Page 63 - FoodFocusThailand No.188 November 2021

SOURCE OF ENGINEER

Lean Management helps categorize work activities into Value- Continuous workflow is a lean method that fosters seamless,
Added Activities (VA) and Non-Value- Added Activities (NVA). VA uninterrupted, wasteless, debottlenecking and efficient manufacturing
in general accounts for 5-10% of all actions or processes and must processes. In Lean Management, there are many available tools like
change the form or function or increase the value of the product or Visualize Control, Continuous Flow, Standardized Work, Setup
service, and ultimately fulfill customers’ needs, such as value creation Reduction and more. For instance, the capacity of noddle boiling step
through assembly. While NVA comprises incidental actions or is 2,000 packs per hour, but this company can achieve only 10,000
processes that are required and usually accounts for 90% of all the packs per 8 hours. The cause is from the waste of time in refilling boiled
work activities. Inefficient NVA are grouped as Muda (wastefulness), water as condensing hot water can burn the noodles. Refilling water
Mura (un-uniformity), and Muri (excessiveness). and cleaning container takes 30 minutes per time, and it happens 6
Muda (wastefulness): There are 7 forms of Muda; 1) waste of times per day. Time loss as a result is 180 minutes or 3 hours, leaving
overproduction, 2) waste of stock at hand, 3) waste of transportation only 5 hours for noodle processing per day. If the company can reduce
4) waste of movement or motion, 5) waste of time on hand 6) waste the setup time from 3 hours to 30 minutes, it can increase productivity
of making defective products and 7) waste of redundant or excessive as 7.5 hours x 2,000 packs = 15,000 packs per day. The setup reduction
processes. tool helps the company meet customer’s target and increases production
Mura (un-uniformity): Mura is an imbalance in production, process, capacity by 50%.
or manpower planning such as uneven distribution of workload or
non-standardized tools or instructions.
Muri (excessiveness): Muri is an excessive burden in manpower
or equipment which can result in lower quality, damages to machines
or unsafe work environment.
The food industry produces a variety of products and each one
has unique challenges and limitations in production however, priority
areas of the industry remain in consumer safety, taste, and freshness.
In meeting consumers’ needs, it requires quality control throughout
the production chain, from sourcing, process planning, quality
management of outputs, cost control as well as delivery time.
The “Basic Principles of Lean” are 5 core steps that can be
applied to food manufacturing:
Identify Value: This principle is about identifying the values you
want to deliver to customers or the business goals. Developing a
value-added prototype by using technology or innovation, known as
Lean Innovation, is a way to enhance capabilities of an organization
by creating a value-added product or service and to reduce Pull System links all production activity to actual customer demand
wastefulness. For example, a stir fried noodle manufacturer should and provides customers with what is needed, when it is needed, and
focus on research and analysis to identify a product that enhances in the right quantity. Such an approach helps avoid overproduction and
values and profits of the company and is in demand. The manufacturer forms just-in-time manufacturing. The concept helps reduce wastes
can add value to such a product by improving the quality to meet from overstocking, balance output with demand, manage raw material
consumer needs. Leveraging the company’s existing strength through supply chain to meet schedules and consequently enhance business
value adding, and product design can help drive enhanced market capability.
performance. Continuous Improvement comprises steps to streaming lining
The Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is a tool used to analyze every work, process improvement, success measuring and identifying
aspect of a business plan, from developing workflow and optimizing improvement areas. This approach involves continuous processes of
processes from start to finish. Visualizing the whole process allows capability development and efficiency promotion. For example, defining
us to understand roles, responsibilities, performance evaluations and next steps or areas of improvement through analysis of cost, time and
improvements needed. The tool also helps identify wastefulness and resource used in each production cycle and improvement of the next
value-adding opportunities. For example, in stir fried noodle steps can reduce loss and waste as well as enhance flexibility in adapting
manufacturing, we know that customers need 15,000 packs per day. to consumers’ needs.
If we apply the VSM, we can understand production capacity of each The COVID-19 pandemic forces people to work from home and
process, and spot bottlenecks of the production chain. For instance, rely more on ready-to-eat and instant food products, which presents
the noodle boiling process has a capacity of producing 10,000 packs opportunities to the food industry. For SME food entrepreneurs, adopting
per day, which lower than customers’ expectation. To identify a problem and promoting Lean Management to their businesses and corporate
statement, we need to look at possible areas of variations, such as culture is like getting a vaccine to strengthen the businesses sustainably
operation waste or environment waste that has a correlation to and to enhance competitiveness and capability in the global market.
productivity performance and organizational capability. Lean
manufacturing can be implemented to improve quality management,
day-to-day management, and agile skill development to strengthen
productivity, reduce cost and time and enhance resilience in response
to changes in new technological advancement and product designs. More Information Service Info C013

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