Method guide · Lean manufacturing fundamentals
Lean tools: every lean manufacturing tool in one line, grouped by the problem it solves
Short answer
Lean tools are the practical methods a plant uses to find waste and remove it: 5S, value stream mapping, kanban, SMED, poka-yoke, standard work, kaizen and many more. Each one fixes a particular kind of problem, so choose the tool by the loss you see on the floor.
Lean tools, also called lean manufacturing tools, lean production tools or lean management tools, are how the lean principles get done on a shift. Some help you see the waste (gemba walks, value stream maps). Some organise and standardise the work (5S, standard work). Some create flow and pull (takt time, kanban, SMED). Some build quality in (poka-yoke, jidoka) or keep machines running (TPM, OEE). The rest solve problems and hold the gains (5 Whys, A3, kaizen, daily huddles). Below, each tool gets one line and a link to the page that covers it in full.
Last reviewed:
What are lean tools?
A lean tool is a method with a defined way of working that removes one kind of waste or exposes one kind of problem. A 5S audit, a kanban card, a changeover study and a 5 Whys sheet are all lean tools. People search for them as lean tools, lean manufacturing tools, lean production tools and lean management tools; they mean the same set.
Tools are not the same as principles. The principles say what you are aiming for. James Womack and Daniel Jones set out five in Lean Thinking (1996): specify value as the customer sees it, map the value stream, make the work flow, let the customer pull, and pursue perfection. Taiichi Ohno described the Toyota Production System as resting on two pillars, just-in-time and jidoka (automation with a human touch). The tools are how a team on the floor delivers those aims. The principles of lean covers the principles in full.
The tables below group every tool by the problem it solves, give it one line, and link the page on this site that explains it properly. If you already know your problem, go to the table of which tool for which problem further down. If you are starting from nothing, read the section on where to start first.
Tools to see the waste and the process
You cannot remove waste you have not seen. These tools get people out to the line and put the process on paper, with real times, before anyone changes anything.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| 8 wastes (muda) | The eight kinds of work that add cost but no value: defects, overproduction, waiting, unused talent, transport, inventory, motion and extra processing. | The 8 wastes with shop-floor examples |
| Muda, mura, muri | Waste, unevenness and overburden. An uneven schedule and an overloaded operator create much of the waste, so lean works on all three. | Toyota's 3M model |
| Gemba walk | Leaders go to the line, watch the work, ask open questions and leave with actions, instead of managing from reports. | What is a gemba walk |
| Waste walk | A walk with one job: note every waste along a route, using the eight wastes as the checklist. | Waste walk guide |
| Value stream mapping (VSM) | One page that draws the material and information flow for a product family, with times and stock, so the long waits stand out. | Value stream mapping guide |
| Spaghetti diagram | A line on the floor plan for every trip a person or part makes, which shows how much walking and moving the layout causes. | Spaghetti diagram template |
| Time study | Timing each work element over several cycles to get the real cycle time before you balance a line or write a standard. | Time study sheet |
| Yamazumi chart | A stacked bar per operator or station, split into work elements and set against takt, so overload and idle time are plain to see. | Yamazumi chart guide |
| SIPOC | Suppliers, inputs, process, outputs and customers on one sheet, to agree the edges of a process before improving it. | SIPOC board |
Tools to organise the workplace and make problems visible
These tools make the normal state obvious, so anything out of place, late or broken shows up without a report.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| 5S | Sort, set in order, shine, standardize, sustain: a set place for everything, so missing or abnormal items stand out. | 5S guide |
| Red tagging | The sort step in practice: tag anything whose need is unclear, move it to a holding area and decide its fate by a set date. | Red tag log |
| Visual management | Boards, colours, signs and markings that show the standard next to the current state, so anyone can tell if the area is on plan. | Visual management in lean |
| Shadow board | A board with the outline of each tool painted on it, so a missing tool is seen at a glance. | Shadow board planner |
| Floor marking | Colour-coded lines and zones for walkways, stock locations and hazards, part of setting things in order. | Floor marking colour guide |
| Andon | A cord, button or light an operator uses to call for help the moment something goes wrong, with an agreed response. | Andon guide |
| Kamishibai board | A board of audit cards: a leader pulls one card each day and checks that one standard on the floor. | Kamishibai board |
| Obeya | A big room, or a wall, where a team puts its key charts and actions in one place and holds its reviews there. | Obeya room guide |
Tools to standardise the work
A standard is the baseline every improvement is measured against. Without one, a fix on day shift is gone by night shift.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| Standard work | The current best way to do a job, built from takt time, the work sequence and the standard amount of work in process. | Standard work guide |
| Standard work combination table | Manual time, machine time and walking for one operator drawn against takt, to check the job fits the cycle. | Combination table template |
| Standard operating procedure (SOP) | The controlled document for a task: purpose, scope, steps, safety points and who approves it. | SOP meaning and format |
| Work instructions | Step by step pictures and key points for one task at one station: what the operator actually reads at the line. | Visual work instructions |
| TWI job instruction | A four-step way to teach a job: prepare the learner, present the operation, try out performance, follow up. | TWI job instruction |
| One-point lesson | A single sheet that teaches one thing, such as a check, a setting or a known defect, often written by someone on the line. | One-point lessons |
| Skills matrix | Who is trained on which job and to what level, so cover and training are planned before an absence stops a line. | Skills matrix template |
| Leader standard work | A written routine for team leaders, supervisors and managers: what to check, where and when, each day and week. | Leader standard work |
| Layered process audit (LPA) | Short, frequent checks of the same key standards by people from several levels, from team leader to plant manager. | Layered process audit guide |
Tools for flow and pull (just-in-time)
These are the just-in-time tools: set the pace by demand, move parts in small quantities, and let the next process signal what to make.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| Takt time | Available time divided by customer demand: the pace the line has to keep, and the yardstick for the other flow tools. | Takt time calculator |
| Cycle time and lead time | Cycle time is how often a part leaves a process; lead time is how long one part takes from order to shipping. | Cycle time vs lead time |
| Line balancing | Sharing the work elements across stations so each one fits under takt, with as few operators as the work needs. | How many operators a line needs |
| One-piece flow | Making and moving one part at a time between steps instead of in batches, which cuts waiting and stock. | One-piece flow |
| Cellular manufacturing | Machines set out in process order, often in a U shape, so a small team builds a product family in flow. | Cellular manufacturing |
| Just-in-time (JIT) | Make what is needed, when it is needed, in the amount needed: the result that takt, flow and pull deliver together. | Just-in-time manufacturing guide |
| Pull system | Each process makes only what the next one has used, instead of building to a forecast and pushing it on. | Pull systems |
| Kanban | The card or signal that tells the previous process what to make or move, and how many. | Kanban guide |
| Supermarket | A small, fixed store of each part between two processes, refilled by kanban as parts are taken. | Supermarket pull systems |
| FIFO lane | A marked lane with a maximum quantity between two processes; first in is first out, and a full lane stops the supplier. | FIFO lane sizing sheet |
| Heijunka | Levelling the mix and volume of production across the day so upstream processes see a steady demand. | Heijunka |
| Water spider (mizusumashi) | A material handler on a fixed, timed route who keeps stations supplied so operators never leave to fetch parts. | Water spider |
| SMED (quick changeover) | Splitting setup work that can be done while the machine runs from work that needs it stopped, then cutting both. | SMED and changeovers |
| Bottleneck analysis | Finding the one step that limits output, then protecting and improving it before anything else. | Bottleneck elimination |
| Theory of constraints | Eliyahu Goldratt's five focusing steps from The Goal: identify the constraint, exploit it, subordinate the rest to it, elevate it, repeat. | Theory of constraints |
Tools to build quality in (jidoka)
The jidoka side of lean: stop at the first defect, make the mistake hard to make, and check the process instead of sorting the output.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| Jidoka | A machine or line that stops itself at the first defect, so a person fixes the cause instead of passing bad parts on. | Jidoka guide |
| Poka-yoke | A device or design that makes a mistake impossible, or catches it the moment it is made. | Poka-yoke guide |
| Quality at source | Each operator checks their own work and the work they receive, so defects are caught at the station that made them. | Quality at source |
| FMEA | A table of how a design or process could fail, how bad each failure would be, and what prevents or detects it, done before it happens. | FMEA guide |
| Control chart (SPC) | A run chart with limits worked out from the process's own variation, which separates normal noise from a real change. | Control chart guide |
| First pass yield | The share of units that pass a step right the first time, with no rework or scrap. | Quality metrics guide |
| Total quality management (TQM) | A company-wide approach where everyone owns quality, decisions rest on data and processes improve without end. | Total quality management guide |
Tools to keep equipment running (TPM)
Flow falls apart if machines stop. These tools share the care of equipment between operators and maintenance and measure the losses.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| Total productive maintenance (TPM) | Operators and maintenance work together towards no breakdowns, no small stops and no defects, organised as eight pillars. | Total productive maintenance |
| Autonomous maintenance | Operators take on the daily cleaning, inspection, lubrication and tightening of their own machines, in seven steps. | The 7 steps of autonomous maintenance |
| CILR | Clean, inspect, lubricate, retighten: the short daily checklist at the heart of autonomous maintenance. | CILR checklists |
| Preventive maintenance | Planned servicing on a calendar or usage interval, done before parts wear out rather than after they fail. | Preventive maintenance guide |
| OEE | Availability x performance x quality: the share of planned time a machine spends making good parts at full speed. | OEE calculation guide |
| Six big losses | The six causes behind lost OEE: breakdowns, setups and adjustments, small stops, slow running, start-up rejects and production rejects. | Six big losses |
| MTBF and MTTR | Mean time between failures and mean time to repair: how often a machine breaks down and how long it takes to get it back. | MTBF and MTTR calculator |
| Reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) | Decides, one failure mode at a time, whether a condition check, a scheduled replacement, a test, a redesign or run to failure fits. | RCM guide |
| Lockout tagout (LOTO) | Isolating and locking every energy source before anyone cleans a machine, clears a jam or changes it over. | Lockout tagout guide |
Tools to solve problems at the root
When the board shows a miss, these tools find the cause and stop it coming back. Small problems need a 5 Whys at the line; big, repeat or customer problems need an A3, 8D or DMAIC. Problem-solving methods compared helps you pick.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| PDCA | Plan, do, check, act: the basic improvement loop behind kaizen, A3 and standard work. | PDCA cycle |
| PDSA | Deming's plan, do, study, act, which writes a prediction into the plan and studies the result against it. | PDSA cycle guide |
| 5 Whys | Asking why, again and again, until you reach a cause you can act on that will stop the problem returning. | The 5 Whys method |
| Fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram | Possible causes drawn as bones under headings such as man, machine, method and material, so no area is skipped. | Fishbone diagram guide |
| Pareto chart | Causes sorted from largest to smallest with a cumulative line, showing the few that make up most of the loss. | Pareto chart guide |
| Root cause analysis | Proving a cause with evidence before you fix it, using the tools in this group. | Root cause analysis guide |
| Practical problem solving | Toyota's eight steps from a vague problem to a new standard: clarify, break down, set a target, find the cause, act, check results and process, standardize. | Practical problem solving guide |
| A3 problem solving | One sheet of A3 paper that tells the whole story: background, current state, target, root cause, countermeasures and follow-up. | A3 problem solving guide |
| 8D | Eight disciplines for a customer complaint or serious defect, from forming the team and containing it to preventing a repeat. | 8D problem solving |
| CAPA | Corrective and preventive action: the record that a cause was found, removed and checked, which quality standards ask for. | CAPA guide |
| DMAIC | Define, measure, analyse, improve, control: the Six Sigma project cycle for problems that need data to crack. | DMAIC method |
Tools to improve every day and involve people
Most of the gains in a lean plant come from many small changes made by the people who do the work. These tools give that a rhythm.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| Kaizen | Small, steady improvements made by the people who do the work, on their own area, as part of the job. | Kaizen guide |
| Kaizen event | A focused team, usually for three to five days, that studies one process and changes it on the spot. | What is a kaizen event |
| Kaizen ideas and suggestion systems | A simple way for anyone to raise an idea, get a quick yes or no, and see it done. | Kaizen ideas |
| Quality circles | A small team from one area that meets regularly to pick and solve its own problems. | Quality circles |
| Yokoten | Copying a proven improvement sideways to every similar line, shift and plant. | Yokoten |
| Coaching kata | A daily routine of five questions a coach uses to build a learner's habit of working step by step towards a target. | Coaching kata |
| Daily huddle and tier meetings | Short stand-up meetings at the board, cascaded from the line to the plant manager, that review yesterday and act on today. | Tier boards and daily management |
Tools to set direction and track performance
These tools point all the daily improvement at a few goals that matter, and show each month whether the plant is on track.
| Tool | What it does, in one line | Where to learn it |
|---|---|---|
| Hoshin kanri | Policy deployment: a few breakthrough goals set at the top and turned into plans and actions at every level. | Hoshin kanri guide |
| X-matrix | The one-page hoshin plan that ties long-term goals to annual goals, top projects, measures and owners. | Filled X-matrix example |
| Catchball | Passing goals and plans up and down the levels until each level agrees what it can deliver. | Catchball |
| Bowling chart | Target against actual for each goal, month by month, coloured green or red, so a slipping goal is seen within a month. | Hoshin bowling chart |
| SQDC board | Safety, quality, delivery and cost, often with people added, on one board for the area, updated each shift. | SQCDP tier board |
| Manufacturing KPIs | The few numbers each tier reviews against a target, grouped by safety, quality, delivery, cost and people, each with a formula and an owner. | Manufacturing KPIs guide |
| Quad chart | One page in four boxes that sums up a project or idea for a review meeting. | Quad chart guide |
| Nemawashi | Talking a proposal through with everyone it affects before the decision meeting, so the decision holds. | Nemawashi |
| Lean Six Sigma | Lean's flow and waste tools used together with Six Sigma's data and variation tools. | Lean Six Sigma tools and techniques |
Which lean tool for which problem
Start from the symptom, not from the tool you like. Each row names the first tool to reach for and what usually follows once the first one has done its job.
| What you see on the floor | Start with | Then |
|---|---|---|
| The line runs fast enough but misses output | A downtime log and a Pareto chart of the stops; OEE to size the loss | SMED for changeovers, TPM for breakdowns, a water spider for material waits |
| People search for tools, parts and paperwork | 5S with red tagging | Shadow boards, floor marking, a 5S audit each week |
| The same defect keeps coming back | 5 Whys or a fishbone diagram at the line | Poka-yoke and an updated standard; CAPA or 8D if a customer saw it |
| Piles of work in process and long lead times | A value stream map | Takt time, then flow or a pull system with kanban and FIFO lanes |
| Some operators are overloaded while others wait | A time study and a yamazumi chart | Line balancing and standard work |
| Changes do not stick past one shift | Standard work and leader standard work | Layered process audits or a kamishibai board to check the standard |
| Ideas from the floor go nowhere | A suggestion system with a quick answer | Kaizen at the daily huddle and yokoten to copy what works |
| Too many projects and none finish | Hoshin kanri and an X-matrix | A bowling chart and tier meetings to review progress |
The free [lean method navigator](/tools/lean-method-navigator) asks a few questions about your problem and points to a method, and the [process improvement method selector](/templates/process-improvement-method-selector) does the same as a printable sheet.
Where to start: an order that works
No plant needs all 81 tools at once. Pick one area and one pain point, then add tools in roughly this order, because each step depends on the one before it. You cannot balance a line that has no standard, and you cannot hold a standard in an area where nobody can find anything. The 1-1-90 method and the model area guide set out how to run that first area.
An order for adding lean tools to one area
- 1Gemba walk
Go and see
- 25S
Make the area stable and visible
- 3Standard work
Write down the current best method
- 4Daily huddle
Run the day by the numbers
- 55 Whys, A3
Solve the problems the board shows
- 6Takt, SMED, kanban
Improve flow, then spread it
Then start again in the next area.
- 1
Go and see
Walk the area with a gemba walk and a waste walk. Write down what you see, not what the reports say.
- 2
Make the area stable and visible
5S the area and put up the basic visual controls, so the normal state is obvious and problems show.
- 3
Write down the current best method
Time the work, then write standard work and work instructions. This is the baseline every later change is judged against.
- 4
Run the day by the numbers
Start a short daily huddle at an SQDC board with an andon or a simple way to raise issues. Misses now become visible every shift.
- 5
Solve the problems the board shows
Use 5 Whys for small ones and an A3 for the big ones, each run as a PDCA loop, and update the standard with every fix.
- 6
Improve flow, then spread it
Set takt, balance the line, cut changeovers with SMED, connect processes with kanban. Then copy what worked to the next area with yokoten.
Worked example: three lean tools on one packing line
This example is illustrative. A packing line works one 450 minute shift (planned time, after breaks). The customer needs 900 cases a shift. When the line runs, it packs a case every 25 seconds. Last week it averaged 780 cases.
Step 1: takt time says the line is fast enough
Takt time = 450 minutes x 60 / 900 cases = 27,000 seconds / 900 = 30 seconds a case. The line's 25 second cycle is faster than takt, so speed is not the problem. Running time is. At 25 seconds a case, 780 cases took 780 x 25 = 19,500 seconds, which is 325 minutes. The other 125 minutes were stops.
Step 2: a Pareto chart of the stops picks the target
| Stop reason | Minutes | Share of stops | Cumulative share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Changeovers (2 a shift, 35 minutes each) | 70 | 56% | 56% |
| Jams at the case erector | 33 | 26.4% | 82.4% |
| Waiting for cartons and labels | 22 | 17.6% | 100% |
| Total | 125 | 100% |
To make 900 cases at 25 seconds a case the line must run 900 x 25 = 22,500 seconds, or 375 minutes, so stops must fall from 125 to 75 minutes or less. That is 50 minutes to win back.
Illustrative stop log for one shift, sorted largest first, as a Pareto chart
Example numbers- Changeovers (2 a shift, 35 minutes each): 70, 56% of the total, cumulative 56%.
- Jams at the case erector: 33, 26% of the total, cumulative 82%.
- Waiting for cartons and labels: 22, 18% of the total, cumulative 100%.
Bars for stop minutes in one shift: changeovers 70, jams at the case erector 33, waiting for cartons and labels 22.
Step 3: SMED and a water spider route win back the time
A SMED study of the changeover finds that fetching the next carton size, the label roll and the change parts happens with the line stopped. Moving that work to before the stop, and setting the guides to marked positions, takes each changeover from 35 to 15 minutes: 2 x 20 = 40 minutes saved. A water spider route that brings cartons and labels every hour cuts the material waits from 22 to 10 minutes: 12 minutes saved. Together, 52 minutes.
| Measure | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Stops | 125 minutes | 125 - 52 = 73 minutes |
| Running time | 450 - 125 = 325 minutes | 450 - 73 = 377 minutes |
| Cases at 25 seconds each | 325 x 60 / 25 = 780 | 377 x 60 / 25 = 904.8, so 904 whole cases |
| Against the 900 case demand | 120 short | 4 over |
Check it another way: one running minute packs 60 / 25 = 2.4 cases, so 52 minutes won back is 52 x 2.4 = 124.8 cases, and 780 + 124.8 = 904.8. Both routes give the same answer.
Step 4: standard work holds the gain
The new changeover is written as standard work with a changeover checklist, a kamishibai card checks it once a week, and changeover minutes go on the daily huddle board. The jams, now the biggest stop, become the next 5 Whys. That is the pattern in most plants: one tool finds the loss, one removes it, one holds it.
Lean tools and lean manufacturing software
Lean tools are methods, not software. Most of them work with paper, a whiteboard and a stopwatch, and should be learned that way first. Software earns its place when the records pile up: hundreds of 5S tags, huddle actions, A3s and kaizen ideas across shifts and sites that nobody can follow on paper.
LeanSuite is built for that part. Lean Studio gives lean teams a whiteboard with 30 ready-made boards including the fishbone, 5 Whys, A3 and 8D. Kaizen & Projects manages every improvement project in one visual hub, from a small kaizen event to a full DMAIC project. Daily Issue Management gives frontline teams one place to flag, track and resolve issues. To compare options, see the best lean manufacturing software.
Common mistakes with lean tools
- Starting with the tool instead of the problem. A plant that rolls out 5S because a competitor did, with no loss in mind, gets clean floors and no gain.
- Running every tool at once. Ten half-built tools across the plant teach people that lean is a phase. One area done properly teaches them it works.
- Skipping the standard. Without standard work, an improvement has nothing to stick to and drifts back within weeks.
- Copying the form, not the habit. A kanban card with nobody following the rules, or an A3 filled in after the fix, looks lean and changes nothing.
- Leaving leaders off the floor. Gemba walks, leader standard work and tier meetings are lean tools too, and the others fade without them.
- Treating lean tools as a cost-cutting drive. People will not show you waste if finding it costs a colleague a job.
Lean Studio
Run lean tools in LeanSuite
Lean Studio is LeanSuite's whiteboard: stickies, shapes and arrows, 15 data widgets from scorecards to kanban, and 30 ready-made lean board templates.
Go deeper
This page is the short version. These guides cover each part in full.
- Continuous Improvement Tools and TechniquesThe improvement tools seen from the continuous improvement side, with how to run each.
- Lean Principles: The 5 Principles of Lean ThinkingThe five lean principles in full, which every tool on this page serves.
- 8 Wastes Examples: Real Manufacturing CasesEach of the eight wastes with examples from real processes, so you know what the tools are aimed at.
- Lean Six Sigma Tools: 13 Common Tools and When to Use ThemHow the lean tools combine with the Six Sigma statistical tools.
- Implementing Lean Manufacturing: A Practical RoadmapA phase by phase plan for bringing the tools into a plant.
All our articles on this subject are in the lean manufacturing fundamentals topic.
Free templates and tools
- 8 wastes walkA board for a waste walk: one column per waste, with space for what you saw, where, and the action.
- Waste walk checklist (TIMWOODS)32 things to look for across the eight wastes, with where and how much, and a findings log with dot votes, owners and dates.
- Process improvement method selectorEight questions about one problem, an example rule that suggests a method and a matrix of nine methods: when each fits, the usual team and time, and the template to start with.
- Lean transformation roadmapA plant-wide lean program on one sheet: six phases with exit criteria, six workstreams by quarter over 24 months, the model line, metrics with baseline and target, cadence and risks.
- Toyota Production System (TPS) house templateThe TPS house for one plant or value stream: roof, two pillars and foundation, with what you do today, the evidence, a status and the next step for each element.
- Lean principles assessment templateThe five lean principles as 25 things you can see on one value stream, answered yes, partly or no on a walk, with a score per principle, the next step and a trend over walks.
- Lean method navigatorSix questions about one problem, then the lean method to start with, the two that follow, why each fits, five steps for Monday and what it will not solve.
- Lean maturity self-assessmentScore 27 statements across nine dimensions and get a band for each, an overall band, where to start and the guides to read.
- OEE calculatorOverall equipment effectiveness from shift time, downtime, ideal cycle time and part counts.
Doing this in LeanSuite
Lean Studio
LeanSuite's whiteboard for lean teams, with 30 ready-made boards including the fishbone, 5 Whys, A3 and 8D.
See Lean StudioKaizen & Projects
Manage every improvement project in one visual hub, from a small kaizen event to a full DMAIC project, and track each one through to results.
See Kaizen & ProjectsDaily Issue Management
Gives frontline teams one place to flag, track and resolve issues in real time, so the same fires stop coming back every week.
See Daily Issue Management
Open this board in LeanSuite
The 8 wastes walk board is one of the 30 ready-made boards in Lean Studio, LeanSuite's whiteboard. Try the interactive demo in your browser with sample data, or pilot LeanSuite on your own lines for 90 days, with the setup done by our team.
What Lean Studio isFAQ
Questions about lean tools
Lean tools are the practical methods a plant uses to find waste and remove it, such as 5S, value stream mapping, kanban, SMED, poka-yoke, standard work and kaizen. Each one deals with a particular kind of problem: seeing waste, organising the workplace, creating flow, building in quality, keeping machines running or solving problems at the root.
The tools most plants use first are the gemba walk, value stream mapping, 5S, visual management, standard work, takt time, kanban, SMED, poka-yoke, TPM with OEE, the 5 Whys, the A3 and kaizen with a daily huddle. Together they cover seeing waste, stabilising the area, flow, quality, equipment and problem solving.
James Womack and Daniel Jones set out five principles in Lean Thinking (1996): specify value from the customer's point of view, map the value stream, make the work flow, let the customer pull, and pursue perfection. Lean tools are the methods that put those principles into practice on the floor.
For daily improvement: kaizen at a daily huddle, PDCA, the 5 Whys and a suggestion system with fast answers. For bigger problems: the A3, 8D or DMAIC. To hold the gains: standard work, leader standard work and layered process audits. To spread them: yokoten.
Defects, overproduction, waiting, unused talent, transport, inventory, motion and extra processing. Taiichi Ohno named seven; unused talent was added later. Most lean tools exist to remove one or more of them, for example kanban against overproduction and SMED against waiting.
Start with one area and one problem, not a tool. Go and see with a gemba walk, stabilise the area with 5S and visual management, then write standard work. Only then add flow tools such as line balancing, SMED and kanban, because they need a stable, standard process to work on.
Lean tools remove waste and speed up flow: 5S, kanban, SMED, standard work. Six Sigma tools reduce variation using data and statistics: DMAIC, control charts, process capability, designed experiments. Many plants use both, which is what Lean Six Sigma means.
Kaizen is both a tool and the habit behind all the others. As a tool it is a small improvement made by the people who do the work, or a kaizen event that changes one process in a few days. As a habit it is the continuous improvement every other lean tool is meant to feed.
Related guides and tools
- Lean method navigator: answer a few questions and get the lean method that fits your problem
- Lean visual poster pack: the core lean tools as printable posters for the floor
- Japanese lean terms: what muda, gemba, heijunka and the other tool names mean
- Lean in 7 days: a free one-week course on the first lean tools to use
- Current-state value stream map: the picture to draw before choosing a tool
- Free e-book, readable online: Toyota's 3M model, a practical guide to muda, mura and muri
More method guides
- The 6 Ms of production
- Poka-yoke
- Model area 90-day plans
- Moving from Excel to one system
- Reducing machine downtime: a worked month
- Andon
- Cycle time vs lead time, worked through
- Root cause analysis
- How many operators a line needs
- Reducing scrap and rework: a worked month
- Unsafe acts and unsafe conditions
- Just culture
- Stop-work authority
- Material review board (MRB)
- Nonconformance and NCRs
- Problem solving methods
- Quad chart
- OEE calculation
- Quality assurance vs quality control
- SOP meaning and format
- Job hazard analysis
- Near miss reporting
- Fishbone diagram
- Pareto chart
- Histogram
- Control chart
- What is a gemba walk
- What is lead time
- What is operational excellence
- How to improve product quality
- Preventive vs predictive maintenance
- Kanban
- FMEA
- PDSA cycle
- Safety moments
- Just-in-time manufacturing
- Kaizen
- 5S
- Total quality management (TQM)
- CAPA (corrective and preventive action)
- Layered process audit (LPA)
- Lockout tagout (LOTO)
- A3 problem solving
- Preventive maintenance
- APQP
- High reliability organization (HRO)
- Manufacturing KPIs
- Quality metrics
- Practical problem solving
- CMMS
- Risk assessment
- Production efficiency
- Total productive maintenance (TPM)
- Reliability-centered maintenance (RCM)
Or browse the topics, the full library and the lean glossary.
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