OPM 315 Lean Concepts and Applications

5 CR

Lean production is a modern management practice applicable to both manufacturing and service industries that considers the expenditure of resources for any goal other than the creation of value for the end customer to be wasteful and thus a target for elimination. This course introduces students to the theory behind Lean including concepts such as Value Stream Mapping, Workplace Organization and Standardization, 5-S and Cellular Flow. Terminology, including Kan Ban and Total Production Maintenance, and tools such as Gap Analysis, 5 Whys, root cause analysis, Pareto charts, and cause effect diagrams are covered. The importance of workforce development and ongoing training to Lean implementation is stressed, and students will learn how to apply Lean techniques to both industrial and service operations.
Prerequisite(s): OPM 311 with a C or higher or ENGT 321 with a C or higher.