Visual Workplace in Lean Manufacturing

How Visual Workplace fits into the “House of Lean”

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The lean manufacturing system is often represented as a house. The roof depicts the major objectives; the left pillar represents the tools used to speed and smooth the flow of production; and the right pillar represents the tools used to detect errors and prevent defects.

The foundational concepts, including visual workplace, establish a base of operational stability and a work culture dedicated to continuous improvement.

Visual Workplace is the mortar that holds everything together:
Visuals reinforce standards and highlight abnormalities. This is especially important during the initial phase of lean when companies are using concepts such as 5S, Standard Work, and Total Productive Maintenance to create a base of operational stability.

Visuals sustain lean improvements. A continuously improving work environment is a constantly changing one. Gains from 5S Workplace Organization, Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) and other lean activities will disappear unless the new best practices are embedded in the workplace. Visuals ensure lean improvements remain clearly visible, readily understood, and consistently adhered to long after the kaizen improvement event is over – and prevent employees from reverting to old habits.

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