IE 589M Lean Production Principles and Practice
 

 
This course will introduce graduate and advanced undergraduate students and practicing engineers to lean production principles and practice. Industrial engineers and others responsible for continuously improving operational performance must develop systems that are fast, flexible, focused and friendly for their companies, customers and production associates. The course will provide the student with an introduction to lean production describing the background behind its development and how evaluations and assessments of production systems are performed. Lean production tools and techniques will be described and in some cases demonstrated in simulation exercises. Issues relating to employee involvement, improvement teams, training and culture will be presented. Planning for lean process implementation and the necessity of sustain improvements will be discussed. Examples of applications in manufacturing and business processes will be presented. 3 credit hours.
  
       

Prerequisite
  

Senior or graduate standing in industrial engineering or a related discipline. The course is open to graduate students, advanced undergraduates and practicing engineers who wish to learn more about lean principles and practice.

   
Conduct of Course
  

This course will be conducted with lectures, special assignments, demonstrations and student projects (for extra credit).

   
Course Topics
  
  • What is lean production? – An introduction.
  • Importance of strategy, mission, focus and systems view.
  • Lean production preparation – System assessment, process and value-stream mapping – Sources of waste.
  • Lean production tools and techniques.—Importance of focusing upon flow. Tools include:
    1. Workplace organization – 5S.
    2. Just-In-Time – One piece flow – Inventory reduction.
    3. Cellular production systems.
    4. Quick change and set-up reduction methods.
    5. Total productive maintenance.
    6. Visual management.
    7. Poka-Yoke – mistake proofing.
  • Employee involvement – Teams – Training – Supporting and encouraging involvement – Importance of culture.
  • Sustaining improvement and change.
   
Course Requirements
 

Homework: There will be assigned readings and reports during the course.

Examinations: There will be one mid-term test and one final exam.

   
Computer and Internet Requirements
  

NCSU has recommended minimum specifications for computers used for classes. Depending on your computer needs, we recommend your computer meet or exceed the following minimum specifications below.

PCs must have an Intel-compatible 800 MHz processor, 256 MB RAM, 8 GB hard drive with 1 GB free space available, 256 Color Display, CD-ROM drive, 800x600 (min.) video adapter, sound card, and speakers. The operating system should be Windows 2000 or XP. Real One Player Basic (available free online) and high speed Internet connection such as cable, DSL, T1 or LAN will be required for EOL courses.

MAC users must have a G3 processor with firewire and USB factory built-in, 256 MB RAM, 10 GB with 1GB free space available, 256 Color Display, CD-ROM drive, 800x600 (min) video adapter, sound card, and speakers. The operating system must be MacOS 10.3 (minimum) along with the above RealOne and Internet specifications above.

For more detailed information on computer specifications and recommendations, please refer to our website at: http://engineeringonline.ncsu.edu/currentstudents/computeraccess.htm
   
Textbook
  

Pascal, Dennis, Lean Production Simplified, Productivity Press, 2002, ISBN: 1-26327-262-8
     
Instructor
  

Dr. Wilbur L. Meier, Jr., Professor
Department of Industrial Engineering
North Carolina State University
328 Riddick Labs, Box 7906
Raleigh, NC 27695-7906
Phone: 919-515-1815
Fax: 919-515-5281
E-Mail: wmeier@ncsu.edu

Dr. Wilbur L. Meier, Jr., a Professor of Industrial Engineering at NC State University, has worked as a consultant and trainer in lean operations in industry, and most recently served as a Program Manager for ABB, Inc., while on leave from NC State. He has led lean manufacturing training and applications in ABB and other companies for more than eight years. At ABB and in other companies such as Black & Decker, Nokia, Eaton, Square D, Duff-Norton, Kaiser Fluid Technologies and Data General, he has had the opportunity to lead and participate in making improvements in production systems in a variety of industrial settings. He has also worked jointly with consultants from the Kaizen Institute of America.
     
Registration
  

All students must register through the Engineering Online registration site at http://www.ncsu.edu/project/engonline/index.php. You do not have to be admitted to a degree program to enroll in an online course. However, you must have completed a bachelor’s degree in engineering, computer science, or related area from an accredited institution. Full-time, employed individuals are limited to enrollment in two graduate courses for each semester. On-campus degree seeking students must have approval from their Director of Graduate Programs to register for an Engineering Online course.

Tuition and Fees per credit hour:

Residents of NC
Non-Residents of NC
Undergraduate Tuition / cr hr Fees / cr hr Tuition / cr hr Fees / cr hr
$108
$17
$216
$17
Graduate Tuition / cr hr Fees / cr hr Tuition / cr hr Fees / cr hr
$167
$22
$645
$22