INDUSTRIAL SUPERSTITIONS — PART 0
Minish Umrani (Industrial Consultant)
Mobile: 9822390363 | minish@leansigmasolutions.in
[INTRODUCTION]
A belief accepted blindly is a superstition. Countless practices that have been followed for generations were started by someone, somewhere, at some point, for some reason. But over time, people continue following them without making any changes. In fact, very often nobody even knows the original reason why the practice exists. For example: “If a cat crosses your path, the work will not get done.”
Industries are also run by people. Therefore, manufacturing industries too develop their own typical “superstitions.” I have been observing some of these beliefs in manufacturing for many years.
Industrial superstitions are not like social superstitions. They are beliefs about the way different activities in an industry should be carried out. Very often, these beliefs have no logical basis. Sometimes people even give illogical explanations for them. Such explanations are rarely convincing and can actually be harmful. Yet the belief becomes so strong that people are reluctant to challenge it.
There is a Sanskrit saying: “Gatānī gatiko lokaḥ, na lokaḥ pāramārthikaḥ” — people generally continue in the same way because that is how things have always been done. They do not have the mindset, or sometimes the courage, to change. Perhaps they are also unwilling to go to the root cause of what they see happening.
Very often, the treatment we give to a visible problem is completely different from the signal the problem is actually giving us. If we understand the signal, we can reach the root cause and solve it.
Take a simple example. If a worker appears idle on the shop floor, a supervisor immediately runs after him and asks him to do something—almost as if the worker being idle were itself a crime. The supervisor's main concern is that the owner should not see the worker doing nothing. But the worker being idle may actually be a signal.
Until such beliefs affect productivity, we may not even feel the need to question them. During my more than twenty years as an industrial consultant, I have encountered several such beliefs. In many industries, they cause substantial financial losses without anyone noticing. Some of these beliefs generate MUDAs such as overproduction, inventory and waiting. These directly affect profitability.
Muda is a Japanese term used in Lean thinking for activities or operating steps that consume resources but do not create value. Lean identifies eight major forms of waste. The three wastes mentioned above—overproduction, inventory and waiting—often create several other wastes as well.
Some examples of industrial beliefs are:
• A worker must never be idle.
• A machine must always be busy.
• WIP is always necessary.
• Start assembly even when some parts are missing; the remaining parts can be fitted later.
The examples in this series are based on situations I have personally encountered in my consulting work. I have omitted names and identities.
The purpose of this series is to understand such industrial superstitions. Through the different articles, let us examine these beliefs and their consequences. I hope you find the series useful.
.... PART 0 ENDS
Minish Umrani (Industrial Consultant)
Mobile: 9822390363 | minish@leansigmasolutions.in
[INTRODUCTION]
A belief accepted blindly is a superstition. Countless practices that have been followed for generations were started by someone, somewhere, at some point, for some reason. But over time, people continue following them without making any changes. In fact, very often nobody even knows the original reason why the practice exists. For example: “If a cat crosses your path, the work will not get done.”
Industries are also run by people. Therefore, manufacturing industries too develop their own typical “superstitions.” I have been observing some of these beliefs in manufacturing for many years.
Industrial superstitions are not like social superstitions. They are beliefs about the way different activities in an industry should be carried out. Very often, these beliefs have no logical basis. Sometimes people even give illogical explanations for them. Such explanations are rarely convincing and can actually be harmful. Yet the belief becomes so strong that people are reluctant to challenge it.
There is a Sanskrit saying: “Gatānī gatiko lokaḥ, na lokaḥ pāramārthikaḥ” — people generally continue in the same way because that is how things have always been done. They do not have the mindset, or sometimes the courage, to change. Perhaps they are also unwilling to go to the root cause of what they see happening.
Very often, the treatment we give to a visible problem is completely different from the signal the problem is actually giving us. If we understand the signal, we can reach the root cause and solve it.
Take a simple example. If a worker appears idle on the shop floor, a supervisor immediately runs after him and asks him to do something—almost as if the worker being idle were itself a crime. The supervisor's main concern is that the owner should not see the worker doing nothing. But the worker being idle may actually be a signal.
Until such beliefs affect productivity, we may not even feel the need to question them. During my more than twenty years as an industrial consultant, I have encountered several such beliefs. In many industries, they cause substantial financial losses without anyone noticing. Some of these beliefs generate MUDAs such as overproduction, inventory and waiting. These directly affect profitability.
Muda is a Japanese term used in Lean thinking for activities or operating steps that consume resources but do not create value. Lean identifies eight major forms of waste. The three wastes mentioned above—overproduction, inventory and waiting—often create several other wastes as well.
Some examples of industrial beliefs are:
• A worker must never be idle.
• A machine must always be busy.
• WIP is always necessary.
• Start assembly even when some parts are missing; the remaining parts can be fitted later.
The examples in this series are based on situations I have personally encountered in my consulting work. I have omitted names and identities.
The purpose of this series is to understand such industrial superstitions. Through the different articles, let us examine these beliefs and their consequences. I hope you find the series useful.
.... PART 0 ENDS
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