Dr. Doğan Hasan introduces the series of Digital Model Factory Roadmap; individual modules of workshops for Lean and Digital Transformation.
This roadmap will reinforce an organization or a individual willing to advance in the field of continuous improvement, to attain lean culture in the business, enabling the organization to get better results each time by step by step implemention.
The roadmap is a massive PCDA cycle; if applied correctly, it is impossible to get failing results.
This roadmap is the advanced version of the experiential training system that we first developed as a roadmap/curriculum for Model Factories in 2018. Based on this system, we have trained the teams of Model Factories that have never met with Lean or Digital transformation before, we have developed their competencies, and they now support the industrial organizations in their regions as experts and contribute to the country’s economy.
As a team with the ever intentional innovative mindset, we transferred this framework to the Virtual Reality Environment (VR) and eliminated the disadvantages for the Physical Environment.
In the Digital Model Factory, the concerns of Model Factories, issues of inability to operate the machines due to the lack of materials, or provide training on simple games or assembly-only due to the difficulty and costs to operate the machines are non-existent. Such issue is important since in Lean approach, the real gain is on the machinery. Improvements to the assembly are easier and require less technical depth. With simple 5S and line balancing techniques, you’ll get fast and big gains on the assembly side, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The real value is under the water. The gains of Lean concept is fully attained at the bottom of the iceberg.
Digital Model Factory is not affected by the variation in operator or trainer competencies. Participants achieve standard education and learning outcomes due to standard activities, effective experiential learning takes place as soon as possible.
Lean Approach and Industry 4.0
The first module of this education system/curriculum/roadmap is Lean Approach and Industry 4.0. The aim of this module is to ensure that the companies and teams embarking on a Lean and Digital Transformation journey meet for a common purpose, and to acquaint of the milestones in the journey and to prepare the teams for this journey. Common motive, common purpose is vital in such projects. Only if you apply this to a large extent, you can see the desired improvements. For this, the whole team does not need to be of the same view and motivation. Sufficient participation to activate the whole organism is enough to start and succeed in this journey, proven by experience.
Around 20% of companies worldwide embark on this journey of Lean Transformation, and only about 20% are successful. This is due to the inability to manage the business with systems shaped around principles. Instead of working to achieve sustainable results with sustainable actions guided by principles, a result-oriented approach dominated by individual efforts are applied in organizations. However, the effort and determination to establish the cultural structure that will implement the actions to produce the desired results with correctly designed systems determine the sustainability of these projects. Since this systematic cultural transformation approach and determination are lacking in many companies, the project is interrupted at some point and the same motivation cannot be reached again. Every quit and relapse makes the next attempt harder, because a bad experience can become a barrier, just as a person does in an effort to quit smoking. Each renunciation, each defeat complicates the next journey, the next move.
We can also compare the process of leaning to the process of getting fit in the gym. Your coach can guide you, help you where you have difficulty, but just like quitting smoking, you are the one who should have the determination to take this journey that needs to sweat on the treadmill or under the weight. This journey is not an easy one, but the reward is worthwhile. As it is not easy, setting off under the guidance of people who have not completed this journey can result in frustration. Just as it would be weird for a skinny coach to guide you how to build your body, it’s basically the same for the Lean journey.
As we have written on the wall of Bursa Model Factory, “Lean is a must before going digital!” Otherwise, if you digitize systems that are not simplified, that is, not specifically designed to produce the desired output, and that are not spared from waste, you will have wasteful digital systems and this means that you will benefit less from your investment and you actually invest in waste.
For a viable Digital Transformation, a correct analysis and design is required after the Lean systems. However, since the those providing services are mostly software-based companies, the integration of digital systems with production systems are not applied correctly. Digital systems should be viewed as production subsystems and should be designed and integrated to ensure an efficient flow.
Lean Approach and Industry 4.0 module is an introductory module that contains information blended and filtered from experience gained over and over again, designed to create a common motive and purpose, and to involve all teams in the workplace. For this reason, everyone’s participation is important to ensure this common motivation. Thus, the teams will understand the framework of roadmap and will start their journey knowing the engagement expected from them in this journey. As such, this is crucial and absolutely necessary for these transformation projects to start successfully and be sustainable.
– Dr. Doğan Hasan