Continuous Improvement of Productivity with Applying Lean Principles in Designing and Simulating: A Case Study

Abstract

Increased productivity could be a prerequisite for every business looking to compete. The lean principle is a useful and popular method to achieve this. This paper presents a case study on the successful implementation of lean principles in the shoe manufacturing process. The goal of this article is to achieve continuous production improvement and reach line equilibrium. Limited manufacturing resources are effectively integrated with lean tools in a suggested real-time bottleneck control strategy to mitigate short-term production constraints and achieve continuous production improvements. This is done through the use of a novel 4.0 management approach that makes use of Blockchain (QR code), a real-time production reporting system (Realtime Production), and the organization and movement of goods. The case study demonstrates promising results in improving productivity in a shoe factory. This approach could also be considered for implementation in other production fields such as electronic assembly lines, garment lines, and furniture assembly lines.