixes may be too simple to see and accept, and somewhat counter-intuitive.