ASWO! (Ah, Shucks, We're Out!)
Lean Enterprise Inventory Strategies
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Managing inventory in a “Lean” environment, eliminating shortages and minimizing surpluses, is NOT “rocket science”. Rather, it relies on committed, everyday “blocking & tackling” by the entire organization… including Management, Forecasters, Buyer/Planners, Finance, Operations and, yes, even for HR! Mostly, it relies on Leadership with Vision about what could-be, and the energy to recruit and excite others. Is that you? Hopefully, by reading and considering this guidebook, you have found some new ideas for working smarter rather than harder: • The basics of “lean”, including the 10-steps and 7-wastes • The (probably familiar) inventory management process, but with some new inputs • The importance of clear ownerships and accountabilities • Shortage root causes from around the World • Surplus root causes from around the World (often the same as shortage causes) • Robust location systems design principles • Probability-based forecasting of RANGES • Flow-focused metrics and the hazards of many traditional performance measures • Usage-value-based A-B-C item classification and management systems • A-B-C based Cycle Counting systems for on-hand quantity records accuracy • Working successfully with 3PLs Enabling success via both people and process
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About the Book
The books that have been written about “Lean Enterprise” would constitute an imposing library by themselves, but, a few very important aspects seem to have gone unexplored, and are “conspicuous by their absence” once the “journey towards Lean” has begun. To fill these gaps, Eric Matson is writing the “Schmidt-Creek Paddler’s Guidebook Series” which will address these issues, and the first, “ASWO!” or “Ah, Shucks, We’re Out!” examines the often naughty question of how to plan and manage inventories (of all sorts) in a “Lean-Enterprise” environment.
About the Author
At the end of 2008, Eric retired from a 40+ year career at UTC/Carrier Corp., where he had served as the Principal Engineer of their Global Lean Operations Group since 1999. In this role, he worked closely with the company’s nearly 100 factories, 160+ wholesale distribution centers, and a myriad of Suppliers around the World. As a UTC-certified “Master Level Operations Transformation Leader”, he served in the “Lean Sensei” role for all aspects of Product Design, Manufacturing and Wholesale Distribution, and he inadvertently acquired a “specialist” reputation in the area of Materials and Inventory Management.