| In spite of much touted benefits, lean implementation continues to be a major challenge for most manufacturing companies. Parenthetically, it is important to note that determinants of lean production are not tantamount to actual lean performance. It becomes imperative to determine the degree to which lean practices have been implemented across manufacturing industries. We posit that there is gap in the research concerning the degree to which various manufacturing companies are using lean practices. The purpose of this paper is to conduct a study that reaches across a wider spectrum of manufacturing industries and over a greater geographic expanse than had been previously accomplished. Specifically, we first develop a comprehensive lean survey instrument to conduct an empirical study across Midwest manufacturing companies in U.S. Secondly, the paper examines and analyzes responses from 140 firms and provides a discussion on the implementation status of various lean practices in these firms. |
Updated 07/09/2013