The High Cost of Penny Production TAGS: 26 | augusta | blitz | cent | chemistry | consulting | continuous | copper | costs | currency | georgia | improvement | lean | liz hill | mint | molten | nbc | nickel | operations | penny | process | processes | production | reduce | six sigma | sports | treasury | united states | value | zinc In recent years I’ve heard rumors that the production costs and materials of a penny are greater than the value of the penny itself. In high school chemistry I recall …Continue reading →

Defects and Excess Motion at a Sandwich Shop TAGS: activity | beach | beef | blitz | boar's head | carolina | charleston | defect | deli | edisto | excess | ham | hog | lean | mayo | meat | motion | operations | peppers | piggly wiggly | process | reduce | roast | sandwich | six sigma | south | sports | tomato | transportation | turkey | waste | wild This past weekend I visited Edisto Beach in South Carolina. (If you’ve never been, it’s lovely and relatively quiet.) After hitting the driving range just off the main drag on …Continue reading →

Why Is Lean Important Today? (More Fatalistic View) TAGS: activities | change | consulting | critical | cut costs | flexibility | implement | lean | lean blitz | open mind | operations | process | reduce | save money | savings | sports | strategy | time | waste So we’re struggling through the worst economic downturn in our lifetimes, and based on the varying opinions of all the economic experts no one knows for sure when it will …Continue reading →