Refer to the short article attached to this assignment and briefly answer the following questions about LEAN manufacturing and philosophy. Short answers are fine.

1. Why are smaller companies implementing LEAN?
2. What company created LEAN management philosophy? How long ago?
3. In LEAN facilities, why are locations where equipment is stored outlined in yellow tape?
4. The genius of LEAN manufacturing is its _________________.
5. The challenge of LEAN is its __________________.
6. Why is it important for top executives to be involved in LEAN transformations?
7. “To do lean effectively, you basically flip your company on its ear.” What is meant by this quote?
8. What Japanese term is the basis for much of LEAN manufacturing?
9. Why did Esselte replace dumpsters with smaller garbage cans?
10. Why does LEAN use a pull system, instead of a push system?
11. How does Esselte know when they need to make more “rods”?
12. List an example of what a machine operator at Esselte does when production is not immediately needed.
13. Is a conversion to LEAN ever really complete?
14. How long does it take before dramatic changes are seen, according to Peter Ward at Ohio State?
15. Why do middle managers sometimes fear the process of finding inefficiencies?