William A. Levinson – författare

On the manufacturing shop floor, the principle of "value comes from the production of parts rather than charts" crucially applies when using practical statistical process control (SPC). The production worker should need to enter only a sample’s measurements to get immediately actionable information as to whether corrective action (e.g., as defined by a control plan’s reaction plan) is necessary for an out-of-control situation, and should not have to perform any calculations, draw control charts, or use sophisticated statistical software. This book’s key benefit for readers consists of spreadsheet-deployable solutions with all the mathematical precision of a vernier along with the simplicity of a stone ax.

Traditional SPC relies on the assumption that sufficient data are available with which to estimate the process parameters and set suitable control limits. Many practical applications involve, however, short production runs for which no process history is available. There are nonetheless tested and practical control methods such as PRE-Control and short-run SPC that use the product specifications to set appropriate limits. PRE-Control relies solely on the specification limits while short-run SPC starts with the assumption that the process is capable—that is, at least a 4-sigma process, and works from there to set control limits. Cumulative Sum (CUSUM) and exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) charts also can be used for this purpose. Specialized charts can also track multiple part characteristics, and parts with different specifications, simultaneously. This is often useful, for example, where the same tool is engaged in mixed-model production.

Readers will be able to deploy practical and simple control charts for production runs for which no prior history is available and control the processes until enough data accumulate to enable the traditional methods (assuming it ever does). They will be able to track multiple product features with different specifications and also control mixed-model applications in which a tool generates very short runs of parts with different specifications. The methods will not require software beyond readily available spreadsheets, nor will they require specialized tables that are not widely available. Process owners and quality engineers will be able to perform all supporting calculations in Microsoft Excel, and without the need for advanced software.

On the manufacturing shop floor, the principle of "value comes from the production of parts rather than charts" crucially applies when using practical statistical process control (SPC). The production worker should need to enter only a sample’s measurements to get immediately actionable information as to whether corrective action (e.g., as defined by a control plan’s reaction plan) is necessary for an out-of-control situation, and should not have to perform any calculations, draw control charts, or use sophisticated statistical software. This book’s key benefit for readers consists of spreadsheet-deployable solutions with all the mathematical precision of a vernier along with the simplicity of a stone ax.

Traditional SPC relies on the assumption that sufficient data are available with which to estimate the process parameters and set suitable control limits. Many practical applications involve, however, short production runs for which no process history is available. There are nonetheless tested and practical control methods such as PRE-Control and short-run SPC that use the product specifications to set appropriate limits. PRE-Control relies solely on the specification limits while short-run SPC starts with the assumption that the process is capable—that is, at least a 4-sigma process, and works from there to set control limits. Cumulative Sum (CUSUM) and exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) charts also can be used for this purpose. Specialized charts can also track multiple part characteristics, and parts with different specifications, simultaneously. This is often useful, for example, where the same tool is engaged in mixed-model production.

Readers will be able to deploy practical and simple control charts for production runs for which no prior history is available and control the processes until enough data accumulate to enable the traditional methods (assuming it ever does). They will be able to track multiple product features with different specifications and also control mixed-model applications in which a tool generates very short runs of parts with different specifications. The methods will not require software beyond readily available spreadsheets, nor will they require specialized tables that are not widely available. Process owners and quality engineers will be able to perform all supporting calculations in Microsoft Excel, and without the need for advanced software.

This book addresses the vital importance of reshoring US manufacturing capability to ensure economic and military security and then discusses the proven methods that the United States used to gain manufacturing supremacy in the first place. The vital takeaway is: If the job can be made sufficiently productive, the per-unit labor cost ceases to be relevant which means a business can pay high wages, realize high profits, and deliver low prices simultaneously. The contest is then not between high wages and cheap labor, but between efficiency and inefficiency and, when automation is involved, machine against machine. Readers will be able to put these principles to work very quickly to achieve tangible results.

The relatively low Federal minimum wage has meanwhile become a major issue, but inflation skyrocketed in the second quarter of 2022 when higher wages, and higher demand for goods and services, were not matched with higher productivity. The book addresses the relationship between the money supply and the velocity of money to prices, wages, and productivity.

A manufacturing resurgence in the United States will not only increase our standard of living enormously but generate taxable economic activity that will help pay down rather than increase the Federal debt. Higher productivity also delivers a greater supply of goods to accompany higher wages, and thus works against inflation. This can prevent looming recessions and disruptions.

This book addresses the vital importance of reshoring US manufacturing capability to ensure economic and military security and then discusses the proven methods that the United States used to gain manufacturing supremacy in the first place. The vital takeaway is: If the job can be made sufficiently productive, the per-unit labor cost ceases to be relevant which means a business can pay high wages, realize high profits, and deliver low prices simultaneously. The contest is then not between high wages and cheap labor, but between efficiency and inefficiency and, when automation is involved, machine against machine. Readers will be able to put these principles to work very quickly to achieve tangible results.

The relatively low Federal minimum wage has meanwhile become a major issue, but inflation skyrocketed in the second quarter of 2022 when higher wages, and higher demand for goods and services, were not matched with higher productivity. The book addresses the relationship between the money supply and the velocity of money to prices, wages, and productivity.

A manufacturing resurgence in the United States will not only increase our standard of living enormously but generate taxable economic activity that will help pay down rather than increase the Federal debt. Higher productivity also delivers a greater supply of goods to accompany higher wages, and thus works against inflation. This can prevent looming recessions and disruptions.

The success of a Lean manufacturing program depends far more on organization-wide leverage of Lean manufacturing tools than it does on the tools themselves. To this the organization must add the human relations aspects that earn buy-in and engagement by all members of the workforce, to the extent that workers will react immediately and decisively to the presence of waste.

The synergy of the human and technological aspects of Lean form what Henry Ford called a universal code for the achievement of world-class results in any enterprise, and which he put into practice to deliver unprecedented bottom line results. This book expands upon and systemizes this universal code into a structure or framework that promotes organizational self-audits and continuous improvement.

The book''s first section offers a foundation of four simple but comprehensive Lean key performance indicators (KPIs): waste of the time of things (as in cycle time), waste of the time of people, waste of energy, and waste of materials. The Toyota Production System''s seven wastes are all measurable in terms of these four KPIs, which also cover the key metrics of Eliyahu Goldratt''s theory of constraints: throughput, inventory, and operating expense.

The first section then adds a proactive improvement cycle that sets out to look for trouble by isolating processes for analytical purposes and measuring and then balancing inputs and outputs to force all wastes to become visible. It is in fact technically impossible for any waste of material or energy to hide from what chemical engineers call a material and energy balance. Application of this book''s content should therefore satisfy most provisions of the ISO 14001 environmental management system standard and the new ISO 50001 energy management system standard.

The second section consists of an unofficial (and therefore customizable) standard against which the organization

Japanese manufacturers have made concepts like kaizen (continuous improvement), poka-yoke (error-proofing), and just-in-time famous. When the Japanese began to adopt these techniques from the Ford Motor Company during the early twentieth century, they knew exactly what they were getting: proven methods for mass-producing any product or delivering any service cheaply but well.

Henry Ford''s methods, however, went well beyond the synergistic and mutually supporting techniques that constitute what we now call lean manufacturing. They included the "soft sciences," the organizational psychology that makes every employee a partner in the drive for success.

In Henry Ford''s Lean Vision, William A. Levinson draws from Henry Ford''s writings, the procedures in his factories, and historical anecdotes about the birth of lean in Japan to show that the philosophy that revolutionized Japanese manufacturing was the same philosophy that grew the Ford Motor Company into a global powerhouse -- and made the United States the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth. Levinson reveals how Ford was ahead of other modern visionaries and discusses why the very ideas that made his company such a success were abandoned in his own country, and why they finally found acceptance in Japan.

Henry Ford''s Lean Vision is a hands-on reference that provides the reader with proven principles and methods that can be applied in any business or service enterprise. It covers all aspects of building and running a successful enterprise, including Ford''s principles for human relationships and the management of physical resources.

Japanese manufacturers have made concepts like kaizen (continuous improvement), poka-yoke (error-proofing), and just-in-time famous. When the Japanese began to adopt these techniques from the Ford Motor Company during the early twentieth century, they knew exactly what they were getting: proven methods for mass-producing any product or delivering any service cheaply but well.

Henry Ford''s methods, however, went well beyond the synergistic and mutually supporting techniques that constitute what we now call lean manufacturing. They included the "soft sciences," the organizational psychology that makes every employee a partner in the drive for success.

In Henry Ford''s Lean Vision, William A. Levinson draws from Henry Ford''s writings, the procedures in his factories, and historical anecdotes about the birth of lean in Japan to show that the philosophy that revolutionized Japanese manufacturing was the same philosophy that grew the Ford Motor Company into a global powerhouse -- and made the United States the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth. Levinson reveals how Ford was ahead of other modern visionaries and discusses why the very ideas that made his company such a success were abandoned in his own country, and why they finally found acceptance in Japan.

Henry Ford''s Lean Vision is a hands-on reference that provides the reader with proven principles and methods that can be applied in any business or service enterprise. It covers all aspects of building and running a successful enterprise, including Ford''s principles for human relationships and the management of physical resources.

The success of a Lean manufacturing program depends far more on organization-wide leverage of Lean manufacturing tools than it does on the tools themselves. To this the organization must add the human relations aspects that earn buy-in and engagement by all members of the workforce, to the extent that workers will react immediately and decisively to the presence of waste.

The synergy of the human and technological aspects of Lean form what Henry Ford called a universal code for the achievement of world-class results in any enterprise, and which he put into practice to deliver unprecedented bottom line results. This book expands upon and systemizes this universal code into a structure or framework that promotes organizational self-audits and continuous improvement.

The book''s first section offers a foundation of four simple but comprehensive Lean key performance indicators (KPIs): waste of the time of things (as in cycle time), waste of the time of people, waste of energy, and waste of materials. The Toyota Production System''s seven wastes are all measurable in terms of these four KPIs, which also cover the key metrics of Eliyahu Goldratt''s theory of constraints: throughput, inventory, and operating expense.

The first section then adds a proactive improvement cycle that sets out to look for trouble by isolating processes for analytical purposes and measuring and then balancing inputs and outputs to force all wastes to become visible. It is in fact technically impossible for any waste of material or energy to hide from what chemical engineers call a material and energy balance. Application of this book''s content should therefore satisfy most provisions of the ISO 14001 environmental management system standard and the new ISO 50001 energy management system standard.

The second section consists of an unofficial (and therefore customizable) standard against which the organization

This book unites the legacies of teachers such as Sun Tzu (The Art of War),Miyamoto Musashi (The Book of Five Rings), Niccol Machiavelli (The Prince and The Art of War), Carl von Clausewitz (On War), and others. It describes how their strategies and leadership principles produced military victories. Modern business examples show how these timeless principles apply to personal and organizational success. After reading the book, you''ll have a clearer understanding of how military strategy can help you become a successful business leader, manager, and tactician.

The basic principle of the Theory of Constraints (TOC) is the impossibility of running a balanced factory at 100 percent capacity. Variation in processing and material transfer times is the root cause of longer cycle times and higher inventories, which can hinder the ability to run a factory at full capacity.

In Beyond the Theory of Constraints, William Levinson challenges this basic principle by stating that variation in processing and material transfer times comes from special or assignable causes that can be eliminated through traditional quality management techniques. Even random or common-cause variation can be suppressed through lean manufacturing methods.

This compelling book:

This book will teach business executives, managers, and technical professionals, including quality and manufacturing engineers, how to identify and remove variations and maximize capacity to achieve bottom-line results.